Island stories on "Tales from the Lee Kong Chian Natural History Museum"

Stories of Singapore's many islands!

Listen to the podcast - Tales from the Lee Kong Chian Natural History Museum, exploring Singapore’s famous myths and legends: https://tinyurl.com/lkcnhmtales1

Shore to Shore: Explore the Southern Islands

Shore to Shore is a student-led programme dedicated to revitalising interest in these islands.

By focusing on the intersections of folklore, biodiversity, and family, we celebrate the unique cultural and ecological heritage of places like St John’s Island, once a quarantine station; Kusu Island, known for its annual pilgrimage; and Sisters’ Islands, steeped in legend and home to Singapore’s first marine park.

The programme aims to inspire long-term stewardship and preservation of both the tangible and intangible heritage found across these southern shores.

More details on their website: https://shoretoshore.wixstudio.com/tf-nus

St John's and Kusu Island public jetties closed from 24 Apr 2025

The public jetties at St John's Island and Kusu Island will be closed from 24 Apr 2025 possibly for a year. 

During this period, St John’s Island and Kusu Island remain accessible to the public via alternative jetties. Visitors can access St John’s Island and Kusu Island via Seringat jetty and Kusu Island main jetty, respectively.

27 Sep (Mon): Kayak to Kusu-Lazarus with Kayakasia

This is a paddle of transcendental significance! First we land on the impermanent beach of Lazarus Island, which only appears during certain tides.

After getting your life back reconnecting with the outdoors, we head to Kusu Island to bask ourselves in the longevity of the resident turtles. If that is not enough, climb the 152 steps leading to the kramats (Malay holy shrines) and pray at the Tua Pek Kong (Chinese) temple. If nothing works, laze on the tranquil beach of Kusu and see life anew!

"Welcome to my Island Home" - outings to islands in Sep

Join guided walks to Pulau Hantu, Kusu Island, St John's Island and Pulau Ubin! More details and book tickets here https://mycommunityfestival.sg/programmes/welcome-to-my-island-home/

Organised by My Community and supported by the Singapore Tourism Board.

20 Nov (Fri): Kayak the Kusu-Lazarus Trail with Kayakasia

Suitable for beginners, this is a paddle of transcendental significance! First we land on the impermanent beach of Lazarus Island, which only appears during certain tides.

After getting your life back reconnecting with the outdoors, we head to Kusu Island to bask ourselves in the longevity of the resident turtles. If that is not enough, climb the 152 steps leading to the kramats (Malay holy shrines) and pray at the Tua Pek Kong (Chinese) temple. If nothing works, laze on the tranquil beach of Kusu and see life anew!

Kusu Island pilgrimage 17 Oct to 19 Nov 2020

During the annual pilgrimage, thousands of visitors are expected to visit Kusu Island from 17 Oct to 19 Nov 2020.  Expect delays due to crowd control measures at Marine South Pier. Parking at the Pier is likely to be limited.

Check out Jerome Lim's awesome blog post for a glimpse into the history behind Kusu Island and the pilgrimage.

25 Aug (Tue): Kayak the Kusu-Lazarus Trail with Kayakasia

Suitable for beginners, this is a paddle of transcendental significance! First we land on the impermanent beach of Lazarus Island, which only appears during certain tides.

After getting your life back reconnecting with the outdoors, we head to Kusu Island to bask ourselves in the longevity of the resident turtles. If that is not enough, climb the 152 steps leading to the kramats (Malay holy shrines) and pray at the Tua Pek Kong (Chinese) temple. If nothing works, laze on the tranquil beach of Kusu and see life anew!

From the Kayakasia facebook event post...

We will be using inflatable doubles kayak suitable for beginners!

Distance: 10 km
Duration: 7.30am to 12.30pm
Price: $95 per persons; $50 for kids under 12 (min. 2 pax)
Price includes guides, double kayaks, pfds, paddles, first aid kit

Email ling@kayakasia.org for more details and to register!

1 Mar (Sun): Kayak the Kusu-Lazarus Trail with Kayakasia

Suitable for beginners, this is a paddle of transcendental significance! First we land on the impermanent beach of Lazarus Island, which only appears during certain tides.

After getting your life back reconnecting with the outdoors, we head to Kusu Island to bask ourselves in the longevity of the resident turtles. If that is not enough, climb the 152 steps leading to the kramats (Malay holy shrines) and pray at the Tua Pek Kong (Chinese) temple. If nothing works, laze on the tranquil beach of Kusu and see life anew!

All islands cleared of asbestos and open to the public

"All asbestos waste on the islands managed by SLA has been cleared safely" says the Singapore Land Authority in media articles. They are now open to the public again.

Pulau Hantu Kecil

SLA said that the asbestos "most likely" came from roof sheets, and was discovered in April 2018 by their contractors during maintenance and upgrading works on St John's Island. Since then, the following islands have been checked for and cleared of asbestos: Pulau Hantu, Kusu Island, Seringat-Kias, the Sisters Islands and Pulau Ubin.

Shore fun for kids during the March school holidays

Exciting shore activities specially for kids are lined up for the coming school holidays! Free fun ways to discover and enjoy Singapore's marine biodiversity!

The highlight would be Celebrating Singapore Shores at Berlayar Creek, specially for kids and the family with games and prizes, nature walks and films. There's also a Marine Open House at Singapore's natural history museum with free tickets. Go for a kayak trip to Kusu Island and Lazarus. Join intertidal walks at Chek Jawa and other shores. Join a nature camp at Sungei Buloh Wetland Reserve, or learn about our crocodiles there. And MORE!

Our Crazy Rich Shores: Kusu Island

Just 15 minutes from Singapore's main business district, are crazy rich reefs of Kusu Island.

At super low spring tides (which tend to happen before dawn), we get a brief glimpse of the amazing marine life found here. Kusu Island is also rich in history.

23 Jun (Sat): Southern Islands Sea Kayaking with Kayakasia

Join Kayakasia for exciting kayak adventures in our Southern shores!

Photo by Kayakasia

They plan to paddle to Sentosa Island, Tekukor Island, Seringat Island, Kusu Island, Pink Lagoon, Lazarus Island, St John's Island, Sisters' Islands.

Kusu shores closed until October

According to media articles, traces of asbestos, a hazardous material, have been discovered on Kusu Island, the Singapore Land Authority (SLA) said on Friday (May 4) after a similar discovery on St John's Island over a week ago.

Dotted yellow line indicates areas still open to the public.
Photo from Channel NewsAsia

Meanwhile, survey work on Pulau Hantu is expected to be completed by next week. SLA declared Lazarus Island, Pulau Seringat and Kias Island to be free of the hazardous material thus far.

19 May (Sat): Kayak the Kusu-Lazarus Trail with Kayakasia

Suitable for beginners, first we land on the impermanent beach of Lazarus Island, which only appears during certain tides.

After getting your life back reconnecting with the outdoors, we head to Kusu Island to bask ourselves in the longevity of the resident turtles. If that is not enough, climb the 152 steps leading to the kramats (Malay holy shrines) and pray at the Tua Pek Kong (Chinese) temple. If nothing works, laze on the tranquil beach of Kusu and see life anew!

We will be using inflatable doubles kayak suitable for beginners!

Our island heritage: Pilgrimage to Kusu Island

Singapore's islands are rich with history and heritage. The pilgrimage to Kusu Island is among the first 50 items identified for UNESCO listing.

Where is Kusu Island? What are the stories behind it? And how can you contribute YOUR stories?