Air
Singapore’s flag carrier airline is Singapore
Airlines (SQ). Singapore is a major travel destination served
by many major international airlines. There are direct flights to
Singapore from a number of cities in the UK, USA, Europe and Canada.
Airlines flying direct from London include British Airways, Qantas
and Singapore Airlines. There are also direct flights from Singapore
to all capital cities in Southeast Asia.
Approximate
flight times:
From Singapore
 To
London is 13 hrs
To
Los Angeles is 20 hrs 25 minutes
To New
York is 21 hrs 55 minutes
To
Sydney is 9 hrs 15 minutes
International
airports
Singapore
Changi Airport (SIN) : Telephone: 6541 2222. Fax: 6542 1231.
Changi is situated 20 kilometres or 12.4 miles from
Singapore city centre. Singapore Changi Airport is among the world’s
best airport and is currently the 24th busiest following the international polls. There are 63 airlines operating out of Changi, with 3,400 flights weekly to
141 cities in 49 countries worldwide. It is the airport with the
most air links in the Asia Pacific region. The building of Terminal
3 is underway, due for completion in early 2006.
Major
airlines: Singapore
Airlines (telephone: 6223 8888; fax: 6786 6947 (reservations)
or 6223 6030 (ticketing enquiries); fax: 6786 2937; email: singapore_ticketing@singaporeair.com.sg)
is the national airline, with connections to all the major cities
in Asia and 116 destinations in 42 countries.
Its subsidiary SilkAir covers 19 destinations in
South-East Asia, and Trivandrum in India. Other major airlines include
Aeroflot, Air China, Air France, Air India, Air Madagascar, Air
Mauritius, Air New Zealand, Alitalia, All Nippon, American Airlines,
Biman Bangladesh, British Airways, China Airlines, Cathay Pacific,
Continental Airlines, Egypt Air, Emirates, Garuda, Gulf Air, Indian
Airlines, Japan Airlines, KLM, Korean Air, Lufthansa, Malaysia Airlines,
Pakistan International Airlines, Philippine Airlines, Qantas Airways,
Scandinavian Airlines, Swiss, Thai Airways, Turkish Airlines and
United Airlines.
Travellers may check in up to 48 hours prior to their departure time, at the
Singapore Airlines office at the Paragon
Shopping Centre, Orchard Road. Checking in by telephone may be available (telephone: 6243 2546) to get a confirmed
allocated seat number. Travellers must still bring their luggage
to the airport at least 60 minutes prior to departure.
Approximate
flight times to Singapore
From
London is 13 hrs
From
New York is 20 hrs 35 minutes
From
Los Angeles is 18 hrs
From
Toronto is 20 hrs
From
Sydney is 8 hrs
Airport facilities
These include gym, showers, sauna, fitness centres, putting green,
rooftop pool and Jacuzzi, hairdresser’s, laundry service,
karaoke lounge, Science Discovery Centre, mini supermarkets, children’s
play area, nursery, smoking rooms, medical centre and prayer room.
To get back to nature there are cactus, bamboo and orchid gardens
and a Koi pond. There are banks, bureaux de change, ATMs, postal
and telecommunications offices, restaurants, shops, car hire (AB
Budget Car Rental, Sintat Rent-Acar and Hertz), hotel reservation
counters, tourist information and baggage storage facilities. Transit
and transfer passengers can also take a free 2-hour guided coach
tours of Singapore.
Business
facilities
The range of services includes transit hotels and business-class
lounges. There is a business centre located in
the Terminal 2 transit hotel, level 3 (telephone: 6541 9106/7; fax:
6542 6122). Facilities include workstations with Internet connection,
photocopiers and fax. There is a 24-hour Internet centre, with a
fast modem server, opposite the Post Office.
Arrival/departure
tax
A S$21 Passenger Service Charge is added in the ticket price.
Transport
to the city
The MRT station is available at the airport and it provides
a quick and cheap way to travel around Singapore. It
runs from 5.30 am to 11.18 pm, about every 10 minutes. The fair
to the city centre is S$1.80, and it takes around 30 minutes.
Singapore
Bus Service (SBS) (telephone: 1800 287 2727) is regularly provided
to the city. Public bus stations are in Terminal 1 at Basement
2 and in Terminal 2 at basement level. Public buses
cost S$1.50 (exact fare only) and depart every 6 to 14 minutes from 6.00 am to 12 midnight.
Buses number 36 go along Orchard Road with journey time of about 50 minutes.
Drive time from the airport to Singapore centre is approximately 20 to 30 minutes by taxi.
Taxi fares cost around S$15 (plus a standard S$3
airport surcharge, S$5 weekends, as well as other surcharges –
see Taxis in Getting Around). Limousine taxi service
counters are in the arrival hall on Level 1 of both terminals. They
charge a flat rate of S$35 to anywhere in the city and operate from 6.00 am to 2.00 am
daily.
The 6-seater MaxiCab, the airport shuttle service,
operated by CityCab (telephone: 6542 8297), costs S$7 and stops at almost
every major hotel in the city centre. It departs from Terminal 1
and 2 every 30 minutes from 6.00 am to 6.00 pm and every 15 minutes from 7.00 pm to 9.00 pm.
Sea
The international port is Singapore itself, the
world’s busiest in terms of tonnage. It is served by a growing
number of international passenger cruise lines. Cruising
is one of the fastest-growing tourist development areas
in Singapore and there are plans to considerably expand the already
extensive port facilities.
There is now also a number of international operators using Singapore
as a base for cruises throughout Southeast Asia. For further details,
contact the Singapore Tourism Board (see Contacts
section).
Rail
Trains operate from Singapore to Kuala Lumpur, Johor Bahru
and Malacca (Malaysia) on a route which extends
to Bangkok (Thailand). Services
are available every day between Singapore and Kuala
Lumpur; some offer air conditioning and dining cars. There
are also overnight trains with sleepers.
Road
2 causeways link Singapore with Malaysia and the mainland of Asia: one crosses the Johor Strait while the other links Tuas in Singapore. There are bus and coach
services operating to the Malaysian town of Johor Bahru and beyond.
For required documentation, see Travel – Internal section.
Buses arriving from Malaysia and Thailand terminate at the Lavender
Street terminal. |
