Shop Till You Drop

Shopaholics will find Singapore a dream come true with conjoined retail belts within the city. It doesn’t matter what your shopping preference is: couture labels, the latest teenage street fashion, high-tech gadgets or sporting equipment. With an incredible diversity in the retail landscape catering to specific segments of shoppers, no one is left out. Entertainment and dining options are aplenty so happy shoppers turn into satisfied diners after a fulfilling shopping trip.

Orchard Road

Venture into the very heart of Singapore shopping when you step onto Orchard Road.  Lined with rows of shopping malls, this is where you literally shop till you drop. Put some thought into which shopping route to take or one day simply isn’t sufficient to sweep through this major shopping belt.

Soak in the atmosphere in one of Singapore’s famous shopping icon Tangs. Founded in 1932 and recently refurnished, it carries exclusive and specialised merchandise alongside international fashion labels. Saunter across the road to Ngee Ann City where Takashimaya (the giant Japanese department store), Kinokuniya's largest bookstore in Southeast Asia and more than 100 speciality stores are located. Internationally renowned labels such as Tiffany, Chanel, Christian Dior and Louis Vuitton have also set up shop within.

For aficionados of designer labels, the choice destinations are Palais Renaissance, Paragon or DFS Galleria Scottswalk. Palais Renaissance is occupied by designer boutiques including DKNY, Gianni Versace, Prada, The Link and Jim Thompson. Paragon takes pride in its display of Gucci, Bvlgari, Bottega Venetta, Ferragamo as well as the more youthful G Star Raw, Diesel and Armani Exchange. If you’d like to get duty-free savings when you make luxury purchases like these, visit DFS Galleria Scottswalk, which offers a selection of the world’s leading luxury brands with exclusive DFS-only items.  

After you’ve picked out some designer items for family and friends, you might want to pick up on the fashion vibe of youths in Singapore. There’s no better place to do this than in The Heeren Shops and Far East Plaza. A mere five-minute walk from Ngee Ann City, the former contains Southeast Asia’s largest music superstore HMV and the Annex, a double-storey offering of street and vintage fashion. At the latter, the crowd-pulling magnet is a dazzling array of shops selling shoes, accessories, chic fashion labels and services of professional hairdressers and tattooists.
 

Waterfront Shopping

1) Also located in the city, the shopping belt near Marina Square encompasses several huge interconnected malls: Raffles City Shopping Mall, CityLink Mall, Suntec City Mall, Millenia Walk and Marina Square Shopping Mall. Travellers need only take the MRT train to City Hall station, after which going on foot or taking the free shuttle bus service is the best mode of transport to visit all five malls.  

Raffles City Shopping Mall is situated directly above the City Hall MRT station and is filled with four floors of shopping pleasure. Walk through the air-conditioned subterranean CityLink Mall to get to Suntec City Mall and Marina Square Shopping Mall. Both are mega complexes lined with more than 600 retail outlets altogether, including many of the top designers of Singapore and food and beverage venues. Entertainment options include cineplexes, bowling and karaoke singing. Families with children may want to explore the top floor of Suntec City, a little enclave dedicated to children’s apparel, toys and other products. Suntec City is also niftily connected to Millenia Walk through another connecting passageway. It serves a good mix of more than 190 shops including designer fashion stores and specialty shops such as the Celia Loe boutique, Cortina E'space watch boutique, and the Harvey Norman electrical, electronic and furniture superstore.

2) Exit from City Hall MRT station towards the direction of St Andrew’s Cathedral, if you wish to stop by well-known Funan DigitalLife Mall for the latest IT products. A cash refund counter provides instant tax refunds for visitors. A short ten-minute walk from here brings you to Central on Magazine Road, a newly opened mall with great views of Singapore River. Have a penchant for Japanese food? Central has a floor dedicated to Japanese eateries.

3) From City Hall Station, visitors can take a train to Dhoby Ghaut and ride the North-East bound train towards HarbourFront station. Although located outside the city, VivoCity is Singapore’s largest shopping complex that is also family-friendly. Its two floors are designed to resemble a cruise ship: the top floor is partially unsheltered, a characteristic similar to the open concept found on cruise decks. Children will love playing in the shallow water and playgrounds here.

Bugis Street

This stretch of retail space promises visitors an unusual experience, with
Parco Bugis Junction on one side of the road and Bugis Street on the other. Air-conditioned shopping and the bustling bazaar of over 600 stalls simultaneously enthrall shoppers. If you work your way through Bugis Street and walk towards Sim Lim Square on Rochor Canal Road, you will be confronted by a six-storey electronics hub selling everything you need in the field of electronic or digital technology. Sim Lim Square is packed with shops vying to offer you the most competitive prices on the latest products.

Heartlands

Ride on the extremely accessible MRT system along the North-South line and you will find a few stations that hold incredible potential. Novena, Toa Payoh and Ang Mo Kio are only a few stops away from each other. Toa Payoh Hub and Ang Mo Kio Hub house an eclectic mix of local stores that may steal more than a penny from you with affordable products. If you happen to have a fetish for all things Korean, Novena’s Square Two has a few tenants devoted to Korean garments and its culture. Sports enthusiasts will be delighted to know that Velocity@Novena Square, Singapore’s first sports and active lifestyle mall is also located here.
Conversely, you might like to take the train and travel to Tampines Mall, a leading suburban mall located in the East.