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Singapore Group History & Culture Tour:River Cruise, Hawker Dinner & Tea Tasting

Singapore

4 hours 30 minutes (approx.)
Mobile ticket
Offered in: English

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Overview

If you love history, discover Singapore’s colorful past as you travel through its glistening present on this fascinating small-group night tour. Tour colonial buildings, ride a bumboat down the Singapore River, soak up sunset views of Marina Bay, and explore a typical Singaporean housing complex. Finally, savor chicken rice at a hawker court and retreat to a beautiful tea house for a traditional tea tasting experience.

Explore Singapore by night with a guide in a small group
Savor a chicken rice dinner in an authentic hawker court
Ride a traditional bumboat down the Singapore River

What's Included

Dinner (Chicken Rice)
Traditional tea tasting experience with take home souvenir
Professional guide
All taxes, fees and handling charges
Sugar cane juice

Prices listed do not include the costs of transport to get to and from the start and end points of the tour. They do include the costs of public transport used during the tours.

Meeting and Pickup

Meeting point

City Hall
150 North Bridge Rd, Singapore 179100
Your tour starts from outside Exit B of City Hall MRT Station. Your guide will be waiting for you at street level. Please fully exit the MTR Station, do not wait inside. If you are arriving by taxi Exit B is located on North Bridge Road. Ask for St Andrews Cathedral, North Bridge Road.

Start time

03:30 PM

End point

Tea Chapter Trading Pte Ltd
9 Neil Rd, Singapore 088808
Your tour will finish in Chinatown. Your guide will provide you with directions on how to get back to your hotel.

What To Expect

Additional Info

Confirmation will be received at time of booking
Not wheelchair accessible
You must be fit and be able to walk 9km to join this tour. We do walk at a slow casual pace but if you tire easily a group tour will not be suitable for you. Instead book a private version of the tour so that we can cut down walking by taking the occasional taxi ride.
If you are a vegetarian we promise to get you something to eat at the Hawker Centre but we can not guarantee what will be available, it might be quite basic (like rice and veg)
Service animals allowed
If the rooftop of The Pinnacle is closed due to bad weather we will take you to a different HDB building.
Near public transportation
This tour is not suitable for under 6’s due to the walking requirement. If you have young children please book a private tour.

Cancelation policy applies
100% refunds are given if you cancel 7 or more days before your tour.
50% of the fee is payable if you cancel your tour 5 or 6 days before your tour.
There are no refunds if you cancel your tour less than 5 days (119 hours) before the start of your tour.
There are no refunds if you do not turn up for the tour.
Travelers should have a moderate physical fitness level
Small group tour - minimum numbers apply.
This tour/activity will have a maximum of 9 travelers

Cancellation Policy

You can cancel up to 6 days in advance of the experience for a full refund.

For a full refund, you must cancel at least 6 full days before the experience’s start time.
Any changes made less than 6 full days before the experience’s start time will not be accepted.
For a 50% refund, you must cancel 2–6 full days before the experience’s start time.
If you cancel less than 2 full days before the experience’s start time, the amount you paid will not be refunded.

Any changes made less than 2 full days before the experience’s start time will not be accepted.
Cut-off times are based on the experience’s local time.
This experience requires a minimum number of travelers. If it’s canceled because the minimum isn’t met, you’ll be offered a different date/experience or a full refund.

Traveler Photos

Reviews

5.0

95 reviews

Total review count and overall rating based on Viator and Tripadvisor reviews

Reviews by Viator travelers.

We perform checks on reviews

Showing 1-10 of 95 reviews

Excellent tour - thanks Pam!

Ashley_C, Apr 2024

Pam took us on an excellent 4.5 hr tour of downtown Singapore. We met at the City Hall MRT station and walked to the National Museum where she told us about the history of Singapore, British and Japanese occupation and eventual independence. It was quite warm that day but Pam made sure and took us into air conditioned spaces periodically so we could cool off. A unique aspect of this tour is going to a public housing building (with an amazing 50 story view) and learning about the process of renting/buying the units (fascinating coming from US). The hawker center was fun; the rice was delicious as was the sugar cane juice and pastry. The tea ceremony was a wonderful end to an amazing tour. I learned a lot and had a great time - Pam is an excellent guide!!

Response from Host, Apr 2024

Hi Ashley, sounds like a great tour! thank you for the excellent review!

A great tour with Pam!

Mary_M, Apr 2024

Pam was a fabulous tour guide and I learned so much about Singapore! Would highly recommend this tour.

Response from Host, Apr 2024

That's wonderful to hear! Pam sounds like she made your experience in Singapore truly enriching. Thank you for recommending the tour! If you ever find yourself back in Singapore or exploring elsewhere, don't hesitate to reach out for more adventures.

Excellent

LaurenEdmunds, Apr 2024

I had a really great time - our guide Gee was so knowledgeable, kind and friendly. The tour itself went to a few places I'd never go on my own, and I learned a lot about the life of an average Singaporean as a result.

fantastic

Louis_F, Mar 2024

wonderful trip and guide. A great way to learn about singapore and see some highlights! guide was super

Response from Host, Mar 2024

Thank you very much!

All of Singapore in one great day!

Joseph_S, Feb 2024

We loved the experience of Singapore from the ground up, walking much of the city- and experiencing the excellence of the bumboat ride, a fun Hawker meal, and our guide Su’s excellent take on the history of the city!

Was OK despite the glitches

Byron_G, Jan 2024

Daryl was pretty good. The tour was rushed at the start - maybe because we asked a lot of questions. His responses were fairly accurate. The river cruise was worthwhile, though it was something that is not limited to the tour (anyone can buy a ticket and the cruise is narrated. Went to a hawker location for chicken rice, but none of the hawkers had any that could be purchased in a reasonable time, so Daryl gave us $10 to buy what we thought looked good. We ordered something that looked good on the photo - the actual dish looked nothing like the picture- no vegetables and the clams that were promentantly displayed were microscopic. Overall - OK, but could have been better. Weather was nice.

Response from Host, Jan 2024

Thank you very much for the review. Very sorry to hear that your dish at the Hawker centre was not upto expectation. Nevertheless, we're delighted to hear that you enjoyed the tour and hope you found the insights into Singapore's History, Politics, and Local Life enjoyable.

Great Singapore Tour

MaryJo_R, Dec 2023

Enjoyable Christmas Day walk through Singapore for family of four. Darryl was our guide and did an amazing job. Wonderful overview of Singapore. Good amount of walking but plenty of stops and kids (ages 9 and 10) had no issues keeping up. A+

Response from Host, Mar 2024

Daryl says thank you for the excellent review!

Singapore tour

David_K, Nov 2023

Our tour guide, Pam, was an excellent guide and companion. She met us timely at the appointed location and took us through the itinerary at our own pace. She was very knowledgeable about the history and current policies of Singapore and the areas we visited. After the tour, she sent us many photos that she took and a summary of the tour. She also included a few recommendations that we asked for on the tour so that we didn't need to write them down. All told, this was a delightful afternoon.

Response from Host, Jan 2024

Hi David, glad you had a wonderful time with Pam. we hope to see you again next time!

Excellent tour

Darrell_J, Sep 2023

Gee Soo was the BEST!! Gee is exactly what a tour guide should be. His love of Singapore show was evident and engulfed the group.

Response from Host, Jan 2024

Hi Darrell, Gee Soo says thank you for the lovely review! Your group was amazing and fun! We hope to see you again when you are back!

Singapore Group History & Culture Tour

Robert_M, Sep 2023

Singapore Group History & Culture Tour: Flusskreuzfahrt, Hawker Dinner & Teeverkostung Top Guide!!!! Alles bestens

A must if you’re in Singapore.

Beth_C, Aug 2023

Our tour guide Gee was fabulous! He was extremely knowledgeable and made sure we were comfortable and that all our questions were answered. I especially appreciated all the close bathroom location announcements as that is typically one of my concerns when I travel. This was a fantastic last afternoon in Singapore!

Perfect combination of experiences!

Joslyn_K, Jul 2023

Gee Soo was amazing - sharing his love of his country with us the Pugh stories of the culture as we walked, ate, and drank! We would definitely do it again!

We had a great guide. Very knowledgeable. One of the best tours we have taken.

Nora_E, May 2023

It will take a few days for me to unpack what was the most memorable part. This was a rich, enjoyable tour. I loved the tea service because we were in a small area and could ask questions comfortably. I am hearing impaired, so the close proximity was important to me. I was very impressed that our guide could pour the tea with the same expertise as our host! I also loved visiting the rooftop of the subsidized apartment building and hearing about how it was built. Even more than the gorgeous views, I enjoyed seeing that it was a community and not just stacked homes - people were playing badminton, there was an art studio. Everyone was smiling! The river cruise, was short but sweet. With our guides narration, it was easy to envision the ships sailing in with cargo from around the world. My chicken and rice was delicious! The atmosphere made me smile. Again, everyone was enjoying each other.

Good overview

Liane_O, Feb 2023

Be prepared to walk more than 5 miles. You’ll see a lot, but your feet won’t thank you in the morning

Response from Host, Apr 2023

Thank you for the 5 star review! We are happy you survived the 5 miles walk. See you next time :D

Seared in my memories

William_L, Feb 2023

My last night of Singapore I had the pleasure of spending the late afternoon and evening with Gene and three wonderful ladies. I don’t want to spoil the tour by giving granular details about the tour, but Gene took us to a number of spots throughout the Singapore and every spot was unique and has so much deep rooted history. I thought Gene was articulate and did to rush us. He was extremely accommodating to my shrimp allergy and went the extra mile to keep me from having reactions when purchasing food in the hawker center. It was a night that I remember forever and hope to come back soon to book another tour from Gene and Hello tours!

Response from Host, Feb 2023

TOUR GUIDE Gene says thank you for the lovely review! until next time

Great History and Culture Tour!

Mary_R, Jan 2023

My daughter Ricci and I had a great time with Bibi our guide for the Singapore History and Culture Tour! We started off at the St. Andrew’s Cathedral which is under renovation, then proceeded to the National Gallery of Singapore. We took nice photos at the rooftop of National Gallery. In the Supreme Court old holding cells we had a good laugh about the squatting toilets and the “Alcatraz feels”. We passed by the old Parliament House and walked down to the Raffles landing place and statue. The enjoyable Bumboat River Ride Tour was next. The cool breeze refreshed us. We then took a bus to Chinatown and the HDB housing called The Pinnacle where we once again took nice photos on the 50th floor. We had snacks in a pastry shop with Durian as the main ingredient for everything. The “Stinky” Roll and Bomb were so yummy! We moved by foot again to the Maxwell Food Centre where we tried the local Chicken Rice and drank Sugar Cane Juice with Lemon. Perfect Dinner! Our last stop was the Tea Chapter where a “tea master” taught us the tea ceremony or tea appreciation. The Oolong tea tasted great paired with the tea-infused cookies! We really had a wonderful time! Thank you Bibi!

Response from Host, Feb 2023

OUR GUIDE Bibi says thank you for the lovely review! until next time

Awesome Singapore!

Anita_W, Oct 2018

I was looking forward to the historical aspect of this tour and was not disappointed. Our guide Gee Soo was very friendly and knowledgeable and he made the tour a great experience. Highly recommended!