Little India Travel Guide provides useful information for tourists and visitors to Little India in Singapore
The smell of spices in the air. Saris in every colour of the rainbow. Shops selling pots and pans, brightly painted temples, images of Hindu deities. This can only be Little India. If you want your sights to be neat and orderly, Little India is not the place for you. But if you relish the sights and sounds of the Indian subcontinent, you can get a piece of it right here in Singapore. The only exception is that Singapore, being a cosmopolitan city, also adds a dash of Chinese temple here, a church there, into the mixing bowl.
The Indians are mostly Hindus of course, and as your explore, you will come across a number of big Hindu temples in this area. But not all Indians are Hindus. You will also find a few Indian Muslim mosques in Little India.
Little India was created because the British, or to be specific, Stamford Raffles, parcelled the population out according to ethnic backgrounds. Originally, the Indians were given an enclave at Kampung Chulia - where Chulia Street and Market Street in the financial district is located. However, the abundance of grassland and water supply enticed the Indians to move north, to settle in the Serangoon Road area. They established themselves here around the 1840's as cattle breeders. The farm owners brought in labourers from India to work for them, and these Indians also settled in the Serangoon Road area. On top of that, the Indians working at the prison which was at Bras Basah Road and Bencoolen Street also opt to reside in the Serangoon Road area. In due course, a full-fledged Indian settlement was established.
The Indians brought their religion with them. One of the first temples in Little India is the Sri Veeramakaliamman Temple, set up for the worship of Kali, the goddess of destruction. A rather gruesome statue of the deity can be seen in the temple, where she rips open a hapless person. Another very early temple to establish itself in Little India is the Sri Srinivasa Perumal Temple. Both of these temples began as small shrines that expanded over time through contributions from the community.
On the northern fringe of Little India, the characteristic of the area changes to become more Chinese. Lined up along Race Course Road are a number of Buddhist and Taoist temples, the bigger ones being the Sakya Muni Buddha Gaya Temple and the Leong San See Temple. These temples were established in the early part of the 20th century.
In addition to sightseeing, Little India is a shopper's paradise. Although I am not sure whether the type of merchandise found in Little India is to your liking, I still think it is a lot of fun browsing through the shops and looking at what the local people buys. In addition to the small shops like those found in the Little India Arcade, there are also air-conditioned shopping complexes - all catering to local taste. These include Serangoon Plaza, The Verge and Mustafa Centre.
Getting there
The easiest way to reach Little India is by MRT. The MRT stations serving the Little India district are the Little India Station (NE7) and the Farrer Park Station (NE8). You can also take the MRT East-West Line to Bugis Station (EW12), and then walk for about 500 meters to Little India.
Sights in Little India
These are all the sights I've grouped under Little India, listed in alphabetical order. I would recommend that you visit them together.
* Sights of considerable interest
* * Sights of major interest
Abdul Gaffoor Mosque *
Angullia Mosque
Beo San Hood Chor Temple
Church of the True Light
Foochow Methodist Church
Hock Siew Tong Temple
Kampong Kapor Methodist Church
Leong San See Temple
Mahatma Gandhi Memorial Hall
Sakya Muni Buddha Gaya Temple (Temple of 1000 Lights) *
Shree Lakshminarayan Temple
Sri Srinivasa Perumal Temple *
Sri Vadapathira Kaliamman Temple *
Sri Veeramakaliamman Temple *
Shopping in Little India
The following are places where you can do a bit of shopping. These include places where the locals shop for their local items, but it provides an interesting glimpse of life in Singapore.
Little India Arcade
Mustafa Centre
Serangoon Plaza
Tekka Market
Where to stay
There is a wide selection of accommodation providers in Singapore. They range from budget inns and guesthouses to luxurious boutique hotels and branded chains. Your choice is entirely dependent on your budget and level of comfort expected. For mainstream hotels, check out hotels in Singapore for the best online prices, sourced from all the major providers. For guesthouses and other budget providers, check out hostels in Singapore for those with online booking facilities.
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Location Map of Little India
Serangoon Road
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Fruit vendor, Little India
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Street vendor in Little India
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Shuttered windows
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Leong San See Temple, Little India
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Dunlop Street
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