Here is a list of free stuff to do in Singapore next week. Explore and experience events and activities that are budget-friendly. I will focus on physical activities as there are already many things to do online.
Please check the respective websites to check for the latest details and availability.
I am looking for sources of free events and activities, including volunteering, in Singapore. Do drop me an email at consumelesslife@gmail.com if you know of any of these free events and activities. Thanks!
For free stuff to do this week, check out last week’s post here.
Here is a list of free stuff to do in Singapore next week from 2 January 2023 to 8 January 2023.
Monday – 2 January 2023
BARE
Description: A concept vehicle helmed by the artist formerly known as Yuresh, BARE is a platform for creation and collaboration, revolving around introspection and communion.
Category: Music
Location: Esplanade Concourse
Time: 1800 – 1830 | 1900 – 1930
Booking Requirement: No
Further Details: Website
Presenting Reggae Sounds of The Relax Co. with Art Fazil
Description: The Relax Co. will perform classic reggae hits such as Do The Reggay by Toots and Maytalls, Beautiful World Beautiful People by Jimmy Cliff and more. The Relax Co. will also be performing their own original material, including the single You Left Your Heart In Bali.
Category: Music
Location: Esplanade Outdoor Theatre
Time: 1845 – 1930 | 2015 – 2100
Booking Requirement: No
Further Details: Website
Tuesday – 3 January 2023
BARE
Description: A concept vehicle helmed by the artist formerly known as Yuresh, BARE is a platform for creation and collaboration, revolving around introspection and communion.
Category: Music
Location: Esplanade Concourse
Time: 1900 – 1940
Booking Requirement: No
Further Details: Website
Wednesday – 4 January 2023
The Power of Sunflower
Description: Hailing from Singapore, Falling Feathers is a singer-songwriter with a penchant for writing infectious tunes. Apart from owning a unique vocal quality that can be immediately recognised as his own, his music consists of compulsive hooks and relatable narratives that encompass the conventional emotions of day-to-day experiences in an accessible way.
Category: Music
Location: Esplanade Concourse
Time: 1900 – 1940
Booking Requirement: No
Further Details: Website
Kampong Gelam; Now You See It, Now You Don’t
Description: Friends of the Museums together with the Malay Heritage Foundation walking tour of Kampong Gelam historic precinct.
Category: Guided Tour
Location: Sultan Gate
Time: 1630 – 1800
Booking Requirement: Yes
Further Details: Website
Thursday – 5 January 2023
The Power of Sunflower
Description: Hailing from Singapore, Falling Feathers is a singer-songwriter with a penchant for writing infectious tunes. Apart from owning a unique vocal quality that can be immediately recognised as his own, his music consists of compulsive hooks and relatable narratives that encompass the conventional emotions of day-to-day experiences in an accessible way.
Category: Music
Location: Esplanade Concourse
Time: 1900 – 1940
Booking Requirement: No
Further Details: Website
Special Screening of Talking Leaves
Description: This special screening of Talking Leaves is part of Pulp III: A Short Biography of the Banished Book, by artist Shubigi Rao and curated by Ute Meta Bauer. Commissioned by the National Arts Council, Singapore for the Singapore Pavilion at the 59th International Art Exhibition of La Biennale di Venezia, Pulp III marks the midpoint of Rao’s evocative 10-year project Pulp, which explores the history of book destruction and its impact on the futures of knowledge.
Held at Capitol Theatre, one of Singapore’s finest cinemas in the 1930s and a significant site during the golden age of Malay cinema, this screening is a reminder of Singapore’s vital film history.
Category: Film
Location: Capitol Theatre
Time: 2000 – 2230
Booking Requirement: Yes
Further Details: Website
Friday – 6 January 2023
Life Lessons with Jeyes
Description: Currently an artist with the start-up label PARKA (run by friend and collaborator Dominic Yuan), Jeyes is currently recording his debut EP and is excited to begin his journey in Singapore’s live music scene as a promising young artist.
Category: Music
Location: Esplanade Concourse
Time: 1900 – 1930 | 2000 – 2030
Booking Requirement: No
Further Details: Website
Jazz Fellow Fridays: Rit Xu Organ Trio
Description: Enjoy an evening of contemporary jazz with the Rit Xu Organ Trio. The group will bring you their latest compositions, classics from the Great American Songbook as well as modern arrangements of today’s pop hits.
Category: Music
Location: Esplanade Outdoor Theatre
Time: 1845 – 1930 | 2015 – 2100
Booking Requirement: No
Further Details: Website
The Fun of Home Gardening
Description: This programme is one in a 5-part series where you will learn the importance of urban farming as well as some key tips and tricks to build your own urban garden. Join NLB volunteer and avid gardener, Mr. Ong Chin Tiong as he takes you through the Fundamentals of Urban Farming. Please register for each session separately.
Session 1 (6 Jan 2023): The Fun of Home Gardening
Session 2 (3 Feb 2023): The Importance of Home Gardening/ How to Start Your Home Garden
Session 3 (3 Mar 2023): Setting Up Your Home Garden
Session 4 (14 Apr 2023): Sustaining Your Home Garden with Necessary Skills
Session 5 (5 May 2023): The Green Sanctuary (Garden viewing and learning to use recyclable materials in your garden)
Category: Talk
Location: Sengkang Public Library
Time: 1400 – 1530
Booking Requirement: Yes
Further Details: Website
Saturday – 7 January 2023
Cactus Cactus with special guest Houg
Description: Garage rock outfit Cactus Cactus teams up with chillwave maestro Houg for a special performance, featuring stripped-back reworkings of songs from their debut Shoutout Water, as well as new material from their upcoming EP.
Category: Music
Location: Esplanade Concourse
Time: 1800 – 1830 | 1900 – 1930 | 2000 – 2030
Booking Requirement: No
Further Details: Website
Tiara Maimun
Description: Tiara Maimun and her band will serenade your evening with her originals both old and new. Reimagining classics in her own true blue, sultry way, Tiara is a breath of fresh air. Look forward to a night of familiarity and wholesomeness!
Category: Music
Location: Esplanade Outdoor Theatre
Time: 1845 – 1930 | 2015 – 2100 | 2145 – 2230
Booking Requirement: No
Further Details: Website
My Dawson Heritage Tour
Description: My Dawson Heritage Tour explores the history and heritage of Queenstown, Singapore’s first satellite town. Join us as we explore how Queenstown links to different periods throughout Singapore’s history, from it being founded as a port city in 1819, to achieving self-governance in 1959, and to its nation building from the 1960s to the present day.
Category: Guided Tour
Location: Queenstown MRT Station
Time: 0830 – 1230
Booking Requirement: Yes
Further Details: Website
Kampong Gelam; Now You See It, Now You Don’t
Description: Friends of the Museums together with the Malay Heritage Foundation walking tour of Kampong Gelam historic precinct.
Category: Guided Tour
Location: Sultan Gate
Time: 1630 – 1800
Booking Requirement: Yes
Further Details: Website
Storytime with SPCA
Description: Join guest readers from the SPCA for an interactive session all about pets. Children can also learn fun facts about animals, share their love for animals and explore ways they can play a part to help animals.
Parents are encouraged to accompany their child aged 4-6. Children above the age of 7 will not need to be accompanied by an adult for this programme but parents are welcome.
Category: Talk
Location: Serangoon Public Library
Time: 1130 – 1230
Booking Requirement: Yes
Further Details: Website
My Friend Kiara: A Story of Friendship and Disabilities
Description: Anika’s aunt Kiara is smart, funny, intelligent, and the coolest girl she knows. When the power goes out, she discovers something different and exciting about Kiara. She’s not sure how to react at first but quickly realizes that different isn’t sad or strange—it’s just different!
This interactive story telling session includes thought provoking activities and fun exercises for young children.
Suitable for kids below 6.
Category: Storytelling
Location: Bukit Batok Public Library
Time: 1400 – 1430
Booking Requirement: Yes
Further Details: Website
my_space
Description: Catch my_space, a presentation of work by *SCAPE’s 2022 dance residents. my_ space explores the ideas of space and the relationship between us and the spaces we occupy. This year, the residents will also be experimenting and performing with technology, the HoloLens. Come down and immerse yourself in this interactive performance.
Category: Dance
Location: *Scape
Time: 1500 – 1600 | 2000 – 2100
Booking Requirement: Yes
Further Details: Website
Tour of Gallop Extension
Description: Join us for a guided walk through the Gallop Extension of the Singapore Botanic Gardens. Visit the OCBC Arboretum and a section of the Mingxin Foundation Rambler’s Ridge.
Recommended for ages 6 and above. Please note that dogs are not allowed on this tour.
Category: Guided Tour
Location: Singapore Botanic Gardens, Gallop Extension
Time: 0900 – 1000
Booking Requirement: Registration is required 15 minutes prior on a first-come-first-served basis at Visitor Services @ Gallop.
Further Details: Website
Healing Garden Tour
Description: The Healing Garden showcases over 400 varieties of plants used medicinally. It is laid out thematically relating to component parts of the body such as head, respiratory and reproductive systems.
Category: Guided Tour
Location: Singapore Botanic Gardens, Nassim Gate
Time: 0900 – 1000 | 1000 – 1100
Booking Requirement: Registration is required 15 minutes prior on a first-come-first-served basis at Visitor Services @ Nassim Gate.
Further Details: Website
Lakeside Walk and Singapore Art Week Artist Sharing
Description: Join our morning saunters at Jurong Lake Gardens on 7 January 2023 that is organised as part of Singapore Art Week. Get ready to be enthralled by our guides who will be sharing fun facts and stories of the rich biodiversity and sustainable features in the gardens.
Category: Guided Tour
Location: Jurong Lake Gardens
Time: 0900 – 1000 | 0930 – 1030
Booking Requirement: Yes
Further Details: 0900 – 1000 | 0930 – 1030
Sunday – 8 January 2023
Dialogue by Darren Moore x Aaron James Lee
Description: Singapore’s top jazz drummers Darren Moore and Aaron James Lee share the stage in a rare drum set duo concert. Both musicians will use Carnatic Indian rhythms as a starting point to engage in an improvised dialogue that explores rhythmic concepts from the Carnatic tradition, jazz and beyond. Don’t miss this opportunity to witness two of Singapore’s most creative drummers in action.
Category: Music
Location: Esplanade Concourse
Time: 1800 – 1830 | 1900 – 1930
Booking Requirement: No
Further Details: Website
Lullabye by Space Walk
Description: Following the release of their latest EP The Mystery Coffee, Space Walk takes you through time and space with a live performance of music from this EP, along with tunes from their upcoming album, Selamat Malam Pujangga.
Category: Music
Location: Esplanade Outdoor Theatre
Time: 1845 – 1930 | 2015 – 2100
Booking Requirement: No
Further Details: Website
Free Outdoor Family Yoga in Bishan Park
Description: Kickstart your day with an energising morning outdoor yoga session in the verdant gardens and enjoy the clean air in our lovely Bishan-Ang Mo Kio Park at Ficus Green!
Please bring your own mats
Category: Exercise
Location: Ficus Green, Bishan-Ang Mo Kio Park
Time: 0800 – 0900
Booking Requirement: Yes
Further Details: Website
Virtual Reality Dance Experience by O School
Description: Attendees will be able to see how the language of Hip Hop and Contemporary dance can be presented in different tones, and how dance choreography can be cohesive with a bigger narrative. This artistic experience will be brought to them via virtual reality where they will view the dance performance through VR goggles.
Category: Dance
Location: Jurong Regional Library
Time: 1200 – 1730
Booking Requirement: Yes
Further Details: Website
Non-Specific Date Activities
Uncommon Market Vegetables
Description: Come visit this exhibition and learn about some uncommon vegetables that you may or may not have heard about. Many of these can be found in Singapore’s wet markets and supermarkets, and are also planted on the grounds of the Singapore Botanic Gardens.
Category: Exhibition
Location: Singapore Botanic Gardens, Centre for Ethnobotany
Date: 17 December 2022 – 18 June 2023
Booking Requirement: No
Further Details: Website
Guided Tour of the Police Heritage Centre
Description: The Police Heritage Centre (PHC) welcomes visitors with a showcase of multifarious exhibits and multimedia displays that highlights the rich history of the Singapore Police Force (SPF) from the colonial times till the present day. Immerse yourself in the challenges of early policing, the post-WWII period of secret societies resurgence and communist subversion, as well as learn how community policing has brought the police and community closer together to fight crime, making Singapore one of the safest countries in the world. The PHC also pays tribute to the heroism and sacrifice of police officers who have died in the line of duty to keep Singapore safe and secure.
When visiting, you may wish to set aside 1.5 hours for the guided tour and for some time to explore the Heritage Centre.
Category: Guided Tour
Location: New Phoenix Park, Police Headquarters
Date: Guided tours are offered from Tuesdays to Saturdays (Till February)
Booking Requirement: Yes
Further Details: Website
兔gether
Description: SCCC’s Roof Garden comes alive with a spectacular rabbit-themed art installation exhibition to welcome the Year of the Rabbit. Entitled 兔gether, the art installations created by local art and design studio Whisky and Foxtrot LLP, the mixed-media artwork presents a cast of characters from Chinese New Year mythology. These characters will showcase local Chinese New Year practices enjoyed together with family and friends.
Light Shows
Visitors can also look forward to special light shows with narration of the story of Tu Zai’s journey home to celebrate Chinese New Year with his family and friends.
Light shows will be held on 7 Jan, 14 Jan, 28 Jan, 25 Feb and 25 Mar from 7.30pm to 8.30pm.
Category: Exhibition
Location: Singapore Chinese Cultural Centre
Date: 18 December 2022 – 31 March 2023
Booking Requirement: No
Further Details: Website
Singapore Biennale 2022
Description: Singapore Biennale 2022 is here from 16 October 2022 to 19 March 2023 and will showcase art from a myriad of local and international artists at multiple locations around Singapore. The main location for the arts festival is ticketed and will be at 39 Tanjong Pagar Distripark with over 40 artists showing their art. Tickets are free for children aged 6 and below, persons with disabilities (PWD) and their caretakers, and local/locally-based students and teachers.
However, there are still plenty of free art installations to view at other locations. The amount of art at these free locations can be quite minimal so you should look for things to do and eat in the area besides just going there to view the art.
Category: Festival
Location: Various locations around Singapore
Date: 16 October 2022 – 19 March 2023
Booking Requirement: No
Further Details: Website | My Article
Children’s Museum Singapore
Description: Let’s “Start With Wonder” at Children’s Museum Singapore. We are the first museum in Singapore dedicated to children 12 years old and below! We believe in sparking wonder and the power of play in a safe environment.
Adults are unable to visit without a child accompanying them.
Admission is free until 31 March 2023
Category: Museum
Location: Children’s Museum Singapore
Date: Till 31 March 2023 (Closed on Mondays)
Booking Requirement: Yes
Further Details: Website
Pulp III: A Short Biography of the Banished Book
Description: Pulp III marks the midpoint of Rao’s ongoing decade-long project Pulp, which explores the history of book destruction and its impact on the futures of knowledge. The exhibition provides visitors the opportunity to engage with Rao’s work through daily screenings of her film, Talking Leaves, and a presentation of her book, Pulp III: An Intimate Inventory of the Banished Book, Volume III of V (Pulp Vol. III).
Filmed over five years in various locations including Venice and Singapore, Talking Leaves highlights the tales of those at the forefront of the effort to save books and libraries through personal confidences and elegiac reflections, as well as incendiary documentary and mytho-poetic languages.
Category: Exhibition
Location: ArtScience Museum
Date: 6 January 2023 – 24 January 2023
Booking Requirement: No
Further Details: Website
Special Tours at the Singapore Chinese Cultural Centre
Description: How did Chinese Singaporeans develop the habit of having kaya toast for breakfast, and what is kopi siudai? Why do Chinese Singaporeans lohei during Chinese New Year and observe Zhongyuan in the seventh lunar month? How did these habits and practices develop, and what are some other Chinese Singaporean customs? Join a tour specially curated for new citizens and non-Singaporeans to better appreciate the distinctiveness of Chinese Singaporean culture. Each session includes a guided tour and short discussion segment.
Tour is free. Suitable for those aged 15 and above. Each participant will also receive a complimentary bottle of Cooling Water from Three Legs brand.
Category: Guided Tour
Location: Singapore Chinese Culture Centre
Date: 1st Saturday of every month of 2023
Booking Requirement: Yes
Further Details: Website
Doesn’t It Feel Like Christmas
Description: We’re decking the cinema halls this holiday season with 12 genres of Christmas films! From musicals to horror to animation to comedy, take a deep dive into the movies that make Christmas the most wonderful time of the year.
Come explore the secret movie sauce that films bring to the holidays and celebrate the happiest season of all with us at ArtScience Museum.
Free Movies
Frozen Sing-Along
The Muppet Christmas Carol
The Nightmare Before Christmas
Edward Scissorhands
Gremlins
Category: Film
Location: ArtScience Museum
Date: 5 November 2022 – 6 January 2023
Booking Requirement: Yes
Further Details: Website
Singapore Sports Hub – Experience Sports Session
Description: Get ready for new exercise experiences with the refreshed Experience Sports Sessions! The daily free fitness programmes focus on five core aspects – Cardio, Endurance, Flexibility, Strength and Zen.
Join Experience Sports Sessions to work out and keep fit now! Participants are welcome to walk-in and join the free fitness programmes, slots are limited.
Highlights
- Yoga
- Tabata
- HIIT
- Zumba
- Dancing
Visit the website for the latest schedule.
Category: Exercise
Location: Singapore Sports Hub
Date: Everyday
Booking Requirement: No
Further Details: Website
SCDF Fire Station Open House
Description: Visitors to our Fire Station can look forward to the following during the guided tour:
- Introduction to the Open House;
- Introduction to Emergency Vehicles and their capabilities;
- Demo on donning the full protective gear;
- Demo on using various equipment/appliances; and
- Photo taking
Category: Exhibition
Location: Various Fire Stations
Date: Saturdays
Time: 0900 – 0950 | 1000 – 1050
Booking Requirement: No
Further Details: Website
If you have any free events or activities that you would like included or if there are any new sources of free activities, do drop me an email at consumelesslife@gmail.com.
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