Doc Holiday: How can we celebrate New Year in Singapore?

Ringing in the New Year in the Lion City is an experience you'll never forget, but how far in advance do you need to book?

Escape's Doc Holiday, Dilvin Yasa, answers your travel-related question.

My husband and I are going to Singapore in late December. Should we book restaurants and the Gardens by the Bay in advance? Any other must-sees?

How fun to ring in the New Year in the Lion City. When it comes to restaurant reservations, it depends on the style of dining. For something special, such as Odette, Burnt Ends, Cloudstreet or Jaan by Kirk Westaway, book as soon as you read this. Many mid-range restaurants also recommend diners book, and it’s always a good idea to do so to avoid missing out. Many establishments across the board have brought in either a credit card hold or an actual booking fee in response to a steady increase in no-shows.

Some of the best dining in Singapore can be found in the hawker centres (check out Amoy Street Food Centre, Maxwell Food Centre and Newton Road Food Centre) and the only reservation you need is to throw a packet of tissues on a table to claim your spot.

You can book tickets for Gardens by the Bay online up to 30 days in advance and while there’s no difference in price, it’s worth doing to avoid queuing at the ticket office on the day.

You can book tickets for Gardens by the Bay online up to 30 days in advance.

For other musts, the ArtScience Museum at Marina Bay Sands, visiting the vibrant neighbourhoods of Little India, Chinatown and Kampong Glam, a drink at Raffles Singapore’s Writers Bar and a street food tour such as those run by Hello Singapore Tours.

The best places to watch the fireworks on New Year’s Eve are Marina Bay and the Helix Bridge. You’ll find all you need to know at Singapore Tickets.

The restaurants at 1-Atico are perfect for dinner with a view; also check Cable Car Sky Dining, which has had NYE dining events in the past. They’ve yet to open ticketing for November and December sessions so keep an eye out in the coming days.

And make sure you head to Visit Singapore for ideas on activities and attractions that are in line with the kind of holiday you’re after.

There are plenty of out-of-the-ordinary tours listed on the Visit London website.

We’re in our 70s and have a free day in each of Rome, Amsterdam, London, Paris and Dublin. Can you recommend tours?

I’m bubbling over with ideas! Eat With has a solid range of Parisian food tours and cooking classes, but if you’d like a home-cooked meal in Paris, you can’t go past the Dinner in a Bohemian Artist Apartment in Central Paris experience. I would piggy-back the experience with a food tour of Le Marais.

The highlight of my recent trip to Rome was a 3.5-hour Vespa Sidecar Tour, which took in all the top spots of the Eternal City (including a skip-the-lines visit to the Pantheon), plus a coffee and pastry in a cafe. I will wax lyrical about this tour until the end of days.

In Amsterdam, offbeat tours are a dime a dozen, but if you’d like to see some of the spectacular countryside, the Amsterdam: Zaanse Schans, Edam, Volendam & Marken guided bus tour from Get Your Guide is well worth a look. This tour is all about 17th-century houses, windmills and cheese-tasting.

For Dublin, I recommend visiting Irish Day Tours.

Fancy a London Loo Tour or a Jack the Ripper walking tour? Probably not, but they’re just two of the out-of-the-ordinary tours listed on the fantastic Visit London website. You can also book bakery-focused bus tours, The Beatles, Sherlock Holmes and Borough Market tours and more.

For Dublin I recommend visiting Irish Day Tours, a tour operator that has a good range of daytrips, from the Cliffs of Moher to Blarney Castle.

Whichever city you’re visiting, I always recommend taking a look through Get Your Guide, Viator and With Locals to get a handle on the more unusual tours offered by local guides. Travellers looking for day tours anywhere around the globe should also check out Intrepid Travel’s Urban Adventures; it offers more than 300 day tours in 50-plus destinations.

Originally published as Doc Holiday: How can we celebrate New Year in Singapore?