Boat Quay

Boat Quay is a curved row of restored shophouses on the south bank of the Singapore River, in the Singapore River planning area. When Raffles arrived in 1819 the riverbanks were mangrove swamp, and earth from a levelled hillock at Battery Road was used to fill the south bank and create the quay. By the 1860s Boat Quay handled much of the city's shipping. Quayside activity was suspended for the Clean Rivers Project from 1977 to 1987, and by 1983 the last boats had been moved to Pasir Panjang. URA gazetted Boat Quay for conservation on 7 July 1989.

The shophouses, mainly in the Early, Transitional and Art Deco styles, hold restaurants and bars that set tables out along the riverside promenade, with the towers of Raffles Place rising directly behind. Bumboats carry visitors along the river past the shophouse fronts, and the promenade continues upstream to Clarke Quay. URA describes the quay as a popular spot for dining, nightlife and leisure, and the contrast between the low shophouses and the office towers is one of the clearest views of how the city grew around its river. Raffles Place MRT station is a short walk away.