A centrally located and upscale area that's popular with expats.
Novena is a planning area located in the Central region of Singapore. Served by Novena MRT and several public bus routes, as well as being just one MRT stop away from the bustling shopping district of Orchard, Novena is quite an accessible and desirable neighbourhood to live in.
Several national institutions are located in the area, including the National Neuroscience Institute of Singapore, National Skin Centre, as well as one of the oldest hospitals in Singapore – Tan Tock Seng Hospital.
Local markets and food centers offer an array of choices for cheap local dining and marketing, with Balestier Market located in the north east of Novena, Whampoa Market to the east, and Adam Road Food Centre further out to the West of the planning area. Large urban malls such as Velocity, United Square, and Novena Shopping Mall can be found in the area as well, giving residents more options for shopping and dining.
Being in close proximity to the city center, property in Novena does not come cheap. Most of the residential properties here are condominiums or apartments, with few choices for landed properties and/or HDB flats. You'll also come across the grand mansions of the super wealthy and embassies.
The area is convenient for professionals working in the city center due to its central location. There are a number of pre-schools, primary schools, and secondary schools in Novena (including an international school), making this an attractive neighborhood for families as well. Some tertiary institutions draw many students to the area.
Novena is bordered on the north by Toa Payoh, on the east by Kallang, on the south by Tanglin, and on the west by Bukit Timah.
Commute:
CBD: 7.4 km / 10-30 minutes by car / 30 minutes by transit
Changi Business Park: 19 km / 25-55 minutes by car / 75 minutes by transit
Jurong International Business Park: 14.7 km / 20-40 minutes by car / 60-70 minutes by transit
One North Buona Vista: 11.2 km / 20-45 minutes by car / 35-40 minutes by transit
Tuas: 33.5 km / 35-70 minutes by car / 120 minutes by transit
Novena LOCAL schools
Novena Local Flavor 
The first sports and active lifestyle mall in Singapore, Velocity @ Novena Square aims to meet all the active lifestyle needs of shoppers. Whilst there are still a variety of shops catering to fashion, accessories, beauty, as well as dining outlets, the mall contains a large variety of sports shops as well. Apart from retail, the mall aims to be a venue for sporting events as well, playing host to cage basketball tournaments, urban obstacle challenges, volleyball competitions, bowling tournaments etc.
United Square has positioned itself as a “Kids’ Learning Mall”, equipped with kid-friendly features such as color-themed levels, luxurious nursing rooms, carpeted grounds, and study rooms. The mall contains your normal variety of retail offerings ranging from fashion to furniture, to bookstores, to hair and beauty, with the added specialty of having a large variety of enrichment centers under one roof to cater to the differing interests and needs of each child.
One of Singapore’s largest multi-disciplinary hospitals, Tan Tock Seng Hospital is powered by more than 8,000 healthcare staff and offers a range of medical services and specialist clinics.
The Sun Yat Sen Nanyang Memorial Hall is housed in a two-story colonial villa, commemorating the founding father of the Republic of China, Sun Yat Sen. This site is of particular prominence as this villa served as the Tong Men Hui’s (underground resistance movement founded by Sun Yat Sen amongst others) base during the 1911 revolutions. The memorial hall houses over 400 artifacts, including calligraphy works, photography, paintings, and sculptures.
A convenient spot for residents to grab their daily fresh vegetables, meat and seafood, Whampoa Wet Market also houses a hawker center that offers many local favorites, as well as being especially well known for their BBQ seafood and chicken wings.
Curtin Singapore is the second off-shore campus of Australia’s Curtin University, providing local and international students with the opportunity to receive an Australian university education and accreditation in Singapore.
Photo Credits: Thanks to @cheillalala, @liisadele, @eeoyr, @danaquiambao, @jsampan, @dashathespy, @kat_got_lost, @tw0hungrygirls, @chew_bonafide, @eunnieylchu, @andreagalkova, @darrenrobinson86, @jona_sc, @yat_ng, @rapuji, @by_clarisa, @phoom_lb19, @ravenasprer, @ra.brmdz for your great photos of this neighborhood!
