Singapore Sling at Raffles: is it worth SGD 39 in 2026?
Singapore by night with optional Singapore Sling cocktail
Is the Singapore Sling at Raffles Hotel worth it?
Once, yes. The Long Bar experience — throwing peanut shells on the floor, sipping the original Singapore Sling in a century-old colonial hotel — is genuinely iconic and worth doing at least once. The cocktail itself costs SGD 39 (as of 2026), is quite sweet, and is not Singapore's best cocktail. But the setting and the ritual are part of the point. Skip the food; focus on one Sling and the atmosphere.
Quick answer: The Singapore Sling at Raffles Long Bar costs SGD 39 and is worth doing once. The cocktail is sweet and not Singapore’s finest — but the Long Bar, the peanut-shell floor, and 110 years of colonial history are what you are actually paying for. Come on a weekday afternoon, not a Saturday night.
The Singapore Sling: origin story
In approximately 1915, a Chinese-born bartender named Ngiam Tong Boon created a pink gin cocktail at Raffles Hotel’s Long Bar, designed to be a drink that women could enjoy openly in the colonial era (pink drinks were considered socially acceptable for women in a way that straight spirits were not).
The drink became known as the Singapore Sling and spread first through Singapore’s colonial society, then through the hotel’s guest books — Somerset Maugham, Rudyard Kipling, Charlie Chaplin, and countless others drank there. During the Japanese Occupation, the recipe was reportedly lost; it was reconstructed from a bartender’s notebook after the war.
Whether the modern version is truly the original recipe is debatable — several former bartenders have disputed the reconstructed recipe, and the pineapple juice component, now standard, may not have been in the 1915 version. But the Raffles Hotel Long Bar version is, for better or worse, what the world understands as the Singapore Sling.
What you are actually buying for SGD 39
At SGD 39 per cocktail, the Singapore Sling at the Long Bar is among Singapore’s more expensive drinks. It is worth being clear about what that price covers:
The cocktail itself: Gin (the base), cherry liqueur (Cherry Heering), Cointreau, Bénédictine, fresh pineapple juice, lime juice, grenadine, and Angostura bitters, served over ice in a highball glass. The result is pink, aromatic, and noticeably sweet. It is not a complex or precisely balanced cocktail by modern standards — the pineapple juice and grenadine make it quite sweet, and the gin character is partly overwhelmed. It is, however, historically correct and consistently made.
The Long Bar: The physical space at the Long Bar is genuinely impressive. Wooden ceiling fans, rattan furniture, tropical planting climbing the walls, and the unique tradition of throwing peanut shells directly onto the floor (bags of peanuts are provided on arrival). This is one of the most distinctive bar environments in Asia, and the tactile ritual of the peanut shells on a colonial wooden floor is not something you encounter elsewhere.
The history: You are drinking in a bar that has operated continuously since 1887 (with the Occupation interruption), where Maugham wrote early drafts, where Hemingway reportedly passed through, and where generations of the colonial and post-colonial Singapore elite gathered. Whether that matters depends entirely on what you value in a drink.
The Raffles Hotel itself: The hotel’s renovation (2017–2019) was careful — it preserved the Long Bar’s atmosphere, the white colonial facades, the courtyard restaurants, and the colonial institutional character while updating the rooms. The public spaces are beautiful.
Honest verdict: You are paying partly for a cocktail and mostly for the setting, the ritual, and the narrative. If you engage with that on its own terms, the SGD 39 is reasonable. If you are judging it purely as a value-for-money cocktail, it is overpriced and outclassed by dozens of Singapore cocktail bars charging SGD 25–30 for more technically impressive drinks.
The Long Bar experience: what to expect
The peanuts: On arrival, a server brings a bag of unshelled peanuts. The tradition is to shell them at the table and throw the shells onto the floor — a colonial-era hospitality custom preserved as a unique feature of the Long Bar. The floor is genuinely covered in shells. Lean into it.
The bar layout: The Long Bar is a long, narrow room on two floors connected by a central staircase. Upper floor seating is slightly quieter; ground floor has the best view of the bar operation. Rattan chairs, ceiling fans, and wooden fittings throughout.
Service: Professional and efficient — the Long Bar handles high volumes with reasonable speed. Servers are accustomed to explaining the Singapore Sling and its history to first-time visitors.
Crowds: Weekend evenings are busy to the point of unpleasant — crowded, loud, and losing the colonial-era atmosphere that is the whole point. Weekday afternoons (Tuesday to Thursday, 2–5 pm) are the best time — the crowd is smaller, the atmosphere more relaxed, and the peanut-shell tradition has more charm when you can actually hear yourself think.
Better cocktail alternatives in Singapore
If the cocktail quality is your primary concern rather than the heritage ritual, Singapore has considerably better cocktail bars at lower prices:
Atlas Bar (Parkview Square, Bugis): The world-class art deco bar with exceptional gin selection and precisely executed cocktails. SGD 25–35 per cocktail. Technically superior to the Long Bar and a spectacular space in its own right.
Operation Dagger (Ann Siang Hill): One of Asia’s most respected cocktail bars, regularly appearing on the World’s 50 Best Bars list. Experimental, creative, outstanding quality. SGD 25–30 per cocktail. See best-bars-singapore.
Native (Amoy Street): Singapore-ingredients focused cocktail bar. Coconut, pandan, tropical botanicals in inventive combinations. SGD 22–28.
28 Hongkong Street: A white-shoe cocktail bar (literally — buzz the door, no sign outside) that produces consistently excellent drinks. SGD 24–30.
The Raffles Hotel’s own other bars: The Raffles Bar and the Writers Bar within Raffles Hotel serve technically better cocktails at similar or slightly lower price points than the Long Bar. The atmosphere is more formal but the drinks are more sophisticated.
Night tours that include the Raffles Sling experience
For visitors who want the Singapore Sling experience as part of a broader Singapore-by-night orientation, guided evening tours sometimes include a Singapore Sling stop at Raffles Hotel as part of a city-highlights itinerary. This works well if you want the experience contextualised within a broader evening rather than as a standalone bar visit.
Singapore by night with optional Singapore Sling cocktailPractical information for visiting the Long Bar
Address: Raffles Hotel, 1 Beach Road, Singapore 189673
MRT: City Hall (East-West and North-South Lines), Exit B — approximately 10-minute walk via the historic St Andrew’s Cathedral area
Hours: Long Bar is generally open daily from noon until late (around midnight on weekdays, later on weekends)
Dress code: Smart casual. Raffles Hotel enforces a dress code in the Long Bar — no swimwear, no singlets, no sports sandals. Neat casual dress is fine; business casual or above is appreciated.
Seating: No reservations for the Long Bar — it is walk-in only. Arrive early on weekends if you want comfortable seating.
Beyond the Long Bar: While at Raffles Hotel, the courtyard between the main buildings is lovely in the evening. The Raffles Arcade (shopping gallery) has interesting boutiques. The Raffles Museum on the ground floor (see colonial-singapore) gives the hotel’s history in 30 minutes and is free.
The Tiffin Room: If you want a meal at Raffles, the Tiffin Room’s Indian buffet lunch is a Raffles tradition (SGD 55–65 per adult) and more interesting than the Long Bar food menu.
The honest summary
The Singapore Sling at Raffles Long Bar is worth doing once. The cocktail is competent but not exceptional; the SGD 39 price is high; the sweetness may not appeal to everyone.
But none of that is really the point. The Long Bar, the peanut shells on the floor, the colonial ceiling fans, the century-old hotel, and the awareness that this cocktail and this room have been a fixed point in Singapore’s social history for over a hundred years — that is what you are experiencing. Engage with it on those terms, come on a quiet weekday afternoon, order one Sling, throw some peanut shells on the floor, and decide for yourself whether it was worth it.
It is, just barely, worth it — once.
Frequently asked questions about the Singapore Sling at Raffles Hotel
How many Singapore Slings should I order?
One. At SGD 39 each, they are expensive, and the sweetness of the drink makes more than one progressively less enjoyable. Order one Sling, enjoy the experience, and move on to a better cocktail bar for subsequent drinks.
Is the Singapore Sling recipe at other bars the same?
Most versions in Singapore use a similar base recipe — gin, cherry Heering, pineapple juice, lime, grenadine, and bitters. The proportions and ingredient quality vary considerably. The Raffles version is considered canonical but is not demonstrably better than well-made versions at other reputable bars. The Raffles premium is almost entirely the setting.
Can I buy the Singapore Sling premix at Raffles?
Yes. The Raffles Hotel shop sells a premix Singapore Sling concentrate as a souvenir. Quality is acceptable and it makes a recognisable Singapore-branded gift. Not recommended as a substitute for the actual bar experience.
Is it possible to visit Raffles Hotel without drinking?
The hotel’s public spaces — lobby, courtyard, shopping arcade, and the free museum — are accessible without purchasing. To sit in the Long Bar, you will need to order something. A non-alcoholic mocktail or soft drink is available but costs almost as much as the Singapore Sling (SGD 22–28 for non-alcoholic options at luxury hotel pricing).
Is Raffles Hotel a good place to stay?
Raffles Hotel is one of Asia’s great historic hotels — if budget allows, the restored suites are exceptional and staying there gives access to the amenities, pool, and the full colonial experience in a way that a casual visit cannot match. Rooms start at approximately SGD 600–800 per night. For the full honest assessment of Singapore’s hotel landscape, see where-to-stay-singapore.
What is the history of the Long Bar’s peanut-shell tradition?
The peanut-throwing tradition dates to the colonial era when snacking at bars was common and floor-sweeping was routine. Raffles Hotel preserved it as a deliberate heritage ritual when the rest of Singapore industrialised its cleanliness standards. It is now the only bar in Singapore (and possibly one of very few worldwide) where floor littering is actively encouraged. The contrast with Singapore’s famous clean-streets reputation is part of the charm.
Frequently asked questions about Singapore Sling at Raffles: is it worth SGD 39 in 2026?
How much does a Singapore Sling cost at Raffles Hotel?
What is a Singapore Sling?
Is the Long Bar at Raffles Hotel a tourist trap?
Can I visit Raffles Hotel without buying a Singapore Sling?
Where else can I get a Singapore Sling in Singapore?
What is the best time to visit the Long Bar at Raffles Hotel?
Has Raffles Hotel changed significantly after its renovation?
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