The Stories and Histories Across the Singapore River

(50 reviews)

Singapore audio tour: The Stories and Histories Across the Singapore River

This is a 1.8mi walking tour.

It takes an average of 90 mins to complete.

Singapore

$6.99

Access all 45 locations offline with the VoiceMap app

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About the Tour

Singapore's colonial buildings hide unexpected pasts, from convents that became dining halls to police stations with haunted reputations. On this walking tour, you'll see how repurposed institutions reveal Singapore's layered heritage. You'll also hear about the raunchy nightlife and paranormal lore tucked beneath its polished surface.

The tour starts at the fountain courtyard between McDonald's and Starbucks in Bugis, once home to bloodthirsty pirates who gave the Boogey Man his name. You'll pass Bugis Street, infamous in the 1950s for its transvestite shows and gambling dens, then wind past the National Library and St Joseph's Church toward Raffles Hotel, birthplace of the Singapore Sling. The tour ends at the Singapore River near Clarke Quay, today's nightlife district.

Along the way, you'll learn how CHIJMES went from convent and orphanage to a hub for drinks and dining, and how the Old Hill Street Police Station's rainbow-colored windows supposedly counter the bad energy left by its wartime use as a Japanese interrogation center. You'll also climb Fort Canning Hill, once a forbidden royal burial ground, where a British surrender to Japan changed the course of World War II.

On this 90-minute tour, you'll have a chance to:

Explore the Singapore Art Museum, once a boys' school founded by the same priest behind CHIJMES
Visit the Cathedral of the Good Shepherd, Singapore's oldest Catholic church, established in 1832
Wander through the National Museum of Singapore, a rare building still standing in its original form
Walk through the Gothic Gate at Fort Canning Green, guarding a cemetery dating back to 1846
See the archaeological dig exhibition revealing artefacts from Singapore's 14th century royal past
Pass Singapore Management University's lawns, where students unwind before hitting Clarke Quay's nightlife

By the time you reach the Singapore River, you'll understand exactly why this compact island-city layers its past so tightly beneath its present.

Tour Producer

Min Yi

1 tour

A serial walker who's lived in Istanbul, Boston, and Sydney and who's walked all over from Iceland to Vietnam, Bosnia to Canada. Born in late April of 1993, to be curious about humans in the surroundings we make for ourselves - and to share these observations with you.

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Preview Location

Location 41

Old Hill Street Police Station

Before we go inside, stop here at the entrance as I tell you more about the Old Hill Street Police Station.

This building may look new with its shiny glass ceiling and polished floors, but it’s history is long and supposedly haunted. Its official address is 140 Old Hill St... Before we go inside, stop here at the entrance as I tell you more about the Old Hill Street Police Station.

This building may look new with its shiny glass ceiling and polished floors, but it’s history is long and supposedly haunted. Its official address is 140 Old Hill Street Police Station. I know this especially well because I’ve done an internship on the fourth floor, and I’ve gone for evening runs in the area, returning to an emptied office and a shower room that’s all mine...or is it?

Here’s a bit of a background. In the early ‘30s, the site was the biggest police station in Singapore. Police officers and the caretaker family would work and live here.

When World War II reached Singapore, this building was taken by the Japanese as an interrogation center. We all know what that means. Many were captured, tortured, and even killed on these grounds. When that was over, the police officers returned. Years later, in the 80s, renovations turned the old police station into a government office building, which it has been ever since.

Let's go inside now. I'll tell you a bit more as we enter.

I recommend you have a look around in the atrium. It’s the area that used to be the police parade ground. At regular intervals, you’ll see hanging decorative banners with the characteristic circles, dots, and lines of Singaporean artist Sun Yu-li.

If you remember, take a closer look at the bottom of each banner. At the bottom of all eight banners is an arrangement of horizontal lines. Eight is an auspicious number in the Chinese culture, but it’s also the number of symbols that form the Bagua in Taoist cosmology. The traditional Bagua has the yin yang circle in the middle, with the eight trigrams surrounding it in an octagon. In this building, the eight trigrams are scattered all around the atrium, supposedly to counter the bad energy.

Take your time to explore. You're not scared of ghosts are you? Don't worry. As my grandmother would say, If you don’t bother them, they won’t bother you.

When you're ready, head out the front entrance, on the other side of the building. I'll meet you there.

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Major Landmarks

Bugis Street
Church of St Joseph's (Victoria Street)
Raffles Hotel
CHIJMES
Cathedral of the Good Shepherd
SAM at Bras Basah (SJI)
National Museum of Singapore
Fort Canning Park
Ministry of Digital Development and Information (MDDI)
Clarke Quay

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Getting There

Route Overview

VoiceMap tours follow a route from a set starting point. It’s how we give turn-by-turn directions and tell a story greater than the sum of its parts.

Start location
151-152 Rochor Rd, Singapore 188426
Total distance

3km
Final location
36 Carpenter St, #01-01, Singapore 059915
Distance back to start location

1km

Directions to Starting Point

At Bugis MRT Station (East-West Line, station 12/Downtown Line, station 14), use Exit C to enter Bugis Junction Mall. Once inside the mall, walk to the other end of the floor and take the escalator up. You’ll see a McDonald’s straightaway. The fountain on the left side of McDonald’s is where we begin.

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Tips

Places to stop along the way

Bugis Street, St. Joseph's Church, Raffles Hotel, CHIJMES, Cathedral of the Good Shepard, Singapore Art Museum, National Museum of Singapore, Fort Canning Park, Gothic Gates, Spice Garden, Old Hill Street Police Station, Clarke Quay

Best time of day

Note that one of our destinations, the National Museum of Singapore, opens its doors from 10am - 5.30pm daily.

Precautions

An umbrella and a bottle of water will serve you very well on our 3km walk together.

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“This app has become my go-to app for audio tours. I pretty much use it for every trip and it works wonderfully. I highly recommend VoiceMap for travelers to truly experience cities.”

App Store Review

“Great app. walk around at your own pace, stop where you want, move on or speed up when you want. Read the script before you go or during the commentary, speed it up or replay it. Repeat the tour whenever you like.”