With the world’s best beaches on its doorstep and year-round sunshine, it’s a good thing that beachwear is readily available here. But with hot weather all year long it’s difficult to score a really good deal on swimwear. Still, Tannlines (www.tannlines.com) usually has an annual sale just after Christmas and they’ve been known to slash their prices by as much as 50%. Most of the good quality swimwear you’ll find here comes from Australia and Tannlines carries well-known Ozzie brands like Aztec Rose, Wahine and Moontide.

Ocean Paradise has a good selection of inflatable vests and swimming costumes for children and they have two outlets, one at Tanglin Mall and the other at The Paragon. Homegrown surfwear shop 37 Degrees makes really cute sundresses, tops and bottoms for girls (with a small selection of boardshorts for boys). Catering to the teen market, their sizes are cut a little smaller than European brands.

Flash N Splash owns the franchise to most of the surf brands in Singapore. You can pick up surf and skatewear from brands like Oakley, Quiksilver, Volcom, Ripcurl Roxy, Surf Babe, Surfer Girl, Paul Frank, Stussy, Globe and Gallaz here and they also carry all the accessories from sunglasses, trainers and bags to necklaces and keychains.

If you’re a keen surfer though and you want to buy a board, you’re in for a disappointment – no one in Singapore sells them. Most surfers order their boards off the internet or pick them up on their travels to Australia and Bali. Another item that’s hard to come by is a rash vest to protect yourself from the sun and little stinging creatures in the ocean – most stores have only a very limited supply for adults, so that’s another thing you might want to buy on your travels.