Singapore Cruise Ship Port Guide

Singapore’s cruise port isn’t one building, it’s two, and they’re nowhere near each other. Most of the big names, Royal Caribbean, Celebrity, Disney, Princess, dock at Marina Bay Cruise Centre Singapore (MBCCS) near Gardens by the Bay. Smaller and regional ships use the Singapore Cruise Centre over at HarbourFront. Check your boarding documents before you leave home, because these two sit on opposite sides of the city and a taxi between them eats up more of your day than you’d think.

Both terminals hand you a map the moment you arrive, but you want to know your pier before you’ve even packed. What’s on offer at each one differs too, duty-free here, left-luggage there, and we’ve covered both below.

The Singapore cruise port name splits into two separate terminals

Marina Bay Cruise Centre Singapore sits in Marina South, two berths built with mega-ships in mind. Pier 1 and Pier 2 are run by SATS-Creuers Cruise Services, a joint venture between SATS Ltd and Creuers del Port de Barcelona. Over at HarbourFront, the Singapore Cruise Centre handles the smaller ships and ferries, managed by Singapore Cruise Centre Pte Ltd under PSA.

Singapore’s cruise sector pushed through just over two million passenger movements across close to 375 ship calls in the most recent year on record, according to the Singapore Department of Statistics. Both terminals are built to move that many people through quickly, not to linger over it.

Where Royal Caribbean, Disney and other lines dock in Singapore

If you’re trying to work out where Royal Caribbean docks, or where your own line turns up, Marina Bay Cruise Centre Singapore is where most of the big names land.

A few lines are harder to pin down. Star Dream and Genting Dream get reported at both terminals depending on who you ask, and Seabourn, Oceania and Ponant all call at Singapore without a terminal we could confirm directly. If your line isn’t in the table above, your boarding documents settle it, not a blog post or a forum thread.

The HarbourFront cruise terminal has moved to 5 HarbourFront Avenue

If you looked this port up a while back, forget what you read about the old HarbourFront terminal inside HarbourFront Centre. The Singapore Cruise Centre moved into a new building at 5 HarbourFront Avenue, after a long stretch of development and testing, and it’s already pushed through well over 700,000 ferry and cruise passengers since taking over full operations.

It’s a two-minute walk from HarbourFront Centre and three minutes from VivoCity, so the shopping and food you’d expect near the old terminal is still there, you just walk to it now instead of strolling through an internal corridor. HarbourFront Centre itself is due to close for redevelopment at some point, but that doesn’t touch the cruise and ferry terminal, which is its own separate building.

It isn’t entirely clear from public sources whether this new terminal is here to stay or just a stopgap ahead of further redevelopment of the area. Either way, it’s the one in use now, and it comes with a Border Clearance System that clears your immigration check with facial recognition instead of queuing to show a passport.

Marina South Pier MRT only serves every second train

This is the one that catches people out. The North-South Line runs to Marina South Pier station, about 650 metres from the terminal along a mostly covered walkway, but only every second train goes that far. One stops short at Marina Bay, the next carries on to Marina South Pier, and there’s no obvious way to tell which is which until you check.

Check the platform display before you board rather than assuming the next train will take you the whole way. If you’d rather skip the guesswork, bus 400 runs a direct, low-cost route to the terminal from the Marina Bay and Gardens by the Bay area.

On selected cruise days a looped shuttle links the MRT to the terminal too, part of a recent upgrade that also added more ride-hailing bays and earlier baggage drop-off, though nobody’s published a timetable for exactly which days or how often it runs. Driving in from Changi Airport takes roughly half an hour by taxi, along Marina Coastal Drive and a left turn after Marina South Pier.

Walking from HarbourFront MRT to the new terminal takes two minutes

HarbourFront station, on the North East Line and the Circle Line, sits right by the terminal’s new home. From the MRT concourse it’s a short, well-signed walk to 5 HarbourFront Avenue, with VivoCity and HarbourFront Centre both a few minutes away on foot if you need a last-minute SIM card, a snack or an ATM.

Private cars and taxis can drop you right outside at a drive-through zone, and that’s the easier option given how tight parking gets at this terminal.

Parking fees rise in blocks at both terminals

Neither terminal is a place to turn up and hope for a space. Marina Bay Cruise Centre Singapore bills parking in short blocks for roughly the first hour, then switches to a flat rate for each extra half hour. Its Advance Carpark Reservation System lets you lock in a space up to 60 days ahead at a discounted rate, and given how tight the car lots get on busy days, that’s worth doing rather than chancing it.

At HarbourFront, parking is spread across several levels of HarbourFront Centre, with rates that shift through the day, cheaper overnight and pricier during working hours. Spaces here are scarce enough that the terminal itself tells you to use alternative transport or nearby mall parking rather than count on finding a spot.

What’s in port at Marina Bay and HarbourFront

Both terminals cover the basics: left-luggage counters, Wi-Fi, washrooms, baby-care facilities and support for passengers with reduced mobility, including a buggy service between the drop-off area and the terminal building at Marina Bay Cruise Centre Singapore.

• Duty-free shops for spirits, cosmetics and confectionery at both terminals
• CruiseFly at Marina Bay Cruise Centre Singapore, which lets same-day international flight passengers check and tag bags early so they can explore without hauling luggage
• A DBS ATM and short-term baggage storage counters at the HarbourFront terminal
• Twelve coach bays at HarbourFront for shore tour transfers

A recent S$40 million upgrade pushed Marina Bay Cruise Centre Singapore’s daily passenger processing capacity from 6,800 up to 11,700, according to the Ministry of Trade and Industry Singapore. With two berths and more ships now calling it home, it’s become fairly normal for more than one large ship to be in port the same day.

A few hours ashore from Marina Bay Cruise Centre

Gardens by the Bay is about a mile from the terminal, Cloud Forest a touch further at 1.2 miles, Marina Bay itself at 1.5 miles and the Singapore Flyer at 1.6 miles. If you’ve only got an hour, the Singapore Maritime Gallery at Marina South Pier is an eight-minute walk and done.

With a bit more time, Gardens by the Bay, Marina Bay and Merlion Park all fit into one visit. Walk from the gardens toward Marina Bay Sands, across Helix Bridge to the Merlion, and you’ve done a loop of roughly 20 minutes around half the bay. The Merlion itself stands 8.6 metres tall and weighs 70 tonnes, sitting in a small waterfront park. The walk is flat and fine in ordinary trainers, but the midday sun is strong enough that reef-safe sunscreen earns its place in your bag even without a beach in sight.

A few hours ashore from the HarbourFront terminal

HarbourFront’s biggest advantage is what’s already next door. VivoCity mall is a few minutes’ walk for food, shops and air conditioning, and the terminal is more or less the front door to Sentosa Island, with the cable car and Universal Studios Singapore both reachable without a taxi.

Singapore’s heat and humidity will catch up with you if you’re walking between the mall and the cable car station more than once, so keep a collapsible water bottle topped up rather than relying on buying drinks as you go. Whatever you do ashore, build in extra time to get back, because traffic around HarbourFront and Sentosa has a habit of thickening right when you need it not to.

If your cruise carries on further into the region, our guide to cruise ports across Asia covers what to expect at other stops, including the Manila cruise ship port guide for itineraries heading north to the Philippines.

Common Questions

Which terminal will my cruise use in Singapore?

Check your boarding documents. Most large international lines use Marina Bay Cruise Centre Singapore, and smaller or regional ships tend to use the Singapore Cruise Centre at HarbourFront.

Where is Marina Bay Cruise Centre Singapore?

It’s in Marina South, roughly a mile from Gardens by the Bay, with two berths, Pier 1 and Pier 2, that can handle large ships at the same time.

How do I get to Marina Bay Cruise Centre by MRT?

Take the North-South Line to Marina South Pier, then walk the mostly covered 600-metre path. Only every second train goes that far, so check the platform screen before you get on.

Has the HarbourFront cruise terminal moved?

Yes. The Singapore Cruise Centre moved to 5 HarbourFront Avenue, a short walk from HarbourFront Centre and VivoCity, after the old terminal closed.

Can I store luggage at either terminal?

Both have left-luggage counters, and Marina Bay Cruise Centre Singapore also runs CruiseFly, so same-day flight passengers can check bags early and explore without dragging luggage around.

Is parking available at the cruise terminals?

Yes, but spaces are limited, especially at HarbourFront. If you’re driving, booking ahead through Marina Bay Cruise Centre Singapore’s reservation system is the safer bet.

What’s within walking distance of Marina Bay Cruise Centre?

Gardens by the Bay, Cloud Forest, Marina Bay and the Singapore Flyer are all within a couple of miles, an easy walk or a short taxi ride.

What’s near the HarbourFront terminal?

VivoCity mall and Sentosa Island, including its cable car and Universal Studios Singapore, are both within a few minutes on foot.

Does Singapore handle more than one ship in port at once?

Yes. Marina Bay Cruise Centre Singapore has two berths and a much higher daily processing capacity after a recent upgrade, so more than one ship calling at a time is routine rather than rare.

Why trust About2Cruise

This guide draws on official terminal operator announcements, Singapore government transport and tourism data, and port statistics, to keep the detail on Marina Bay Cruise Centre Singapore and the Singapore Cruise Centre current. Where sources disagreed, such as which terminal Genting Dream currently uses, we’ve said so rather than guessing. You can read more about how we research and fact-check our port guides on our about us page.