6 Incredible Examples of Unique Architecture in Singapore

Last Updated on May 18, 2024 by Adam Watts

Below are 6 incredible examples of unique architecture in Singapore. From garden hotels to fruity shopping malls to bridges that look like worms, there’s really something for all tastes here.

The Interlace

Buro Ole Scheeren, architect of The Interlace, must be a younger sibling.

I say that because The Interlace is made of LEGO, and more specifically, made of the basic 2×4 LEGO blocks that are all that’s left in the box after an older sibling has claimed all the good stuff to make a fancy rocket ship.

It takes a lot of imagination, or very little, depending on how you look at it, to turn those basic blocks into this startling creation. Driving past it the first few times one can’t help but turn your head and at least take notice of it, even if you’re not a fan of the design.

The Interlace is not without its critics, most of whom probably stepped on one too many LEGO blocks as a child, but it did win World Building of the Year in 2015 so it’s evidently much appreciated by younger siblings the world over.

For more a more thorough architectural breakdown of The Interlace, click here.

Marina Bay Sands

You must’ve seen this one. It’s a boat in the sky. It’s easily the most famous building in Singapore, and one of the most iconic in the world.

Moshe Safdie is the architect behind this iconic creation, opened in 2010.

The Marina Bay Sands resort complex includes *deep breath* a 2,561-room hotel, a 120,000-square-metre convention-exhibition center, a museum, a large theatre, celebrity-chef restaurants, two floating crystal pavilions, the world’s largest atrium casino with 500 tables and 1,600 slot machines, a 150m infinity swimming pool, and a 74,000-square-metre mall.

The mall includes stores such as, but not limited to *deep breath* Ralph Lauren, Chanel, Cartier, Prada, Gucci, Hermès, Emporio Armani, Chopard, Valentino, Dior, Dunhill, Vertu, Miu Miu, Saint Laurent Paris, Salvatore Ferragamo, Montblanc, Blancpain, Vera Wang Bride, Herve Leger. I don’t even know what all of those are but I look forward to realizing how much I can’t afford them.

Oh, and not forgetting the new Apple Store that floats in the water because of course it does.

Esplanade – Theatres on the Bay

The Esplanade roof is reminiscent of a durian, aka “smelly fruit”.

The durian fruit gets a bad rap. Distinctive for its large size, strong odor, and thorn-covered rind, the durian is banned on many public transport systems in Southeast Asia.

Its flavor and smell have a dedicated section of Wikipedia, which is worth a read, but here are some highlights:

“like eating sweet raspberry blancmange in the lavatory”

“the more you eat of it the less you feel inclined to stop”

and my personal favorite:

“its odor is best described as pig-excrement, turpentine and onions, garnished with a gym sock”

What do durians have to do with architecture? Well, The Esplanade is made out of dried durians welded together and shaped into what you see above.

No, obviously that’s not true. The Esplanade pictured above, with its pointed-looking exterior, is reminiscent of a durian’s rind, and is therefore affectionately known as “the durian” by locals (which I now am myself!).

Opened in 2002, The Esplanade mainly features a concert hall and theatre, but also has a recital hall, library and obviously also a mall.

PARKROYAL COLLECTION Pickering

Singapore is known as the Garden City, but that term doesn’t just mean it has lots of parks and open spaces. It’s also evident in the design of buildings like the awkwardly-named PARKROYAL COLLECTION Pickering.

This one is also my favorite building in Singapore. Look how pretty it is!

Designed by Singaporean architecture firm WOHA, Parkroyal on Pickering is designed to be a “hotel in a garden” and features extensive greenery, including green walls, water features and 15,000 square meters of tiered “sky gardens” (Wikipedia).

You might be wondering how all that greenery is managed and maintained. The answer is not long ladders and lots of watering cans, which may or might not have been my first instinct.

In fact, they’re designed to be sulf-sustaining, using solar cells, motion sensors, rainwater harvesting, and reclaimed water. Fancy.

ION Orchard

Singapore, despite being a garden city, it’s also basically one giant shopping mall, so it’s only fair we include a mall in its own right on this list of unique architecture in Singapore. Meet ION Orchard.

First, some context. Where I’m from in Cambridge, UK, growing up we had a couple of small shopping centers. They had two floors.

In Singapore, ION Orchard has 8 floors for stores and another 4 just for parking. It has 400+ retail outlets and 100+ food outlets. It’s also connected to several other malls via passageways if for some reason you can’t find what you want among those 500 options.

Inside, I hate it. I hate shopping malls, mazes designed to keep you there forever, filled with the same chain stores that exist in every other shopping mall almost everywhere in the world. And also I get lost and frustrated easily.

From the outside, though, ION Orchard is beautiful.

Designed by architecture firm Benoy, “ION Orchard makes direct reference to the contours and lines of fruit and nuts; the retail canopy draws on the metaphors of ‘skin’ and ‘foliage’ while the iconic tower design is based on the concept of ‘roots and shoots’ growing up out of the canopy below.” Source.

If you say so. To me it just looks cool.

Henderson Waves Bridge

Henderson Waves is the tallest pedestrian bridge in Singapore. I haven’t checked this, but I’m fairly confident it’s also the bendiest, windiest, and bridge most likely to be awarded “bridge that looks most like a worm”.

Designed by RSP Architects Planners & Engineers Pte Ltd, Henderson Waves is our final example of unique architecture in Singapore. It’s part of a nine-kilometer stretch of urban walkway linking various hills, parks and attractions to extend the amount of green space available to Singaporean residents.

For more info on this wibbly-wobbly thing-a-ma-jig, read here.

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That’s it, my friends. Those are 6 incredible examples of unique architecture in Singapore. I’ll probably do another post in the future because I didn’t even mention the Helix Bridge, the Supertrees of Gardens by the Bay, or any of the many other cool buildings I see just going about life in Singapore.