Singapore/Little India

Little India (North-East/Downtown line interchange) or Farrer Park (North-East line) are the most convenient MRT stations near Serangoon Road. Bugis station on the East-West line is an 11-min walk away (see Bugis). Rochor (Downtown line), near Sim Lim Square, is 6 minutes walk.

Little India's main drag is Serangoon Road, which starts at Rochor Canal Rd and continues northward to Serangoon. The action is tightly concentrated a few blocks on either side of the road, and can be easily covered on foot.

There are several public buses travelling along the length of Serangoon Road from the bus stop, Tekka Ctr (ID 07031).

Hailing a taxis can be difficult on the crowded main streets like Serangoon Road or Race Course Road. Consider booking through a ride-hail or taxi app at a location away from the main street (Serangoon Road), where there are strict restrictions on where vehicles may stop.

Little India's primary attraction is the district itself. Here too you can find the gaily painted shophouses that are an icon of Singapore, but now most of the Chinese signs (almost) disappear to be replaced with Tamil, Hindi, Bengali and other Indian scripts. Stores hawk saris and gold bangles, spices and incense waft in from the doorways and Bollywood's latest soundtracks blare from every other alleyway.

• 🌍 Sri Veeramakaliamman Temple, 141 Serangoon Rd. Little India's busiest and oldest temple, dating back to 1881 — although the present structure was completed in 1986. The temple is particularly busy on Tuesdays, Fridays and Sundays. Be sure to take your shoes off before venturing inside. Free. 

The most extreme thing to do in Little India is to join the festival of Thaipusam, held yearly during the full moon in the lunar month of Thai (usually Jan/Feb). Male devotees attach ornate shrines to their flesh with piercing hooks known as kavadi and walk across town in a day-long procession. Female devotees usually just carry a pot of milk on their head and join the procession. The procession starts from Sri Srinivasa Perumal Temple in Serangoon Road and proceeds to the Sri Thandayuthapani Temple at Tank Road.

Around Deepavali, the Hindu festival of light, Serangoon Road is festively decorated (with lights, of course!) and open-air markets are set up to sell Deepavali goodies. Like Thaipusam, the exact date is set by the lunar calendar, but it takes place in October/November (usually on the new moon day occurring in these months) and is a public holiday. Near the beginning of Deepavali, the fire-walking festival of Thimithi is held, in which many male devotees walk across a platform of burning coal. Although the actual fire-walking takes place at the Sri Mariamman Temple in Chinatown, the procession starts at the Sri Srinivasa Perumal Temple in Serangoon Road and makes its way to Chinatown early in the morning where the fire-walking commences.

A more low-key event happens every Sunday evening when a half-million workers from the subcontinent throng the streets of Little India to hang out on their day off. Most of the crowd is friendly enough, but inevitably a few get into drunken fights and there's a heavy police presence about to keep an eye on things.

The central streets of Little India are packed with stalls selling all sorts of Indian goods. Two giant shopping centres, however, are unique not just in Little India but all of Singapore:

• 🌍 Mustafa Centre, 145 Syed Alwi Road (off Serangoon Rood near Farrer Park MRT), ☏ +65 6295 5855. Daily 9AM-2AM. Singapore's supreme discount department store: floor after floor of absolutely everything at competitive prices, ranging from Rolex watches and washing machines to fresh mangoes, bags of lentils and tailored suits. The gold jewelry floors, now located in an annex, are a sight to behold, and the exchange counters in front are probably the best place in Singapore to exchange any currency you can think of (and many you can't) at competitive rates. Mustafa Centre also offers travel, hotel reservation and visa assistance services. There are now many mini-Mustafa outlets scattered along Serangoon Rd, but the original and by far the largest is the one facing Syed Alwi Rd. (updated Sep 2022)
• 🌍 Tekka Market (Tekka Centre), 665 Buffalo Road. Little India is a cacophony of car horns, bicycle bells and the vibrant chatter of its residents. This explosion of sights, smells and sounds in Tekka Market is only a short walk from Little India MRT Station. Tekka (as it is locally known), has a plethora of stalls selling Indian, Malay and Chinese food that draws crowds from all over Singapore. There’s also a wet market stocked with the freshest vegetables, meat, fish, spices and flowers. Also available are souvenirs such as brass oil lamps and pots, or fresh garlands of jasmine, whose scent is signature aroma of Little India. 
• 🌍 Sim Lim Square, 1 Rochor Canal Road, ☏ +65 6338 3859. 10:30AM-9PM. Right across the street from Little India, Sim Lim is Singapore's Akihabara, a giant electronics Mecca squeezed into one building, with hundreds upon hundreds of tightly packed specialist stores. Some competitive prices can be found here on computer parts, but consumer electronics and cameras are not particularly cheap in comparison with large on-line retailers, and a good number of shops on the first and second floors engage in scamming tourists and wrecking their holidays. Upon stepping in, immediately skip the first and second floors (a big tourist trap) and start shopping at floors 4-5, descending to 3 later, not forgetting the back corridors — these are the only places to consider shopping. To reiterate, avoid'

the first and second floor shops as many of them have a tendency to grossly overcharge or cheat tourists by means of pricing tricks (omitting tax, selling included accessories separately, adding unilateral fees, and similar misleading or deceptive tactics) and the occasional outright substitution fraud; unless you know exactly what you're doing and/or need something unusual, you might want to shop at Mustafa instead. The third floors and above are the real haven for computer geeks looking for cheap bargains and to upgrade or put together a system; grab price lists from the Sim Lim entrance and do your on-line price research. Sim Lim Tower, just across the street, also has a few shops but these focus on electronic components; it pales in comparison sizewise. 

• 🌍 City Square Mall (Farrer Park Station, Exit I). Quite a large mall with mostly mid-range goods, on the edge of Little India. 

The other shopping options in Little India cater more to the Indian market:

• 🌍 Little India Arcade, 48 Serangoon Road (Campbell Lane). A narrow pathway through a cluster of restored shophouses, filled to the brim with Indian clothing, accessories, incense and a rather good Indian sweet shop at (#01-16). 
• 🌍 Naranjan Electronics, 154 Race Course Road (Farrer Park MRT). Small shop for basic electronics like digital cameras and mobile phones, with bargain-basement prices. Please note the rock bottom prices comes with no 'warranty' or 'service' what so ever. Many of items are not for sale in Singapore. So try to check your goods before you leave though, as these guys have a strict (and theoretically illegal) no-returns-whatsoever policy. (updated Sep 2022)
• 🌍NOT EXISTING LISTING IMAGE All India Supermart Pte Ltd (All India), 41 Norris Rd, Singapore 208282 (Next to Hindoo St Carpark), ☏ +6562916073. 8AM - 10:30PM. One-stop shop for all Indian Groceries. They offer free deliveries for order over $100. (updated Mar 2024)
• 🌍 Dakshaini Silks (Dakshaini Silks), 13 Upper Dickson Rd, Singapore 207473, ☏ +6562919969. Tu-Sa 11AM-8PM, Su 11AM-7PM, M closed. Women-owned silk saree emporium. (updated Mar 2024)
• Asian Arts & Crafts (Asian Arts & Crafts), 164 Serangoon Rd, Singapore 218049 (Next to Khansama Indian Restaurant (Tandoori)), ☏ +6598000524. 10AM-8PM. Selling all kinds of beautiful statues, arts, and crafts. (updated Mar 2024)
• 🌍 Mustafa Jewellery (Mustafa Jewellery), Verdun Rd, #01-01 Spa Building, 5, Singapore 207274 (in the Spa Building, next to Mustafa Centre), ☏ +6562955855. 10AM-9PM. Mustafa Jewellery is a leading jewelry retailer in Singapore. It was founded in 1971 and has since grown to become one of the most popular jewelry stores in the country. Mustafa Jewellery offers a wide range of jewelry, including gold, silver, diamonds, and gemstones. It also has a wide range of jewelry styles, from traditional to modern. Mustafa Jewellery is known for its competitive prices and its excellent customer service. It is a popular destination for both locals and tourists alike. (updated Mar 2024)
• 🌍 Singapore Indian Handloom (Singapore Indian Handloom), 164 Serangoon Rd, Singapore 218049 (inside Little India Arcade), ☏ +6583132978. Around 9AM-10PM (opening time differ each day). Authentic and quality handmade Indian traditional dresses for men women and children. Choices in pure cotton, silk and Lucknow chicken embroideries. (updated Mar 2024)

The thing to eat in Little India is obviously Indian food. Both southern and northern cuisines are well represented, food is cheap even by Singaporean standards, portions are generous and vegetarians in particular will have a field day. Note that these are authentic Indian places and people around you will be eating the way Indians do, namely by hand — it's best to shed your inhibitions and dig in, although cutlery can be provided on request.

Race Course Rd has some funky pubs and bars. Desker Road is Singapore's dingiest quarter of ill repute and best avoided, especially on Sundays.

Little India has quite a few sarabat stalls offering local drinks, especially teh tarik ("pulled tea", a local variant of sweet, milky Indian chai), also available in iced. A particularly popular one can be found at the intersection of Perak and Dunlop Rds, next to the mosque.

Along with neighboring Bugis, Little India is Singapore's backpacker district and has many hostels offering cheap lodging, as well as some of the most affordable hotels in town. Some of the cheap hotels around Desker Rd cater to the sex trade.

Farrer Park MRT station on the Northeast (purple) line gives convenient access to many of these hotels. Follow signs for an exit on Birch Road to get close to the budget Penta Hotel. Exit G puts you near two luxury hotels, One Farrer and Park Hotel, or walk down Serangoon Road a bit for a Hilton. Rangoon Road (where Exit G is) becomes Kitchener Road on the other side of Serangoon Road, and there are more hotels along Kitchener. You can reach them from exit G or via exits H and I which are on Kitchener. Neither H nor I have signs near the centre of the station; follow the signs for G to find them. H puts you near three more upmarket hotels including Parkroyal, while I leads through the City Square Mall so it is not always open but when it is it is a convenient way to reach two decent budget hotels, Tai Hoe and Hotel 165.

• LaundryMart Express, 22 Boon Keng Rd, 01-37 (Boon Keng MRT Exit B), ☏ +65 6294 2256. 24-hr self-service coin operated laundromat in the central area of Singapore. $5 for 10 kg, wash, dry, detergent and softener are provided.