The best way to get around is by mountain bike, which, coincidentally, is also about the only thing to do – the tidal mud flats are no good for swimming and the quarry lakes are off limits.

Veer right from the jetty to the Pulau Ubin information kiosk – pick up a half-decent map, sniff around the exhibition on Ubin’s culture, history and wildlife. You can also take a guided trip to the Tanjong Chek Jawa mangrove swamps in the island’s east from here. Alternatively, just trundle off on your bike and see where the road takes you. There are plenty of places to eat near the ferry terminal – complete your island adventure with some chilli crab and Tiger beer as the Bee Gees wail shamelessly from the stereo.

Sentosa Island
Address Sentosa Island Phone tel: 1800 736 8672 (info) Transport bus: service E from Orchard Rd Web www.sentosa.com.sg Keyword island, theme park/funfair, beach Half a kilometre off the Singapore coast is this unfailingly popular resort. The Brits turned the island into a military fortress in the late 1800s. In 1967 it was returned to the government who developed it into a holiday resort. Like its imported sand and piped tin-drum renditions of Summer Holiday, Sentosa is almost entirely synthetic, but kids love the flashy rides and there are some substantial museums and activities for adults to chew on.

There’s easily enough here for a full day’s entertainment; if that’s not enough you can stay overnight. The improving crop of restaurants and bars will keep you fed and watered.

Most attractions cost extra, which really adds up if you want to see them all. Ticket packages are a solid option, ranging from adult/child around S$26 /17.90 to around S$33 /22.50. The Sentosa Island Guide brochure from STB branches has all the details. Free stuff on the island includes the buses, beaches, and the nightly musical fountain and laser show.

Sri Mariamman Temple
Address 244 South Bridge Rd, Chinatown Phone tel: 622 34064 (info) Transport underground rail: Chinatown Web www.visitsingapore.com Keyword religious/spiritual Paradoxically in the middle of Chinatown, Sri Mariamman is the oldest Hindu temple in Singapore, originally built in 1823, then rebuilt in 1843. You can’t miss the incredible technicolour 1930s gopuram (tower) above the entrance, key to the temple’s South-Indian Dravidian style. Sacred cow sculptures graze the boundary walls, while the gopuram is covered in over-the-top images of Brahma the creator, Vishnu the preserver and Shiva the destroyer.

In October each year the temple hosts the Thimithi Festival – devotees queue along South Bridge Rd to hot-foot it over burning coals.

The National University of Singapore Museums
Address 50 Kent Ridge Cres, Singapore Phone tel: 651 64617 (info) Transport bus: 95 from Buona Vista MRT Web www.nus.edu.sg/museums Keyword art gallery The National University of Singapore Museums houses an impressive collection. On the ground floor is the Lee Kong Chian Art Museum with exhibitions spanning 7000 years of Chinese art. The South & Southeast Asian Gallery features art, textiles and sculptures from across the region. Upstairs, the Ng Eng Teng Gallery displays works by Ng Eng Teng, one of Singapore’s foremost artists specialising in imaginative, sometimes surreal, bodily depictions.

Be sure to Visit the Raffles Museum of Biodiversity Research while you’re on campus.

Underwater World
Address 80 Siloso Road, Sentosa Island Phone tel: 627 50030 (info) Web www.underwaterworld.com.sg Keyword kids, zoo Sentosa’s saving