Rediscovering Singapore’s stories through SG Culture Pass

Some of the best lessons about Singapore aren't found in textbooks. They're found in the moments when you’re strolling through the historical streets of Katong-Joo Chiat or enjoying the crackle of fresh kacang puteh. 

For many Singaporeans, cultural and heritage experiences have always been available out there, just not always easy to find, plan for, or prioritise.  

That's the gap SG Culture Pass was built to close. A national initiative that gives eligible Singaporeans credits to explore local arts and cultural experiences, SG Culture Pass is designed to make discovering Singapore’s cultural scene easier and more accessible. 

For citizens, families, and culture enthusiasts, SG Culture Pass brings together arts and heritage experiences under one umbrella, removing the friction of navigating multiple websites, accounts, and payment systems just to try something new. Instead of searching across scattered organisers and ticketing platforms, Singaporeans can browse, redeem, and plan experiences more seamlessly in one place. 

For event organisers and ticketing partners, the challenge had long been discoverability and scale. Smaller organisers often lacked the reach and marketing resources to connect with wider audiences, while larger ticketing partners needed a solution that could integrate smoothly into existing workflows without requiring major technical overhauls. SG Culture Pass helps bridge these gaps through a shared national platform supported by integrated payments and redemption systems working seamlessly behind the scenes. 

How SG Culture Pass works 

Navigating SG Culture Pass is simple: 

1. Log in via Singpass on the SG Culture Pass website. 

2. Browse the catalogue on GoWhere to find events that interest you. 

3. Select and redeem through GovWallet, with the option to top up via credit card or PayNow. 

4. Attend and enjoy the experience. 

For a fuller walkthrough, see our step-by-step guide to using your SG Culture Pass credits. 

Watch: From Credits to Connection: Stories from the Ground 

A family's journey into Singapore's past

For Luth, an 8-year-old history enthusiast, and his dad Khairani, the credits have turned weekend plans into deep expeditions through Singapore's past. The pair have worked their way through immersive games and heritage tours, swapping screen time for shared time. Khairani describes it as a way to bond, but also a chance to let Luth's curiosity lead.

Suddenly, Singapore's past isn't something Luth reads about in a classroom. It's something he walks through, asks questions about, and brings home to talk over dinner.

It's also a reminder that the most powerful digital services often fade into the background. What remains is the seamless experience, and the people you share it with.

Keeping heritage alive through interactive experiences

For Yee Hung, the founder of HIDDEN, SG Culture Pass is reshaping what it means to run a small business.

After 14 years away from home, Yee Hung returned to Singapore and realised the stories he most wanted to tell were the ones in his own backyard. He then started HIDDEN, which now runs immersive games and heritage trails that invite locals to look at familiar neighbourhoods through fresh eyes.

Through digital initiatives like SG Culture Pass, smaller creators like Yee Hung reach a national audience without the marketing budget of a larger institution, while citizens can discover and sign up for his games in a few taps, removing the barrier to entry that often holds independent experiences back.

For the wider cultural ecosystem, that's a quiet but meaningful shift, levelling the playing field so local independents can access tech tools alongside larger institutions. 

Watch: Rediscovering Singapore Through SG Culture Pass

In this Stories of GovTech episode, follow Luth and his dad Khairani as they rediscover Singapore with SG Culture Pass and see how this initiative helps "keep the flame alive" for local heritage businesses. 

Building the Digital Backbone

The challenge: A Fragmented Ecosystem

Before the scheme launched, citizens and event organisers were navigating a fragmented landscape. The Ministry of Culture, Community and Youth (MCCY) had also flagged a familiar concern: their existing systems weren't built to scale, and a heavy reliance on external vendors meant any new build risked being slower and more costly than the team wanted.

The solution: A unified ecosystem powered by GovTech

Rather than building a new system from scratch, GovTech partnered with MCCY to turn a complex logistical challenge into a gold standard for digital service delivery. Multiple teams worked together to consolidate and integrate existing platforms into a unified ecosystem. The result was a seamless end-to-end experience for both citizens and organisers, delivered in record time.

Discovery and access: GoWhere and Singpass

The SG Culture Pass website lives on GoWhere, where campaigns in Singapore are consolidated for easy access. It functions as a one-stop catalogue and redemption hub, currently housing eligible events across museums, performing arts, heritage trails, and community-led experiences.

Singpass handles the login layer, enabling a smooth transition from browsing to checkout without juggling new accounts or passwords.

The transaction engine: GovWallet

GovWallet is the heart of the scheme's payments. This digital wallet allows citizens to use credits to make purchases and transact with merchants via the PayNow or NETS ecosystems.

Importantly, GovWallet doesn't only handle credit redemption. Citizens can also top up with a credit card or PayNow, and it integrates with other national apps like Singpass, LifeSG, Workpal, and Healthy 365.

Operational excellence: FormSG and Ownself Gather

On the back end, FormSG and Ownself Gather streamline the eligibility and application process for event organisers. The SG Culture Pass office team manages the entire lifecycle, from intake to case management, in a single place, which dramatically reduces operational load.

Impact at Scale, in Everyday Life

A Nationwide Rollout, Delivered Fast

The impact of SG Culture Pass works on two levels: the system-wide success of a national rollout, and the personal stories of the people whose lives it touches.

Did you know? The SG Culture Pass campaign was deployed nationwide in just 11 months.

Making Culture Part of Everyday Life

Cultural experiences that once required planning and effort are now easier to discover and act on. Families are exploring together, individuals are trying something new, and local experiences are becoming part of everyday life.

Expanding Reach for Local Creators

For organisers, SG Culture Pass opens access to a broader, national audience. Smaller creators can now sit alongside larger institutions within the same digital ecosystem, reaching audiences they may not have reached before.

Together, this creates a refreshed landscape where local stories, regardless of scale, have a greater chance of being discovered.

Luth, Khairani, and Yee Hung bring this to life in this Stories of GovTech episode. For families, SG Culture Pass can turn a weekend outing into a shared discovery of Singapore’s past. For smaller creators, it opens the door to a wider audience and gives local experiences a stronger chance of being discovered.

Why SG Culture Pass matters for Singapore

SG Culture Pass is, on the surface, a credit scheme. Look closer, though, and it's a small case study in how Singapore is reimagining the relationship between technology and everyday life.

It encourages a deeper appreciation of local culture, gives families a reason to spend time together, and sustains the creators and businesses whose work keeps the country's stories alive. Just as importantly, it shows what's possible when shared GovTech platforms are stitched together with intent: national-scale services delivered quickly and cost-effectively, resolving real-world problems rather than just digitising them.

That's the bigger ambition here. Build the digital plumbing once, build it well, and the spotlight shifts back to where it belongs: on the artists, the storytellers, and the citizens who weave the next chapter of Singapore’s arts journey.

Explore SG Culture Pass today

Whether you're planning a heritage walk with the kids, a museum visit with friends, or an evening at the theatre, SG Culture Pass is ready when you are. Log in with Singpass, browse what's on, and let the credits do their work.

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