The best cheap date ideas in Singapore under $20

Visit the Singapore Science Centre Observatory on any Friday (except public holidays), from 7.45pm to 10pm, to stargaze. Using one of its telescopes, you're able to see at least one of the four brightest planets in our solar system – Venus, Jupiter, Saturn and Mars – at different times of the year, as well as other stars and the moon. Keep a look out and prepare to be awed.

Flying a kite isn’t just a family-friendly activity. It can also be romantic – you really learn a lot about your partner when you try to assemble a particularly challenging kite together – so don’t underestimate it. Invest in a kite (or make your own) and bring your date to the green plains of Marina Barrage. The unblocked views of the Singapore skyline give you many opportunities to capture nice pictures of you and your date. Do arrive early as it gets crowded, especially on weekends.

Forget about shelling out the $20 Dome entrance fee – the equally impressive outdoor gardens are free and open till 2am daily. Plan your trip to coincide with the 745pm and 845pm Garden Rhapsody show, afterwards explore the Heritage Gardens before ending the night at the Dragonfly and Kingfisher lake, a quiet (and darkened) part of the garden to sneak in a kiss.

Now that they’ve revamped it for $14.25 million, there’s no excuse not to plan a hike there (these are your tax dollars after all). Up the stakes and challenge each other to see who reaches the summit first – loser pays for iced Milos. The green loop will weave through more of the forested area, while the blue trail loops past Hindhede Quarry for a well-placed #wefie.

The Singapore Tourism Board calls it an “eclectic Chinese mythological park”, we remember it as the park that scared us into obeying our parents. Take advantage of Haw Par Villa’s free admission and trade stories about the naughtiest things you got up to as a child – and the punishments received. Tour the ten gates of hell for a lark and try not to return home too traumatised.

When you’ve done MacRitchie to death, trekked the Southern Ridges and can picture Bukit Timah Hill’s summit by memory, it’s a sign to explore a different park. Located just off Venus Drive, this Upper Thomson-located green lung has a few unique highlights. The Hanguana Trail lined with rare native plants, the sub-canopy walk at the Drongo Trail, and a marsh habitat where you can spot woody plant species.

When leaving out a plate of kibble for the block kitty no longer does the trick, grab your other half to Farmmart for some quality animal time. Open from 9am to 6.30pm on weekends (weekdays till 1pm), the crowd feeding favourite has to be the goats, while the bullfrogs in the animal corner are impossible to ignore.