Pulau Ubin

If you want to experience how life was like in Singapore before the skyscrapers, paved streets, manicured gardens, etc, look no further than Palau Ubin. The old Kampong Lifestyle, where community and nature are intertwined, is alive and well in this island situated between northeast coast of Singapore and Malaysia. Simple life, is understatement. It’s a 1940s time machine!
Traveling to Palau Ubin is so easy. Just take pumpboat for just $ 3 a person. If you are a single person traveler or a small group, you may have to wait a little until the boat fills up of 12 – 13 people. After a 15 – 20 minute boat ride and you reach the other side, you start to realise you are in a different world. Rustic buildings, the main mode of transportation is bikes, and thick thick /​lush forests, but most of all locals without designer anything. :-)
Rent a bike for $ 10 for the whole day and just go out and explore Singapore’s untouched treasure. You’ll see everything from Monkeys to Wild Boar to old Malay tombstones to ant colonies to mini crabs to exotic birds to untouched vegetation.
Palau Ubin is, simply put, a national treasure. All Singaporeans should visit it at least once in their lives just to remind themselves how far the country has come in just fifty years!

An awesome getaway from the concrete jungle that is mainland Singapore!
If you miss grass and massive trees, are looking for some challenging bike paths, and want to feel somewhat in touch with nature, Pulau Ubin fits the bill.
I highly recommend renting a bicycle for the day. Rates are pretty affordable; we chose one of the shops in the middle and we only had to pay $ 8 the entire day.
The Chek Jawa wetlands are not to be missed. I’m an out of shape person and I was able to bike 3.3 km to see it. However, it’s best to go during low tide so you can see all the nearby marine wildlife from the boardwalk. We went during high tide and didn’t see much. But it was still a nice walk through the mangroves.
I also enjoyed the view from Jejawi Tower, also within Chek Jawa. I wouldn’t say it’s the best view ever, but it does make you feel like you aren’t in Singapore!
Luckily, I didn’t have any problems with the wildlife. The monkeys were well behaved, and I even got to see 2 wild boars who also minded their business. The freakiest thing I saw were thousands of ants traveling along the bike path!
On your way back from Chek Jawa, do stop by the humble cold drink stand (can’t miss it, it has a sign that says «Cold Drinks») and get a nice, cold coconut drink. You deserve it!

Note: This review is for the Ketam Mountain Bike Park on Pulau Ubin. I haven’t explored the rest of the island yet.
For MTB enthusiasts, Ketam Mountain Bike Park is a MUST! I was very pleasantly surprised by the level of difficulty on these technical trails. I rented the bottom-​of-​the-​line bike when I arrived on the island, but that was definitely a mistake. Within the mountain bike park, trails are mostly singletrack, steep, narrow, technical, rocky, and often slick from the rain. Get a bike with some grip on the pedals, or toe-​clips if you can… you’ll put them to good use on these trails!
The loop is pretty short, but you can do it a few times and get a good ride in. As other reviewers have said, be sure to cover yourself in bug spray and pack plenty of water.

We were on a guided tour for this one. Pulau Ubin is one of the few small islands that surround mainland, Singapore. So far being a Singaporean, I’ve only visited 3 — the other two being Sentosa and Pulau Hantu. Sad. I should really travel more.
Traveling here is easy since you just need to jump on a short bumboat ride (costing just $ 2.50 per ride). This place is a haven for cycling enthusiasts. I know a friend who’s one of them. Goes here every other week to just… cycle.
Even if you aren’t obsessed with cycling, exploring this place via a bicycle is the best way to go. There are routes of course with signboards asking you to dismount and walk instead due to bumpy roads.
Wild boars roam this place, they aren’t scared of people. One even came up to sniff my bag when I was unaware. Goodness! I think I was the one who Unilocaled (no pun intended).
We toured around Chek Jawa Wetlands. Unfortunately I didn’t check in to that particular spot. Meh! It was low tide when we went there. The further you get, your phone will end up with no service. Those who had their phone’s roaming on were already converted to Malaysia’s telecom service. Haha!
And in good spirits, even for those who do not believe in superstitions, it’s best not to anger the ‘guardians’ there. Many stories were related by our 70+ (still so bloody fit!) experienced tour guide.
There are still families who live on this island in kampongs. Too bad we couldn’t see the neighbourhood. I’ve never had the chance to see one. I was even quite excited to see actual wells that were scattered on the island. They appear on random spots, even in the middle of bushes deep in the forest. Too bad all of them were locked to prevent accidents or perhaps horrific things from coming out like the one from THE RING. I would have love to try them as a wishing well.
Even the shops were those sorts of vintage ‘apek’ provision shops. Stray dogs wander around everywhere. We sat down for a while before taking a ride back home. Too knackered, a cold bowl of Iced Kachang and Coconut drink were bliss to us.

Pulau Ubin is a lush island located on the eastern side of Singapore’s main island. With a lack of development, the island is one of the very few natural setting left in Singapore. To get here, you take a bumboat from the Changi Point Ferry Terminal for $ 2.50/ride.
The two major activities here are hiking and cycling. If you opt for cycling, make sure to rent a good solid mountain bike with adjustable gear. Part of the way to Chek Jawa (wetlands on the north eastern side of the island), one of the two major attractions at Ubin, is off-​road and slightly hilly. As an environmental avenger, I felt that walking was a better choice because I get to check out all the plants, butterflies and wild animals that I would have probably missed if on a bike.
The trails on Pulau Ubin is pretty well marked so no worries about getting lost. However, there are not many stalls selling drinks except for the jetty area. So do bring lots of water on a hot day. If you are the more curious kind and plans to stop every now and then to check out the unique biodiversity, BRING CITRONELLA OIL! There are lots of hungry bugs out there!
The other thing to look for is the quarry lakes. The high mineral contents of the sediment makes the water looks amazingly blue but of course, no jumping in there! This island is definitely an amazing getaway from the congestion of Singapore. I recommend going early to avoid heavy traffic on the boardwalks and narrower trails.
It is also a good opportunity for kids to learn about the different wild life that exists in Singapore. But please, mom and dads, do educate them about how to treat animals. No feeding them and no luring them. They are probably the only non-​confined free living wild life left in Singapore. We need to protect them.

Going to Pulau Ubin was definitely the highlight of our trip to Singapore. It’s a small island with not much to do besides hike, bike, enjoy nature and have some genuine food in these small huts.
My husband and I opted to rent bikes, the sign says «$ 3 but then they put you on a bike that is worth $ 15» what the hell? Ah well, whatever. Getting here was pretty cheap so I can’t complain, we took the small boat over for $ 2.50 cash.
We biked around the island and quickly learned that the island is bigger than what it seems. We saw lots of bamboo, sugar cane, durian trees, coconuts, etc. An hour into our bike ride, the chain on my bike fell off and we were stranded in the rain and we were eaten alive by mosquitoes. It truly tested my marriage with my husband at that point, we were getting angry at one another.
Then finally my husband got the chain back on my bike and we rode back but we were so far in, it was hard to find out which way to get back. Being on the bike was nice because it gave us a bit of breeze in 85% humidity.
On our way back, a durian fell so close to my husband’s head, he went back to pick it up and took it back with us. It was his first time having durian so I warned him that it stinks.
Finally, we got back and stopped in this little house that served us some prawn soup, it was delicious and people there were really nice. We had a refreshing cold lychee drink to end our meal.
After 4 hours at Pulau Ubin, it was time to get back on the boat and get back to the main island.

Rustic small island off Northeast coast of Singapore. Walking and biking paths around and into the island. Hot and humid. Bring water and wear comfortable shoes. Lots of scenery and some kampong style houses like the old Singapore. Cheap S2.00 + for ferry. Went on a weekday and not many people. Be careful getting off /​on the ferry. The operators back them up to the pier and you wind up standing on the edge of the pier without anything to hold on to and jumping onto the stern of the boat which is bobbing up and down.

BRING BUG SPRAY!
Pulau Ubin is definitely a MUST visit place if you’re in Singapore. I can’t believe some locals haven’t even been out here, it’s truly an amazing experience.
It is an island off of the main island, you can take a ferry for S$ 2.50 cash each way from Changi Ferry Terminal (which you can take a few busses to get here). Try to bring exact change for each way, because they might not have enough change to give back to you. Also, note that the last ferry leaves around 7:00pm, so you don’t get trapped on the island overnight!
GET PUMPED AND BE PREPARED TO BIKE AND SWEAT! You can either walk/​hike or bike around the island, but I would definitely recommend renting a bike from once you enter the island to your left. Cheap mountain bikes range from about S$ 5, but I prefer beach cruisers — which I got for S$ 11 for the entire day. I arrived around 2:30pm and the bicycle rental place closed at 6:00pm. But, 3 and a half hours was just the perfect amount of time for me. We avoided the warmest time of the day (12pm-​2pm).
Most of the places to see are to the west of the ferry terminal, past all of the bike vendors. However, there are a few things to see on the east — such as an adorable garden with unique plants and fruits.
Some must see places are the beach front boardwalk. I have a picture below that shows where I am talking about! :D This is an above the water route that goes around a whole corner of the island, and when there are low tides — you can see shellfish and other sea animals.
Another key area is the Ketam Bike Park, which reminded us of snowboarding/​skiing slopes. There were Blue Diamond, Black Diamond, and Double Black diamond trails. We were a bit afraid to test out the Black Diamonds, so we just stuck to the blue diamond trails. They were a bit challenging to go through, especially with a bike cruiser — but, it is definitely worth a try. I felt so accomplished after going through each path.
My main recommendation is just to get a bike, and just start biking and try to hit every single area, which might be impossible, since there is so much to do and see in just a few hours.
You’ll feel great at the end of the day, and you will get a good workout out of it too! After getting coming back to Singapore Island, grab some food at the hawker centre there! There’s a great variety and famous vendors that were on television and the newspapers for their specialties.

Definitely worth making a trip out here at least once when in Singapore.
I’ve been biking at Palau Ubin twice and both have been pretty good experiences. While the quality of rental bikes isn’t great, it’s only $ 13 (max) per day and you don’t need to leave a deposit or ID. And moreover, the island’s terrain is pretty friendly, so it’s only a moderate workout for exercise regulars.
There’s a cool boardwalk trail, where you can see some neat animals and climb up a tower. You’ll see a lot of monkeys and one time, I ran into a family of wild boar!
One complaint I have is that the captain of the first bum boat we tried to take was a bit crazy and rude, but we got on another boat and the ride was short.
Thumbs up overall.

Having visited Singapore on many occasions, there aren’t that many places to go and explore, back when they only used to have the red and green lines on the MRT, I rode the red line all the way round through Sembawang and back to downtown.
Anyway, my uncle took us to this place to have a look at «old Singapore» and it was definitely different feeling to the main island.
A very interesting trip, quite off the tourist trail, at the time there were almost no vehicles and it seemed like no electricity either! We were there during the day and explored the main areas by the dock.
If for some reason you have a lot of time in Singapore, then this place is worth a look.

The last rustic bastion of Singapore.
Pulau Ubin means granite island in Malay and no surprise it used to be a concentration of granite quarries, the last one closed in the 1990s. Since then the quarries have been abandoned and make for wonderfully scenic lakes. The thriving population in the past has now dwindled to a small handful of residents. But for the city dwellers, this is the only place to show your children how Singapore looked like in the past and how our kampongs of yesteryear was like.
These days, the island sees a new wave of visitors — the tourists and recreational users. Great for mountain biking, with a specially designed trail at the Ketam Bike park. Don’t worry if you don’t have your own bicycles, there are endless rows of bicycle rental shops to fight for your attention. It also has campsites and great hiking trails with wildlife at your tent-​step. If you want something less adventurous, there are also 2 «resorts» on the island for the whole family.
If this is your first time going to Ubin, take a ferry from Changi Point Ferry Terminal. The bumboats only move off when there are 12 passengers at $ 2.50 per person. Bikes and babies count as an extra headcount. If you want to get around Ubin, there are «taxi» for hire — these are the white vans that you see waiting at the jetty. Remember to bargain for a good price but the bigger group you have, the more worthwhile the vans are because its a lump sum for hiring the whole van.
Don’t forget to check out all the wonderful local food on the island — from the Malay stall by the jetty to the locally harvested coconuts from the plantations on the island! There are nature spots, hike to the peak, cycle around the island or just sign up for a programme at the Outward bound school on the other end of the island. It’s a great weekend for locals and overseas guests alike.