Singapore's Historic Chinatown Walking Tour with Lunch
5.0
12 Ratings
Singapore
Immerse yourself in the rich history of Singapore's Chinatown on this walking tour. Discover the stories of early Chinese immigrants, visit historic sites, and enjoy a delicious lunch at one of the city's oldest establishments.
Duration: 3 hours, 30 minutes
Cancellation: 1 day learn more
Highlights
  • Sky Garden at CapitaSpring - Enjoy a panoramic view of the city from Singapore’s second tallest skyscraper. From here, we’ll have a bird’s eye view of the Historic District of Chinatown.

  • Yueh Hai Ching Temple - Possibly established as early as 1819, making it older than Thian Hock Keng Temple, Yueh Hai Ching Temple is often overlooked by locals and tourists. Once inside this serene temple, you’ll be transported to a different world.

  • Pekin Street - Step inside the courtyard of a Chinese boys’ school from 1854 and imagine what the area must have been like with school boys learning to read and write, and playing traditional games like chapteh after classes.

  • Fuk Tak Chi Museum - Once a temple built by Cantonese and Hakka worshippers of Tua Pek Kong (God of Prosperity) in the 1820s, the quaint building now houses a museum with an intriguing display of what life was like in the area about 200 years ago.

  • Thian Hock Keng Temple - Established in 1821, Thian Hock Keng Temple is the oldest Hokkien temple and likely the second oldest Chinese temple in Singapore. Admire its stunning architecture, built without a nail being used, learn about Taoist and Buddhist practices, find out about the gift from Qing Emperor Guang Xu to the temple, and hunt for the bats which live on the premises.

  • Ann Siang Hill - See if you can spot the last water well in Chinatown, learn about the hills and plantations which used to exist in the area, and find out how Ann Siang Hill got its name.

  • Chinese Weekly Entertainment Club - Discover the truth behind how Club Street got its name, and the high society parties which used to take place at this millionaire’s club.

  • Goh Loo Club - We stop at another Chinese millionaire’s club and find out the story behind its interesting window grills.

  • Mohamed Ali Lane - Come face-to-face with local artist, Yip Yew Chong’s second mural on this tour. He has successfully breathed vibrancy into Historic Chinatown with his brilliantly-coloured, often interactive, heritage-themed street art.

  • Chiew Kee Noodle House - Enjoy a traditional soya sauce chicken noodle/rice lunch at this establishment dating back to 1949.

  • Yue Hwa Chinese Products - Once the “Raffles Hotel of Chinatown”, we learn about the illustrious past of this 1927 building, which now houses a Chinese emporium.

  • The Majestic - Find out how The Majestic Theatre came into being, and the wealthy Chinese merchant who made it possible.

  • Lim Chee Guan New Bridge Road Store - Established in 1938, Lim Chee Guan endured the Second World War and remains as one of Singapore’s best loved brands 85 years on.

  • Pek Sin Choon Pte Ltd - Established in 1925, this tea shop with its unique Nanyang blends has close to 100 years of history.

  • Tai Thong Cake Shop - This old school bakery from 1950 sells Cantonese-style mooncakes and other sweet treats year round. We drop by for a taste.

  • Lau Choy Seng Pte Ltd - Located along Temple Street where we’ll find 3 more of Yip Yew Chong’s murals, Lau Choy Seng (1948) is a treasure trove of kitchenware which will inspire you to display your culinary skills.

  • Smith Street - We take a look at another of Yip Yew Chong’s murals, one which depicts his own home in Sago Lane, Chinatown more than 5 decades ago. We also stop to take a look at Lai Chun Yuen Opera House along Smith Street, which was Singapore’s first integrated resort, bringing theatre, opium-smoking, gambling and prostitution all under one roof. We learn about the sordid past of Smith Street, where numerous brothels once lined, and the coolies, rickshaw pullers, businessmen, etc. who used to frequent them.

  • Sago Street (Street Of The Dead) - Find out how Sago Lane became known as the Street of the Dead, and what has become of it today.

  • Fong Moon Kee - We end our tour at Fong Moon Kee. Established in 1908, this 115-year-old ointment shop might just have the answer to any aches and pains which may have been nagging you. If coolies and rickshaw pullers lived by their ointments, who are we to question their wisdom?

What's Included
  • Licensed tourist guide
  • Disposable poncho for rain
  • Lunch included
What's Not Included
  • Gratuities.
Additional Information

On this pedestrian exploration, we follow the journey of the pioneer migrants who ventured from China in pursuit of improved living conditions in South-East Asia, finding their path to Singapore, establishing temples, and creating clans for mutual support. We delve into the stories of some who flourished to become among the wealthiest individuals in Asia, while others labored and died impoverished with no relatives to grieve their passing.

We’ll explore locations where institutions like Chinese opera houses, prostitution centers, opium and betting houses were once rampant when the male-female ratio was skewed at 14 to 1.

Through wall art created by local artist Yip Yew Chong, we get a glimpse into the daily life in the 19th and 20th century Singapore.

We’ll have our lunch at one of Singapore’s oldest establishments before we resume our search for other enduring traditional businesses in Chinatown that have survived the passage of time.

Location
Marks & Spencer Food
Raffles Place
Please meet us at Raffles Place MRT Exit A (Street Level, in front of Marks & Spencer Food) at 0955 hrs. We start our tour at 1000 hrs.
Cancellation Policy

For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.

Customer Ratings
5.0
(12 Ratings)
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Louise_m
Apr 20, 2024
Great introduction to Chinatown. It was an informative and well conducted tour - The stories of how Singapore has grown were really interesting and gave a real sense of the culture The strength of the tour was the passion and knowledge of the guide. The guide was engaging and well informed
Review provided by Viator
Julia_d
Apr 18, 2024
Excellent Chinatown Tour - Ping was an excellent guide. She was so much fun and very knowledgeable of the area and its history. She had great ideas of where to get the best food. She also took pictures along the way and shared them with everyone.
Review provided by Viator
Karen_s
Mar 21, 2024
Great experience, highly recommend - Lots of historical abd cultural information rolled into a very pleasant learning experience. Ping was an excellent guide.
Review provided by Viator
William_s
Mar 8, 2024
Must do - I love love this tour. Ping was great. Very knowledgeable. Food was great and really went through a lot great location in chinatown
Review provided by Viator
Vidar_h
Feb 29, 2024
You will se places you wouldn’t otherwise and the guide gas expert knowledge of the history of Singapura! - The knowledge of our guide Ping. She was absolutely amazing! We got to visit temples and learn about the history of Singapore!
Review provided by Viator
Jackietrevors
Dec 2, 2023
Wonderful Tour of Historic Chinatown - An amazing tour with PING, her knowledge of Singapore's history and sights seen was first class - such enthusiasm to ensure we all enjoyed it. The size of the tour was small ensuring we could hear her and keep up. I have problems with stairs and PING was there constantly to assist. The pace was nice & easy and nothing was too much trouble. Had a great lunch in an old restaurant too. I highly recommend Ping when in Singapore.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
David_t
Nov 30, 2023
China town with Ping. - Ping gave a wonderfully comprehensive tour of the back streets of China Town. From temples, to Restaurants, garden tower viewing and everything in between. Eight thousand steps later we felt we had a history tour of early Singapore. That was finished off by a locals lunch. Thank you Ping for your easygoing style.
Review provided by Viator
Bettinabq5595ha
Nov 7, 2023
new perspective - Ping, our tour guide gave - espacially to me - a new point of view to the Chinatown area. The photo selection she sent us gave a nice chance for a review
Review provided by Tripadvisor
N9053ferichardh
Nov 1, 2023
Tour of Singapore Chinatown With Ping - Hello, I had solo walking tour of Singapore Chinatown with tour guide Ping of On-A-Roll-Tour. Ping knows a lot of history about Singapore, is very down to earth, fun person to have tour with. We toured a lot of places, then had lunch, and then toured more places before departing each other. Thank you so much Ping
Review provided by Tripadvisor
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