For many expats, one of the hardest times to be away from your home country is during the festive season — like Christmas. After all, the holiday season is usually about family, friends, and all that is near and dear to you.
For those of us who hail from the Northern Hemisphere, Yuletide is spent in a wintry, snowy wonderland. A far cry from Singapore’s heat, humidity, and tropical vibes.
And while we can’t bring winter upon Singapore, almost all the aspects you love about Christmas can most definitely be found here.
Christmas markets and carnivals? Check. A turkey feast? Check. Hallmark Christmas movie? Check. Hot chocolate sipped at the foot of a live Christmas tree at home? Also check.
Curious to know what Christmas as an occasion means to those of us who celebrate it in Singapore? Let’s have a look! We promise you’ll be too busy celebrating Christmas the Singapore way to really realise how different it could be – because trust us, it’s a month-long party all across the island!
In multicultural Singapore, Christmas is an important festival celebrated by the Catholics and Christians, to mark the birth of Jesus Christ. It’s one of our designated public holidays, which means that everyone can celebrate the day together!
As a predominantly Asian society, Christmas was not a big thing in Singapore until influences from the West began to change people’s attitudes in the 1970s and 1980s.
A 35-foot cardboard Christmas tree that stood in People’s Park Complex in the 1970s may not seem like much today, but back then, it was widely celebrated and reported in the news (this is what it looks like!)
As more people turned to Christianity, Christmas became more significant to more people. Eurasians were among the first groups in Singapore to really embrace Christmas, celebrating by attending church services, cooking special foods, sing Christmas carols for the public, and gathering with family and friends to eat, drink, and be merry,
Today, Christmas in Singapore has taken on a more secular significance too — with people from all races and religions soaking in the jolly festive vibes that seems to have permeated every mall and space in Singapore.
Christmas Day, 25 December, is a public holiday in Singapore, so you can go ahead attend those Christmas Eve parties!
The whole month of December is also jazzed up with Christmas decor, activities, performances , and festive markets - something many Singapore residents look forward to as they wind down the year and get ready for the merriment of the Christmas and New Year season.
In cosmopolitan Singapore, you’ll find it extremely easy to find the festive foods you’re probably used to at home.
Think glazed hams, roasted beef, carved turkey, lamb shanks, tender ribs, puddings, chunky soups, salads, grilled lobster tails, salmon charcuterie boards, and a whole plethora of sweet treats and cakes to choose from.
Traditional Christmas foods in Singapore originated with the Eurasians, and include sugee cake (a cake made from semolina flour, brandy, and marzipan), Devil’s curry (a super spicy curry), shepherd’s pie, pang susi (a sweet potato bun with a spiced meat filling), and seybak (a tangy salad with pork belly and pig’s ears).
If you want some Christmas food with an Asian twist, Singapore’s the best place to sample some. Fancy Hong Kong style BBQ meats, Nyonya-style spiced roasted duck, honey glazed ham with pineapple sauce, whole tandoori turkey, or coconut flavoured log cakes? Welcome to Singapore, mate.
For Singaporeans who celebrate Christmas, it almost always starts in a church. Christmas is after all, a day to remember the birth of Jesus Christ – a significant event for Christians and Catholics.
If you’re looking for a church to attend, here are some options, depending on what kind of church you’re looking for. These churches are all located in the central area of Singapore, and are the most established churches of their respective denominations, so they’re great starting places if you’re new to Singapore.
Catholic Church: Cathedral of the Good Shepherd
Anglican Church: St Andrew’s Cathedral
Methodist Church: Wesley Methodist Church
Presbyterian Church: Prinsep Street Presbyterian Church
For everyone else who celebrates Christmas without the religious underpinnings, the lead-up to Christmas is an exciting calendar of events of Christmas-themed exhibitions, Christmas carnivals, and even Christmas menus at restuarants.
If you’re wondering if your colleagues at your workplace will celebrate Christmas – chances are, they will. Many managers and heads of departments do organise festive parties in the days before Christmas, with some closer-knit workplaces even holding cosy gift exchanges between colleagues. Some people also do get small door gifts for their department as a token of festive cheer – there’s really no hard and fast rule about this.
But as with all things in Singapore, Christmas is very much a multicultural thing in Singapore, so you’ll find people of almost all races and religions participating in the festivities!
Almost every neighbourhood mall you walk into starting from late November till Christmas Day will be dressed up in their Christmas finery. You’ll see fairy lights, sparkly tinsel, candy canes, colourful baubles, shiny bells, snowflake cut-outs, and snowmen adorning many a glass pane all across the island – don’t be surprised to see some cars dressed up as reindeer too!
Two places in Singapore stand out for their spectacular Christmas light-up, year after year.
The famous Orchard Road Christmas light-up: some love it, some find it too flashy or tacky.
The only way to know is to take a trip to Orchard Road yourself and take in the lights, sounds, and action for yourself.
This year’s celebrations seem to be set to be pretty amazing, with a firefly garden theme, nightly snow shows, and Christmas villages with a Singapore touch!
If you’ve never been to the Gardens By The Bay, Singapore’s iconic urban park that’s a top-ranked attraction in the world, Christmas is a wonderful time to visit.
Pop into the Flower Dome to take in the Christmas train show floral display, which features mini train models set against a wintry landscape of America’s landmarks, then head to the Floral Fantasy exhibition for large scale topiaries and floral structures of favourite Disney characters.
End the evening at the eye-catching Supertree Grove with its majestic 18-foot tree structures is completely transformed into a magical lit-up Christmas village for the month of December, with light displays, carnival games and rides, live music, and food stalls.
Almost every mall in Singapore will have some Christmas programme, with themed decorations, activities for kids, festive promotions, scheduled live shows, and even fake snow. If anything, snapping a photo with the towering Christmas tree on display always makes for a beautiful family keepsake.
Many attractions in Singapore have special Christmas programmes for visitors, for that extra festive sparkle in their experience. Think carnivals, character meet-and-greets, and themed displays. The Mandai Nature Reserves, Universal Studios Singapore, SEA Aquarium, and even the Singapore Science Centre are some of the attractions in Singapore with a Christmas twist this December.
Don’t expect the exact same experience as the Christmas festivals and markets of Europe that feel like you’ve stepped right into a folktale – you’d be sorely disappointed. Christmas markets in Singapore often have a unique twist; with local fare, old school carnival games, indie performances, or even character-themed (check out the adorable Sanrio themed Christmas village at Changi Airport!)
The Orchard Road light-up is an annual event that started in 1984, and has expanded over the years to cover a longer stretch of Orchard, as well as grown to include a whole host of buzzing Christmas activities too.
All Singaporeans know to truly savour the Christmas decorations from the time they go up in end-November, because they’re usually very quickly and ruthlessly replaced by Chinese New Year decorations as early as Boxing Day. That’s because Chinese New Year can be as early as January, and the festival is a huge one in Singapore for the Chinese.
Christmas is one of two gazetted public holidays for the Christians in Singapore, the other being Good Friday.
One of the first live Christmas trees in Singapore on display was at Raffles Hotel in 1933, when the iconic hotel began hosting its annual special Christmas Gala Dinner and Tree Auction to raise money for charity.
Christmas is a multicultural affair in Singapore, with people of different ethnicities and religions partaking in its festivities, often with cultural adaptations of Christmas foods.
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