The Ultimate Southern Islands Singapore Hopping Guide – St John Island, Lazarus Island, & Kusu Island

I recently did a Southern Islands hopping tour of St John Island, Lazarus Island, Seringat Island, and Kusu Island! This fun day trip taught me that finding a sense of discovery and adventure is just as possible close to home as it is far away. Below is my complete guide of Singapore’s Southern Islands, which should be helpful if you are planning a trip there. This article was last updated on 03 January 2021.

Table of Contents

• Understanding Southern Islands Singapore
• Which Islands To Visit?
• How To Get To Southern Islands
• Are There Guided Tours?
• Useful Tips To Know Before You Go
• Southern Islands One Day Itinerary
• Map of St John Island
• Map of Kusu Island
• Conclusion

Understanding Southern Islands Singapore

The Southern Islands consists of eight islands off Singapore’s south coast:

1. St John Island
2. Lazarus Island
3. Seringat Island
4. Kusu Island
5. Big Sister’s Island
6. Little Sister’s Island
7. Tekukor Island
8. Sentosa

St John Island, Lazarus Island, and Seringat Island are three picturesque islands that are connected: St John Island is linked to Lazarus Island by a man-made causeway, while Lazarus Island and Seringat Island were merged by land reclamation.

Kusu Island is best known for its Chinese temple. It is a short 15 to 20-minute ferry ride from St John Island.

Big Sister’s Island (Pulau Subar Laut) is a small island that is home to a family of long-tailed macaques. These wild monkeys can be aggressive, so I decided to skip this island.

I believe the island is usually only visited by marine scientists because it is part of a protected marine park (Sisters’ Islands Marine Park).

If you are into scuba diving, there is a dive trail around Big Sister’s Island that is around 100 metres in length, with a maximum depth of 15 metres.

Small Sister’s Island (Pulau Subar Darat) is closed to the public because it is home to a turtle hatchery.

Tekukor Island is an undeveloped island that is the site of a former ammunition dump. You need to apply for a special permit to visit this island. There are no public ferries that come here.

Sentosa is of course the most famous and popular tourist island resort.

Which Islands To Visit?

Most people usually only visit these four southern islands for their day trip: St John Island, Lazarus Island, Seringat Island, and Kusu Island.

As mentioned earlier, St John’s Island, Lazarus Island and Seringat Island are connected and you can walk between these islands.

Therefore, below is the outline of this simple southern islands singapore day trip:

1. Marina South Pier to St John/Lazarus/Seringat Island (35 minutes boat ride)
2. St John/Lazarus/Seringat Island to Kusu Island (25 minutes boat ride)
3. Kusu Island back to Marina South Pier (40 minutes boat ride)

How To Get To Southern Islands

– Step 1 – 
First, buy your ferry tickets online*.

Two public ferry companies bring visitors to the southern islands: Singapore Island Cruise and Marina South Ferries.

All ferries depart from Marina South Pier.

I bought my Singapore Island Cruise tickets from Klook* for $14, and it came with a $3 Gong Cha voucher too. Child tickets cost $11 each.

Note that you do not need to print out anything – just save the QR code in your phone to redeem the ferry ticket at the Klook counter on the day of your trip.

The ticket covers ferry rides for both St John Island and Kusu Island, so you do not need to buy any additional tickets.

The weekday and weekend ferry schedules are different, so plan your time according to which day you are going.

In addition, the ferry schedules change frequently so please check their most updated schedule before going down.

Note that if you want to visit Big Sister’s Island too (which I advise against due to the presence of wild monkeys), you would need to buy tickets from Marina South Ferries instead because they are the only company that provides shuttle trips to this island.

It is possible to buy tickets on the day of your trip at Marina South Pier, but I recommend buying online because it is cheaper and the ferries can get very crowded on the weekends.

– Step 2 –
Go to Marina South Pier, which is connected to the MRT station.

If you are driving, note that there are very limited parking lots at the pier. The carpark is open from 7am to 10.30pm daily, and the charges are $2 per hour for the first two hours and $3 per subsequent hour.

The next nearest car park is located at Marina Bay Cruise Centre, which is a 10-minute walk away.

– Step 3 –
Board the ferry. You may need to undergo a security scan so please do not bring any illegal items with you.

Are There Guided Tours?

The National Parks Board (NParks) conducts a free 90-minute guided tour of St. John Island (capped at 10 participants) on the first Sunday of every month.

There are no guided tours for the other islands.

Useful Tips To Know Before You Go

1. Bring your own food and drinks because there are NO SHOPS on the islands. Remember to bring plenty of drinking water!

2. Apply sunblock because you will be walking under the sun most of the time. It would be good to bring along an umbrella or wear a cap to shield yourself from the scorching sun, and also in case it rains. I experienced intermittent rain on the islands during my visit.

3. Make sure you use plenty of mosquito repellent! I got bitten many times even after using several mosquito repellent patches.

4. There are three public toilets on St John Island, one on Seringat Island, and one on Kusu Island. Their locations are marked in the maps at the bottom of this article. Bring your own tissue or toilet paper because most of the toilets do not provide them.

5. Check the weather forecast before visiting the islands.

6. The ferries do not depart exactly at their scheduled timings, because the ferry companies will arrange for multiple trips when there are many visitors. Based on my experience, the ferries can depart 15 to 20 minutes earlier.

7. Due to the pandemic travel restrictions, the southern islands are currently very popular with Singaporeans. Therefore, you might want to go on a weekday to avoid the crowds, but note that the ferry frequency will be lower.

One Day Southern Islands Itinerary

Southern Islands One Day Itinerary

8.30am – Marina South Pier

9.30am – Lazarus Island

11am – Seringat Island

12pm – St John Island

2.30pm – Kusu Island

4.45pm – Back to Marina South Pier

8.30am – Marina South Pier

I arrived at Marina South Pier at 8.30am on a Saturday morning, and was surprised to see quite a number of people at the pier – I guess the southern islands are currently very popular with Singaporeans due to international travel restrictions.

There were several shops selling snacks and beach gear.

There are also clean washrooms at the pier if you wish to take a toilet break before boarding the ferry – which is a good idea because there are very few public toilets on the southern islands.

If you need to buy your tickets on the day of your trip, there are many ferry ticket counters at the pier.

I had bought my Singapore Island Cruise ticket online so I went to the second floor of the pier to collect it from the Klook counter / table.

The friendly staff scanned my QR code and handed me the physical ticket along with the complimentary Gong Cha voucher.

After that, I proceeded back to the first floor to board the ferry! Even though the official departure time was 9am, the ferry left the pier at 8.40am

It was a pleasant 35-minute boat ride to St John Island. The ferry was air-conditioned with comfy padded seats.

The sea was quite calm so I didn’t experience any sea sickness at all.

9.30am – Lazarus Island

After around 35 minutes, the ferry arrived at the St John Island Pier!

I decided to explore Lazarus Island first because I wanted to get to the beautiful beach before the crowds started coming in.

Therefore, I turned left from the pier and walked along the coast towards Lazarus Island.

A few minutes later, I reached the man-made causeway connecting St John Island and Lazarus Island.

As I was walking across, I saw several anglers fishing along the causeway.

I also came across a group of kayakers who were preparing to set off.

This well-paved causeway continued into Lazarus Island. It was a beautiful path lined with lush trees and green fields.

The air was crisp, the sky was an azure blue, and I was surrounded by the therapeutic sounds of nature and birds chirping. This was the perfect getaway from the city!

Lazarus Island is pet-friendly; I saw several pet dogs wandering around freely (with their owners close by).

There was even a forested area where I came across several people cycling leisurely along the path.

There were maps along the path indicating entry points into the adjacent Lazarus Beach.

I walked to the far end of the path, walked through the greenery, and entered the beach!

Lazarus Beach is a gorgeous man-made lagoon that was created when Lazarus Island was merged with the adjacent Seringat Island through land reclamation.

The wife and I were the only people at this section of the beach. I saw a few yachts and some people swimming in the distance.

I was amazed that such a gorgeous and tranquil beach actually existed in Singapore! It is a lovely place to have a swim or enjoy a picnic.

I spent about 15 minutes here admiring the views and flying my drone.

It is possible to get shade at the various shelters along the beach, which are surrounded by lush greenery.

After that, I continued walking along the coast where I saw many anglers – some of them were fishing while the others were resting inside shelters.

I also saw a couple of jet skis speeding towards Lazarus Beach.

I turned back after a while because I knew that there was a break in the path ahead (see red circle in the map above).

I walked back along the path towards my next stop: Seringat Island.

Do not worry about getting lost because there are many signboards along the way.

11am – Seringat Island

After walking about ten minutes, I reached the Seringat Island Jetty.

A private yacht was docked here, with a few people around it doing stand-up paddling and lazing on pool mats.

There are public toilets at the jetty, which are clean but do not have toilet paper.

I saw two adorable cats here!

One was lazing around while the other was sleeping in the most relaxed feline position I had ever seen.

From the jetty, I walked to a man-made causeway connected to the tiny Kias Island on the opposite side.

It was nice to walk along the causeway which offered paranomic views of the sea and mainland Singapore.

Once again I saw several anglers here.

Kias island is home to an electricity generator with enough capacity to support the other three islands of St John, Lazarus, and Seringat.

I could see the Central Business District across the channel from here. I also saw a young couple flying their kite, which was nice.

There isn’t much to do on this tiny island other than to take some nice pictures and enjoy the sea breeze.

If you refer to the map above, you can see that there is actually another island, Pulau Seringat Kecil (“Small Seringat Island”), connected to Seringat Island.

However, as you can see from the picture above, it is heavily forested with no accessible entry points.

From Seringat Island, I made way back towards the jetty to explore St John’s Island.

12pm – St John Island

St John Island was formerly a quarantine station for immigrants who had cholera, beri-beri and leprosy. With the end of mass immigration, it was later used as a penal settlement and drug rehabilitation centre.

In 1975, this hilly island was transformed into the beautiful island getaway we see today.

Here’s an interesting trivia: it is believed that Sir Stamford Raffles anchored off St John Island on 28 February 1819, before sailing to mainland Singapore the next day!

My first stop at St John Island was the Swimming Lagoon, which was nice but not as beautiful as Lazarus Beach.

However, it does offer many shelters and benches where you can have some snacks while enjoying the sea views – which is what I saw a number of people doing.

There are no toilets by the lagoon, only a few dingy changing rooms.

The nearest toilet is a 5-minute walk up a slope from the beach (see picture above). It is clean but does not have toilet paper.

From the lagoon, I made my way up the sloping path towards St John’s Island Lodge, which is a large camping site home to several bungalows.

Unfortunately it was closed to the public, which was a pity because I wanted to check out the Heritage Trees inside the compound.

Feeling slightly disappointed, I walked back down the slope onto another path that led to the Marine Park Outreach and Education Centre.

This was a gorgeous path lined with lush greenery and giant trees.

It was really nice to walk along the trail and revel in the beauty of nature!

Interestingly, I saw a dusty basketball court along the way.

After walking for about ten minutes, I saw a signboard for the marine centre.

I continued walking along the path for five minutes and saw the Marine Aquaculture Centre, which is closed to the public.

Do not worry about getting lost because there are many signs along the way.

After walking for a few more minutes, I finally reached the Marine Park Outreach and Education Centre.

This National University of Singapore (NUS) institute showcases the marine biodiversity in Singapore’s waters and also provides an overview of the Sisters’ Islands Marine Park.

After taking my temperature at the entrance, I entered the air-conditioned centre, which was a wonderful escape from the heat!

Once inside, I was greeted by a three-dimensional diorama of the Sisters’ Islands Marine Park Dive Trail.

I also learnt about some of the fascinating marine life in the surrounding waters.

There is an outdoor area which features some of our common local marine life. However, it was quite a small space and there wasn’t really anything exciting to see.

I was pleasantly surprised to find a modern toilet here with toilet paper and shower facilities. If you are looking for clean toilets this is the place!

Incidentally, the design of this NUS institute reminded me of my university days (many years ago).

From the marine centre, I walked back along the same path towards the St John’s Island jetty.

I reached the jetty after a short ten-minute walk, where I boarded the 1.50pm ferry to my next stop: Kusu Island.

2.30pm – Kusu Island

After a comfy 25-minute boat ride on the air-conditioned ferry, I reached Kusu Island!

Kusu means “Tortoise Island” in Chinese. It was transformed from two tiny rocks on a reef into an island getaway seven times bigger in 1975.

From the pier, I turned right to walk across a beautiful bridge.

I was greeted with a traditional Chinese pavilion at the end of the bridge.

It is home to a wishing well, where you can throw coins into the artificial lotus flower and pray for your wish to come true.

From here, I could see the side of the Chinese temple perched over the water.

I continued walking to the temple, which is known as the Da Bogong Temple (大伯公庙). It houses many deities, but the two main deities are Da Bo Gong (大伯公) and Guan Yin (观音).

During the Kusu Festival in the ninth lunar month every year, thousands of devotees will make their pilgrimage to the temple.

There are several altars in the temple where devotees can pray and offer incense.

I was amused by the God of Prosperity statues here, which looked jovial and charming.

Interestingly, there was also a altar for the Monkey God.

I was pleasantly surprised to see a tiny turtle sanctuary with many adorable terrapins.

There is a large furnace in the backyard for devotees to burn their offerings for the deities.

If you need to answer nature’s call, there are clean toilets at the back of the temple.

After a short while, I left the temple and proceeded to make my way to the Malay shrine.

Along the way, I saw plenty of wooden benches lining the paths.

I also saw a “Food Centre”, which is used as an event space for vendors to sell food and accessories during the ninth lunar month, when devotees make their pilgrimage to Kusu Island.

A few minutes later, I reached the flight of steps that lead to the Malay shrine at the top of the hill.

It is a steep climb with 152 steps so be mentally prepared!

After five minutes, I reached the shrine and was greeted by a few playful monkeys which were mingling with the shrine caretaker.

Make sure you guard your belongings properly to prevent the monkeys from snatching them.

This Malay shrine, or Kramat, is dedicated to the Datok Gong, which are local guardian spirits. They are also known as Na Tuk Kong, Dato Keramat, or “拿督公”.

It was nice to hang out for a short while at this peaceful enclave surrounded by lush vegetation.

It is a popular practice to write your wishes on the yellow rock walls near the shrine. I saw plenty of writings here including many amusing ones.

I left the shrine after five minutes, walking down another flight of steps that led directly to the first lagoon in Kusu Island.

Similar to St John Island, this serene lagoon is lined with plenty of quaint shelters where you can relax and admire the sea while having some nice snacks – which was what many people were doing.

I continued walking along the path around the island towards the second lagoon.

This was another tranquil and beautiful lagoon, located on the opposite side of Kusu Island.

Like the first lagoon, there were many nice shelters here too.

As I was walking along the beach, I came across the well-known Tortoise Sanctuary, which is home to dozens of cute terrapins and several larger tortoises.

The bigger tortoises hid in their tiny caves most of the time and only crawled out slowly sometimes – mostly probably to find food.

Click to enlarge

I also came across a board detailing several of Kusu Island’s myths and legends. According to one legend, the island was formed a long time ago when a giant turtle transformed itself into a sanctuary for two shipwrecked fishermen.

Slightly further down the path, there were two tortoise statues – this was a nice photo opportunity spot.

I continued walking along the beach and reached the far end of the island a few minutes later, where I saw Lazarus Beach on the opposite side. There were a few anglers here too.

I enjoyed the sea breeze here for a while before walking back to the pier to catch the ferry back to Marina South Pier.

The official ferry departure time was 4.15pm, but it left earlier at 4.05pm.

4.45pm – Marina South Pier

I arrived back at Marina South Pier after a comfy 40-minute boat ride. Before exiting the pier, all passengers had to undergo a security scan.

And that was the end of my tiring but fun southern islands hopping day trip!

Map of St John Island

The map above lists down all the St John Island, Lazarus Island and Seringat Island attractions in the sequence I visited for your easy reference.

Map of Kusu Island

The map above lists down all the Kusu Island attractions in the sequence I visited.

Conclusion

Who knew the Southern Islands had so much to offer? I had a wonderful day exploring these four offshore islands (St John Island, Lazarus Island, Seringat Island, and Kusu Island), and I hope this guide will help you to have as much fun as I did!

Buy your ferry tickets here*: www.eatandtravelwithus.com/go/st-john-island-ferry-ticket

*this is an affiliate link, meaning that I get a small commission (at no extra cost to you) if you purchase the ticket through it.