Kampong Gelam is one of those places where history, street art, and everyday life all fit into the same small streets. The golden dome of Sultan Mosque and the murals along Haji Lane and Gelam Gallery are just a few examples.
With a few smart apps, your phone can handle the details in the background, letting you look up at the shops instead of down at the junction numbers. Below are the most useful apps that will make your stay at Kampong Gelam all the more memorable.
MyTransport.SG
Singapore has some of the best public transportation in the world, and the MyTransport.SG app is like having your own personal remote control for it. It brings together info from buses, the MRT, and traffic in one place. It was made by the Land Transport Authority.
Key ways it helps around Kampong Gelam:
- If you’re at a stop on Beach Road or Victoria Street and not sure whether to wait for the bus or just walk, this will help you decide.
- With the multi-modal trip planner, you can see how long it really takes to walk, take the bus, or take the MRT to get from Kampong Gelam to, say, Gardens by the Bay or the Civic District.
- The “Near You” tool tells you about nearby bus stops and MRT stations, which is helpful if you get lost and end up in Bugis or Lavender.
Given that the app uses official LTA data, it’s the first thing to check when there are changes to routes or service interruptions. This is especially helpful during major events or roadwork.
Entertainment Apps
Many tourists spend the afternoon learning about the area’s history and then go to a big city event in the evening, like a show at the indoor stadium, a night at one of Singapore’s tightly regulated casinos, or one of the Bay’s rooftop bars.
Singapore has very strict gambling rules. There are only a few licensed casinos where you can gamble, and you have to be at least 21 years old to enter. Locals also have to pay a big fee. That’s why some travelers like to read before they go to a game floor or an online lobby.
This is where professional guides come in handy. Adult visitors can stay away from unlicensed apps and learn more about the law by reading about where to find licensed Singaporean casinos, how Singapore’s regulators tell the difference between legal and illegal operators, and what responsible gaming tools are out there. They also include lists of proven Singaporean casino sites, up-to-date payment choices, and sections on licensing and player protection.
Grab
When it’s really hot or you stayed out late at a live music venue, Grab is often the fastest way to explore Kampong Gelam and other areas. With huge market numbers in both transportation and food delivery, the Singapore-based super-app now rules ride-hailing in Southeast Asia.
In practical terms, that means:
- It only takes a few minutes to get to a car on Beach Road or North Bridge Road.
- You can mark the exact spot where you want to be picked up, which is helpful in the dark, when the streets near Haji Lane are small and corners look a lot alike.
- You can pay without cash and see how much your fare is ahead of time, which helps you plan your budget for longer trips across the island.
myENV
Most of the paintings, cafés, and shops in Kampong Gelam are close together, making the area easy to walk around. However, Singapore’s tropical weather can change quickly from hot to rainy.
The myENV app, developed by Singapore’s National Environment Agency, is the closest thing to a local weather and environment dashboard. It offers:
- There are 2-hour, 6-hour, 24-hour, and 4-day weather predictions to help you choose whether to look for murals in the morning or evening.
- Weather radar and lightning reports can help you plan rooftop bars after your trip to Kampong Gelam.
- PSI and PM2.5 measures of the air quality, which are important on days when there is haze.
- Dengue cluster maps can help you decide if you need to use more bug spray near your lodging.
There are over 200,000 people who have signed up for myENV’s 24-hour air-quality warnings. This shows that locals use it every day and not just when it rains.
Visit Singapore Travel Guide
Finally, it’s helpful to look past one neighborhood and see how Kampong Gelam fits into the city as a whole.
The Singapore Tourism Board’s own app is called Visit Singapore Travel Guide. It can be used with Visit Kampong Gelam’s more specific guides. Because STB has recently worked with Google, it’s no longer just a brochure. The Merli mascot, which is based on the Merlion, now leads tourists through an immersive AR tour in areas like Chinatown and the Civic District. More places are planned to add this feature.
For Kampong Gelam, the app works best as:
- You can plan your time here and in nearby Bugis, the Civic District, or Marina Bay all on the same schedule.
- A source of ideas if you’re going on a family trip: Merli and his augmented reality (AR) “adventures” are made to help kids learn about Singapore’s history in a fun way.
- A way to get to official information. You can go straight to VisitSingapore.com pages that talk about neighborhoods, events, and useful information like visas, the weather, and the biggest festivals.
When combined with Visit Kampong Gelam’s own self-guided walking tour ideas, it gives you information about both specific neighborhoods and the whole island.
