Gillman Barracks to VivoCity: A Singapore Cycling Tour

Singapore packs a remarkable amount of variety into a small island, and this cycling route proves it. On this self-guided cycling tour, you'll trace a path from leafy canal-side paths to a former British military island, passing WWII history, colonial architecture, and a stretch of mangrove boardwalk along the way. You'll also discover how Singapore has transformed its landscapes: from flood-prone jungle to one of Southeast Asia's most distinctive urban environments.

The tour starts at the Alexandra Canal, where a bike path winds along a concrete waterway that was built to control monsoon flooding. From here, you'll cycle along Alexandra Road, passing the grounds of Alexandra Hospital, the site of a brutal massacre during the Japanese invasion of 1942, and the last remaining building of the original Anchor Beer brewery complex. Further along, the Interlace Condominium, with its stacked hexagonal blocks designed by Ole Scheeren, comes into view before the route drops down through HortPark toward a boardwalk threading through a coastal mangrove.

Crossing into Keppel Bay, you'll ride past the six curving glass towers of Reflections at Keppel Bay, designed by Daniel Libeskind, before heading out to Sentosa Island. Once known as Pulau Blakang Mati, island behind death, Sentosa served as Singapore's southern coastal defence and later a POW camp. Today it's home to beaches, peacocks, and remnants of its military past. The tour ends at VivoCity, Singapore's largest mall, designed by Japanese architect Toyo Ito and opened in 2006.

On this 150-minute tour, you'll have a chance to:

• Spot mudskippers and monitor lizards from the Bukit Chermin mangrove boardwalk
• Ride past Gillman Barracks, a 1930s British army base now home to contemporary art galleries
• See the Berlayer Point Lighthouse and a 19th-century coastal artillery pillbox at Labrador Park
• Walk the steep jungle path beneath the abandoned track of Sentosa's original 1982 monorail
• Detour to Fort Siloso's Skywalk, an 11-storey treetop walkway 181 metres long
• Stop for Singaporean-flavoured ice cream at Creamier Handcrafted inside Gillman Barracks

Bring sunscreen, a full water bottle, and a working bell. This route rewards those who take their time.