When to go

Singapore in January

• Thaipusam – This Hindu festival takes place over two days, with the first day considered the Eve of Thailpusam. The main event on this day is a colorful chariot procession that begins from Sri Srinivasa Perumal Temple at Serangoon Road and runs to Layan Sithi Vinayagar Temple at Keong Siak Road. The ceremony starts in the early hours of January 24, with a batch of devotees carrying milk pots and wooden kavadis. Some pierce their tongues with skewers and carry a wooden kavadi decorated with flowers and peacock feathers balanced on their shoulders, while others carry spiked kavadis that require elaborate preparations.
• Chinese (Lunar) New Year – Chinese New Year is based on the lunisolar calendar, which differs from the Gregorian calendar, so dates change slightly each year. The 15-day festival is one of the most widely celebrated holidays in the world, and in 2017 will be held on January 28. The year is ushered in with floats and performances, including stilt-walkers and lion dancers, at the Chingay parade in Marina Bay. Temples open their doors and stalls sell raw fish, while decorations glow under the lanterns of the night bazaar.

Singapore in February

• Singapore River Hong Bao – Usually held in early February, this extravaganza is part of the Chinese New Year celebrations and includes a variety show in which top local and regional artists perform, complete with fireworks, hawker stalls and merchant kiosks.
• Valentine’s Day – Valentine’s Day isn’t a public holiday, but it is celebrated much the way it is in other countries, with the exchanging of chocolate hearts and the enjoyment of romantic, candlelit dinners. Many restaurants offer special menus for couples in Singapore on February 14.

Singapore in March

• Singapore International Jazz Festival – This more recent annual tradition is held in early March at Marina Bay Sands and offers three nights of jazz and jazz-inspired music, including world-renowned artists.
• Singapore Design Week – Taking place over about two weeks in mid-March, this event features international and local trade shows, conferences, workshops and exhibitions focused on design.
• St. Patrick’s Day Street Festival – This Irish holiday is celebrated in Singapore with live performances of folk music, dance and hearty Irish fare along with lots of Guinness, of course. The Singapore River is dyed greened and a Harley-Davidson convoy typically leads the pack at the St. Patrick’s Day Parade, which is the largest of its kind in Southeast Asia.
• Good Friday and Easter – Singapore’s general population doesn’t celebrate Easter, though there are many Christians who do. Good Friday, which falls March or April, is a public holiday, though all of the shops, malls, and restaurants are open as usual.

Singapore in April

• Qingming Festival – This festival in early April, also known as the “Ching Ming Festival” or “Tomb Sweeping Day,” is a Chinese Festival in which dead ancestors are remembered. In Singapore, you’ll see people tossing fake money in the air as a form of an offering for their deceased loved ones at Chinese cemeteries.
• World Gourmet Summit – Held annually throughout much of the month of April, the World Gourmet Summit is hosted by some of the world’s most renowned master chefs, along with Singapore’s own culinary talents and visiting industry experts. This is Southeast Asia’s premier haute cuisine festival, offering back-to-back epicurean experiences from themed and celebrity meals to vintner dinners.

Singapore in May

• Vesak Day – This is a public holiday and a holy day celebrated by Buddhists which usually falls in May, on the 15th day of the fourth month of the Chinese Lunar Calendar. The life of the Buddha is celebrated, with the release of caged birds to symbolize the liberation of captive souls. The celebrations are carried out at all Buddhist temples, with some of the best locations to watch the festivities including the Lian Shan Shuang Lin Temple at Jalan Toa Payoh and Buddhist Lodge at River Valley Road.
• Singapore Spring Fashion Week – Singapore Spring Fashion Week/Asia Fashion Exchange is a one-week extravaganza held in mid-May that puts Singapore on the map as Asia’s fashion capital. It covers all aspects of the industry, including everything from industry dedicated talks to trade shows and consumer events.
• Singapore International Festival of Arts – Held annually throughout the month of May, this island-wide celebration of the arts offers high quality, free and ticketed outdoor performances in theatre arts, dance, music and visual art from around the world.

Singapore in June

• Great Singapore Sale – This popular annual event begins in June. The shopping extravaganza means discounts of up to 70% off the usual prices at retailers across the island.
• Dragon Boat Festival – This festival occurs on the 5th day of the 5th month of the traditional lunar calendar. Its main celebration is at Bedok Reservoir where there is a race of Dragon Boats from all over the world. This is also a great time to enjoy traditional rice dumplings, which is why the festival is also known as ‘The Dumpling Festival’.
• Ramadan – Ramadan is a month-long celebration in the Muslim community that is celebrated robustly in Singapore. It includes night markets and the Geylang Serai neighborhood is beautifully lit up. During the day, food stalls typically serve only snacks, but at night there is a wide range of offerings at the Ramadan Bazaars.

Singapore in July

• Singapore Food Festival – This festival takes place throughout July at various venues and is a melting pot of tasty cuisine with Chinese, Indian, Malay and more represented.
• Racial Harmony Day – This day is celebrated annually on July 21 in Singapore to commemorate the 1964 Race Riots, which took place on July 21, 1964. Students across Singapore are encouraged to wear ethnic costumes, and fashion parades are often held to showcase the variety of attire.
• Hari Raya Puasa – This important religious festival celebrated by Singapore’s Muslims is marked as the end of Ramadan. On this day, Muslims go to the mosques for prayers in the early morning hours before visiting graves of their loved ones. Oil lamps at homes and in mosques are lit from the 20th day of Ramadan and continue lighting bright until the end of the festival.

Singapore in August

• National Day – This day celebrated annually on August 9 is Singapore’s birthday, commemorating the country’s independence from Malaysia in 1965. It promises fun-filled festivities that include fireworks and cultural dances. The National Day Parade is usually held at the Padang or National Stadium.
• Hungry Ghost Festival – This festival takes place on the 15th night of the seventh lunar month in the Chinese calendar, usually in August. Observed by Taoists, Buddhists, and Chinese folk religion believers, the festival is believed to be the time when the gates of hell open, resulting in a mixed environment of living and deceased. The main festivities are circled around warding off the deceased, which is done by burning incense, joss paper, candles and fake money. Performances are held in which the first row is left empty for the dead.

Singapore in September

• Lantern Festival – In this festival, also referred to as the mid-autumn festival, lion dances entertain locals who head to Chinatown, stocking up on seasonal moon cake pastries. The pagoda and bridges of Jurong’s Chinese Garden are covered in novelty and animal lanterns. The highlight is the Children’s Lantern Parade, with hundreds of children parading down the streets of Chinatown with their colorful lanterns. It takes place on the 15th day of the 8th lunar month, when the moon is full.
• Singapore Grand Prix – One of the biggest events of the year in Singapore, the Grand Prix is held in mid-September.

Singapore in October

• Deepavali – This important Hindu holiday takes place in October, with Little India’s streets and temples festooned with lights and garlands, while crowds fill into the Sri Mariamman Temple to watch barefoot Hindu devotees walk across red hot embers. Visitors can join walking tours that point out the best henna artists, or see shrines garlanded in the temples.
• Singapore Fall Fashion Week – Singapore Fall Fashion Week/Asia Fashion Exchange is a one-week extravaganza held in mid-May that puts Singapore on the map as Asia’s fashion capital. It covers all aspects of the industry, including everything from industry dedicated talks to trade shows and consumer events.
• Nine Emperor Gods Festival – Held during Aipasi from the first to the ninth day of the ninth lunar month among Chinese communities in Singapore (usually mid-October), this festival begins with the welcoming of the gods into the temple where they are to be worshipped for nine days, and ends when the gods are sent off on the ninth day. Visitors can enjoy watching the temple processions that take place during the celebrations, when images of the nine gods are paraded, each in a decorative sedan chair carried by eight men.
• Halloween – Halloween has become increasingly popular in Singapore, although trick-or-treating is generally not practiced. It’s celebrated by dressing up in costumes, getting frightened at haunted houses and going to parties.

Singapore in November

• Singapore Writer’s Festival – This festival is held annually around the first 10 days of November as a celebration of literature notable for encompassing all four of Singapore’s main languages: Chinese, Malay, Tamil and English, which makes it one of the few multi-language festivals in the world. International authors often attend, and talks, readings and workshops are held in a variety of venues across the city.
• Singapore River Busker’s Festival – This unique festival is held for 10 days in November every year and features a variety of activities, including some of the best street performers, including magicians, comedians, sword-swallowers, jugglers and more, who take over the walkways of Orchard Road.
• Singapore International Film Festival – The largest film event in Singapore and one of the premier film festivals in Asia, the SIFF is held annually in November every year and screens over 200 international films of all genres, with a focus on groundbreaking Asian cinema. In addition to film screenings, workshops, exhibitions and seminars focused on film-making are also featured.

Singapore in December

• ZoukOut – Mega-club Zouk organizes this massive weekend-long beach party on Sentosa, usually on Siloso or Tanjong Beaches. Local and overseas music acts and big-name DJs play in tents and outdoor arenas playing everything from rock to hip hop, lounge to house.
• Orchard Road Christmas Markets – This shopping street is transformed into a tropical winter wonderland for Christmas in December, featuring giant snow scenes, trees, candy canes and toys along with dazzling light displays.
• Christmas Day – Christmas Day is a public holiday and a parade is held on Orchard Road, although the city doesn’t completely shut down as many Singaporeans don’t celebrate Christmas. A parade is held on Orchard Road.
• New Year’s Eve – Singapore celebrates New Year’s Eve in a big way, with a televised national countdown that includes performances by local celebrities, followed by several big public parties hosted across various venues. A big fireworks display over Marina Bay that’s set against the skyline of the city caps off the night, before settling afloat “wishing spheres” that take place in the Bay of Hope and Light. Bars and restaurants across town also throws parties, as do popular entertainment hubs like Esplanade and Clarke Quay.