Pulau Ubin: A Day in the Last Kampong

A 10-minute bumboat ride from Changi Point lands you on an island of wooden houses, wild boar and hornbills, with no traffic lights and not much hurry. Pulau Ubin is one of Singapore's last kampongs, the old villages of wooden houses, and the one decision you need to make is which way to ride from the jetty. Chek Jawa lies to the east and Ketam to the west. We'd go east, with a hired bike and a tide table.

The bumboat from Changi Point

Start at Changi Point Ferry Terminal, 51 Lorong Bekukong. Buses 2, 29, 59 and 109 all run to Changi Village, and from Tanah Merah MRT (EW4) you want the 2. Make sure you're heading for Changi Point and not Tanah Merah Ferry Terminal, which is where the boats leave for Bintan. The bumboats, small wooden motorboats run by private operators, usually go on demand from 6am to 7pm and leave once 12 passengers are aboard.

The fare is typically S$4 a person each way, plus S$2 if you bring a bike, and the crossing takes 10 minutes. Operators will go with fewer people for a higher fare, so agree the price before you sit down. Bring all the cash you'll need for the day, because there's no ATM on the island and no Grab either. On the way back, if the Ubin jetty is empty, call NParks on 1800-471-7300.

Kayak or village bike

If you'd rather be on the water, the sunrise mangrove kayak meets at Changi Point at 6.15am and has you paddling the mangroves while the water is still glassy. It uses tandem kayaks, needs no experience and ends with prata, a flaky griddled flatbread, in the village. Look out for hornbills, and otters if the tide and your luck agree. If you'd like someone else to plan the whole island, the Ubin guided tour is the hosted version.

Everyone else should eat first. Breakfast is at the village kopitiam, an old-style coffee shop, with prata and teh tarik, the frothy pulled milk tea. Food gets scarce once you leave the village, so buy lunch here too. Bike rental at the jetty starts at about S$8, with no booking. The bikes are basic, so pay a little more for gears if Chek Jawa is the plan.

Before you ride off, have a look around. House 1, the restored colonial bungalow near the jetty, is where NParks introduces the kampong, with a porch and exhibitions when they're on. The wooden houses along the jetty road are people's homes, so wave and keep to the road. If someone in your group can't manage a long ride, the Sensory Trail is a signed 20-minute loop near the jetty, with fruit trees and a boardwalk.

Pack as you would for a hike with no shops: water, cash, DEET and a hat. Past the village there's no 7-Eleven, and the provision shop may or may not have the water you forgot. If the sky goes black, turn around, because lightning over the mangroves is dangerous. The village has a clinic but no A&E. NParks has reported a crocodile at Sungei Puaka, so take care at the water's edge. If you see one, don't approach, provoke or feed it, and call the Animal Response Centre on 1800-476-1600. The NParks line, 1800-471-7300, also handles closed trails.

Chek Jawa at low tide

Chek Jawa is about 3km east of the jetty. That's 30 to 40 minutes on a bike or about 40 on foot, and vans run out from the village too. Ride the main road and leave your bike at Punai Hut. Entry is free, and the boardwalks and the 21-metre Jejawi Tower are open daily from 7am to 7pm, as is the Visitor Centre. The boardwalk crosses a rare intertidal flat, the stretch of shore that the tide covers and uncovers.

The tide decides how good your visit is. Check the tide table the night before, and aim for a low tide of 0.5 metres or below, when the flats are uncovered and full of life. At high tide you get a boardwalk over brown water, and a tower. If the sky opens, the Visitor Centre has maps and a toilet but no cafe. Climb Jejawi, then aim to be back in the village by 5pm.

A section of the Coastal Loop boardwalk is closed for maintenance, with the works expected to finish at the end of April 2027, so walk the Mangrove Loop and the open stretch of the Coastal Loop instead. The guided intertidal walk is suspended until further notice while the floating pontoon is under maintenance, which makes this a do-it-yourself morning. Boardwalk sections also close when there's lightning about.

Ketam and the German Girl Shrine

Ketam lies west of the jetty, and it suits a different kind of rider. The Ketam Mountain Bike Park is technical, so bring your own mountain bike, or rent one of the tougher ones at the jetty and skip the flats. The village bikes are fine for the main roads and a gentle loop. Closer in, Pekan Quarry is a flooded pit a short ride from the village, and it's a lookout rather than a swimming spot. If Ketam's the plan, give it the whole afternoon and leave Chek Jawa for another trip.

German Girl Shrine sits on the Ketam side, a small red shrine in secondary forest. It holds the story of a girl from the island's plantation days, and people on Ubin still tend it. It's worth the detour if you're riding Ketam anyway, though on a village rental you'll end up walking the last bit. Leave nothing edible at the shrine, because the wild boar will find it. Wherever you meet the boar, give them the road.

Camping and the last boat

To stay the night, the campsites at Noordin and Mamam need an NParks permit, so sort that out before you pack a tent. Showers are basic at best, and the mosquitoes are around every month of the year. Day visitors should be back on the pier by 6pm, since the last boats go at around 7pm. Check the last boat time at the pier before you cross. Weekdays are quieter, and we'd avoid the day after a public holiday.

Back on the Changi side

If the weather closes the island, stay on the Changi side. Changi Beach Park is 15 minutes from Changi Village, with kelongs, the old wooden fishing platforms on stilts, out on the horizon. For somewhere indoors, Changi Chapel and Museum opens Tuesday to Sunday from 9.30am to 5.30pm, with last admission at 5pm, and is closed on Mondays except public holidays.

On a Monday washout, have nasi lemak, coconut rice with sambal, at Changi Village Hawker Centre and walk the beach instead. On a clear day with energy to spare, you can do Ubin in the morning and Jewel in the afternoon, always in that order, so you go from mangrove to indoor waterfall. We'd rather stay on the island until the light goes sideways, then ride back to the jetty for the boat home.