Architectural buffs and garden lovers will love this:

http://www.thecultureist.com/2013/03...ns-by-the-bay/

Only the exterior was completed when I was last there. Friends went recently and said it is absolutely amazing.

I loved it!

I've heard great things about it!

Are you there now Lucy? I know you are going to PLF soon...

wow, i was in singapore this paat december, and wasn't aware of this garden. auwe!

Definitely a must-see! At night around 8pm or so, there's a light and sound display lighting up the super trees (picture 1) - it's all pretty surreal and otherworldly. The domes are wonderful as well; it's pretty cold inside so it's a cool relief from the hot and humid weather outside.

Thanks for posting this, lcuy. I will be in Singapore later this year and probably wouldn't have known about it had you not posted the info. Will check it out.

I visited it in March, yes, it's fab. I also could see it (and the ships in the harbour) from my room at the Mandarin Oriental Hotel. A great sight to wake up to each morning.

moderators triangled re the two ads above.

But, back to the topic, here is an excellent YouTube guided video tour of the gardens:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=geKHBz8JUhE

Thanks Lucy. I've bookmarked it. I really miss Singapore. I was up in S.F. last weekend as I needed some rest so I checked myself into the Four Seasons. While up there, I walked down the street to the Westfield Mall to get something to eat and there was a restaurant called Straits which reminded me of Singapore. They had Chilli crab on the menu along with some other dishes of the region. But, I ended up eating at M.Y.China (Martin Yan's restaurant) right across from Straits. When I long for Singapore, here in L.A., I go to Farmers' Market and eat at The Banana Leaf Singaporean hawker-style eatery.

I can't wait to go to those gardens on the next trip to Singapore.

Happy Travels!

Wow! Thanks for sharing. Just in time. We (me and my husband) are planning to visit Singapore again before the end of this month. Our last visit was December 2010 and it was not there yet. We'll definitely see that amazing architecture!

Thanks for sharing. How many days would you recommend devoting to visiting Singapore ? Note, we are not interested in shopping.

How much time? Really depends on your trip and what you like to do. Singapore has a lot packed into a small space. Check out the original Singapore walking tours to get an idea of the main sites and ethnic groups. They offer really interesting guided tours. There are lots of other sites, like the botanical gardens (fabulous), zoo, night safari, Asian Cultural Museum (great), National Museum (also quite good), Gardens by the Bay. etc.

Singapore is a very easy place to visit. It is safe, clean, with a high std of living, and full of beautiful tropical flowers and gorgeous landscaping.