The National Museum of Singapore, National Gallery Singapore and Asian Civilisations Museum will reopen on June 26, one week after Phase 2 commenced on June 19. Great news if you’ve missed getting your cultural fix (or, er, Instagrammable pictures) when these venues were temporarily shut during the Circuit Breaker and Phase 1. Before you schlep over this weekend, there are a few things you should know.

While the Gallery has the advantage of a large floor area (it’s the largest visual arts venue in Singapore) that makes it conducive for visitors to keep a safe distance of 1m apart without disrupting their experience, there are other measures put in place. Operating hours will be revised - the Gallery willl open Mon to Sun from 10am-7pm (it was previously opened until 9pm on Fridays).

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National Gallery Singapore

#1: Not everything will be open. You can visit long-term exhibitions and select ongoing exhibitions, such as Latiff Mohidin: Pago Pago, Chua Soo Bin: Truths and Legends, Suddenly Turning Visible: Art & Architecture in Southeast Asia (1969-1989) and Ng Teng Fong Roof Garden Commission: Cao Fei. There’ll be free admission to long-term galleries and select ongoing exhibitions from June 26 to July 31.

#2: What will remain closed? Gallery & Co café and shop (all other F&B outlets are open), Keppel Centre for Art Education, City Hall: If Walls Could Talk exhibition, Rotunda Library & Archive and Social Table will remain shut for now.

#3: New entry procedures are in place. All visitors must wear masks, and will have to check in via SafeEntry and have their temperature screened when entering the Gallery and its dining facilities.

#4: Visitors are encouraged to pre-purchase tickets online, or if they have to buy it on-site, to use their mobile phones to purchase tickets via a QR code.

#5: Keep your group small. Visitors should not visit in groups larger than five, which is the permitted group size for social gatherings in Singapore in Phase 2, and no mingling of groups will be allowed. If and when necessary, timed entry will be introduced to further manage capacities. There will also be digital dashboards at entrances to indicate available visitor capacity.

#6: No shared equipment provided. All audio headsets inside Gallery spaces will be removed for hygiene purposes. Visitors will instead be encouraged to download the free Gallery Explorer app for audio tours. Tours, events and programmes have been suspended prior to the temporary closure, and will continue to be halted until further notice.

#7: Reduced capacity at eateries and other venues. The restaurant’s seating capacity has been reduced to ensure safe distancing, and diners may only dine in groups of less than five, in line with the government's guidelines. The Gallery & Co café and shop will remain closed. Chequerboard seating has been implemented in venues like the auditorium, theatrette and Padang atrium steps.

#8: Stepped up cleaning and safe distancing measures. There will be hourly disinfection of public areas with high visitor traffic, such as toilets and lifts. Auto sensor hand sanitiser dispensers have also been installed.

Or if you prefer to stay home, digital art experiences for the whole family, including virtual galleries and art resources, are still available at https://www.nationalgallery.sg/galleryanywhere.

The National Heritage Board (NHB) announced that the National Museum of Singapore (NMS) and Asian Civilisations Museum (ACM) will resume operations on June 26. There will be nochange to operating hours. The Indian Heritage Centre, Malay Heritage Centre, Sun Yat Sen Nanyang Memorial Hall reopen on Jul 3.

Here’s what you can expect when you visit NMS and ACM from June 26.

National Museum of Singapore

#1: Fewer visitors. Operating capacity will be reduced to 25 per cent of the entire venue to manage visitor volume.

#2: Check in, please. Visitors have to register and check in via SafeEntry, get their temperature taken and complete health declarations. And don’t forget to mask up at all times.

#3: Again, keep your group small. Only groups of five or less will be allowed, and a safe distance of at least 1m must be maintained between different groups, with no mingling across groups. Practice a little patience and take turns to view artefacts. When in doubt, follow the floor markers.

Asian Civilisations Museum

#4: Not everything will be available. Interactive exhibitions, including dedicated children’s exhibitions or installations, will not resume as these tend to be high-touch in nature.

#5: Guide or not? Like the Gallery, there will be no shared headphones, audio guides and other common items provided at ACM and NMS. Online guides will be available instead.

#6: Enhanced disinfection. Regular cleaning of common and high-touch surfaces such as handrails and knobs.

#7: Remember new social norms. Avoid handshakes. Visitors should also refrain from speaking loudly to reduce the risk of transmission through droplets (but why should you be speaking loudly in a museum in the first place?).

If you’d rather stay in and soak in the cultural experience in your own time and space, you’ll be happy to know that there are virtual guided tours, heritage trails and #SGCultureAnywhere resources at heritage portal www.Roots.sg, as well as art resources and video tutorials at www.nationalmuseum.sg.

Photos: National Gallery Singapore, National Heritage Board, Asian Civilisations Museum