The National Day open house will be cancelled in light of the new Phase 2 (Heightened Alert) measures
THIS STORY WAS PUBLISHED ON JULY 14, 2021, AND UPDATED ON JULY 21, 2021.
On August 1, the Istana was set to open up to allow visitors on their grounds for the first time in about 18 months in honour of National Day, according to the President’s Office. Unfortunately, due to a recent spike in community Covid-19 cases, the Covid-19 task force announced that the country would be going back to Phase 2 (Heightened Alert) from July 22.
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The Istana is typically opened to the public for five days each year. However, due to Covid-19, the Istana closed the grounds to Singapore residents from February last year with their last open house taking place on January 26 in celebration of Chinese New Year.
Virtual open houses were then held for Hari Raya Puasa, National Day and Deepavali.
This year, on May 13, there was a scheduled event to celebrate Hari Raya Puasa and Labour Day. Unfortunately, due to a sudden spike in community Covid-19 cases, this was cancelled.
For a while, it looked like Singapore had managed to control the number of Covid-19 infections in the country with strict restrictions which is why it was announced that we would be able to look forward to the open house happening on August 1. Unfortunatly, it looks like it will be postponed once again.
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The National Day open house was scheduled to only be for ticket holders of the cancelled May event. Earlier this year, 4,000 free tickets were given out for the May visit. Those who are still holding on to their tickets were expected to be able to use them for the upcoming National Day Istana open house.
The President's Office has apologised for any inconvenience caused.
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