Have a look at the prize money earned by WTA and ATP players at the Sydney International in 2018. The prize money is quoted in US Dollars. [Read more…]
Who won what: The lead up to the 2017 Australian Open
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Apia International Sydney Tennis Tournament: 2017 Men’s & Women’s Prize Money
Have a look at the prize money earned by WTA and ATP players at the Apia International Sydney in 2017. The prize money is quoted in US Dollars with Australian Dollar equivalents. [Read more…]
Brisbane International Tennis Tournament: 2016 Men & Women’s Prize Money
Have a look at the prize money earned by WTA and ATP players at the Brisbane International in 2016. The prize money is quoted in US Dollars with Australian Dollar equivalents. [Read more…]
ATP and WTA Grass Court Tournament Winners Leading Up to Wimbledon 2015
Find out who is on form in the lead up to Wimbledon 2015. Here’s a review of this month’s winners of the ATP and WTA grass court tournaments.
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2015 Aegon Classic Semifinals Day: Pliskova & Kerber Shine Despite the Rain
The Aegon Classic is held at the Edgbaston Priory Club in Birmingham and is a WTA Premier tennis event. It’s held two weeks prior to Wimbledon, as one of the grass court lead up events. [Read more…]
5 Top Tips for Tennis Fans Attending the WTA Finals in Singapore
2014 is the first year that the WTA Finals have been held in Singapore. As Singapore is quick and easy to get to from Melbourne (compared to Europe and the USA anyways!) I’m so glad that I took the opportunity to pop over for a live tennis fix.
If you’re planning to attend anytime in the next few years, these tips will enhance your visit and let you know what to expect.
10 Top Tips for First Time Visitors to Singapore
There are many things that make Singapore a great host country for the WTA Finals. As well as being clean, safe and full of friendly people, Singapore offers great shopping, great sights to see and great food to eat.
Here are my top tips for first time visitors.
1. Weather conditions are hot and humid but air conditioning is easy to find
To me, Singapore has a “slow burn” type of humidity. By that I mean when you first walk outside, you notice the heat but if you’re not from a hot country, it’s only when you’ve been outside for a short while that you realise you’re sweating. A lot. And even your hair is sweating. And if you have big hair, it will be even bigger once you’ve spent any amount of time outside!
Singapore is well set up to help people avoid the humid (and often rainy) conditions. Inside, everywhere is air conditioned, including hotels, shopping centres and train stations.
2. Shops opening hours start around 10am
Many shopping centres are open from 10am to 9pm or 10pm, however we were at a shopping centre at around 10am and although some shops were open, some didn’t open until 11am. Some centres offer late night shopping on Saturdays until 11pm.
If, like me, you’re used to Australian shopping hours of 9am to 5.30pm on weekdays, you’ll need to adjust your expectations.
3. Tipping isn’t expected and a service charge may be added to the bill in restaurants
Like in Australia, people don’t expect you to tip, however I’m sure that rounding up the bill is always appreciated.
In restaurants and bars a 10% service charge might be automatically added to the bill, along with 7% GST. Service charge isn’t added in food courts or hawker centres, and in that case I’m very sure a tip will be appreciated.
4. Taxi costs are reasonable
Added to the reasonable cost, the drivers are friendly, it’s generally easy to find an available car and traffic isn’t stressful, making taxis a good option for getting around.
The fare is based on an initial cost, plus the distance travelled and waiting time.
Read more about Singapore taxis on TripAdvisor and view Taxi Rates.
5. The train system is fantastic
As mentioned above, the train system is fully air conditioned and offers comfortable conditions. Added to that it’s clean and safe, ticketing is straight forward and trains run frequently.
Read more on the SMRT website.
6. Try the food at a hawker centre
The quality and flavour of food in Singapore is incredible. If you feel like a change from restaurants or fast food chains, go to a Hawker centre and try Chinese, Indian, Malay or other asian dishes. Eating the famous chilli crab is on a lot of Singapore “must do” lists. If you’re planning to try it, one of our taxi drivers gave us a good tip to ask how much a specific crab will cost before you agree to buy it.
Here’s a list of the Top 10 Hawker Centres in Singapore.
7. Go the Night Safari
The Night Safari allows you to see the Singapore Zoo at night and the whole experience is quality, particularly because a key focus of the zoo is educating people about the animals and conservation.
You get the opportunity to catch a tram and ride around looking at animals at night in their natural conditions. And there are walking trails where you can get a closer look.
Find out more on the Night Safari website.
8. Ride the Singapore Flyer
Due to it’s location, from the Singapore Flyer you get a fantastic view of Singapore’s sights, including Gardens by the Bay, the Marina Bay Sands Hotel, the Art Science Museum and across the city.
We arrived around 6.30pm and saw the sun set and lights come on during the flight which made for beautiful viewing.
Find out more on the Singapore Flyer website.
Once you’ve finished your ride, walk around the area along the river and you’ll get more beautiful views. We enjoyed a superb dinner at the hawker centre at the base of the Singapore Flyer with delicious food at really reasonable prices, especially given its proximity to a major tourist attraction.
9. Have a Singapore Sling
Admittedly I didn’t have time for a Singapore Sling this visit, but I’ve been to Singapore several times before when I enjoyed the famous cocktail while throwing peanut shells on the floor at the Long Bar at Raffles.
Read more on the Raffles website. or read reviews on TripAdvisor.
Or if you’d like to enjoy a fantastic view of the city with your cocktail, find out about the bars at the Swissotel.
10. Enjoy walking around Gardens by the Bay
Gardens by the Bay is an amazing, award-winning botanical experience. You can walk around the grounds for free or pay to go into the Flower Dome and Cloud Forest Conservatories, which, despite looking like green-houses, are lovely and cool inside.
Find out more on the Gardens by the Bay website.
If you can plan a trip to Singapore during the WTA Finals, definitely go!
Read my Top Tips for Visitors to the WTA Finals and also look at more pics of the Beautiful Sights of Singapore by Night.
Until next time
Grand Slam Gal
WTA Finals 2014: The Beautiful Sights of Singapore by Night
I love a great sunset and seeing a city all lit up at night. Here’s my best night time pics from our trip to Singapore for the WTA Finals.
WTA Finals 2014: Pics of Simona Halep v Serena Williams
View pics from the round robin match between Simona Halep and Serena Williams at the WTA Finals in Singapore. Halep won 6-0, 6-2. [Read more…]
WTA Finals 2014: Pics of Ana Ivanovic v Genie Bouchard
View pics from the round robin match between Ana Ivanovic and Genie Bouchard at the 2014 WTA Finals in Singapore. Ana won in straight sets 6-1, 6-3.