A step back into the past. Visited in January with family (Singaporean wife+teenage kids) and local friend. Impressions of the island was a secluded bush forest environment with abundant wildlife eg. Monkeys, snakes, lizards & very few humans. After catching the local ferry ie. 12 person bumboat (note that they wait to fill all seats before departing otherwise you may have to negotiate a deal if the boats isn't full). Once you land & absorb the tranquility of being in a Kampong (village), its off to hire a bicycle of which there were 3 shops opened & they all had 2 types - standard and newer (identified as it has bubble wrap around the stem) starting at $S8-$S10/day. Tip - dont assume that the 'newer' bike is better as one of the bikes suddenly disengaged the handle bars from the wheel & became un-steerable. We stuck mostly to the roads which were more or less level but did stop to hike to the top for the amazing views. Afterwards, lunch was in the local village where despite the shabby appearance the food was great with Char Kway Teow a standout. Beware the 'toilet' which turned out to be a hole in the concrete floor (straight into the drain and into the waterway) with a hose to flush. To conclude, a great experience & opportunity to see another side of Singapore away from the concrete jungle. Take lotsa water as it is hot and only 1 place along the route to replenish.

We've been to Singapore before and wanted something different from the usual shops / high rise / hawker centres etc - not that there's anything wrong with that. I'd dome a bit of on line research and thought Pulau Ubin would be a great / different day out. A taxi ride to Changi Wharf and a short (cash only) boat ride across to the island and we we off. Near the jetty there's several bike rental places and a few local eateries. You get hassled a bit for bike rental and we ended up paying $8 per bike. Some have new bikes, some not. We just checked the tyres and brakes before we paid. They were bth OK, older bikes. There's plenty of trails that cover the island and they're all well signposted and there's regular shelters and island maps. We went one way as far as the German Girl Shrine - a great, easy ride and along the way there's several other riders, walkers, locals fishing, monkeys, butterflies and even an Otter. We came back to the jetty area and grabbed some lunch which was good and cheap. We then headed off to the Wetlands - another great ride - some pavement, some dirt, some inclines, but nothing too hard for fit people. Heaps of Monkeys, Wild Boars and other wildlife. At the entrance to the Wetlands you have to park your bike (in a bike parking lot) and walk the rest of the way - don't leave anything with your bike, the local Monkeys will take whatever you leave. The walk is pretty flat and there's a boardwalk that's been built that's really good. We also climbed up a lookout tower and got some great views of the canopy and Malaysia across the water. Back to get the bikes and there's a thunderstorm on the way - we decide to ride back to the wharf and end up getting caught in a massive tropical rain / thunder / lightning storm. We end up soaked and in a shelter waiting it out for 1/2 an hour or so and we loved every second of it. An amazing day and the island is such a throwback to what life was like - you can't believe you're in Singapore and just a cab ride away from the city. On the way back you have to go through an airport style security screening when you get off the boat. Make sure you take - Cash, Camera, Sunscreen, Hat, good walking shoes. Great day out........