Museum of Ice Cream Singapore
Unlimited ice cream and a pool of sprinkles in Dempsey, from S$43 a head for about an hour. Worth it with children; expensive ice cream without them.
- Where: Dempsey
- Price: S$30–60
Indoor days out with kids
Air-conditioned, rain-proof and sorted by age on each page.
Gardens by the Bay
The Supertrees, the outdoor gardens and the 7.45pm light show are free. You pay for the two cooled domes, and residents pay a good deal less than visitors.
- Where: Marina Bay
- Price: Free
Christmas at Jewel 2026, Jewel Changi Airport
A 16m UNIQLO tree in Jewel’s Forest Valley and nightly snow from 13 Nov to 3 Jan; Canopy Park’s Starry Christmas costs S$6 for residents.
- Where: Changi
- When: On until 3 Jan 2027
- Price: Free
Super Mario Holiday Power-Up, VivoCity
Free Super Mario Christmas zones at VivoCity, 13 Nov–27 Dec, with snow Tue–Sun at 7.30 and 8.30pm and a Nintendo pop-up store from 1 Dec.
- Where: Telok Blangah
- When: On until 27 Dec
- Price: Free
Junior and the Holiday Magic (SRT The Little Company), Drama Centre Theatre
The Little Company’s hour-long North Pole musical for ages 4 and up ends Sat 21 Nov. Weekend shows 11am and 2pm, from S$22.
- Where: Bugis
- When: On until 21 Nov
- Price: Under S$30
Defence Collective Festival 2026, Singapore Discovery Centre and the Navy and Air Force museums
Three defence museums open up for free family activities on 14–15 Nov, 10am–6pm. A S$10 passport adds gel blasters, drones and a tote.
- Where: Jurong
- When: Last chance: until Sun 15 Nov
- Price: Free
Muara Festival 2026, Esplanade
Free zapin and Malay dance by the bay, 13–15 Nov, with live musicians back for the first time since 2022. Shows at 7.30 and 9.15pm.
- Where: Marina Bay
- When: Last chance: until Sun 15 Nov
- Price: Free
Hidden World: Creepy Crawlies of Singapore, Fort Canning Centre
Free: giant macro photographs of more than 120 insect and spider species, plus live specimens, daily 10am–6pm to 31 March.
- Where: Civic District
- When: On until 31 Mar 2027
- Price: Free
Funtastical World of Fungi, Singapore Botanic Gardens
A free fungi exhibition with live glowing mycelium at the Botanic Gardens, daily 9am–6pm until 10 January.
- Where: Botanic Gardens
- When: On until 10 Jan 2027
- Price: Free
SSO Christmas Concert 2026
A full orchestra, four choirs and Act 2 of The Nutcracker at the Esplanade on 11 and 12 December. Best for children five and up who can stay up late; no toddlers. Book early.
- Where: Marina Bay
- When: Opens Fri 11 Dec
- Price: S$30–60
SSO Family Film Favourites
Film music, a full orchestra and four short showings at Victoria Concert Hall on 14 and 15 November, pitched at five-and-ups. Pick 11am, before the post-lunch slump.
- Where: Civic District
- When: Last chance: until Sun 15 Nov
- Price: S$30–60
Monkey Goes West (Wild Rice)
Wild Rice's holiday panto returns after a decade: songs, wushu and magic at Funan, 12 November to 27 December. Book a weekend matinee early; at about 150 minutes, evenings are long for small children.
- Where: Civic District
- When: On until 27 Dec
- Price: S$60 and above
Sacred Caves: Dunhuang, Buddhism, and the Silk Road
Four life-size Mogao cave replicas at the Asian Civilisations Museum until 7 March, plus a stamp rally that gets children round. The shortest route to Dunhuang runs through Empress Place.
- Where: Civic District
- When: On until 7 Mar 2027
- Price: Under S$30
Pop after Pop: Art around Us
Warhol, Lichtenstein and Kruger beside Ming Wong and FX Harsono: 200-plus works across the National Gallery from 11 December, with the Guggenheim. Start with the names you don't know.
- Where: Civic District
- When: Opens Fri 11 Dec
- Price: Under S$30
Singapore Maritime Gallery
A free museum on the second floor of Marina South Pier, with ship-handling simulators facing the real water and a 1603 piracy case that shaped maritime law. Better for kids than adults.
- Where: Marina Bay
- Price: Free
Civil Defence Heritage Gallery (Central Fire Station)
Singapore's oldest fire station, on Hill Street, hides vintage engines you can climb into. Pair it with a Saturday-morning open house downstairs, booked ahead. Closed Mondays.
- Where: Civic District
- Price: Free
KC Arts Centre – Home of SRT
Singapore Repertory Theatre's 380-seat riverside home at Robertson Quay: close enough to see the actors sweat, big enough for a proper play, with a children's company for first-timers.
- Where: Robertson Quay
- Price: S$30–60
The Artground at Goodman Arts Centre
A children's arts centre at Goodman where the installation is for climbing, and it changes every year. For under-nines and an adult who'll crawl through a tunnel; book ahead.
- Where: Mountbatten
- Price: Under S$30
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Photo: Actuall7, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia CommonsKidsSTOP
A science centre for 18 months to eight: gears, a dino pit, a pretend supermarket and a slide of nearly seven metres. Book a timed session first, even with an annual pass.
- Where: Jurong
- Price: Under S$30
Science Centre Singapore
The 1977 building has a year or so left before the move across the lake to a Zaha Hadid home. Go now, pick two galleries and let the children press things.
- Where: Jurong
- Price: Under S$30
Children’s Museum Singapore
Free for every visitor until 12 November while upstairs is changed over, so Level 1 is the whole show. Still book a slot, and expect under-fours to find less to do for now.
- Where: Civic District
- Price: Under S$30
Changi Experience Studio
Jewel's paid attraction about the unglamorous side of flying: trolleys, taxi queues and the people behind them, turned into games. Best with children of six and up who like to compete.
- Where: Changi
- Price: Under S$30
Canopy Park
The basic ticket buys slides, fog and topiary. The nets, mazes and glass bridge are extras, and the right move is one thrill, not the bundle.
- Where: Changi
- Price: Under S$30
Singapore Oceanarium
The old S.E.A. Aquarium came back three times the size and with a plot: first fishes, Singapore's coast, the deep, then a warming sea. The sea jellies beat the big tank.
- Where: Sentosa
- Price: S$30–60
River Wonders
Kai Kai and Jia Jia are due to return to China in 2027, so go for the pandas now. Then give the manatees in the Flooded Forest longer than you planned; they're the better act.
- Where: Mandai
- Price: Under S$30
Bird Paradise
Jurong's birds moved to Mandai in 2023 and traded up: eight walk-in aviaries, a waterfall and a penguin cove chilled to 8°C. Allow four to five hours and start before the heat.
- Where: Mandai
- Price: S$30–60
More kid-friendly collections
Let the kids choose
Ask them first: climbing, experimenting, animals or stories. Then book one anchor activity and leave the rest of the afternoon for snacks.
- 6 picks
Mandai wildlife parks
Pick the Mandai park you actually want and do it properly. Trying to cover them all in one day leaves nobody with energy for the last one.
- 4 picks
Sentosa
Pick one Sentosa: beach, heritage, sea life, waterpark or rides. Trying to do three in a day is how a family ends up silent on the way home.
- 5 picks
West-side family day
Pick one anchor: Jurong Lake Gardens and Forest Ramble for an outdoor day, or Science Centre and KidsSTOP for a wet one. Not all four in an afternoon.
- 4 picks
Ideas for different ages
‘Good for kids’ covers everyone from toddlers to teenagers, which is the problem. Choose the session, route or activity for the children actually coming with you.
- 4 picks