HI - I'll be arriving in SIN on 29 January 2010 and will only stay two evenings.
Wonder if there will be any early activity/festivities for the New Year on February 14th? I've done some internet searching and read that there are markets / street fairs the weeks prior, but still wonder when they may actually begin and where in particular they may be.
Any information / websites would be very much appreciated. Thanks.
Hi Amr.
The Chinatown area will usually be lighted up abt a month prior to CNY. So if you're here on 29 Jan 2010, you should be able to catch it. If you go there in the evenings, it will be quite a sight to see all the roads bedecked in colourful lights, lanterns etc. Locals will throng the shops to buy stuff for CNY, eg food, clothes, household decorations and so on. Best to take public tpt there coz traffic will be horrendous.
You can check out this website www.visitsingapore/cny
it shows last year celebrations, so you'll know what to expect.
www.visitsingapore.com is also the official tourim website so you can get loads of info. on Singapore there.
If you want to get into the thick of the action, there are a few boutique hotels located in Chinatown itself. You can check out New Majestic Hotel www.newmajestichotel.com
Hope you enjoy your stay!
Thanks so much, Umisarah. Very much appreciated.
Really looking forward to my two nights in Singapore and have booked the Hotel 1929 there in Chinatown.
AMR
1929 -- good choice. very hippy and great restaurant. you will be in the centre of the festivities. Enjoy the sights!
On Chinese New Year's Day, head down to the Esplanade area for the River Hong Bao Carnival . Stage shows, bazaar, lanterns and festive events.
Thanks so much for the replies, everyone.
I wrote to the Visit Singapore website to ask about this year's festivities, and this is part of their reply:
The Chinese New Year Light-up is from 23 January to 7 March 2010.
The River Hongbao 2010 will be held from 12 to 20 February 2010. The event will be held at the Marina Bay Floating Stage.
For more information on the River Hongbao, please go to the following link:
You're lucky you won't be there on February 14th or the 3 or 4 days following. I was in Singapore on CNY a couple of years ago and it was terribly disappointing. Almost everything was closed; it was like a ghost town. There were a few restaurants open but most of them charged almost double for meals. I don't remember that anything was open in Chinatown.
I've been to Singapore about a dozen times and expected CNY there to be really exciting; I couldn't have been more wrong!! Things didn't get back to normal for about 5 days. I've been back since then and will be there again in a couple of months.....but I'll never be there during CNY again.
letsrock, i know how you feel! it's like when i visited australia with my family some years back during christmas and we ended up eating instant noodles for dinner - couldnt even get mac's! very disappointed...
just gotta remember that CNY's a time for families to get together.
from CNY eve (reunion dinner!) till at least the third day, chinese singaporeans dress up and visit/receive family and friends at their homes, or maybe they'll enjoy the holiday together at a rented chalet. everybody's out and about, and the streets can be pretty empty.
but malay and indian food stalls tend to be open, so are fast food places.
for 2010, feb 14,15,16 (sun,mon,tue) are public holidays. so unless you're invited to a chinese singaporean friend's house, that period may not be an ideal time to travel to singapore. as it is with public holidays in any country, really :D
hey. on CNY eve , head down to chinatown. as the streets will be closed for a CNY countdown.
there will be tons of street stalls that will slash prices as the hour goes by.
u can get great souvenirs from the stalls there , even CNY candies, and ornaments.
there will be a countdown in the main street of china town. i think.
but its best to soak up the fun and crowd by getting lost in the middle of china town.
enjoy ur stay here :)