South Bridge Road keeps temple hours, so this is a morning plan. Sri Mariamman, Singapore's oldest Hindu temple, opens 6am to noon and again 6pm to 9pm, or 9.15pm on Fridays, and that long midday gap catches out anyone who lingers over breakfast. Two minutes up the road, Buddha Tooth Relic Temple is free and open 7am to 5pm. Plenty of visitors stop at its gift shop and miss the rooftop garden, which is the bit we'd head straight up for.
Lunch is at Maxwell, a hawker centre, which means a hall of small cooked-food stalls around shared tables. Get there early and a table is easy to find. Returning your tray afterwards is the law here, and our hawker etiquette guide covers the rest of the table manners.
Chinatown after dark gets its own story, Chinatown after Pagoda Street, with the rooftops, Blair Plain, Telok Ayer and Ann Siang. This plan is done by lunch.
Where to start
Chinatown (NE4/DT19) Exit A for the temples; Maxwell (TE18) Exit 2 for the hawker
When to go
Morning — start by 8am
Stop by stop
We'd do these in order, and each linked stop has its price and directions.
8:00 AM
Sri Mariamman, first thing
From Chinatown MRT Exit A it's two minutes to 244 South Bridge Road. Shoes come off at the entrance, and shoulders and knees should be covered. Give it 40 minutes and walk round slowly. Festivals sometimes shift the hours, so check the temple's website if one is on.
8:40 AM
Buddha Tooth and its rooftop garden
Walk on to 288 South Bridge Road. Entry is free and donations are welcome, and the relic chamber has its own rules. Save time for the rooftop garden and its prayer wheel. Jamae Mosque, opposite Sri Mariamman, is open to visitors 10am to 6pm from Saturday to Thursday, with Friday hours split around prayers. It fits in before lunch if you have 10 spare minutes and aren't hungry yet.
10:00 AM
Early lunch at Maxwell
Walk over to 1 Kadayanallur Street. The centre is free to enter and you pay at each stall. Tian Tian at #01-10/11 is the famous chicken rice; queue before 11am or after 2pm. It's closed on Mondays, so eat from another stall on the floor that day. Try to finish before 11.30am, when the lunch rush fills the place. If tour groups have filled Maxwell, have lunch at Chinatown Complex, 335 Smith Street, instead.
11:30 AM
City Gallery, or call it a morning
By now the heat is building, so head indoors. Singapore City Gallery at 45 Maxwell Road is free, with a scale model of the city worth an hour. It opens Monday to Saturday, 9am to 5pm, and closes on Sundays and public holidays. Then back to the hotel. You've earned the air-con.
Save for another day
- Pagoda Street's souvenir stalls as the whole visit; give them a glance and walk two blocks on
- Clarke Quay on the same morning, since it's better kept for a night by the river
- Tian Tian on a Monday, when its shutter stays down
Before you go
Book ahead where you need to, and turn up for the rest.
Sri Mariamman TempleChinatown · FreeGoBuddha Tooth Relic TempleChinatown · FreeGo
Maxwell Food CentreChinatown · FreeGo
Singapore City GalleryChinatown · FreeGoChinatown Complex Food CentreChinatown · FreeGoKwan Im Thong Hood Cho TempleBugis · FreeGoSouth Bridge by noon questions
Chinatown or Maxwell MRT for South Bridge Road?
Chinatown MRT Exit A is closest for Pagoda Street and the South Bridge Road temples. For the food, use Maxwell MRT: Exit 2 for Maxwell Food Centre and City Gallery, and Exit 3 for Neil Road. Tanjong Pagar works too, with a longer walk.
What if I reach South Bridge Road after noon?
Sri Mariamman closes from noon to 6pm, so it'll be shut, though Buddha Tooth stays open until 5pm. Maxwell is at its busiest over lunch. We'd spend the early afternoon at City Gallery, unless it's a Sunday or public holiday, and come back to South Bridge Road after 6pm. Or save the temples for another morning.
What's open on South Bridge Road on a Monday?
Tian Tian is closed, so eat from another stall at Maxwell. Sri Mariamman keeps its morning hours and Buddha Tooth opens 7am to 5pm. City Gallery opens Monday to Saturday, 9am to 5pm. For a temple that stays open through midday, Kwan Im Thong Hood Cho on Waterloo Street is one of the stops in our Monday guide.
Do I pay to enter Sri Mariamman and Buddha Tooth Relic Temple?
No, Sri Mariamman and Buddha Tooth are both free to enter, and donations are welcome. Dress modestly at both. City Gallery is free as well, so the only thing you'll pay for on this route is food.
Stories from along the way
Longer reads on the places you'll pass through.
