Singapore running tours: how to see the Lion City’s attractions and stay fit, if you can stand the humidity
- Mount Faber Park, Alkaff Mansion, Labrador Battery – we get a 360-degree view of Singapore and see its greenery and historic sights up close on a 10km run
- Customised tours of cities for runners have taken off around the world, and Asia is waking up to them. Guides take account of ability when picking an itinerary
Most tourists race to the designer shops on Orchard Road when they get to Singapore, but a running tour offers a look at some of the island nation’s historical sights – and a good workout while you are at it.
“It’s not the distance that will get you, it’s the humidity,” says my running tour guide Caleb Tey, about five minutes into the experience. We are sitting on a bus at 6.30am on a Sunday, on the way to Mount Faber Park, one of Singapore’s oldest parks. He is right: even as we make our way to the starting point for our 10km (six miles) workout, I’m already sweating.
As a keen runner, I’ve signed up for a customised running tour on my first full day in Singapore. Heat aside, the city, which is flat and safe, with well-paved streets and ubiquitous greenery, is good for running.
“I’ve had guests who are close to qualifying for the Boston marathon but are struggling to run in the humidity,” says Tey, 38. “But that is the case for running tours. Run slow and smell the roses.”
This is a particularly apt saying for Singapore, dubbed a “city in a garden”, where the government has put emphasis on environmental sustainability and about 10 per cent of land is protected. “Sightrunning tours”, which combine sightseeing and running, have popped up all around the globe.