A "firefly" garden, nightly snow shows and a bar-hopping "passport" will be among the new elements at the 2024 Christmas lightup along Orchard Road.
Christmas on A Great Street, the annual light-up organised by the Orchard Road Business Association (Orba), will also bring back the Great Christmas Eve Street Party in 2024.
Stretching 400m from Ion Orchard to Ngee Ann City, it will feature live deejay performances, roving mascots, pop-up stalls and food trucks, as well as a countdown to Christmas.
A section of Orchard Road from the Paterson Road junction to Bideford Road junction will be closed to vehicular traffic from 6pm on Dec 24, as revellers count down to Christmas Day from 8pm.
The road will reopen to traffic from 2am on Dec 25. The party was first held in 2023
and attracted 130,000 revellers.
The good response motivated the association to bring it back in 2024, said Orba chairman Mark Shaw.
Christmas on A Great Street attracted 4.1 million visitors in 2023, 70 per cent of whom were locals while the rest were tourists.
"The event's visitorship has gone back to pre-pandemic levels, and we expect four million to five million visitors this year," said Mr Shaw.
President Tharman Shanmugaratnam will officiate the light-up ceremony on Nov 9, which is organised by Orba and Community Chest to raise funds for more than 100 social service agencies running over 200 social service programmes.
This story is from the October 24, 2024 edition of The Straits Times.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Sign In
This story is from the October 24, 2024 edition of The Straits Times.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In
Don't cross Culinary Class Wars star Anh Sung-jae of three-Michelin-starred Mosu
On an early episode of Netflix's hit reality cooking show Culinary Class Wars (2024), chef Anh Sung-jae stood in a warehouse filled with makeshift cooking stations and considered the plate in front of him: a rainbow palette of handmade pastas, purees and delicately cooked seafood. On top was a smattering of flower petals.
Emerald Hill to make Netflix debut
Emerald Hill looks set to be the must-watch local blockbuster series of 2025.
Refreshed museums in SG60 arts
A timely slate of refreshed spaces and new programmes at Singapore's arts and cultural institutions will be launched in 2025, wooing audiences with a different Singapore story as the nation gears up to mark 60 years of independence.
Going casual to woo fickle diners
Serious artwork on the wall. Bespoke crockery on cloth-covered tables. A fine wine list. Eye-watering menu prices. Just don't call it a fine-dining restaurant.
Smartwatches Make Healthcare Smarter
From tracking heart rate to steps taken to sleep quality, smartwatches and fitness trackers can generate biometric data about the people using them.
Quality, not quantity, rules the superhero game
In 2025, the big studios are rolling up their sleeves to tackle a disease plaguing the box office – superhero fatigue.
Big-name musicals to hit the stage
Soothing melodies and soaring high notes are set to fill the air, as the coming year brings along a host of musicals to the Lion City.
Celebrating design with SG60, new hotels and theme parks
Architecture and urban design take centre stage in 2025, with marquee events such as a year-long celebration of Singapore's 60th year of independence (SG60) and launches of Sentosa attractions to enhance the destination's \"islander allure\".
Travel prices likely to remain high
Low-cost carriers (LCCs) - once known solely for their no-frills, short-haul offerings - have been going through a route awakening.
More will work from the office, but hybrid is here to stay
2025 marks five years since Covid-19 shattered entrenched beliefs about the nature of work.