Top 3 Things to Do at Singapore Airport During a Long Layover (By Ethan, 18)
By Ethan Cooke, 18, Travel Correspondent
If you had to spend an eight-hour layover anywhere, you'd want it to be at Singapore Airport.
Home to incredible attractions, nature and Singaporean culinary masterpieces, the airport has a calm and peaceful atmosphere, perfect after long hours of travelling from destinations across the globe.
My layover on the way to Indonesia just happened to be in Singapore, and I really couldn't have asked for a better place to wait. There are so many things to do that my eight-hour layover felt more like two. Here are my top three activities to try when visiting Singapore Airport.
1. Try the traditional food
Burgers, pizza and hot dogs are all amazing foods, but what would be different from home if I ordered them? If I was going to be thousands of miles away, I thought I might as well embrace it. What better way than by trying something new?
Scattered around Singapore Airport are hundreds of local chains and independent restaurants waiting for visitors to discover them. That's exactly what I did.
After finding what looked like a small, family-run vendor tucked away in one corner, I was told the "Number 4 Meal" was the best on the menu, so I ordered it without really knowing what I was about to eat.
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Soon, I was tucking into shrimp laksa, a popular dish across many Asian countries. It was a soup-like meal where the spices warmed my throat while the tofu and noodles balanced the heat, with prawns adding another layer of flavour and texture. It was budget-friendly, full of flavour and definitely something I would eat again.
This was my first experience of authentic Asian food and, if this was what it was going to be like, I could definitely get used to it. After spending around 14 hours sitting on planes, eating what the locals eat was the perfect way to begin my journey.
2. Visit the butterflies in Terminal 3
Airports can sometimes feel stressful. Time pressures, long queues and crowds of people can quickly become overwhelming.
Singapore Airport, however, has done an amazing job of changing that. Throughout the airport are beautiful gardens filled with green plants, trees and even one of nature's most beautiful creatures – butterflies.
Inside the Butterfly Garden, more than 40 different species can be seen, depending on the season. The warm, humid environment allows them to fly freely while educational displays explain how they feed and breed.
Seeing such a natural environment inside a busy international airport felt surreal. It was the perfect place to relax, take a break and forget, even for a little while, that I still had another flight to catch.
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3. The Rain Vortex
The Rain Vortex isn't the name of an indie film from the early 2000s, nor is it a science experiment. It's the world's largest indoor waterfall.
Cascading from seven storeys above and falling around 40 metres, it's one of the most incredible sights I've ever seen.
After visiting the Butterfly Garden, I thought I'd already experienced the perfect combination of nature and modern architecture. I was wrong.
Walking through the entrance, I was greeted by the sound of rushing water, tropical plants and warm, humid air. It felt as though nature had reclaimed the building, with greenery covering every level beneath the huge glass roof.
Climbing the winding walkways gave me an even better view of the waterfall as it poured into the centre below. Everywhere I looked there were colourful flowers, tropical plants and people simply standing still to admire it all.
For a moment, you forget you're even in an airport. Instead of thinking about your next flight, you're simply enjoying the calming atmosphere, watching the waterfall and listening to the peaceful surroundings.
It's one of those places where you could happily spend hours without even noticing the time.
Final thoughts
If I ever visit Singapore Airport again, I'd do it all over. Every experience worked together to make my layover relaxing, memorable and surprisingly fun.
It proved that even an eight-hour wait between flights can feel like just two when you're in the right place.
