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7 Days In Singapore – The Singapore Flyer And Goodbye Singapore
SINGAPORE
Heather Markel, Writer, Speaker, Photographer, Traveler, Business Strategist
This is part of a series of posts on Singapore. Did you miss the previous walkthroughs? Click here to access them all.
All of a sudden, it’s my final day in Singapore. There’s one activity I’ve saved till the end – the Singapore Flyer. Yep, it’s touristy. And, it seemed the perfect activity for the final day. My flight is at 10pm, so gives me the entire day to do any last minute activities I want.
Getting There
I took the MRT to the Promenade station. It’s well-named, because it’s a fairly long promenade from there, to the flyer.
I enjoy a leisurely morning, feeling like I have a lot of time on my hands. I meant to arrive earlier than 1:30pm, but, oops, and still plenty of time. I can’t find the entrance though, and end up having to walk around the building to find it. It’s a large circumference to walk around in the humidity. Along the way, I end up walking in a huge group of men wearing blue shirts, and feel very out of place since I’m sans blue shirt. I quickly run past them and arrive at the entrance to buy my ticket! That’s when I learned the entire Singapore Flyer is closed for a private event! Those men in blue shirts have apparently rented it all for themselves. Am I really leaving Singapore without doing this?
I’m told ticket sales will re-open at 3pm. Checking my watch, I realize it’s barely more than an hour, and with the afternoon humidity, and a small café to have a bite to eat with a coffee, I decide to stay. Good choice because the ticket sales window ends up opening at 2:40. Before long, I have my ticket and head up to the queue upstairs. It’s insanely long. I’m afraid I’m going to be there for a couple of hours and miss my flight. Happily, we move pretty quickly. The cars are more like the size of a bus, but only about 9 of us enter due to COVID restrictions.
Inside the car, there are several benches to sit and admire the view, or, you can stand by any of the windows and move around as the car, very slowly, ascends high above Singapore. I ignore the TV monitor until we’re at the summit then follow along with the little fireworks celebration on the screen.
I loved doing this Singapore activity last. As I rotated around the city views, I could pick out all the places I’d been all week, and recall each experience in detail. Though many people breeze through Singapore in a few days, I’m grateful for the extra time to have gotten to know it in a little more depth.
Once my visit is complete, I take a last walk over to the Garden By The Bay, this time approaching from the Marina Bay Sands hotel, and walking across the bridge. Then I grab the MRT for a final satay at Lau Pa Sat before heading off to the airport to go back to America for the first time in two years.
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![Could taking time away from work be one of the smartest decisions you make for your career and your life?
In this episode of How to Travel Full-Time, I explore why intentional time away, including a career break, sabbatical, or travel reset, may become an important part of the future of work.
Inspired by the Harvard Business School Managing the Future of Work episode, "Why Time Away May Be the Future of Work," this conversation looks at how longer careers, workplace burnout, artificial intelligence, and rapid professional change are challenging the traditional idea that we should work continuously until retirement.
But taking time away is not only about recovering from burnout.
A well-planned travel reset can give you the space to reconnect with yourself, reconsider what you want from your career, and decide what your next chapter should look like.
In this episode, you'll learn:
• Why the traditional 40-year career model is beginning to crack • How burnout can be information, not personal failure • Why vacations often do not solve deeper dissatisfaction • How travel creates distance, perspective, and clarity • Why taking time away does not have to damage your career • How a travel reset differs from a vacation or permanent full-time travel • What keeps accomplished professionals from taking extended time off • Why time away could become part of a long-term career strategy
If your life looks successful from the outside but no longer feels aligned with the person you have become, this episode is for you.
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💬 Question for you: Have you ever considered taking one to six months away from work? What's the biggest thing stopping you?
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Super glad you managed to get tickets for the flyer and what beautiful views. I’ve just looked through your Singapore posts and how informative – such a great series Heather.
Thanks so much for reading it!
I missed this during my trips to Singapore… I guess that means I’ll have to go back!
I utterly love Singapore! I know lots of people say that it’s best to spend just a couple of days there, but personally, I found loads of cultural and historical things to do and see. But I never made it to the Singapore Flyer. Maybe next time. Hopefully, I’ll be back. Thanks for the wonderful series on Singapore.
I heard that too! I was worried about spending a week there but am glad I did.
A nice goodbye to Singapore. We saw the Flyer on our visit to Singapore but did not get the chance to go up. I love the view you got of Singapore from on high. I am sure it was very fun to pick out all the spots your visited. A good idea to leave a panoramic view spot like this for last.
I have enjoyed all your posts about Singapore…I really hope to visit there again someday. It is a remarkable city.
I’ve never been to Sinapore! This looks like a great trip! You have given me some great ideas for visiting in the future.
It is definitely worth visiting!
You must be quite sad to say goodbye to Singapore after all your adventures. Thanks for writing the series on your stay.
Yes! Thanks so much for reading it. 😄
Singapore is so high up my bucket list I’m dying to visit it some day. It sounds like you had an amazing time there and were sad to say goodbye
Yes! It was an intriguing country and I hope you get to visit.
Gosh Heather this has made me want to go back to Singapore – just to try this experience! It looks and sounds wonderful!