Singapore during TOKEN2049: F1 closures, haze and where to go
TOKEN2049 lands in Singapore in one of the busiest weeks of the city’s year. The Formula 1 Singapore Grand Prix starts the day the conference ends, road closures around Marina Bay are already in force, and the National Environment Agency is reporting haze from fires in Sumatra. Here is what visiting founders, investors and builders need to know to get around, and where to go once the expo floor closes.
- F1 road closures around Marina Centre and the Padang run from 12:01am on Wednesday, October 7 to 5:30am on Tuesday, October 13, covering both TOKEN2049 days.
- NEA’s October 5 update put the 24-hour PSI at 97 to 124, moderate to unhealthy, with haze expected to persist while dry weather holds.
- Free evening shows at Gardens by the Bay and Marina Bay Sands, Lau Pa Sat’s 24-hour hawker centre and two rooftop bars are within a short walk of the venue.
- Oct 9-11 Formula 1 Singapore Grand Prix, the city’s first sprint weekend
- 34-35°C daily highs forecast by NEA for the first half of October
- GMT+8 Singapore time, with Type G (UK-style) plugs at 230V
This guide is for visitors in town for TOKEN2049 Singapore 2026 at Marina Bay Sands on October 7 and 8, and for the wider TOKEN2049 Week that runs to October 11. Details were checked against official sources on October 6; opening hours change, so confirm before you go.
The Grand Prix starts the day TOKEN2049 ends
The Formula 1 Singapore Airlines Singapore Grand Prix runs from Friday, October 9 to Sunday, October 11 on the Marina Bay Street Circuit, next door to the conference venue. It is Singapore’s first sprint weekend and the last sprint of the 2026 season, according to Formula 1.
The Land Transport Authority’s road closures start at 12:01am on October 7 and include Raffles Boulevard, Temasek Avenue, Bayfront Avenue, Esplanade Drive, Nicoll Highway and Marina Boulevard, with some corridors partly reopened from 5:30am to 10am on October 7 to 9. Taxis and ride-hailing use designated pick-up points only, and an extra S$8 surcharge applies from 9:30pm to midnight on race days at certain locations.
Race-weekend concerts on the Padang include JJ Lin on Friday, Zara Larsson on Saturday, and James Arthur and Janet Jackson on Sunday, all requiring a race ticket. Formula 1 drivers are also part of the conference this year: Lando Norris and Max Verstappen appear on the OKX Main Stage on October 7 and Jenson Button on October 8.
Check the haze before you plan anything outdoors
The National Environment Agency’s October 5 haze update reported a 24-hour PSI of 97 to 124 and one-hour PM2.5 readings of 72 to 109 µg/m³, caused by smoke from fires in southern Sumatra and Kalimantan. NEA expects readings in the high moderate to mid unhealthy range while dry weather and southeasterly winds continue.
NEA advises healthy people to cut back on prolonged or strenuous outdoor activity, and the elderly, pregnant women, children and people with heart or lung conditions to avoid it. Check the daily readings on nea.gov.sg before booking outdoor plans. Otherwise expect heat: NEA forecasts daily highs of 34 to 35°C with thundery showers on some late mornings and afternoons, so carry an umbrella.
Within walking distance of Marina Bay Sands
Free evening shows. Gardens by the Bay’s Garden Rhapsody light show runs daily at 7:45pm and 8:45pm in the Supertree Grove, with an “Opera in the Gardens” theme through October. Spectra, the light and water show at the Marina Bay Sands Event Plaza, runs at 8pm and 9pm Sunday to Thursday, with an extra 10pm show on Friday and Saturday.
ArtScience Museum. Next to the venue, the museum is running “In the Ether: The Rise of Sanctuary Technologies”, a festival of art and technology futures from October 3 to December 6, alongside teamLab Future World and “Into the Ocean” with OceanX until November 1.
SkyPark Observation Deck. Open daily until 10pm with adult tickets from S$35, but closed on October 9 for a private event; AFTER 2049 is held on the SkyPark that night.
Eat. Lau Pa Sat at 18 Raffles Quay is open 24 hours with more than 80 stalls, and its Satay Street on Boon Tat Street runs from 7pm to 3am on weekdays. Makansutra Gluttons Bay beside the Esplanade sits inside the F1 circuit area, so access from October 9 to 11 may be restricted.
Drink. CÉ LA VI on level 57 of Marina Bay Sands runs an F1 race week programme from October 8 to 11 with DJs including Carl Cox, and LeVeL33 at Marina Bay Financial Centre Tower 1 is open daily from noon to 11pm. The original 1-Altitude rooftop at One Raffles Place has closed. For the TOKEN2049 parties themselves, see our AFTER 2049 guide.
Getting around, paying and arriving
MRT. Bayfront station on the Circle and Downtown lines is the closest, with exits C and D leading to The Shoppes in about a minute and the Sands Expo in about three. City Hall, Esplanade, Promenade, Nicoll Highway, Raffles Place and Bayfront are listed by LTA as affected by race arrangements, though pedestrian underpasses and bridges stay open, and last trains run later on race nights.
Paying. Contactless Visa, Mastercard and Amex cards, Apple Pay and Google Pay work directly at MRT gates; foreign Visa and Mastercard carry a S$0.60 admin fee per day of travel, according to SimplyGo. Tipping is not customary, and most restaurant and bar bills already include a 10% service charge.
Paying in crypto. Everyday spending is still mostly card and QR, but OKX Pay, launched with StraitsX and Grab in September 2025, lets users pay in USDT or USDC at GrabPay merchants that display an SGQR code, with the merchant receiving Singapore dollars. Don’t assume any particular bar or restaurant accepts crypto directly.
Arriving. Every traveller must submit the free SG Arrival Card within three days before arrival through the ICA website or the MyICA app. ICA warns about paid third-party sites that imitate the service. If you need a desk between sessions, JustCo has a coworking space at Marina Square, about a 10-minute walk from the venue, although Raffles Boulevard detours apply this week.
The CCS read. Putting TOKEN2049 against the Grand Prix gives the industry a bigger stage and visitors a harder week to navigate. The people who get the most out of it will base themselves near a Circle or Downtown line station, keep evenings inside the Marina Bay Sands complex on Wednesday and Thursday, and treat Friday as a separate day with its own transport plan.
NEA publishes haze updates daily, and LTA updates its race-week travel advisories as the weekend approaches. Our side events guide and talks to catch cover the conference week itself, and the full Singapore crypto events calendar includes the Singapore FinTech Festival from November 18 to 20.
