25 new exciting things in Singapore that we’re looking forward to in 2025

Even though Bird Paradise just opened its doors not too long ago, Mandai Wildlife Reserve isn’t about to rest on its laurels – it’s already gearing up for the launch of Rainforest Wild Asia. If you’ve already lost count, this will be Singapore’s fifth zoological park once it’s completed in March. Boasting 10 immersive zones featuring sights like limestone karsts and a labyrinth of caves, the attraction will also be home to 29 free-roaming animal species including sun bears, tigers, and tapirs. Oh, it’s also been named one of the world’s best things to do in 2025, so you know you can’t give this one a miss.

Oh boy, oh boy, oh boy – the Disney Adventure Cruise embarking from Singapore is finally open for booking, and we sure can’t wait to hop on. With seven magical themed zones including a royal garden with a castle, captivating live performances, mascot appearances, and dining concepts inspired by some of your favourite Disney films, this cruise is definitely more about the journey than the destination. Read our handy guide to find out how you can book those coveted Disney Adventure Cruise tickets.

A charming new lifestyle enclave has sprung up right next to Maxwell Food Centre. Named after its location along Kadayanallur Street and housed in an 101-year-old building that once operated as a hospital, Kada at Maxwell is essentially a smaller and more accessible cousin of New Bahru. This four-storey conservation building contains a cluster of cosy cafés, wellness studios including a Japanese-inspired hydrotherapy spa, a co-living facility, and an art jamming studio. While climbing the stairs shouldn’t leave you too winded, it’s worth taking a ride in the building’s rickety 96-year-old wood-clad elevator – a whole experience in itself. Find out more about all the unmissable highlights in our guide to Kada at Maxwell.

Our music scene is set to get even more lit with Live Nation’s first music venue, parked right next to Somerset MRT station. With multiple stages, this upcoming concert space boasts a 3,000-person capacity and cutting-edge technology for both global stars and up-and-coming local talents to have their turn in the spotlight. There’ll also be a café and bar that double up as platforms for community events, so music-lovers can gather and hang out with other like-minded folk. Find out more about the new Live Nation music venue.

You’ll be spoilt for choice for staycations this year with so many luxurious new hotel openings and revamps. There’s Hotel Fort Canning transforming into Mett Singapore with new restaurants and redesigned rooms; new manors at Capella Singapore with custom furniture, curated art and personal butler service; and the all-new sea-facing Raffles Sentosa Singapore with cushy villas that have private pools and terraces.

It’s confirmed – the long-awaited Minion Land extension of Universal Studios Singapore will finally be saying “Bello!” to guests this February 2025. This three-section zone includes the popular Minion Mayhem ride, as well as all-new amusement rides including the first Minion dance party-themed carousel. Thrills aside, there’ll also be Despicable Me-themed dining concepts, carnival games with prizes and a dedicated merchandise store with exclusive trinkets, apparel and more. Find out more about Minion Land.

Waiting for a BTO in Punggol? Well, thank your lucky stars. Once thought of as a no man’s land, Punggol is soon on its way to becoming one of the most popular heartland neighbourhoods in Singapore thanks to all its recent developments. The new Punggol MRT station brings about extra convenient access to the new SIT campus, Punggol Digital District business park, and Punggol Coast Mall which has a plethora of over 120 establishments, including favourites like Muji and new-to-market brands like White Cloud Cafe. But that’s not all – residents can also look forward to a new hawker centre there, plus a Market Village with even more exciting F&B options.

Escape the concrete jungle and shroud yourself in nature by staying in a treehouse at Mandai Rainforest Resort – an eco resort by the prestigious Banyan Group. Fret not, city folk, this isn’t one of those nature stays where you’ll be roughing it out backwoods-style. Instead, each luxe treehouse is equipped with all the must-have comforts including a king-sized bed, proper bathroom, separate living area, and a private patio that allows you to soak in the surrounding lush greenery. Guests will also be privy to exclusive wildlife encounters and tours at Mandai Wildlife Reserve’s various animal parks. Find out more about Mandai Rainforest Resort.

COTU is the epitome of nightlife, elevated – and we mean that in more ways than one. This swanky new multi-concept establishment spans across the 38th and 39th floors of CapitaGreen at Marina Bay, and is home to five unique concepts: Little Birdie, a cocktail bar with welcoming botanical decor; Enso, a Japanese steakhouse serving up premium meat cuts; The Whisper Room, a bar with DJ sets that also doubles up as a New York-inspired live jazz lounge; Dashi Go-Go Ultra Lounge for hip-hop and R&B beats in a Neo-Tokyo setting; and Dashi Sky Pool, Singapore’s first-ever open-air sky pool, featuring cabanas under the stars and floating film festivals. Find out more about COTU.

Full of catchy tunes, dazzling sets and slick dance moves, musicals are something that pretty much anyone can enjoy, and we’re so looking forward to what’s coming to the big stage this year. So far, some iconic names that we’re already in the know of include award-winning Broadway hit Wicked and the gripping love story of The Phantom of the Opera. There’s also The Lord of the Rings – A Musical Tale, which will transport LOTR fans straight to Middle Earth through folk-inspired music and a talented cast.

Singapore is officially entering her sexagenarian years this 2025. Needless to say, the celebrations for this big six-oh milestone are set to go off with a bang, so we can all look forward to extra large-scale SG60 festivities in the lead-up to National Day. We’re sure that this year’s National Day fireworks will be bigger and better than ever too.

Singapore’s Chinese and Japanese Gardens have finally emerged from a five-year facelift looking as pretty as a painting. While old landmarks like the iconic pagodas remain, there are plenty of new zones across both the connected parks. Stroll through an oriental courtyard flanked by three-metre-high waterfalls, lounge by a pond housing Singapore’s largest collection of water lilies, or stop to smell the flowers at a Japanese-style floral garden – no matter which corner you’re at, it’ll be like waltzing through a scene of a romantic anime or C-drama.

As much as we’d like to claim that we’re advocates for healthy eating, we’re all for sinking our teeth into a juicy burger with a side of fries once in a while – after all, there’s no comfort food like fast food. And you won’t be short for choice especially with more international fast food chains making their grand debut here. We already know that Lotteria’s Korean-style burgers and cheese sticks are on the horizon for us, as is American fast food chain Chick-fil-A’s first Asian outpost, set to open in Singapore in late 2025. Now, our only question is: when will Taco Bell be making its comeback?

Get your engines revving for October, because the Formula 1 Singapore Grand Prix is returning for another round of high-octane racing thrills around the Marina Bay circuit. Other than watching world-acclaimed speed demons tearing up the track, we’ll once again be anticipating a line-up of exciting music artistes taking the stage. More details will be released in due time, but tickets are already on sale and some categories have been fully wiped out, so snag yours here while you still can.

Our shopping belt was crowned Singapore’s coolest neighbourhood in 2024, but get this – things at Orchard are set to get even more happening thanks to an ongoing transformation campaign, which the recent monthly Night at Orchard bazaars were also part of. From 2025 onwards, shoppers here can anticipate even more green spaces at Orchard, including an orchid-themed garden and water play area at the soon-to-be-expanded Istana Park; car-free sections for smoother pedestrian traffic; and a spruce-up of the quieter Tanglin side of the stretch, among other developments.

If the whole Taylor Swift Eras Tour concert chronicles have proven anything, it’s that Singapore is truly a hub for international artistes and their epic shows – so much so that fans from around the region splashed out thousands of dollars in cash just to fly down to the Little Red Dot to watch her strut her stuff. This 2025, we’re already waiting for acts like The Script, Yiruma, Yoasobi, and Taeyeon to grace us with their presence, with probably plenty of others waiting to be announced in due time. Check out our list of the best concerts and music festivals in Singapore in 2025.

The government just issued a new set of CDC vouchers to all Singaporean households this year, valid for the rest of 2025. Aside from hawkers and supermarkets, you can also use part of the amount at places like cafés, pet supply stores, hair salons, and even Art Friend. Read our handy CDC voucher guide if you’re a first-timer or simply need a quick refresher on how to claim and use your $300 worth of credits, with information on how you can help your elderly relatives redeem physical copies should they not own smartphones.

Public libraries in Singapore are aplenty, but the new Central Arts Library – occupying level five of the National Library Building at Victoria Street – places a special emphasis on various fine art disciplines, from music to design and the performing arts. Here, you can peruse scripts from plays and borrow sheet music as well as CDs featuring recordings of opera, dance, and theatre performances. There are even piano practice rooms and fully equipped jamming studios suitable for recording demos. Keep your eyes peeled for the library’s roster of arts-related programmes including film screenings, workshops, and music showcases.

If sipping on dainty concoctions in total exclusivity while surrounded by a myriad of pretty blooms sounds like your kind of thing, you’ll be excited to know that Japan’s members-only cocktail bar Ebisu Flower Park is opening its first branch in Singapore. Sign up for a lifetime all-access membership here, and you’ll gain access to not just this outlet, but also the rest all over the world; This includes at least 13 locations in Japan, with more upcoming ones in other major cities like London, New York, Seoul, and Shanghai. Exact locations are only revealed to members, so make sure you’re able to keep a secret. Find out more about Ebisu Flower Park.

Sure, we all grumble about public transport from time to time, but there’s no denying the fact that Singapore’s MRT train network is one of the best in the world. Recently, we were blessed with the opening of seven new Thomson-East Coast Line stations, along with Punggol Coast MRT station on the purple North East Line, but that’s not where it ends. Westies of Singapore will also enjoy three new MRT stations, including a new interchange that will connect the red North South Line to the blue Downtown Line. Construction will begin later this year.

Our city is always brimming with new art exhibitions, whether it’s at larger galleries like the ArtScience Museum and SAM or smaller independent studios like I.F. Gallery. We’re particularly excited for the 360-degree immersive art experiences by Korean art collective Groundseesaw at Parkview Square – a triple treat of exhibitions Monet Inside; Gustav Klimt: Timeless Beauty; and Van Gogh Inside: Love Vincent. While the Monet-themed exhibition was already showing last year, the other two featuring works by Klimt and Van Gogh are new to Singapore. All three feature mesmerising art projections alongside calming classical music, with insightful narration that’ll help you learn more about these famous painters in question. Check out our full list of the best art exhibitions in Singapore for the latest scoop.

Well, it’s one less compared to last year, but having four long weekends out of all the 11 gazetted public holidays in Singapore in 2025 is still worthy of celebration. These will happen in March, April, May, and October, so start planning your staycations or quick getaways around the region, stat. That said, there’s also plenty of fun to be had if you’re staying put on our sunny island – just browse our list of 101 best things to do in Singapore for inspiration.

Even if a high-end timepiece or handbag is out of the question, surely a cup of coffee is within budget. Experience a luxurious teatime sesh at the new AP Café by watch brand Audemars Piguet or the chic green-hued Prada café, both of which are new to Singapore. These big-name fashion brands join the likes of Louis Vuitton, which has its own LV chocolaterie at Marina Bay Sands – the first of its kind outside of France.

Great news for pawrents and animal-lovers alike: Singapore has just relaxed its rules for dining out with pets. As of January 1, 2025, food establishments no longer require a special pet café license for their patrons to be accompanied by their furkids in al fresco dining areas – provided that pet food isn’t served. This means that we’ll likely see more and more pet-friendly cafés and restaurants popping up around the island for bonding time with your four-legged bestie. Some newer entrants to check out include the serene Canopy at Jurong Lake Gardens, the sprawling lawn of Air at Dempsey, and food truck park Gourmet Park Kampong Bugis.

Who says that a vacation has to blow a hole in your wallet? The 10 cheapest holiday destinations for Singaporeans in 2025 has just been revealed, taking into account two-way economy fares. Everything is priced under $500, and locations include up-and-coming trendy spots like Chongqing and Okinawa, as well as lesser-explored gems including the beach paradise of Labuan Bajo – a great alternative to the tourist-laden Bali. There's also a new direct budget flight route by Scoot between Singapore and Vienna in Austria, and one-way fares start from just $309 inclusive of taxes.