Top Museums in Singapore

If you are a tourist in Singapore, your trip will be incomplete if you don’t visit the beautiful museums in the city. These museums in Singapore are decorated with loads of artifacts, paintings and artworks to provide a complete idea about the rich culture and history of the country. The museums in Singapore can be segregated into categories like heritage museums, national museums, art museums and more. Whether enjoy a vacation with family, friends or alone, these museums are sure to enrich your knowledge about this beautiful island city-state.

Asian Civilisations Museum

The Asian Civilisations Museum (ACM) is one of the finest museums in Asia that present an integrated and broad perspective of pan-Asian civilizations and cultures. It is one of the National Museums of Singapore that work for a better understanding of the rich cultures that make up the multi-ethnic society of Singapore. The artifacts in this museum are housed in two separate buildings. The museum first opened at the Armenian Street in 1997. But later in 2003, the museum was shifted to the Empress Place Building. The Armenian Street building is now the home of a brand new ‘Peranakan Museum’. The Asian Civilisations Museum now houses 11 galleries that showcase more than 1300 artifacts on the civilizations of Southeast Asia, China, South Asia, and West Asia. There is a café and a restaurant, a museum, a fully-equipped auditorium in this museum. The tourists also enjoy the spectacular view of the Singapore River from here.

Singapore Art Museum

The Singapore Art Museum (SAM) is actually built on an 18th century school building called ‘Saint Joseph’s Institution’. The restoration of the institution to an art museum started in 1992 and in 1996, The Singapore Art Museum was opened to public as the first international standard museum in Singapore specialized in art. This museum currently enjoys the world’s largest public collection of modern and contemporary Southeast Asian artworks. The Museum has a collection of over 7,000 Southeast Asian and Singapore modern and contemporary works of art that includes works from some of the 20th century greats like Roy Lichtenstein and Frank Stella. The museum spread its wings in 2008 with 8Q SAM, a modern art space where the people can directly communicate with the ideas and works of contemporary artists. The museum is open daily between 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. and the entry is free of Fridays.

Singapore History Museum

The Singapore History Museum was the former name of the National Museum of Singapore between 1993 and 2006. The National Museum of Singapore is the oldest museum in Singapore with its rich history that dates back to its inception in 1887. The famous exhibition here, “Riverside Point” exhibits the history of Singapore through stories of people who lived along the Singapore River. The Living Galleries in this museum reflects the adoption of cutting-edge techniques to present history and culture and revolutionize the conventional museum experience. The Museum hosts numerous vibrant events and festivals each year like live performance, the famous Night Festival, film screenings and more. The members of this museum can avail online bookings from its official website as well.

Chinatown Heritage Center

Chinatown Heritage Center, a joint effort of the National Heritage Board and the Singapore Tourism Board showcases lots of untold stories and memories of the Singapore’s early forefathers and their perilous journey from faraway places to settle in this area. Located along the Pagoda Street, this Chinatown Heritage Center is made of three newly restored shop houses at Chinatown’s ethnic quarters. Each of the levels in this Centre takes a trip to the different time in the history of Chinatown. You can learn about the rich history of Chinatown through the exhibits that describes the real life stories of the former residents here. Guided tours are available to explore this place better. You can always take a break to have an aromatic cup of coffee and local snacks at the Centre’s ‘Kopi Tiam’ or Coffee Shop. There is also a souvenir shop inside the museum. It is open daily between 10 a.m. to 7 p.m.

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