Little India in Singapore

141 Serangoon Road, Singapore 218042

You almost can't say you've visited Little India unless you've visited and snapped a few photos of the gorgeous Hindu temples that pepper the streets. If you only have time for just one, the Sri Veeramalikaliamman temple along Serangoon Road is the most famous. The facade of the temple boasts extremely intricate carvings and statues of the gods, which are absolutely breathtaking.

665 Buffalo Road, Singapore 210665

To fully immerse yourself in the local culture, wake up early in the morning and head to a wet market. Tekka Centre houses not only a wet market but also a hawker centre and shops. Make your way through the wet market where you'll find the locals pushing their foldable trollies down the lanes picking from a wide range of fresh produce, seafood, meat and more. If you want a spot of breakfast afterwards, the hawker centre has several stalls serving up fantastic Indian dishes like thosai, naan, and appam.

145 Syed Alwi Road

In metropolitan cities like Singapore, 24-hour food joints come as no surprise since Singaporeans count eating as their favourite national pastime. But to cater to their second favourite activity, shopping, Mustafa Centre is open all day and all night. It's a one stop shop where you can get anything from clothes to electronics, watches and jewellery, groceries, party supplies and sporting goods. With six floors of shopping, you're sure to be occupied for hours.

183-191 Jalan Besar

Another popular 24 hour institution in the heart of Jalan Besar is Swee Choon Tim Sum, where you'll find many young revellers getting their post-night out supper. Dim sum is typically a morning or tea-time affair, but judging by the crowd, it also hits the spot after midnight. Don't leave without trying the steamed salted egg custard buns, Shanghai xiao long bao and beancurd prawn rolls. 

138 Race Course Road

What better place to try the uniquely Singaporean fish head curry than at Muthu's Curry, who claim to be the pioneers of the well-loved dish. Spicy, sour and slightly sweet, order a pot of fish head curry to share, as well as some other dishes to go with it like steaming hot garlic naan and creamy, rich butter chicken.

170 Bencoolen Street

Staying at one of the many hotels in and around Little India is usually affordable and convenient. ibis Singapore on Bencoolen is located near Bugis MRT station and provides bamboo bicycles for guests to explore neighbouring areas such as Little India, Chinatown and Orchard at their leisure.

6 Irrawaddy Road

ibis Singapore Novena is another pocket-friendly option close to Novena MRT station. The hotel provides guests with a 3G smartphone on which they can use Google maps to navigate the city.