Hiking in Singapore

Yes! Singapore has become amazing for hiking in recent years, with the opening of lots of park connectors and expansion of nature parks. Some of our favourite hikes in Singapore:

• Southern Ridges for an urban hike. This is pretty level and easy and takes you through urban landscapes to one of the highest points in Singapore, Mt Faber
• Railway corridor - start from Greenleaf Walk through the Jurassic Park-esque views, to the old Bukit Timah Railway station and then to the back of Bukit Timah Hill. If you want a longer route you can even walk to Chestnut Nature Park
• Thompson Nature Park- we think of this as Singapore's Angkor Wat where the forest has reclaimed human structures thoroughly. This spot used to be home to over 100 families living in a Hainanese village. When the families moved out, the forest reclaimed their houses. The park is small, so pair this with a trek to the nearby Lower Pierce Reservoir and Upper Pierce Reservoir Parks.
• MacRitchie Reservoir - this is the OG of nature parks, and still one of our favourites. It does get crowded on weekends so come early! We also prefer the lesser-known route that enters the park from Rifle Range road, where the path is more off-grid and forested

Singapore doesn't really have difficult hikes. But if you're training to climb a mountain and want to train for it, we would recommend the back of Bukit Timah Hill. To get to this route, you will need to enter via a lesser-known back route just off Rifle Range road, and take the trail up the back of the hill. This route has a climb that approximates the steps of Mount Kinabalu i.e. large steep rocks. If you go up, and down that route a few times with a large backpack, it can be great training for a mountain climb! Note that we don't mean the tarmac path that most people take from the main entrance of Bukit Timah hill to its summit - that's very gentle. The other route that we like hiking in Singapore if we fancy a long nature hike (it's around 25-30km) is the route from Mandai (near Singapore American School) to Chestnut Nature Park. This mainly takes place on unmarked trails, so if you're doing this we highly recommend going with someone who knows the route. This is a lot nicer and closer to nature than the Coast-to-Coast (which we think is better for cyclists) as you encounter more roads on the Coast-to-Coast.

A few of the easy and really interesting walks other than the Botanic Gardens are: Southern Ridges (easy and different views throughout); Thompson Nature Park (small but rocky); Sungei Buloh (we especially love the mangrove boardwalk); Pasir Ris Park (best for amateur wildlife spotting) and Dairy Farm reserve (we love how quiet it is here). If you want something a bit more off-grid, you can also head to Pulau Ubin for a half day trip where you can walk to Puaka Hill, Chek Jawa wetlands and spot wildlife like sea eagles. Pulau Ubin is our favourite nature getaway in Singapore, but it does take a little more effort to get there.

Some of the best hiking trails in Singapore include the MacRitchie Reservoir Park, Bukit Timah Nature Reserve, Southern Ridges, Pulau Ubin, and Labrador Nature Reserve. These trails offer a mix of lush greenery, scenic views, and varying levels of difficulty for hikers of all experience levels.

Yes, there are several beginner-friendly hiking trails in Singapore. The Southern Ridges, which connects Mount Faber Park, Telok Blangah Hill Park, and Kent Ridge Park, is a popular choice for beginners due to its well-paved paths and stunning vistas. The MacRitchie Reservoir Park also offers a range of trails suitable for beginners, such as the easy-going MacRitchie Nature Trail and the shorter TreeTop Walk.