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The weekend guide · Fri 13 – Sun 15 November

18 picks for the last weekend before the school holidays, led by three free nights of Malay dance by the bay. Add a free defence festival for the children, dragon boats and a neon night paddle at Kallang, the Writers Festival's opening, Champagne on the Supreme Court terrace and the first Christmas villages on Orchard Road, at Jewel and at Tanglin. A lot of it is this weekend only.

By JamieUpdated 9 November 202618 picks this weekend plus 1 to book ahead

The weekend line-up

Tap a pick to jump to it

Starts is the scheduled start; Suggested is our pick of a time to go. Each day’s picks are alternatives, not a route.

If you only do one thing

Our pick of the weekend.

Dancers in red baju kurung and black songkok with arms raised mid-routine on stage at the Muara Festival, from Esplanade's photos
Our pick of the weekend
Fri–Sun · 7.30pm and 9.15pm · free · Marina Bay

Muara Festival at the Esplanade

Three nights of free Malay dance by the bay, and then it is gone until next year. Groups from Singapore, Malaysia and Indonesia dance to live musicians, which Esplanade says hasn't happened since 2022; Saturday night is all zapin. On the Concourse at 6.30pm and 8pm, a shorter set invites the audience to join in. With small children, go in the afternoon instead: Saturday's 3pm regional competition or Sunday's 2.30pm schools showcase. The main shows are on the open-air Outdoor Theatre, so check the sky first.

Free; the Sat and Sun 11am dance workshops need registrationEsplanade MRTOfficial site
Good for families, couples, friends, solo

The rest of the weekend

In the order we’d recommend them.

Children steering remote-control diggers and trucks over a sand pit with a log bridge at the Defence Collective Festival's Bridge Building activity, from the organiser's photos
Sat & Sun · 10am–6pm · free entry

Defence Collective Festival

Jurong

A once-a-year, two-day festival at three defence museums, and the Singapore Discovery Centre leg is the one for primary-school children: a casualty relay, bridge building, a signal relay, a mini tactical challenge and SDCity, a play town for under-12s, all free, with school groups on stage both days. Entry is free but you register online first, so do it before you leave home. The optional S$10 passport adds target-lane shooting, gel blasters and drone flying, and works at all three museums. Under-5s must stay with an adult. The free shuttle from Jurong Point runs hourly; arrive by noon to get round it all.

Free with online registration; optional passport S$10Boon Lay MRTBook tickets
Good for families, friends
A dragon boat lit in neon green and pink paddles across Kallang Basin at night, with the illuminated National Stadium dome behind
Fri–Sun · fan zone from Fri 4pm · night paddle Sat 6–9pm

Regatta Waterfest and Neon Night Paddle

Kallang

Dragon boat races on Kallang Basin on Saturday and Sunday, with a fan zone for everyone who isn't paddling: inflatable human foosball, a rowing-machine challenge, paddle decorating and jagua-ink tattoos, plus food stalls including Hong Lim Curry Puff and No Time Noodle Bar. The Kallang hasn't published race times, so treat it as an afternoon by the water rather than a fixture. The rarer thing is Saturday's Neon Night Paddle: three hours on a lit-up dragon boat with the Marina skyline ahead, S$45, no experience needed, for ages 12 and up. Fees aren't refunded and bad weather can cancel it, so check the forecast before you register.

Neon Night Paddle S$45 (ages 12+, registration closes 14 Nov or when full); no fan zone charge publishedStadium MRTOfficial site
Good for families, friends, couples
Portrait of the writer Amitav Ghosh, whose Singapore Writers Festival 2026 keynote on Saturday 14 November is sold out
Fri–Sun · free hub from Fri 7pm · Stephen Witt Fri 7.30pm

Writers Festival opening weekend

Civic District

The festival opens on Friday, and a good part of it costs nothing. The Arts House is the free hub: a family Playground built round a mystery of missing library books, a stolen-diamond case whose endings were written by students, and installations, open 10am to 10pm at the weekend (a few of the free sessions inside it are already full). Of the two opening keynotes at Victoria Theatre, Stephen Witt on Nvidia on Friday at 7.30pm (S$25) is still on sale; Amitav Ghosh's on Saturday has sold out. The S$30 Festival Pass is separate: it covers more than 100 smaller sessions, first come, first served.

Free hub (some free sessions need registration, and some are full); Stephen Witt keynote S$25; Festival Pass S$30, Youth Pass S$15City Hall MRTBook on Klook
Good for families, couples, friends, solo
Champagniac 2026's artwork: two hands drawn in neon lines clinking a Champagne bottle and a glass on a black background
Sat 11am · Sun 11am and 4pm · Sat 4pm sold out

Champagniac

Civic District

Eighteen Champagne houses and growers in one three-hour session on the Supreme Court Terrace, this Saturday and Sunday only (not Friday). S$98 buys a pour from each of the 18 and a crystal tasting glass to keep; more pours are bought with S$5 tokens on the day. Saturday's 4pm session has sold out, and so has VIP at every session, which leaves the Regular ticket for Saturday 11am, Sunday 11am or Sunday 4pm. Take Sunday at 4pm if you want it to roll into dinner. You must be 18 to buy a ticket; under-18s may come with a ticket holder but won't be served. The organiser doesn't promise sales at the door, so book.

S$98 Regular (VIP and early bird sold out); 18 and over to buyCity Hall MRTBook tickets
Good for couples, friends
The soprano Sumi Jo, with short pink hair and a beaded white gown, seated against a grey studio backdrop
Sun · 7.30pm · from S$68

Sumi Jo at the Esplanade

Marina Bay

The weekend's one big night of song: the Korean soprano Sumi Jo, 40 years on from her European debut, sings love in its many moods, from Vivaldi, Delibes, Rossini and Bellini to songs from Korea, at the Concert Hall with the pianist Abigail Sin. It's one night only and short as recitals go, an hour and three-quarters with an interval, so it ends in time for supper along the bay. Cat 5 at S$68 is the way in; seats run up to S$188. Ages 7 and up, so an older child who sings can come too.

S$68–S$188; ages 7 and aboveEsplanade MRTOfficial site
Good for couples, friends, solo
A shopper among decorated Christmas trees and hanging baubles at a previous Christmas Atelier fair, from the organiser's photos
Fri & Sat · 11am–9pm · ends Sat

The Christmas Atelier

Marina Bay

The season's first big Christmas fair, and it is over by Saturday night: 130 independent brands in a convention hall at Marina Bay Sands, decked out with trains and hot-air balloons. It's for ticking off presents from small makers rather than the mall chains, and children aged 10 and under get in free. There is no Sunday, so Friday after work is the easy slot; tickets come with a Yeo's drink.

Tickets from S$8 (via Trip.com); free for children 10 and underBayfront MRTBook tickets
Good for friends, couples, families, solo
The rainbow entrance arch of the Great Christmas Village at Ngee Ann City Civic Plaza at night, with Kiztopia characters and visitors walking in, from the Orchard Road Business Association's photos
Fri–Sun · 3–10pm · opens Fri

Great Christmas Village

Orchard

Orchard Road's Christmas starts here on Friday, four days before the street lights go on: a carnival on the Ngee Ann City forecourt round a Marvel Avengers Christmas tree by Kiztopia, with pinball, claw machines, a balloon shooting range, a train ride, a LEGO workshop and fake snow at 8pm and 9pm. No entry charge is listed. The rides and games run on a carnival card, which is the real price of an evening with children; pay for it by Mastercard and you get bonus credits (S$35 buys 35 credits, S$50 buys 70). The Grocer Bar pours cocktails for whoever is holding the bags. It's outdoors, so have a plan for showers.

No entry charge listed; carnival card for rides and games, with bonus credits when paid by MastercardOrchard MRTOfficial site
Good for families, friends, couples
The UNIQLO Christmas tree with a brownstone house at its base in the Forest Valley at Jewel Changi Airport, seen across the Rain Vortex walkway, from Jewel's photos
From Fri · snowfall 8.05pm, 9.05pm, 10.05pm

Christmas at Jewel

Changi

Jewel's Christmas opens on Friday, so this is the first weekend to see the 16m UNIQLO tree in the Forest Valley with snow coming down. At weekends it falls at 8.05pm, 9.05pm and 10.05pm, and every one of those falls plays in the Forest Valley, which is free. The ticketed Canopy Park upstairs has its own snowfall and a Starry Christmas trail if you want more, but the tree and the snow cost nothing. With small children, the 8.05pm leaves time for the train home before bed; the 10.05pm is for everyone else.

Forest Valley tree and snowfall free; Canopy Park ticketedChangi Airport MRTOfficial site
Good for families, couples
The SSO's illustration for Family Film Favourites: children in costumes, a witch's hat, a superhero cape and popcorn, sitting in red theatre seats among music notes
Sat & Sun · 11am and 2pm

SSO Family Film Favourites

Civic District

An hour of film music from a full orchestra – Star Wars, Harry Potter, Encanto, Moana, Frozen and 'Golden' from KPop Demon Hunters – in a relaxed performance, which means you can step out with a child who needs to and come back in. Four shows, this weekend only. The SSO recommends it for 5 and up, every person needs a ticket and babes in arms aren't admitted. Take the 11am, before the post-lunch slump, and eat by the river afterwards.

S$30 and S$40, plus booking feeCity Hall MRTOfficial site
Good for families
Santa, Mrs Claus, elves and a penguin on stage in Santa's workshop set in Junior and the Holiday Magic, from SRT's production photos
Sat & Sun · 11am and 2pm

Junior and the Holiday Magic

Bugis

SRT's Christmas show for small children, set in Santa's workshop: an hour long with no interval, which is about as long as a four-year-old's patience, and SRT recommends it for 4 and up. The run ends on 21 November, so this is the second-last weekend. The 2pm show suits families who live by the nap; weekend seats run from S$22 to S$52.

S$22–S$52 at weekendsBugis MRTBook tickets
Good for families
The cast of Wild Rice's Monkey Goes West in costume: the Monkey King, Pigsy, the monk in a golden crown and demons, against an orange cloud backdrop
Fri 7.30pm · Sat 2.30pm · previews

Monkey Goes West previews

Civic District

Wild Rice's holiday musical retelling of Journey to the West opens this week, and the weekend's confirmed shows are previews, priced at S$50 to S$95 against S$60 to S$120 once the run proper starts: Friday at 7.30pm and Saturday at 2.30pm. Wild Rice's show page names no other performance this weekend; check its booking page for any added. The Saturday 2.30pm is the one for children; Wild Rice recommends it for 5 and up, and at about two and a half hours, Friday's 7.30pm is a late night for the small ones. The run continues to 27 December.

Previews S$50–S$95City Hall MRTBook tickets
Good for families, couples, friends
Blue and green light and cloud drifting through the Supertree Grove at night during Borealis, from Gardens by the Bay's own photos
Sat & Sun · 8pm · free

Borealis at the Supertrees

Marina Bay

Free northern lights over the Supertrees for half an hour at 8pm on Saturday and Sunday (there's no Friday show). From 27 November it moves to 9.05pm for the festive season, so this is one of the last weekends to catch it before a child's bedtime. It's cancelled if it rains during the show; if the sky holds, cross the bay afterwards for Muara's 9.15pm dance at the Esplanade.

FreeBayfront MRTOfficial site
Good for families, couples, friends, solo
Tanglin Mall's promotional image for its Weekend Christmas Market, a grid of products from the stallholders: candles, ornaments, biscuits and crafts
Fri–Sun · Lil'preneurs Sat & Sun 11am–8pm · snow from Sat

Tanglin Mall's children's Christmas market

Orchard

Tanglin Mall's Christmas opens this weekend, and the unusual part runs on Saturday and Sunday only: the Lil'preneurs Market, where children aged 4 to 12 run their own stalls of handmade festive gifts in the Level 1 atrium (the stalls are fully booked, so this one is for shoppers). Outside there's a weekend market of small makers, a token-run carnival with a bouncy castle and a train, and, from Saturday, foam at 7.30pm and 8.30pm with artificial snow 15 minutes later, at 7.45pm and 8.45pm. Free to browse; tokens are the only cost.

Free; carnival tokens from S$20 for 8Orchard Boulevard MRTOfficial site
Good for families, solo
Children and adults wading through a lagoon of glowing blue plankton at Glowing Oceans
Fri–Sun · 10am–5pm

Glowing Oceans

Jurong

Wade through a dark lagoon of living, glowing plankton, then swirl it in touch tanks: the Science Centre's limited run opened on 3 November and is the strongest rain plan on this list. It isn't for under-4s, under-12s need an adult beside them, and feet get wet (booties go over your shoes, so wear closed, flat ones). Weekends are peak, so residents pay the higher rate this weekend. If you're buying the bundle with ONE Ocean, note that hall is shut until 1.30pm on Saturday for a private event; Sunday morning is the cleaner run. The Science Centre's 11.11 bundle sale ends on Friday.

Residents S$12 adult, S$10 child or senior at weekend peak rates; standard S$18 and S$14; with Science Centre entryJurong East MRTBook tickets
Good for families
A boy hopping across a Zoolympix challenge station at Mandai, from Mandai Wildlife Group's own photos
Fri–Sun · 10am–7pm

Zoolympix at Mandai

Mandai

Mandai's festive obstacle course, in its second weekend: animal-themed agility and balance stations on the East Lawn, with more outposts inside the five parks. The S$20 village ticket covers the lawn; the outposts need park admission, so it works best tacked onto a zoo or bird park day. Mandai gives no age guidance. It's an open lawn, so go after 4pm when the heat drops, and keep the parks' covered areas as the plan for thundery showers.

Village S$20; outposts with park admissionSpringleaf MRTBook tickets
Good for families

Last chance

All of these end this weekend. No reruns.

Haw Ror Villa 5's official artwork: a snarling long-haired ghost and a fanged demon in front of a fiery gate, with horned guardians at either side
Fri & Sat · 6.30pm–midnight · final nights
Fri & Sat · 6.30pm–midnight · final nights

Haw Ror Villa 5

Pasir Panjang

The night-time horror walk through Haw Par Villa's hell sculptures ends this weekend. Its official poster lists Friday 13 and Saturday 14 November as the last nights, with no Sunday, and Friday the 13th is about as on-theme as scheduling gets. It's designed for older teens and adults; the organiser advises parental guidance for under-9s. It goes ahead rain or shine, so bring a poncho, and allow two hours or more. Tickets are on Pelago, the official seller, at S$50 each when two adults book together, with no cancellations, so pick your night before you pay; a limited number are sold on site.

S$50 each for two adults (Pelago); under-6s freeHaw Par Villa MRTBook tickets
Good for friends, couples
Lemongrass cake with scallops from Chef Andy Fung's residency at Golden Peony
Fri–Sun · lunch and dinner · ends Sun
Fri–Sun · lunch and dinner · ends Sun

Golden Peony guest-chef residency

Marina Bay

Chef Andy Fung, of Liu at Conrad Bangkok, finishes his two-week residency in the Conrad's Cantonese dining room on Sunday. It comes as four-, five- or six-course sets, a vegetarian set or à la carte, so a weekend lunch is the lower-stakes way to try it. The hotel hasn't published the residency's prices; ask when you book rather than finding out at the bill.

Prices not publishedPromenade MRTOfficial site
Good for couples, families
Santa and a gingerbread man on stage at a previous Orchard Road Christmas Eve street party, from the organiser's own photos

Coming up next weekend · Tue 17 Nov · 7pm · free

Orchard Road light-up

Not this weekend, despite what the warm-up suggests: the street lights go on at 7pm on Tuesday 17 November, with the ceremony at Shaw House Urban Plaza. This weekend's Great Christmas Village is the curtain-raiser, and the 3D projection on the Hilton Singapore Orchard's facade already plays 7pm to 10pm nightly if you're passing.

FreeOrchard MRTOfficial site
Good for families, couples, friends, solo

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Sources and how we check

Dates, times and prices come from the organisers’ pages and the listings below. Plans change, so check the official site before you set off.