If you are spending the day in Sentosa, there are numerous restaurants and a couple of food courts. For overnights, the Rasa Sentosa Beach Resort and the Beaufort Sentosa, Singapore are popular hotel options.

Getting to Sentosa

Private vehicles are not allowed to enter the island, but there are quite a few ways to get to the island.

You can reach Sentosa by a cable car, ferry, bus or taxi. Tickets for ferry and cable car can be purchased at the following booths:

• Mount Faber Cable Car Station
  
• World Trade Centre Ferry Departure Hall
  
• Cable Car Towers (next to the World Trade Centre)
  
• Cable Car Plaza (on Sentosa)

Many attractions require purchase of additional tickets, which you can get at the entrance of each.

By Cable Car - Cable cars depart from the top of Mount Faber and from the World Trade Center daily from 8:30 a.m. to 9 p.m. at a cost of anywhere between S$5 and S$6.50 (US$3.15 and US$4.10) for adults, depending where you get on and off, and S$3 (US$1.90) for children. Plan at least one trip on the cable car because the view of Singapore, Sentosa, and especially the container port is fantastic from up there. The round-trip cable car ticket is also good for a return on the ferry, in case you have had enough view.

By Ferry -The ferry departs from the World Trade Center on weekdays from 9:30 am to 9 p.m. at 20-minute intervals, and on weekends and public holidays from 8:30 a.m. to 9 p.m. at 15-minute intervals. The round-trip fare is S$1.30 (US85'), and one way is S80' (US50').

By Bus - SBS Leisure Pte. Ltd. operates bus service to and from Sentosa.

Service A operates between 7:15 a.m. and 11:30 p.m. daily from the World Trade Center (WTC) Bus Terminal.

Services C and M run from the Tiong Bahru MRT Station between 7:20 am and 11:30 p.m. daily.

Service E stops at Lucky Plaza, the Mandarin Hotel, Peranakan Place, Le Meridien Hotel, Plaza Singapura, and then Bencoolen Street, POSB Headquarters, Raffles City and Pan Pacific Hotel, and operates from 10 am to 10:45 p.m. daily.

Fares run from S$6 to S$7 (US$3.80 to US$4.40) for adults and S$4 to S$5 (US$2.50 to US$3.15) for children, depending on which bus you catch and where. Fares are paid to the driver as you board and the Sentosa admission fee is included in your fare. The last bus out of Sentosa is 11:30 p.m.

By Taxi - Taxis are only allowed to drop off and pick up passengers at the Beaufort Sentosa, Singapore; Shangri-La's Rasa Sentosa Resort; and NTUC Sentosa Beach Resort. The taxi toll is S$3 (US$1.90) per entry from 7am to 10 p.m. and is free from 10 p.m. to 7 am.

Getting Around Sentosa

Once on Sentosa, a free monorail operates from 9 am to 10 p.m. daily at 10-minute intervals to shuttle you around to the various areas. If you are staying at one of the island's major hotels, you can take advantage of their free shuttle services to get into town.

Sightseeing

The attractions that you get free with your Sentosa admission are the Fountain Gardens and Musical Fountain, the Enchanted Garden of Tembusu, the Dragon Trail Nature Walk, and the beaches.

The Fountain Gardens, just behind the Ferry Terminal, are geometric European-style gardens with groomed pathways and shady arbors. In the center is an amphitheater of sorts, the focus of which is a fountain--actually three fountains--, which create water effects with patterns of sprays and varying heights. Regular shows throughout the daytime the bursts to the sounds of everything from marches to Elton John. At night, they turn the lights on for color effects.

The Flower Terrace starts behind the Ferry Terminal through the Fountain Garden and creeps up the side of the steep hill beyond. The slope has a steep grade, but pathways meander to offer some relief from the climb. Still, in the heat, you are not taking this one fast.

The Enchanted Garden of Tembusu, in a corner of the Fountain Garden, is a shady grove of Tembusu trees and Macarthur palms. In the evenings, the garden is lit with tiny lights for a touch of romance.

There are three beaches, Siloso Beach on the western end and Central Beach and Tanjong Beach on the eastern end, each dressed in tall coconut palms and flowering trees.

At Central Beach, deck chairs, beach umbrellas, and a variety of water-sports equipment like pedal boats, aqua bikes, fun bugs, canoes, surfboards, and banana boats are available for hire at nominal charges.

Bicycles are also available for hire at the bicycle kiosk at Siloso Beach. Shower and changing facilities, food kiosks, and snack bars are at rest stations.

Siloso Beach is open at night for barbecue picnics, and has a nice view of the tiny lights of ships anchored in the port. For beach activities like volleyball, check out the offerings at the Shangri-La's Rasa Sentosa Resort. Hotel guests get first dibs, but many activities and equipment are available to the public at reasonable charges.

The Dragon Trail Nature Walk takes advantage of the island's natural forest for a 1 1/2-kilometer (1-mile) stroll through secondary rain forest. In addition to the variety of "dragons" to see (they're sculptures), there are also local squirrels, monkeys, lizards, and wild white cockatoos to try to spot.