The city-state of Singapore is located on the southern tip of the Malacca Peninsula, making it an ideal destination for Southeast Asia. Founded as a trading post for the British West India Company in 1819, Singapore is known as a place of great wealth and is now one of the world’s leading financial centres. For tourists, Singapore has a little bit of everything: history and culture, a fantastic mix of architecture in different styles, good shopping districts, and great nature and wildlife on the outskirts of the city. From there, going to Malaysia is a good way to continue your journey. A popular place to start a visit to this Asian country is Mount Cameron. While you may have enjoyed Singapore’s green surroundings, Cameron Highlands provides a wonderful contrast to the city with its tea plantations and crops. The possibilities of trekking through the jungle, tunnels and temples and the relaxed atmosphere of the surrounding villages are a great attraction for travelers.
Options to go from Singapore to Cameron Highlands
To get from Singapore to Cameron Highlands, there are several different routes you can choose from if you are driving alone. The distance can be 563 kilometers for the shortest route or 668 kilometers for the longest route. Fortunately, you don’t need to hire a car to cover the distance, as there are multiple buses daily from Singapore to Cameron Highlands, so you can sit back and relax until you reach your destination. But, as is to be expected with a trip of so many miles, these buses take a long time to complete their journey, which is not always convenient for every traveler. Theoretically, the fastest option is by plane. However, since there is no airport in Cameron Highlands, you would have to fly to Ipoh and from there by bus. After all, you can get from Singapore to Cameron Highlands by train, but it’s a very long journey that involves several changes.
Singapore to Cameron Highlands flights
Changi Departure Hall, now voted the best airport in the world by Skytrax © Trong Nguyen / Shutterstock.com
We will start with the fastest solution, although it is also the most expensive for this very reason. Flights from Singapore to Cameron Highlands don’t fly directly to this destination, but you do need to fly from Singapore to Ipoh. Ipoh is the nearest major city in the region, about 80 kilometers away by road. There are quite cheap buses that complete the route to your destination. Apart from the inconvenience of having to change buses, a flight from Singapore to Cameron Highlands is quite expensive and takes longer than you might think.
First of all, you need to arrive at Singapore’s Changi Airport, which is about 20 kilometers from the city center. There are many ways to make this trip, but this makes the trip longer and more expensive. Once at the airport, you need to count the time it takes to check in and the waiting time for boarding to start. Once the flight has taken off, it takes no more than 1 hour and 10 minutes to reach Sultan Azlan Shah Airport in Ipoh. This airport is closer to the city, but you will also need to drive to where the buses to Cameron Highlands leave. The journey by bus takes approximately 3 hours. As you can see, adding up all the stages of the journey, you need to analyze whether you really save time by flying from Singapore to Cameron Highlands by plane instead of by road. Also, do not forget that it is more expensive.
If you are interested in comparing the cost and duration of a flight from Singapore to Cameron Highlands, have a look at our website 12Go.asiawhere you can see flights operated by AirAsia and compare them with bus prices. Low cost airline Scoot also operates flights from Singapore to Ipoh.
From Singapore to Cameron Highlands by bus
No wonder the bus from Singapore to Cameron Highlands is the most popular option among tourists traveling between these places. It is the cheapest means of transport and although the journey is long, it is also quite practical.
If you decide to take the bus, you can easily buy tickets online at 12Go. On this page, you can compare departure times and different types of buses that serve this route, and read reviews from other travelers to help you decide. Making a reservation is very simple. One of the great things about the bus is that the journey starts in Singapore and you don’t need to make any transfers to reach your destination, it will take you directly to Cameron Highlands. There are several departure points in Singapore, so you can choose the nearest one. Arriving in Cameron Highlands, buses stop at Tanah Rata, the main town.
There are three bus companies serving the route from Singapore to Cameron Highlands: StarMart Express, Sri Maju and Eltabina SGD. Be careful comparing their services as buses from Eltabina and Sri Maju only go to Ipoh which means you would have to take a different bus from there. StarMart Express goes to the town of Tanah Rata in the Cameron Highlands, making this route the most convenient option.
StarMart Express buses are more expensive, but also more comfortable. The journey takes place in VIP24 buses with TV sets, stewardess and snack service. In addition, by taking the direct route from Singapore to Cameron Highlands, you will save time and some money as you will not have to change trains in Ipoh. Of course, the journey is long by any measure: it usually takes 9 or 10 hours.
As we said, you can also take a train from Singapore to Cameron Highlands, but we do not recommend this. There are no direct trains between these places, so you would have to change trains several times and go only to Ipoh. You would eventually reach Cameron Highlands by bus as with the other options. For convenience and savings, the StarMart Express bus is the best solution.