10 Best Things to Do in and Around Marina Bay Sands
Marina Bay, the iconic landmark of Singapore. Museums, futuristic gardens, and the skyline: all of it within walking distance, all of it best experienced with a sense of occasion.
If you are weighing up the things to do in and around Marina Bay Sands for an afternoon, a full day, or an evening that stretches well past midnight, consider this the insider's map to doing it properly.
1. Marvel at the Future World at ArtScience Museum
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Future World is the ArtScience Museum's most immersive offering. Digital installations dissolve the boundary between viewer and artwork, turning a gallery visit into something closer to stepping inside a living canvas. The aesthetic is striking and unhurried, anchoring a morning without effort.
2. Take a Digital Stroll Through Spectra: A Light and Water Show
Every evening at the Event Plaza, Spectra transforms the bay into a choreographed canvas of fountains and light. It runs for 15 minutes, is open to anyone passing through, and requires no planning beyond showing up.
Enjoy the showcase from CÉ LA VI: 57 floors above with synchronised lasers lights stretching across the city. The same show, from a completely different vantage point.
3. Experience Award-Winning Dining at CÉ LA VI Rooftop Restaurant
Perched at Level 57 of Marina Bay Sands, the rooftop restaurant at CÉ LA VI is where Modern Asian cuisine meets one of the most commanding dining settings in the city. Executive Chef Joshua Bedell and Head Chef Ayo Adeyemi lead a kitchen that moves with purpose: from the A4 Miyazaki Beef Tataki with turmeric and smoked soy to the Miso Chilean Seabass lifted by a vibrant Szechuan green chilli sauce, each dish arrives with clarity and intention. The Singapore Strait stretches wide beyond the glass. Linger over a long lunch, or let a sunset dinner carry you well into the evening.
4. Walk the Helix Bridge for Iconic Photo Ops
Travel across the Helix bridge from Marina Bay Sands into the heart of the city. Its DNA-inspired steel structure frames the MBS towers with clean architectural precision, particularly in the hour before dinner when the light softens and the bay begins its evening shift. It is a short walk with a long view.
5. Explore the Gardens by the Bay Via the Lions Bridge
A direct walkway from Marina Bay Sands leads to the Cloud Forest and the Supertree Grove. The contrast is the point: lush, layered greenery rising alongside futurist architecture, all within minutes of the CBD. The Cloud Forest's interior is cool and quietly spectacular. It is a considered pause before the pace of the evening picks up again.
6. Discover Artisanal Cocktails at the CÉ LA VI SkyBar
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As the afternoon gives way to golden hour, the Sky Bar is where the city earns its reputation. Open-air and panoramic, it sits at Level 57 alongside the Restaurant, with the skyline stretching wide in every direction. The signature cocktail programme moves through botanical-infused signatures and premium pours designed to be savoured slowly. Among the best rooftop bars in Singapore, this is the one worth arriving at early.
CÉ LA VI Sky Bar is also the host to a variety of award-winning guest bartenders through exclusive guest shifts and one-night-only collaborations. These exclusive guest shifts showcase distinctive cocktails inspired by their home cities, featuring unique ingredients such as Thai black rice wine from Bangkok and camel milk from Mongolia — creations available only during their exclusive guest shift at CÉ LA VI.
7. Luxury Retail Therapy at the Shoppes
The Shoppes at Marina Bay Sands is one of Asia's most exceptional retail destinations. Flagship boutiques from the world's leading luxury houses line the canal-level promenade, with floating stores adding a detail found nowhere else in the city. When the afternoon has been well spent and the bags are full, Level 57 is a short ride up.
8. Catch a Broadway Hit at Sands Theatre
For those adding a cultural note to their things to do around MBS, Sands Theatre delivers international touring productions and Broadway shows throughout the year. The programming shifts seasonally, so it's worth checking before you visit. An evening that opens with a live performance and closes with cocktails above the bay is a combination worth planning in advance.
9. Lose Yourself to the Beat at the CÉ LA VI Club Lounge
When the lights lower and the music rises, the Club Lounge comes into its own. Resident and international DJs, a curated weekly events programme, and an energy that builds from the first set to the last: this is where the Marina Bay Sands activities of the day give way to something altogether more electric. Ladies Night runs every Wednesday, with Liquid Brunch on Sundays for those who prefer their weekend energy poured a little earlier. From 57 floors up, the night looks like nothing else in the city.
10. Take a Scenic Ride on the Singapore Flyer
A short walk from Marina Bay Sands, the Singapore Flyer offers a slow, panoramic arc above the island. The full circuit reaches 165 metres at its highest point, with unobstructed views across the bay, the CBD, and the broader skyline. It is the kind of perspective that puts the rest of the day into proportion, and a fitting close to a full circuit of the bay.
Begin Your Definitive Marina Bay Experience
Marina Bay rewards those who approach it with intention. Every attraction pulls in a different direction: museums for the morning, gardens to shift the pace through the afternoon, and by evening, Level 57 has everything the bay is known for: the cuisine, the cocktails, and an atmosphere that makes a night here feel like its own destination.
Reserve your table at the Restaurant, Sky Bar, or Club Lounge at CÉ LA VI today.