Betel Box Backpackers Hostel & Tours

Betel Box Tony's Katong Foodwalk Singapore, Singapore
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WINNER OF SINGAPORE EXPERIENCE AWARDS 2009 -
BEST TRAVEL EXPERIENCE

24,000 nominations, Betel Box is the only backpackers specific travel organisation to make it to the finals and subsequently also to win!

The Singapore Experience Awards is the most prestigious awards platform in Singapore's tourism industry, recognising individuals and organisations from sectors encompassing hospitality, retail, dining, entertainment, attractions, business travel and MICE, education and healthcare. Singapore Experience Awards winners will have proven that they are the best in their respective fields in delivering a holistic visitor experience - one that packages product and service delivery to create a distinctive, memorable and compelling experience.

Introduction

The foodwalk is not just about food but rather it’s a social anthropological study of how Singaporeans live. We focus mainly on the Katong district which consist of sub-communities of Geylang Serai, Joo Chiat, Tanjong Katong and Marine Parade.

The district has the highest concentration of "Best of Singapore Foods" awarded by independent food critics on websites, magazines, food clubs, critics and TV/ Radio programmes. Further, the Katong district is well represented by various enthnic communities of Singapore including Malay, Chinese, Indian, Peranakan and Eurasians. Finally, the district has a fair cross-section of architectural features from ornate 19th century shophouses and colonial bungalows, to HDB Estates and residential homes.

====== Latest Reviews =======

SINGAPORE EXPERIENCE AWARDS 2009 - BEST TRAVEL EXPERIENCE

The Singapore Tourism Board is pleased to inform you that Betel Box Tours has been selected as a finalist for the Best Travel Experience category.

The Singapore Experience Awards is the most prestigious awards platform in Singapore's tourism industry, recognising individuals and organisations from sectors encompassing hospitality, retail, dining, entertainment, attractions, business travel and MICE, education and healthcare. Singapore Experience Awards winners will have proven that they are the best in their respective fields in delivering a holistic visitor experience - one that packages product and service delivery to create a distinctive and compelling experience.

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Lonely Planet Singapore City Guide - Matt Oakley & Joshua Samuel Brown. 8th Edition.
Page 84- .."Top Picks. Must Try Tour.."..
Operated by the Amazing Tony Tan, owner of the Betel Box Hostel and expert on all things Singapore, a Real Singapore Tour is one you won't soon forget. His food tours, a Singapore must-experience, generally start each Friday evening around six. Tony takes his charges on a veritable gastronomic odyssey through the historical Joo Chiat neighbourhood, where they sample over 20 authentic dishes from all over Southeast Asia. Other tours include walking or cycling trips focusing on history, nature and culture. Tony also leads an amazing pub crawl. Prices start at $50 including food, equipment and the services of one of the most knowledgeable tour guides in Singapore.
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Highlights

* Sample over 20 dishes of popular Singaporean foods.
* Learn about the Peranakans of Singapore.
* Appreciate what it takes to maintain harmony in a multi-ethnic, multi-religious and multi-lingual society.
* See the REAL Singapore- High-rise mass housing in HDB estates.
* Adapting old architecture for modern reuse - shophouse conservation.
* Singaporeana trivia.

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Conduct of Tour

Tour Mode : on foot
Tour Duration : at least 5 hours
Accessibility & Fitness : Minimum medium fitness level recommended due to brisk walking pace. Total walking distance is about 4km on flat grounds (with lots of breaks in between) but there may be some staircases during journey.
Meals : Included in price on sharing and sampling basis. Beverages excluded.
Not included : transfers to/ from airport/ hotel, porterage, tips, entrance fees to places of entertainment unless specified
Requirements : Minimum group size is 8 persons.
Constraints : Please make known your dietary requirements & allergies. Light tropical clothing is recommended with comfortable walking shoes.

Please ensure sufficient personal insurance cover during tour.

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What previous guests said of our Food Walk

* This is one of these places where you can forget that you want to go any where else... Food walk is a must! Florian Eisser, Germany

* a food walk of the neighborhood that was like a Singapore 101 course combined with lots and lots of eating. It was one of the best experiences I've had. I learned about the makeup, culture and history of the country, and ate noodles and curd and meat that had been turned into wonderful things. It was probably one of the best organized events, and the guy who did it - who owns the hostel - clearly loves what he is doing. Annie

* hey thank you tony for inviting me to your famous walkfood. being the only local to turn up for the walk, i was kind of nervous, to be honest. but the people in hostel were so friendly so no problem. i truly enjoyed myself and felt almost like a tourist, like the rest. a lovely evening. several highlights (for me) of the walk: passing by the president residence, going inside an indian temple, and walking from joo chiat to east coach beach. these are the things, that i'm quite ashamed to say, i did for the very first time in my 25 years in singapore. i have to mention robert this swedish chap who was so into eating fish parts. we were having indian fish head curry and he actually ate the eye ball, the tongue and the teeth. he wanted to eat the brain too but couldn't find it. everyone had a good laugh. the walk took about six hours plus and if you are unfamiliar with joo chiat and east coast area, you'll be amazed at how much you will learn from the walk. Tony Ting, Sinapore

* The food walk was brilliant- one of the best things I've done while travelling- good fun and very interesting. Lisa Reed, UK

* Go on Tony's Adventures especially the Foodwalk, i've only got a 1000 words here, that could never explain how good it is, you will see and learn so much. Steven Roberts, Glasgow

* Tony, thanks again for a great night. I would have never tasted those bazare foods otherwise. Thoroughly enjoyed the views. Lindsay, UK

* thanks you so much, Tony, for your hospitality and taking me and my dad to such great places and feeding us such amazing food!!! Fi xxx. Fiona, Aberdeen

* If your reading this, you already know how good it is! FOODWALK!!! Alex Hill, Australia

* FOODWALK. EAT LOTS. DRINK LOTS. SEE LOTS. Michael Yee, UK

* PD, Jad, Ty and I have had an amazing stay at Betelbox.Tony you bought the culture, customs and history of Singapore alive for us on the food walk and cycling tour. The generosity of you, your staff and all of the travelers in welcoming and including our boys in all the activitis was outstanding. Nothing was ever too much troubel & we can't recommend the betelbox highly enough. Tyler will be back to play pool at 57 Chevy as soon he saves for his fare. Kaz Donovan, Australia

* Great food walk tour led by Tony who really knows his stuff! I definitively recommend this tour! Leila Homps

* you must do the food walk. david mcwilliam, UK

* the foodwalk is an unmissable experiece if you come to singapore oren ovadia

* Last night, we took a food walking tour of the area where we’re staying, Joo Chiat. The owner of our guesthouse, Tony of The Betel Box, acted as our very competent tour guide. As our numbers were small – only four participants – we only got the condensed version of the tour, which still ran over four hours! Overall, a delicious evening that will stay with me for a long time, mostly around the stomach and hips.

* A clearly impressed German Marius Helten says: 'Going on Tony's walk is like having a friend show you around. It's different from what I read in travel guidebooks.'

* We rushed home from little India just in time to embark on the 'food walk' offered by the owner of our hostel. Tony speaks perfect English and is extremely knowledgeable on the subject of Singapore's history and culture. In addition to trying out local specialties like mee goreng, curry pastries, spring rolls wrapped in an omelette, rice balls, and traditional Chinese sweets, Tony told us all about the history of the area we were staying in. It was particularly helpful to have a local like Tony to show us around and discuss things with, because we found out a lot about Singapore that we wouldn't have learned from the guidebooks. Koren and Sarah (usa)

* Tony Tan, owner of the Betel Box hostel holds this walk and information can be found at http://www.betelbox.com/. I probably learned more from this food walk than from any other experience I had in Singapore. jonathan and Zara (uk)

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