Review of the Singapore City Gallery. See how the museum uses interactive displays and models to detail the city’s extreme urban planning challenges. This review was expanded and updated in September 2026.
The planning challenge of Singapore
For those of us who spent abnormal amounts of time playing SimCity and other such playing god-esque computer games, Singapore is a fascinating test scenario.
The Asian city state – one of the world’s great stopover destinations – is unique in planning terms. It’s a proper country (sorry, we’re not counting Monaco and the Vatican here), that’s also a city, crammed into an extremely limited piece of land. There’s probably nowhere else in the world where use of space is such a delicate balancing act, and every planning decision truly counts.
Inside the Singapore City Gallery
And it is this tightrope walk that makes the Singapore City Gallery far, far more interesting than it should be. It is basically a museum about how the city is planned, and anywhere else that could be dustbowl dry and nerdy.
Here, though, you’re invited to play the game.
It kicks off with big sweeping stats about urbanisation – by 2050, 70% of the world’s population will live in cities; every week a new city the size of Kyoto or Barcelona springs up etc etc. But then it goes into Singapore’s specific challenges.
The size of Singapore
Despite extensive land reclamation, Singapore only has 710 square kilometres to play with. And the initial bank of touch screens strike home just how much has to fit in that space. Other cities have the luxury of placing some needs outside the city. Singapore can’t do that – defence installations, cemeteries, reservoirs, green areas, ports, airports, sewage works, expressways, commerce, housing and industry all have to be found a spot within the borders.
For comparison, Melbourne has a slightly smaller population than Singapore, but is 10.8 times bigger. London has just under three times the population and is 11.8 times bigger. Then you’ve got to consider that Singapore is also the broadcasting hub of Asia, has the world’s busiest port, and there are massive electronics, petrochemical and aerospace repair industries. Wrangling all that while keeping people happy and the environment liveable is an enormous task.
Five great things to do while you’re in Singapore
- Explore Singapore’s landmarks and back streets on a bike tour.
- See Singapore from above from the Sky Deck at Marina Bay Sands.
- Discover the city at night in a private group adventure – including a river cruise.
- Smell the flowers at the National Orchid Garden.
- Take a highly-rated food and culture tour through Chinatown, Little India and Kampong Glam.
City planning games
It’s also a task you get to try your hand at time and time again. Where the Singapore City Gallery excels is in making you have a go yourself, with a series of games aimed at balancing the competing demands. What would you put where? How would you break the zones down? What building designs would you put in a prime redevelopment slot? And do you preserve heritage or knock down to create more space?
The masterplan for Singapore
Getting such things laughably wrong several times succeeds in its aim of giving you serious respect for the planners who draw up the ideas for Singapore’s future. But you can look at the plans too. The masterplan for the next ten to 15 years has been computerised, and you can scroll through maps of Singapore, painstakingly colour-coded into zones on a block by block basis. It’s enormously detailed and complex, and it’s difficult not to leave awestruck.
Especially when, on SimCity, you can ignore people complaining about traffic or lack of parks. In SingCity, they’re real human beings and need to be kept onboard in arguably the trickiest town planning puzzle on earth.
Where is the Singapore City Gallery?
The Singapore City Gallery is inside the URA Centre at 45 Maxwell Road. Entry is free.
Things to do near the Singapore City Gallery
- Chinatown – The historic district immediately south of the City Gallery contains preserved shophouses, temples, markets and food centres, making it easy to explore on foot.
- Maxwell Food Centre – One of Singapore’s best-known hawker centres is just across the road from the City Gallery, with a large selection of inexpensive local dishes.
- Buddha Tooth Relic Temple – This large Tang-style Buddhist temple in Chinatown has an ornate exterior and interior, with a museum and cultural exhibits inside.
- Thian Hock Keng Temple – One of Singapore’s oldest Hokkien temples, built in the 19th century on what was once the waterfront used by Chinese immigrants arriving by sea.
- Sri Mariamman Temple – Singapore’s oldest Hindu temple stands on South Bridge Road in Chinatown and is distinguished by its elaborate entrance tower.
Alternative attractions
- National Gallery Singapore – Housed in the former Supreme Court and City Hall buildings, the gallery has extensive collections of Singaporean and Southeast Asian art.
- Asian Civilisations Museum – A museum beside the Singapore River exploring Asian cultures and their connections through trade, migration and religion.
- National Museum of Singapore – Singapore’s oldest museum traces the country’s history through exhibitions covering society, culture, wartime experiences and national development.
- Red Dot Design Museum – A contemporary design museum at Marina Bay displaying award-winning product and industrial designs from around the world.
- Peranakan Museum – A museum devoted to Peranakan culture, exploring the distinctive traditions, domestic life, clothing and material culture of the Straits Chinese community.
More Singapore travel
Other Singapore travel articles on Planet Whitley include:
- Braving the Singapore Flyer with food poisoning.
- Why Singapore Zoo is the best zoo in the world.
- How to visit Singapore’s gory Haw Par Villa.
- Why Singapore is a perfect introduction to Asia.
- A practical guide to visiting the Changi Museum and Chapel.
For more Singapore tours, activities and experiences, head this way.
