St John and Kusu Islands: A Getaway to Singapore's Small Islands

Travel to Singapore

If you didn't already know, Singapore is basically consisting of a large island, isolated from Malaysia to the north by the Strait of Johor and Indonesia to the south by the Singapore Strait. It consists of the main island, named Island Ujong, but also by a whole series of islands and islets surrounding it (in total, there are 63).

And among these islands, some are ideal for a relaxing day of cycling, mixing beach and forest, time to unwind away from the city center. (although the latter is full of parks as I mentioned in my previous article).

Here is a summary of how to get there and what you can do there.

Singapore, a constantly evolving area

Before telling you about the interesting islands, I wanted to show you how they have evolved, to understand what you are going to see and how it could still evolve in the years to come.

As I said in the introduction, the main island is Pulau Ujong. The latter, which means "island at the end (of the peninsula)" in Mandarin, covers 584,8 km², constituting the majority of the territory of this country, and by far, the total area of Singapore in 2017 reaching 724,2 km². This is where the original city and current city center are located.

To put it in context, in 1959, before the country seriously began to expand, it was 581,5 km², already less than the island of Ujong today. Then there were two notable expansions, one between 1973 and 1976, increasing the area from 587,6 km² to 616,3 km² and then between 1997 and 1999, increasing from 648,1 km² to 682,7 km².

Singapore land area growth curve

To do this, Singapore is gaining land from the sea through land reclamation, connecting islands and expanding its coastline. Among these notable expansions, the most famous for its developments is the Marina, where is located Gardens by the Bay.

The evolution is therefore constant, with several more series of extensions on the sea planned by 2030. To date, Singapore has been able to increase its surface area by 24%, which is quite considerable. What is paradoxical if we take into account the very environmental aspect of the country, is this stubbornness in wanting to "cheat" with nature, and undoubtedly expand to cope with the increase in its population and its development.

Evolution of the surface area, already carried out and to come.

To understand, on this map you have two distinct colors:

- - - In pale pink, these are the enlargements that have already been carried out.
    - In light red, these are the extensions planned by 2030, so some are already underway.

The very eastern tip of the main island is where it is located Changi International Airport (incidentally, one of the best in the world), Singapore's main airport.

The island above this area corresponds to the islands of Tekong and Tekong Kecil (already joined together according to the satellite image). Pulau Tekong is the largest of the Singaporean islands outside the main one (Pulau Ujong), with an area of 24,43 km².

It is not open to visitors., as it now serves as a training ground for the Singapore Armed Forces, and hosts the Basic Military Training Center.

Then we notice the whole area to the southwest, heavily enlarged. This is because that is where the port of singapore, third largest port in the world in terms of tonnage (600 million per year).

To understand this figure, you need to know that the world's leading port is that of Ningbo-Zhoushan (900 million) following by that of Shanghai (650 million, to give you an idea of the scale, its quay is more than 5 km long!), located not far from each other in China.

By comparison, the largest port in terms of tonnage in Europe is Rotterdam in the Netherlands. (500 million) when the first French port is that of Marseille (with just under 100 million).

imposing container ship at the port of singapore

The imposing container ship OOCL Chongqing (366m long) at the port of Singapore.

For the record, knowing the name of the boat (on my full-size photo you can easily read it), you can follow its tracks. via a dedicated site (it is not at all sponsor and a bit off topic, but I find it funny).

St John, Lazarus and Seringat Islands

I admit I've digressed a bit above, but I wanted to clarify the situation in the country to make what follows easier to explain. Note that today, if you look at the ferry website (see below), you will see only St John and A piece (at the counter they also indicate Lazarus).

If you hover over the image below, you will understand the significant evolution of these islands. By default, what you see is the state of this group of islands, before the land reclamation work. In this case, they were four very distinct islands. The other image shows the islands today.

In short, St John and the Lazarus/Seringat group are today linked by a bridge, thus forming a single “entity”.

To explain the circumstances of my visit, I went there to see what was going on on these islands, take pictures and get information on how to get there. Basically, it was for my blog and to tell you about it.

I am telling you this because, in concrete terms, if you want to see these islands, it is better to dedicate the whole day to them. Given the ferry schedule, it's not really possible otherwise unless you do like me, a visit to just one island. (Kusu, the smallest).

As we approach St John.

The ferry docked on arrival in St John, just time to take a few photos and I was off again…

Welcome to St John!

That same day, I also had to go to Pulau Ubin, except, seeing St John AND Kusu AND Pulau Ubin is simply not possible. That being said, that's why I didn't go to St John. The boat docked there for 15 minutes, before continuing on its way to Kusu Island, where I spent more time.

As an aside, in the late 19th century, Saint John Island was used to quarantine immigrants with infectious diseases. By the 20th century, it had also become a prison for political prisoners and a detox center for opium addicts!

Grumpy Cat welcomes you to the island with joy…

It's tempting to sit there.

Last look for me, direction Kusu.

From what I could see, the atmosphere seems similar to Kusu, just bigger. There is a research center for local marine life, paths to walk around, and apparently picnic tables as well. As I mentioned above, there is a bridge connecting Saint John Island and Lazarus, it takes 20 minutes to get from the ferry dock to the main beach of Lazarus.

The latter being artificial, because it creates to connect the Lazarus and Seringat islands. Furthermore, given the general location of these islands, close to the port and therefore frequented by many ships, these waters, although with beautiful turquoise colors, are quite covered in oil... To illustrate my point, I leave you with a photo of one of the ships in the area, and a map of my country showing where the islands are located.

oil tanker parked near marina south singapore

One of the many ships stationed in the area.

It's almost jammed!

Kusu Island

Past my stop at Saint John Island, the boat was therefore heading towards the neighboring island of Kusu to the north. And this time I went down to discover what is hidden on this little piece of land.

Arrived at the island quay at 11am, the ferry left at noon, leaving me then a little hour to explore this little piece of island. It is also turtle island, local legend has it that a giant turtle transformed itself into an island to save two sailors whose ship had just sunk. One was a Malay Muslim, the other a Chinese Taoist.

I approach the quay of Kusu Island.

There was no one on the ferry, everyone got off at St John.

Welcome to Kusu Island!

Turtle Island.

This is why today, on the island there is a statue of two turtles, a sanctuary with a shelter for small turtles and above all two temples, one Chinese, the other Muslim. The latter is located on a small hill that once formed the original island, with another small islet next to it measuring just 1,2 hectares. With the development work in 1975, planned with the aim of transforming this piece of land into a holiday resort, the total surface area of A piece has increased to 8,5 hectares.

The advantage of this little visit is that it was quiet. Only one person went down to the island at the same time as me, so apart from those present for the maintenance of the island, there were hardly more than 5 people in total, if we ignore the monkeys there.

Because yes, there is even a little local fauna, a few macaques wandering in the trees and on the ground, around the Chinese temple and the Malay sanctuary.

Kusu Island Chinese Temple

This is a bit of a main attraction on the island. Also called Da Bo Gong 大伯公 or Tua Pek Kong (great-uncle), the temple is built in 1923 by a wealthy businessman. It is dedicated to two main deities – Da Bo Gong and Guan Yin (goddess of mercy).

Next to the main building there is a basin, which will be filled or not depending on the tide. The latter is surmounted by a footbridge with a shelter in its center, where is the “wish well”, symbolized by a lotus leaf.

wishing well chinese temple kusu island singapore

The wishing well.

The pond next to the Chinese temple.

If you are already familiar with Chinese temples, you will find a familiar architecture, where red predominates. Despite its size and modest appearance, The temple is the object of an annual pilgrimage, which takes place between the months of September and November depending on the year (9th month of the lunar calendar and dates spread over 9 days).

This is a period when there can be a lot of people on the island since the pilgrimage attracts up to 100 people!

dabo gong chinese temple - kusu island singapore

entrance door chinese temple kusu island singapore

entrance chinese temple da bo gong kusu island singapore

interior chinese temple kusu island singapore

Kusu Keramat or Datok Kong Keramat

At the top of the only "hill" on Kusu Island, formed by a pile of rocks, are three kramats (sacred shrines of Malay saints). These three kramats commemorate respectively a pious man (Syed Abdul Rahman), his mother (Nenek Ghalib) and his sister (Puteri Fatimah) who lived in the 19th century.

To get there, you have to "climb" the 152 steps which lead to the kramats. Locals come to pray, asking for wealth, marriage, and health. The shrines are also popular with childless couples who would pray here in order to obtain them.

Its particularity for me is that the The sanctuary is all dressed in yellow. When I passed by, I was there absolutely alone. Surrounded by trees, for a moment, I really had this feeling of being at the end of the world.

The stairs leading to the Malay shrine.

The Malay shrine.

En one o'clock, I had plenty of time to go around A piece. You have to see what it does less than 600 m long for a width barely exceeding 100 m, so we are going around in circles a bit. I imagine the atmosphere on weekends is radically different. Personally, I appreciated this calm, this feeling of being on "his" side. small quiet island easy, it's not unpleasant.

It contrasts quite a bit, even though we can see the buildings protruding from the the city, just 5 km away from there, to see this immaculate beach, with calm turquoise water in which it would be tempting to dip your feet.

And as I take this picture of the beach with its palm tree in front, I laugh inwardly, saying to myself: " In This is a typical beach cliché, and yet, I am definitely in Singapore!", This is enough to break the image of a city only good for shopping.

The beach in the southeast of the island.

A patch of forest on the eastern end of the island.

Seen!

Thorny plant seen on the island.

The view for the picnic.

Cliche!

How to get to St John and Kusu Islands

You have a regular ferry to these islands, with limited timetables during the week and a little more flexible at the weekend. People naturally allow themselves a few hours of respite on these islands after a week of work.

From the quay, count 30 minutes to get to Saint John Islandthen 15 minutes from St John to Kusu.

The orange counter on the right for St John and Kusu Islands.

The ferry cabin (everyone preferred the outdoor terrace).

wharf marina south st john kusu singapore

The Marina South dock as the ferry departed.

View of downtown Singapore as we are just leaving for St John.

The ferry to St John and Kusu Islands is located at the Marina South Pier, the pier located at the back of the Gardens by the Bay. And the good news is that you can get there directly by metro via the line North South Line

Go down to the Marina South Pier station (NS28) then take the exit B, which is now open. Look for the bright orange ticket booth at the platform to get your tickets.

Monday to Friday

ferry times st john kusu singapore week — Weekday ferry times.

Weekends and Holidays

ferry times st john kusu singapore weekend — Ferry times on weekends.

The ferry will take you from Marina South Pier to St John Island first, then to Kusu Island before returning to Marina South Pier. The ferry does not return to St John from Kusu Island.

Rates and additional information

The ferry fares are as follows:

Adult: S$18 (€12)
Reduced rate: S$15 (€10)
Child (up to 12 years): S$12 (€8)

Tickets are on sale either via their website (to take here), or directly at the Singapore Island Cruise & Ferry Services Pte Ltd counter at Marina South Quay. Which is what I personally did by buying my tickets on the same day since it was a weekday.
Telephone: 6534 9339
Official website: www.islandcruise.com.sg

- - Tickets sold are non-refundable.
  - It is advisable not to come after 15 p.m. on weekends.
  - One ticket is valid for a round trip to both islands with no additional charges between the two.
  - Due to the higher traffic on weekends and public holidays, ferry boarding will be based on a first come, first served basis.
  - Subject to availability, additional ferries may be arranged outside of scheduled times.

The other islands

In this same area of southern Singapore, we can find other small islands to spend a relaxing time. You will probably see their names when you arrive at Marina South Quay and they are served by the same ferry company as St John and Kusu.

The only difference is that there are no regular schedules and you have to take a charter boat. You will have a white counter for this, separated from the orange one for the islands of St John and Kusu, with the following islands indicated:

- - Sisters Islands : the sister islands, consisting of two islets Subar Darat and Subar Laut, just 1 km southwest of St John.
  - Ghost Island : leaves also, a set of two islets, literally next to the island of Bukom (dedicated to the port and more specifically to the petrochemical industry..).
  - Semakau Island : an island south of Hantu, mostly artificial (I doubt tourists go there).

From this group of islands, apart from Sisters Iceland, I strongly doubt the point of stopping at one of the other two. Ghost is almost stuck to the island of Bukom, completely filled by tanks and towers of the refineries located on theisland. However, I believe I understood that it is a spot from which it is possible to go diving... Failing that, there are tables for picnics and The island is well dedicated to tourism.

As for Semakau, I think that in the future it will also serve the interests of the port and does not currently have any facilities for the public.

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