Nature Sightseeing in Singapore

Singapore may be a concrete jungle, but it’s also known for being a Garden City, and tremendous effort has been put in to preserve and create nature spots on this sunny little island. This little island indeed lives up to its name of being a green city, and we’ve put together a list of incredibly well-preserved natured spots for you to enjoy here. Be it conquering the highest hill in Singapore, revisiting historically-rich landmarks, having a pleasant stroll or just having a picnic amidst rare species of flora and fauna, do something different and feast your eyes on the lush side of Singapore today!

Singapore Botanical Gardens

Boasting more than 150 years of history, the Singapore Botanical Gardens (SBG) is home to gardens, herbs, flowers, rare plants and more.

Developed along a 3-Core Concept, the vast 74-hectare garden features the Tanglin, Central, and Bukit Timah Cores. Each core houses its own range of attractions. The Tanglin Core focuses on heritage, while the Central Core focuses on tourists. Lastly, the Bukit Timah Core focuses on education and recreation.

The Singapore Botanical Gardens conducts guided tours every Saturday, where visitors get to visit and learn more about the Healing Garden, Rainforest, and National Orchid Garden. With more than 1,000 species and 2,000 hybrids on display, the Orchid Garden is no doubt one of the most colourful highlights of SBG! History buffs will love the Heritage Tour where they will learn about grand old trees that have shaped the Gardens from way back in 1859. Check out the tour schedule here.

Southern Ridges
Take a break from the hustle and bustle of city life with a great outdoor experience at the Southern Ridges. Ideal for people of varying interests, the Southern Ridges provide platforms for people who enjoy walking, photography, history, bird-watching, and social gatherings. Comprising of 10 km of green open places that connect Mount Faber Park, Telok Blangah Hill Park, HortPark, Kent Ridge Park and Labrador Nature Reserve, this nature trail will have you spoilt for choice with everything Mother Nature has to offer.

The highlight of the Southern Ridges is Henderson Bridge. The 274 metre-long pedestrian bridge spans from Mount Faber Park to Telok Blangah Hill Park. Standing at 36 metres at its highest point, Henderson Waves is the highest pedestrian bridge in Singapore. Sporting a distinctive architecture featuring artistic wave-like structure that consists of curved “ribs” that doubles up as shelter from the sun or rain, Henderson Waves offers panoramic views of the city and harbour. The bridge becomes a different place altogether at night when LED lights along the bridge light up.

The other trails along the Southern Ridges are:
- Marang Trail
- Faber Walk
- Hilltop Walk
- Forest Walk
- Alexandra Arch
- Floral Walk and HortPark
- Canopy Walk

TreeTop Walk (MacRitchie Reservoir Park)
Ever wanted to go for a walk above a forest? Here’s your chance.

The MacRitchie Reservoir, besides being a catchment area for rainwater, houses trekking routes and nature trails catering to varying preferences and abilities.

One of the most popular nature trails in this sprawling nature reserve is the TreeTop Walk. The TreeTop walk is a suspension bridge that connects the two highest points (Bukit Peirce and Bukit Kalang) in McRitchie Reservoir. You can get a bird’s eye view of lush forest greenery from a towering height of 25 metres. Trails are made up of uneven dirt tracks, wooden boardwalks, stairs and paved tracks, so make sure you have on some sturdy shoes!

There are two routes by which you can get to the TreeTop Walk, and it is advisable to set aside 3 to 5 hours for a round trip. If you’re walking from the MacRitchie Reservoir Park, the 4.5 km walk to the TreeTop Walk will take you about 1.5 to 2 hours, while a shorter alternative (2.5 km) from Venus Drive will take about 45 minutes to 1 hour to complete.

Reaching there is no mean feat, but worth every little bit of effort when you reach the top and take in breathtaking sights of the magnificent forest canopy from 25 metres above the forest floor!

Bukit Timah Nature Reserve
If you’re up for the challenge of scaling a 163.3 metre high hill while running through a rainforest, here’s your chance. Best known for being Singapore’s tallest hill, the Bukit Timah Nature Reserve is where you can experience nature in its pristine form. This area, protected as part of the spectrum of representative ecosystems in ASEAN, allows you to see animals, plants, and insects in their natural habitats. Look out for trees, plants, rainforest organisms, insects, birds and animals that are usually absent in cities as you trek to the summit!