Young family want to discover SG for 2-3 weeks before reallocating. Which neighborhoods to stay?

[celalo]

Me, my wife and our new born are planning to relocate to Singapore next year. Prior to making the big move, we wanted to pay a visit beforehand and get to know the city. Hopefully that should help us to decide where to rent an apartment later on. Where would you suggest us to stay for 2-3 weeks that we could use as a base to discover different parts of the city? We could consider staying at multiple places to be able to get a better feeling of various neighborhoods.


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[x9200]

People would normally approach this problem from a slightly different angle. They try to factor in things like housing budget, work place location etc. Singapore is pretty diversified in terms of housing options (budget wise). It can vary from~2k to anything exceeding 10k for a more-less ordinary apartment. I would suggest you to provide some housing budget figures and we will try to advise on possible neighbourhoods.

Also, for your coming visit, most of the hotels are located in the central parts and as a tourist you are generally limited to the hotels only. If you really want to visit all different neighbourhoods, just chose a hotel that is near an MRT station.

[celalo]

thanks for the suggestions. the budget is up to SGD5000 and I will not need to commute to office most of the days so location is not much of a concern. I am planning to rent an AirBnb apartment for this trip so that we would not need to be at the central parts if we don't want to. that could help us to explore other neighborhoods.


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[x9200]

It's a decent budget. It will get you a reasonable apartment in majority of the places but it's a tight budget for any reasonable landed property regardless of its location.

You may take a trip to the so called heartlands, e.g. Ang Mo Kio, Chua Chu Kang, Yishun. You will see they all are pretty much the same. Although living there is an interesting experience (I am not sarcastic), with your budget you will likely prefer more central places especially if one of your preferences is to socialise with other expats including those with kids.

I would suggest to visit the following:
- East Coast
- the whole stretch along Bukit Timah Rd, starting around Newton and ending near Dairy Farm Rd.
- areas near West Coast Park, and near Sentosa / Mnt. Feber
- central areas inclusive of Holland and all adjacent to Singapore River (e.g. Robertson Quay).
- areas around the Chinese Gardens

With the budget and working from home It will mostly boil down to you life style. More central areas, more pubs, restaurants, more night life, more expats. Less central, much cheaper housing. A good balance may be offered IMO by East Coast. If you manage to find a decent place around Botanical Gardens, then this is also very nice central location, near pretty much all the central places and with very good area to stroll with the baby.

For AirBnb, although people use it, you should be aware the options they offer are illegal in Singapore.

http://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/sin ... 90752.html
[..]Current guidelines in Singapore state that private residences are meant for longer-term stays of six months or more, while Housing and Development Board (HDB) flat owners are not allowed to sublet their units or rooms to tourists for short-term stays.[..]

[celalo]

Thank you very much. Happy new year!


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[Africa]

Hi im most probably also moving to Singapore Q1 2016 and our offices are based in Jurong. How long would travelling there take in peak hour from Secrion 15/16 East Coast Park?

We would like to be in an area where we can have a view either on the coast, some nature areas or dams.

Any advice will be highly appreciated.

Also what is better , EC Park or WC Park or Woodlands?

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[x9200]

Hi im most probably also moving to Singapore Q1 2016 and our offices are based in Jurong. How long would travelling there take in peak hour from Secrion 15/16 East Coast Park?

Bad idea. It's a longish trip even outside peak hours. Jurong, where exactly?

We would like to be in an area where we can have a view either on the coast, some nature areas or dams.

Vicinity of West Coast Park would be my first suggestion. Having said that I am living in Bukit Batok and have a view on the coast, two nature parks, a nature reserve and Marina Bay Sands.

Any advice will be highly appreciated.

Also what is better , EC Park or WC Park or Woodlands?

It is really impossible to tell without knowing your budget and other preferences, car? schooling? desire of pub/nightlife? etc etc. There are literally hundreds posts of similar topics where you may get a good idea what living in Singapore in different areas is about for different wallets and life-styles.

[Africa]

Many thx much appreciated! My office is just off Boon Lay Way close to JCube. We want to be close to good international English speaking pre-chools/ kindergarten, close to park area ideally with view on park or coastline, condo with balcony or small patio and with shared facilities and finally close to MRT. Budget approx $5500.

Quite a mouthful i suppose....

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[x9200]

Many thx much appreciated! My office is just off Boon Lay Way close to JCube. We want to be close to good international English speaking pre-chools/ kindergarten, close to park area ideally with view on park or coastline, condo with balcony or small patio and with shared facilities and finally close to MRT. Budget approx $5500.

Quite a mouthful i suppose....

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Very close to that location are Chinese Gardens, nice, green area with a big water stretch. There is plenty of condos around and with your budget you should be able to find some nice apartment, maybe even a penthouse (under the current market). Practically in the same spot (adjacent to the gardens) there is a campus of Canadian Int. School. They have a kindergarten: http://www.cis.edu.sg/page.cfm?p=6911. Probably the only downside of this location is the lack of pubs and such.

The other location, vicinity of West Coast Park, have some higher rise condos that should have a really nice view to the sea side. Also the West Coast Park itself is a very nice place. The distance to your work place will be reasonable and you could even consider taking a cab every day, what should not cost more than $30 roundtrip I believe. No pubs in this location neither, but pretty near, in Pasir Panjang are already some good drinking spots.

Ultimately you will have to go and see by yourself to get the right feeling.

[Africa]

Many thanks your advice is very much appreciated!

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