HarbourFront Centre Closes on 27 July 2026: A Last Look Before a Five-Year Rebuild
HarbourFront Centre shuts permanently on 27 July 2026 after 23 years in its current form, closing for a five-year redevelopment into a 33-storey mixed-use building scheduled for completion in the first half of 2031. For anyone who has passed through on the way to a Batam ferry, grabbed a cheap cai fan at lunch, or browsed the DVD shelves at Poh Kim Video, the next 11 days are the last chance to visit the mall as it stands.
The closure is also a transport milestone. The Singapore Cruise Centre has already begun relocating to a new passenger terminal just 70m away at 5 HarbourFront Avenue. Batam Fast Ferry moved across on 7 July 2026, and the remaining ferry operators, Horizon Fast Ferry, Majestic Fast Ferry, Sindo Ferry and Indo Falcon Shipping and Travel, shift over on 15 July. Ferry routes, destinations and sailing schedules remain unchanged.
From World Trade Centre to HarbourFront Centre
The site has a longer history than most visitors realise. The original World Trade Centre was built in 1978 at a cost of S$83 million as Singapore's link to global trade centres, with exhibition halls, a maritime terminal and the hexagon-shaped Harbour Pavilion that seated 5,000. The 1978 Singapore International Motor Show was the first large-scale exhibition held there. The complex later hosted the 1987 Miss Universe Pageant, televised to 600 million viewers, and the 1990 Guinness World of Records Exhibition.
Older Singaporeans may remember the WyWy Wonderspace arcade, the KFC outlet, and the container ride that carried visitors past a LEGO miniature of port operations inside the Maritime Square exhibition. The World Trade Centre closed for redevelopment in 2000 and reopened on 17 February 2003 as the HarbourFront Centre we know today. The current 3-storey building houses retail, enrichment centres, ferry ticketing and the cruise terminal, and sits connected to VivoCity next door.
The New Singapore Cruise Centre
The new terminal is a standalone terracotta-red building opposite The Reef at King's Dock condominium, behind HarbourFront Tower 2. It opens with upgraded infrastructure, tech-enabled services and better amenities, though full F&B and money-changer details will be confirmed at its official opening later this year. The cable car to Mount Faber and Sentosa continues to operate from HarbourFront Tower 2, so Sentosa access is unaffected by the move.
From HarbourFront MRT, take Exit B and follow the sheltered walkway to the new terminal. There are also sheltered walkways between the terminal and VivoCity, so the route from the station is still covered even though the new building is not directly linked to the MRT.
What to Visit Before 27 July
Several tenants are worth a last visit before the shutters come down. The food court Tuckshop, opposite the Horizon Fast Ferry counter, is known for affordable cai fan and roasted char siew, and draws office workers and VivoCity shoppers looking for cheaper eats. Old Street 60's Signature Noodle inside Tuckshop does a Classic Signature Noodle with char siew and wantons from $5.59 and Roasted Duck Rice at $5.
Hoe Nam Prawn Noodles at #01-01/02/03 is the third outlet of a family business established in the 1970s, simmering pork ribs, fresh sand prawns and other ingredients for over eight hours. The menu runs from classic prawn noodles to pork ribs, pig's tail, intestines, abalone clams and lala, with yellow noodles, bee hoon or kway teow as the base, and wu xiang from $2 or in sets from $6.20 to $11.20.
Nakanishi Cakes at #01-34, started by a chef who migrated from Chiba, is the only bakery in the mall's directory doing banana cakes and Japanese pastries rather than standard bread buns. The Dark Belgium Chocolate Banana Cake ($26) and California Walnut Banana Cake ($26) are the signatures, alongside Yuzu Pineapple Tarts ($30) and a 3-for-$12 muffin combo. The HarbourFront shop is the only brick-and-mortar location outside their NEWest outlet where you can buy the cakes fresh.
Poh Kim Video at #02-62, established in 1984, is a time capsule of DVD and Blu-ray retail, with Chinese and Korean dramas from $24.90 and players from the GIEC GK906 DVD player at $79.90 to the GIEC 4K Blu-ray HD Player at $499.90. The Escape Artist V-Room on Level 3, open since 2016, has 4.9 stars across 1,500-plus reviews for its physical and VR escape rooms, with sessions from $24 per person for groups up to 8.
What Replaces It
The new building will span roughly 123,000 square metres across 33 storeys, with 26 floors of office space and 5 floors of curated retail. Sustainable elements include bicycle parking, a solar photovoltaic system, a smart lighting system, EV charging stations and a 13,000 sqm publicly accessible elevated park. The Singapore Cruise Centre will not be part of the new complex and will remain at its new standalone terminal.
Practical Details
- Closing date: 27 July 2026
- Mall hours: 10:00am to 10:00pm daily until closure
- Venue: HarbourFront Centre, 1 Maritime Square, Singapore 099253
- Nearest MRT: HarbourFront (NE1/CC29), connected via VivoCity
- New Cruise Centre: 5 HarbourFront Avenue, Singapore 099549 (Batam Fast Ferry from 7 July; all other operators from 15 July 2026)
- Redevelopment completion: First half of 2031
- Website: harbourfrontcentre.com.sg