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Visiting Singapore in September 2023

Visiting Singapore in September 2023

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Are you planning to travel to Singapore in September 2023? In this article, I’ll share what you need to know about visiting Singapore in September 2023.

September is the month where locals celebrate the Mid-Autumn Festival. The exact date for Mid-Autumn Festival this year is 29 September 2023 (Friday), but celebrations starts around mid September. The Mid-Autumn is not a public holiday.

If you visit Singapore in the mid September, there are various Mid-Autumn light-ups that you don’t want to miss, I’ll share more details about them further in this article.

The mid-semester school holiday takes place between 2 to 10 September 2023, with 11 Sept being Teacher’s Day. Hence, it’s likely that you’ll bump into families spending school holidays at various attractions, hotels or restaurants between 2-11 Sep 2023.

The 1st of Sep 2023 is Singapore’s Polling Day for Presidential Election. Therefore, 1 Sep 2023 is a public holiday in Singapore.

The annual F1 Singapore Grand Prix takes place from 15 Sep to 17 Sep 2023 (Fri-Sun). During the Grand Prix, there will be a lot of road closure around Marina Bay area. Hence, I don’t recommend sightseeing at Marina Bay on these dates. Also, most hotels get fully-booked during this crazy weekend, you might have to pay higher-than-usual hotel rates.

With such a long list of holidays and festivities, it is likely that attractions and hotels will be pretty crowded in the first half of September.

Singapore’s Weather in September

September is the last month of Southwest Monsoon Season, which lasts from June to September. During this period, there is generally less rainfall.

Based on historical data between 1991 to 2020, September is the second driest month in Singapore in terms of rainfall, with an average of 13 rain-days in a month.

Rain occurs occasionally between predawn and midday. Sometimes, short duration showers take place in the afternoon. It’s best to bring an umbrella if you’re planning for outdoor activities.

I recommend that you bookmark Singapore’s weather website, which is a very useful website to see current rain area & intensity, and to check the rain forecast for the next 4 days.

September’s temperature hovers between 25.2 to 31.6 degrees Celsius (77.4 to 88.9 degrees Fahrenheit). Generally, the temperature in Singapore doesn’t differ much from month to month.

This month, the sun rises between 7am (1 Sep) and 6.51am (30 Sep), and sunset happens between 7.08pm (1 Sep) to 6.57pm (30 Sep).

Things to do in Singapore in September 2023

1. Formula 1 Singapore Grand Prix

The Formula 1 Singapore Grand Prix will take place from 15 September (Fri) to 17 September 2023 (Sun) at Marina Bay. Top tier athletes and celebrities will be racing and performing at the event.

The entertainment line-up comprises Robbie Williams, Post Malone, Kings of Leon, Culture Club, Jackson Wang and many others.

Visiting Singapore in October 2022 - Singapore Grand Prix
Singapore Grand Prix (Photo Credit: Singapore Grand Prix)

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Many travelers are coming to Singapore to participate in this large scale event. Therefore, hotels may be quite occupied during the weekend of 15-17 Sep 2023.

If you intend to watch the Grand Prix, you should get the tickets ASAP because they’re usually sold out quite early. If all the tickets are sold out but you want to see the race, you can book a hotel near the circuit, but the price will definitely be more expensive than normal rate.

As mentioned earlier, if you’re not F1 guest, these 3 days are the worst days to do sightseeing around Marina Bay area (especially around Esplanade, Singapore Flyer and Padang) because of road closure.

f1 singapore 2023 - circuit park map
Circuit map (Photo Credit: Singapore Grand Prix)

You can still visit The Merlion, but don’t expect a beautiful background. Luckily, the area around Marina Bay Sands and The Promontory are not affected by the event.

2. Mid-Autumn Festival Light-Up

Mid-Autumn Festival is huge in Singapore. Many places are decorated with lanterns, but the biggest light-ups are at the following locations.

i) Chinatown

Mid Autumn Festival 2023 at Chinatown
Lanterns at Chinatown

When: 15 Sep to 14 Oct 2023 (Light-up hours: 7pm to 12midnight)
Where: Junction of Upper Cross Street and New Bridge Road / Eu Tong Sen Street
Ticket: Free
Website: here

ii) Gardens by the Bay

When: 15 Sep to 1 Oct 2023 (Light-up hours: 6pm to 10pm daily)
Where: Various places within Gardens by the Bay
Ticket: Free
Website: here

iii) Jurong Lake Gardens

When: 16 Sep to 1 Oct 2023 (Light-up hours: 7pm to 11pm)
Where: Lakeside Garden
Ticket: Free
Website: here

3. Eat Mooncake

This month, you can find shops selling mooncake almost everywhere you go, from local bread shops to luxury hotels. If you have never tried it before, I encourage you to try one.

There are 2 main types of mooncake: traditional baked mooncake and snow skin mooncake. The baked mooncake usually has lotus filling and comes with or without egg yolk.

mooncake traditional vs snowskin

The snow skin mooncake is usually kept chilled and comes with fusion flavors, such as tea flavors, fruity flavors, chocolate, and even durian flavor.

If you want to sample different mooncakes before buying one, you can visit the Mooncake Fair at Takashimaya, Orchard Road. The Fair takes place from 24 August to 29 September 2023.

4. Visit Orchid Extravaganza at Flower Dome

The Flower Dome is one of my most favorite places to visit at Gardens by the Bay. The flower theme changes from time to time. Right now, the theme is Orchid Extravaganza.

orchid extravaganza
Credit: GBTB

The Orchid Extravaganza exhibition takes place from 28 Jul to 17 Sep 2023. During the Orchid Extravaganza display, the flower field will be full of orchids of various species and colors.

Date: 28 Jul to 17 Sep 2023
Admission: From S$18 onwards (include Supertree)
Venue: Flower Dome at Gardens by the Bay
Address: 18 Marina Gardens Drive, Singapore 018953

What else to do in Singapore

If you haven’t yet, I highly recommend that you read my guide on the best things to do in Singapore. In that article, you’ll find 60+ ideas to make your trip to Singapore a memorable one.

If you have any questions about traveling in Singapore, join All About Singapore Travel Facebook group and post your questions there to get a faster response from me and other members.

If you like my work, you can buy me a coffee! Your support will help me to keep going!

Please share this article if you think it's awesome!

Andrew

Wednesday 30th of August 2023

Thank you for this updated guide. I really appreciate all your stories and tips. Can't wait to visit Singapore in 2 weeks.

Eva

Thursday 31st of August 2023

Thank you for your encouragement! Hope you have a great trip in Singapore!