National Stadium Singapore concert guide: getting there, bag rules and beating the crowd home

The National Stadium at The Kallang is Singapore's biggest concert venue, at around 55,000 people for the largest shows. Getting in and out of a crowd that size is the real challenge, so this guide focuses on the practical stuff.

Getting there

Stadium MRT (CC6, Circle Line) is the closest station, with direct access to the stadium. From Exit A, turn right and take the escalator up to the Promenade on Level 3. Gates 6 to 17 are reached from Exit B.

Other stations within walking distance (The Kallang's own pages give slightly different distances, so allow 10 to 15 minutes):

• Kallang (EW10, East-West Line), via a sheltered walkway
• Mountbatten (CC7, Circle Line)
• Tanjong Rhu (TE23, Thomson-East Coast Line), Exit 2, about 12 minutes on foot

Buses 10, 14, 16, 70 and 196 stop along Nicoll Highway, and bus 11 stops right by the stadium. Driving isn't recommended on concert nights.

What you can bring

From the official Conditions of Entry:

• Bags no larger than 35 × 20 × 30 cm (must fit under a seat). For the fastest bag check, go bagless: fans report a separate, quicker queue for people without bags.
• No outside food or drinks, including bottled water. An empty plastic bottle is allowed and can be filled inside, unless your show bans plastic bottles.
• Umbrellas are allowed, but not to be opened inside.
• Not allowed: tripods, monopods, selfie sticks, glass, cans, laser pointers, noise makers, fan boards larger than A3, lightsticks longer than 40 cm (unless pre-approved), drones.
• Re-entry is restricted; check your event page.

Fans have reported being able to leave prohibited items at the stadium's information counter for a fee (around S$10 per item in 2024). Don't count on it for every show.

Filming at the National Stadium

The venue doesn't permit video cameras, audio recorders or professional cameras with telephoto or zoom lenses. Phones are normally fine, but a promoter can ban all photo and video recording for their show, so check the event page. Recordings are for private, non-commercial use only.

Seats are far from the stage in most of the stadium, so a phone with a strong optical zoom makes a big difference here.

Beating the crowd home

These tips come from fans and local guides, not the venue, so treat them as tried-and-tested suggestions rather than rules:

• Don't board at Stadium MRT. After big shows, staff hold crowds outside Exit A and let people onto the platform in batches; it can take 15 to 30 minutes just to enter the station. Walk to Kallang, Mountbatten or Nicoll Highway instead.
• Ride back from Mountbatten. One popular trick: walk about 14 minutes to Mountbatten, then ride the Circle Line towards Nicoll Highway. You're already on board when the train reaches the packed Stadium station.
• Try Exit B. Fans report the walk towards Stadium Boulevard (Exit B) is longer but far less crowded, and a taxi stand is nearby.
• Leave during the last song if you don't mind missing it, or wait 15 to 20 minutes after the end for the crowd to thin.
• Skip the taxi queue right after the show. With tens of thousands leaving at once, taxi and car park queues can take a very long time. Walk away from the stadium before booking a ride.
• Check the last train for your direction before the show. Long encores have stranded people before.

Before you go

• Save your e-ticket to your phone and turn the brightness up at the gate.
• Bring a power bank: you'll use your phone for the ticket, photos, video and the trip home.
• It's warm and humid even at night. Dress light and wear comfortable shoes.

More general tips are in our Singapore concert guide.