Kampong Glam is one of Singapore’s oldest and most intact ethnic quarters — a heritage neighbourhood of Malay and Arab merchants, Islamic scholars, and artisans that predates the founding of modern Singapore. When Stamford Raffles arrived in 1819, Kampong Glam was already home to the Temenggong of Singapore and a small Malay settlement. Raffles designated it as the Malay and Arab Quarter, and it has remained culturally distinct ever since.
The neighbourhood’s most iconic landmark is Sultan Mosque — a National Monument built in 1824 (the current building dates from 1932, designed by Irish architect Denis Santry in Indo-Saracenic style). The mosque’s signature golden dome and minarets are visible from streets throughout the area and are particularly striking when lit at night. The mosque accommodates 5,000 worshippers and is Singapore’s most important Islamic institution. Visitors are welcome outside prayer times — the peaceful interior, with its Persian carpet, chandeliers, and carved wooden screens, is worth seeing.
Haji Lane runs just east of Arab Street and has transformed in recent years into Singapore’s most photogenic street. The narrow alleyway — barely wide enough for two people to walk side by side — is lined with elaborately painted shophouses. Street artists from Singapore and internationally have turned every available surface into a mural. Interspersed are some of Singapore’s best independent shops: vintage clothing, handmade jewelry, Japanese lifestyle goods, and specialty coffee cafes. The light in the early morning, when the lane is empty and the murals glow, is worth setting the alarm for.
Bussorah Street is a pedestrianized lane that leads directly to the Sultan Mosque gate — a classic Singapore composition of the golden dome framed by palm trees and coloured shophouses. The street is lined with Malay and Turkish restaurants and cafes. On evenings and weekends it fills with locals and tourists sitting at outdoor tables facing the illuminated mosque. This is the place for murtabak (egg and meat-stuffed pan bread, a Kampong Glam specialty), roti john, and teh tarik.
Malay Heritage Centre on Sultan Gate occupies the former Istana Kampong Glam, the royal palace of the Malay sultans of Singapore. The yellow-painted Malay-classical building houses a museum tracing the history of Singapore’s Malay community from pre-colonial times to the present, with good galleries on traditional crafts, performing arts, and identity. Entry is SGD 8 per adult.