Singapore - Is there 24 hour dining in transit?

I'll be flying in from AKL, via SIN, and will have a 7pm to 9.30am wait until my next flight to HKG. Both sectors are with SIA. As a transit pax, will there be places open where I can have a bite to eat?

Absolutely. There is also a Transit Hotel where you can spend the night.

There are food outlets open 24 hours in the transit area. Some shops also. You can grab a map/brochure once you arrive and look for the listings with the "24-HR" symbol. Also you can wonder airside to the other terminals if you see something you like over there.

Most of the other places are open until midnight or so.

If you're going to be in transit for so many hours, why not just exit Immigration and go into town? If both inbound and outbound legs are on SQ, presumably your bags will be checked through to HKG. This means that you'll just have hand carry to contend with.

If the plane lands at 7PM, you should be able to exit Immigration and Customs by 7:30. You can do the poor man's way to town by taking bus 36 that will take you to the Orchard shopping belt and give you lots of things to see on the way. As long as you remember that the last bus or MRT to the airport is effectively 10:30PM you'll be fine (or else there's always a cab).

What I would do in this instance is to book a room at the Transit Hotel so you can be certain of making your connection, but get into town during the evening. To save even more time, have your onward boarding pass in hand (presumably issued in AKL) before leaving the airport so that when you get back to Changi you can pass through Immigration (and the Transit Hotel, which is airside) easily.

If you decide to stay at the airport, I still recommend going through Immigration to groundside as there are additional eating choices there. I believe your SIN/HKG flight departs Terminal 3; in a worse case situation I think there's a Starbucks or a Coffee Bean that is open 24 hours.

There's also a sort of convenience/drug store that's open 24 hours land side as well as a sort of hawker center food court primarily for airport employees land side that's at least open very late. Airside, some duty free stores will be open, a bookstore in T1, the butterfly place, the sunflower garden, koi ponds, and of course lounges, including some contract lounges that you can enter by paying a fee and some that honor Priority Pass. There is a free 24 hour movie theater. The pool closes late in the evening. Fancy retail stores close late at night and open pretty early in the morning.

You land early enough to easily take the MRT (subway and light rail) into just about anywhere in town. In hours after midnight, it can be tough to find a taxi. Allow for long lines at popular locations. Prepare to pay a 50% surcharge.

Thank you all for your suggestions. They've given me food for thought. (Groan!)

Thank you all for your suggestions. They've given me food for thought. (Groan!)

another vote to go ahead and visit Singapore night life, go to Little India or Arab Street, close to the airport and plenty of delicious food to sample on any budget.

another vote to go ahead and visit Singapore night life, go to Little India or Arab Street, close to the airport and plenty of delicious food to sample on any budget.

I'm warming to the idea of leaving the airport and doing a quick visit. With regards to the Transit Hotel, do I need to book in advance or just turn up?

You can just show up, but the transit hotels tend to fill up, so it's much better to reserve. When I last did this, there was no credit card guarantee, just a note that if you fail to show by some time, with exceptions for late aircraft, you lose the reservation.

You can just show up, but the transit hotels tend to fill up, so it's much better to reserve. When I last did this, there was no credit card guarantee, just a note that if you fail to show by some time, with exceptions for late aircraft, you lose the reservation.

Thank you for the advice.

I'm warming to the idea of leaving the airport and doing a quick visit. With regards to the Transit Hotel, do I need to book in advance or just turn up?

City hotels will be significantly cheaper than any airport hotel... and at the hours you're traveling you can easily take the MRT to and from the airport :) So enjoy the real Singapore and save some money at at :)

Actually the Transit Hotel is not expensive compared to city hotels.