Weekend Getaways from Singapore
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Ferry Hops, Short Flights and One Causeway
Here is the list of 12 Weekend Getaways from Singapore
1. Bali, Indonesia
Known For : Tanah Lot Uluwatu Bali Swing
About two hours forty in the air, which makes Bali the furthest thing on this list that still works over three days rather than four. Land at Denpasar, pick one area and stay in it: Seminyak or Canggu for beach and food, Ubud for the interior, Uluwatu for the cliffs. Trying to do all three in a weekend means spending it in traffic, which is the standard Bali mistake. Flights out of Changi run through the day, so a Friday evening departure is realistic.
Best Time: April to October
2. Batam, Indonesia
Known For : Barelang Bridge Nagoya Hill Shopping Mall Water Sports in Batam
An hour on the ferry from HarbourFront, which makes Batam the shortest genuine getaway from Singapore and the reason it fills up every Saturday. It is used for cheap spa packages, seafood at Golden Prawn, and golf, rather than for sightseeing, and being honest about that is the point. Nagoya Hill and Batam Centre are where the shops and hotels are. Bring the ferry return booked, because Sunday evening sailings sell out.
Best Time: May to September.
3. Langkawi, Malaysia
Known For : Langkawi Sky Bridge Langkawi Cable Car Seven Wells Waterfalls
An hour and twenty in the air to an island in the Andaman Sea with a cable car, a mangrove river system and a duty free status that explains half the shopping. Pantai Cenang is the busy strip and the north coast is where the quiet hotels are. The geopark boat trips through the mangroves are the thing to book. Two nights is right; the island is small enough that a third day starts to repeat itself.
Best Time: November to March
4. Phuket, Thailand
Known For : Big Buddha Patong Beach Phuket Old Town
Under two hours in the air, and the trick with Phuket is choosing a coast. Kata and Karon for swimmable beach without the Patong noise, Patong if you want the noise, and Old Phuket Town for the Sino Portuguese shophouses that most visitors never see. Boat trips to Phang Nga Bay run daily. In a weekend, pick the beach or pick the islands, not both, and check which monsoon season you are travelling in.
Best Time: November to April
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5. Hong Kong
Known For : Hong Kong Disneyland Ngong Ping 360 Cable Car Tian Tan Buddha
Four hours, which makes this the one entry on the list that really wants a long weekend rather than a normal one. What you get for the flight is a city that works at a different speed: the Peak and the Star Ferry on the first morning, then Sheung Wan, Tai Kwun and the food. Lantau and the outlying islands are the half day escape. It is compact and the MTR makes it faster to cover than its size suggests.
Best Time: October to December (Autumn)
6. Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
Known For : Petronas Twin Towers Batu Caves KL Tower
An hour in the air, or a long coach ride, and Kuala Lumpur is the easiest city break from Singapore. The Petronas Towers and the Batu Caves are the two obvious ones; Chinatown, Kampung Baru and the colonial core around Merdeka Square are where the city is more interesting. Food is the real reason to go and it is cheaper than Singapore for the same thing. Two nights covers the centre comfortably.
Best Time: June to August, December to February
7. Bintan, Indonesia
An hour on the ferry to Bandar Bentan Telani, and Bintan is Batam's quieter counterpart: the north coast is a strip of resorts on white sand, built for exactly this trip. The rest of the island is fishing villages and Tanjung Pinang, the old town, which is worth the drive if you want more than a pool. Most people book a resort and stay in it, and that is a reasonable way to spend two days. Ferries are the constraint, so book both legs.
Best Time: March to October
8. Johor Bahru, Malaysia
Known For : Legoland Malaysia Angry Birds Activity Park Johor Zoo
The only entry you can reach on foot. Johor Bahru is across the causeway, minutes away in theory and often an hour or more in practice once the queues are counted, so cross very early or very late. It is used for cheap food, dentists, groceries and Legoland Malaysia, and increasingly for a weekend in Desaru further east. Take the KTM shuttle from Woodlands if you can get a ticket; it skips the road jam entirely.
Best Time: April to June
9. Melaka, Malaysia
Known For : The Shore Sky Tower A'Famosa Melaka Sultanate Palace Museum
Three and a half to four hours by coach, no flight involved, which makes Melaka the classic Singapore road weekend. The old town is a UNESCO World Heritage Site along with Georgetown, inscribed together in 2008, and the Dutch square, Jonker Street and the Baba Nyonya houses are all inside a walkable few blocks. Two nights is plenty. Go on a Friday or Saturday for the Jonker Street night market.
Best Time: April to May; October
10. Georgetown, Penang
Known For : Penang Hill Kek Lok Si Temple Cheong Fatt Tze Mansion
An hour and twenty in the air to the other half of the 2008 UNESCO inscription, and the food capital of Malaysia by most local reckoning. Georgetown's draw is the shophouse streets, the clan jetties, the street art and hawker centres like Chulia Street and New Lane. Penang Hill and the Kek Lok Si temple are the two trips out of town. Two nights, and plan it around eating rather than around sights.
Best Time: December - March
11. Krabi, Thailand
Known For : Ao Nang Beach Railay Beach Phi Phi Islands
Two hours in the air, and Krabi is the alternative to Phuket for people who want limestone rather than nightlife. Ao Nang is the base, Railay is the cliff-backed beach you reach only by boat, and the four island and Hong Island trips are the standard days out. Tonsai and Railay are climbing country. It is quieter than Phuket and the same monsoon calendar applies, so check the season before booking.
Best Time: November to April
12. Bangkok, Thailand
Known For : Grand Palace Wat Pho Bangkok Wat Arun
Two hours twenty, and Bangkok is the city break that gives the most per hour of flight time. The Grand Palace and Wat Pho on one morning, Chatuchak if it is a weekend, and the rest of the time eating. The BTS and the river boats make the centre easy; the traffic makes anything else slow. Two nights is enough for a first visit and it is the cheapest of the flight options on this list for what you get.
Best Time: November to February
Singapore's advantage for a short trip is not that it has cheap flights, it is geography. Two of these twelve are ferry rides of about an hour, one is a land crossing you can walk, and four more are inside a two hour flight, which is the difference between a weekend that works and a weekend spent in transit. Ordered by travel time from Singapore, the list runs Batam and Bintan by ferry at roughly an hour; Johor Bahru across the causeway; Kuala Lumpur at an hour in the air; Langkawi and Georgetown at about an hour and twenty; Phuket just under two hours; Krabi at two; Bangkok at two hours twenty; Bali at two hours forty; and Hong Kong at four, which is the only one that really needs a long weekend. Melaka is the outlier because it is a coach ride rather than a flight, three and a half to four hours each way, and that is exactly why it is the standard road trip out of Singapore. Two of the twelve, Melaka and Georgetown, share a single UNESCO World Heritage inscription made in 2008.
This post was published by Muhammed Salih
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FAQs on Weekend Getaways from Singapore
What is the best weekend getaway from Singapore?
For a true two night weekend, Batam and Bintan by ferry and Johor Bahru across the causeway are the shortest, and Kuala Lumpur at about an hour in the air is the easiest city. If you want a beach and can leave on Friday evening, Langkawi, Phuket and Krabi all work. Bali and Hong Kong are better with a third night, and Hong Kong in particular is a long weekend rather than a weekend.
How far in advance should I book?
Weekend departures out of Changi and the Batam and Bintan ferries are the two things that sell out, and Sunday evening return sailings from the Indonesian islands are the worst of it. Book both ferry legs rather than just the outbound. For flights, a Friday evening out and a Sunday evening back is the most expensive combination on any route here, so shifting either leg by a few hours usually helps.
Which of these need a flight?
Nine of the twelve. Batam and Bintan are ferries from HarbourFront and Tanah Merah, about an hour each. Johor Bahru is a land crossing at the causeway or the Second Link. Melaka is a coach, three and a half to four hours. Everything else is a flight from Changi, from an hour to Kuala Lumpur up to four hours to Hong Kong.
Do I need a visa for these destinations?
Entry requirements depend on your nationality and they change, so this page does not state them. Check the official immigration source for the country you are going to, and do it close to the trip rather than at the planning stage. Note that several of these destinations require onward or return travel documentation, and that passport validity rules catch people out more often than visas do.
Which is best for a beach weekend?
Langkawi and Krabi if you want the beach itself to be the point, Phuket if you want the beach plus nightlife and boat trips, and Bintan if you want a resort you never leave. Bali is the best of them but also the furthest. All of the Thai and Malaysian options sit under a monsoon calendar, so check which coast is in season for the month you are travelling.
Which is best without flying?
Johor Bahru and Melaka. Johor Bahru is minutes across the causeway in theory, though queues can make it an hour or more, and the KTM shuttle from Woodlands avoids the road entirely. Melaka is three and a half to four hours by coach and is a genuine two night destination, with a UNESCO listed old town that is small enough to walk. Both are cheaper than any flight option here.
