Everybody knows that Changi is haunted, or at least that’s what we’ve all heard. But not many have had personal supernatural experiences there. So when I found myself waiting at Changi Point Ferry Terminal with my colleagues, I wasn’t sure what to expect. Out of the dim light, a man holding a lantern covered in dried wax slowly walked towards us. It felt like the start of a horror movie, but this was no ghost – it was Eugene Tay, the founder of Supernatural Confessions, and the man behind our ghost tour experience in Singapore for the night.
Dark tourism is relatively new in Singapore – at least to my knowledge – and Eugene is the only licensed guide in Singapore who specialises in it. Luckily, before the tour started, we had the opportunity to sit down with him to clear my fears about ghosts and learn more about his background with the paranormal. There had to be a reason why he was so passionate about finding and retelling ghost stories from places like Changi.
Our chat soon took a darker turn as Eugene revisited one of the biggest turning points in his life. He shared that back in 2012, someone he loved was possessed for 2 years. Every day, something unexplainable would happen to her. He recalled how she would fall unconscious, wake up, and become a completely different person.
At one point, she even asked him, “If I ever die one day, could you promise to find my soul?” Eugene directed that same question to me. Of course, my answer was yes, but similar to him then, I didn’t know what that really meant or how to even begin. That was when he started searching for answers in everything and anything paranormal, just to get an idea or a thread to start.
Image for illustrative purposes only.
Image credit: Richard Heinen via Unsplash
The more he looked for answers, the more supernatural encounters he experienced. One of the most impactful moments that shook Eugene was when he confronted a spirit.
He scattered flour on the floor when his then-partner was possessed. In a taunting manner, he exclaimed, “If spirits are real, show yourself.” His intention was not to see anything, knowing that if nothing happened, he could convince himself that ghosts don’t exist. But then, he started seeing footprints walking towards him.
“After you see something like that, there’s no way to put the toothpaste back in the tube,” he told us. No matter what anyone said after that, he knew what he saw was real. His life was never the same.
Supernatural Confessions book launch in 2015.
Image credit: Supernatural Confessions
Back then, Eugene had no real outlet to process what he’d been through and often felt like he was alone. That was when he published the book, Supernatural Confessions, in 2015, chronicling his personal experiences with the paranormal.
He used writing as a form of therapy and a way to make sense of his trauma. “If it sells, it sells. If it doesn’t, it’s fine,” he said. After the book was released to the world, people started reaching out to him, wanting to share their stories of similar encounters. He knew that he wasn’t alone anymore.
Image for illustrative purposes only.
Image credit: Jem Sahagun via Unsplash
He still remembers the first person who reached out to him. She was in her 70s and had kept her paranormal encounters away from her family – even her own husband. She knew that no one would believe her.
They ended up speaking for 3 hours, and all they did was exchange stories. She ended with, “Thank you for listening, and believing me.” That was when he understood that Supernatural Confessions was larger than him – it had become a platform for individuals to share their own paranormal experiences.
Image for illustrative purposes only.
Image credit: Andrey Novik via Unsplash
Shortly after, he created a private Facebook group for others to share their experiences without fear of being mocked or ridiculed by the public. While people who joined the group didn’t expect everyone to believe every story, they fostered a culture of support and acceptance.
From lengthy stories to short 60-second anecdotes, each story comes from real people whom Eugene calls “paranormal survivors.” The group eventually expanded to include not just those who’d had ghostly run-ins, but also curious listeners who simply enjoyed a good spooky tale.
“Ghost stories, being what they are, are entertaining,” he told us. But more importantly, it’s still a platform for people to share while welcoming others to listen without judgment. He found that his role was to provide a safe space for these voices to live on, through articles, podcasts, retellings, and even ghost tours.
We grabbed a quick bite before heading back to Changi Ferry Point Terminal – a final moment of calm before the night’s adventure. “I’m not here to convince you if there are ghosts or not. I’m here to share a story with you,” Eugene told the group as he kicked off the Walk with Hantu: Changi tour.
As we walked towards Changi Point Coastal Walk, I counted 19 participants for this tour – a mix of locals, Americans, British, and Filipinos. Before the tour, Eugene told us that people who sign up for his tours are not divided by race or age, but by curiosity. Some come seeking proof, others just want a good story. “It’s also a great couple activity,” he added. While it might be unconventional, it definitely changes up regular movie and dinner dates.
The Old SIA Recreational Centre.
Most of us do not have personal ghost stories to share, so all we can do is listen. The places we visited, or stood outside of, were public spaces anyone could explore on their own. But what sets Eugene’s ghost tours apart is how he breathes life into these empty and abandoned places by sharing personal stories and anecdotes he’s gathered over the years.
He knows that many people find ghost stories thrilling and entertaining. “It’s the best way to bring participants close to the action, while knowing they’re safe,” he explained. And somehow, standing in those quiet, dimly lit spaces, listening to him recount what others have seen or felt, I couldn’t help but wonder – maybe some stories do linger.
The former Raintr33 Hotel.
Eugene shared that even though his ghost tours are safe, sometimes the unexplainable can still happen. During a previous tour, 7 of the 15 participants had the 3rd eye. They didn’t know each other, but during his tour, all of them slowly turned to the side and looked up. Later, they claimed to have seen something.
The window closing, opening, and slamming shut from 53 seconds.
On another tour, the participants witnessed a window on the 3rd floor of the former Raintr33 Hotel slowly opening and slamming shut. They recalled a slight breeze going against the window that night, making the incident even harder to explain.
While these encounters aren’t planned as part of the tour, they give the participants a completely different experience and their own stories to share.
Even though what Eugene does might be labelled a “ghost tour”, he actually covers a lot of history and heritage during the walk. He knows that ghost stories alone are just stories, and plain historical facts can be very dry and boring. Instead, he layers ghost stories over the historical facts to give them context and weight.
He doesn’t shy away from digging deeper into the past to find out if there is historical proof that can support or debunk these ghost stories. Every location we visited had both history and ghost stories surrounding it.
The faded text of Chalet M (left) & Chalet M (right).
An example of Eugene’s attention to detail is the story of Chalet M. People have shared accounts of hearing cries in the bathroom, and Eugene wanted to uncover the story behind them. He shared how the spirits belonged to 2 girls who had died there, even reaching out and talking to the spiritual masters who were hired to cleanse the space. Spoiler alert: nobody could cleanse it, and it’s believed that their spirits are still there.
Today, the haunted chalet has been fenced up, and it still sits along Turnhouse Road. Naturally, our next question was: “If it’s defunct, why hasn’t it been demolished yet?”
Offerings that have turned into ashes in the joss paper burner (left) & Tibetan prayer flags (right).
We slowly made our way up Hendon Road towards the Old Changi Hospital, and were welcomed by the smell of smoke from offerings and Tibetan prayer flags hung between trees left by others before us. These prayer flags are believed to spread positive energy across the space.
Having grown up in Changi, Eugene shared his own memories of the paranormal from his childhood – the strange happenings he and his friends would encounter while playing around the hospital grounds.
He recalled one night when his friend called out to him from the darkness. As he turned the other direction, he saw another friend standing nearby, talking to him. But when he looked back at the first voice, his “friend” wasn’t there anymore. After he told them what had happened, they retraced their steps and realised the spot was actually a 4-storey drop – a terrifying reminder that some “friends” aren’t always what they seem.
Stacy reading an anecdote.
The thing about Old Changi Hospital is that Eugene had collected a lot more than just a handful of stories – he had firsthand accounts from residents and people who used to work in the hospital.
Eugene got some of us to read a few personal anecdotes about the Old Changi Hospital before we made our way to its back entrance. Stacy recited a story of a “boy” who was always waiting in the hospital – seemingly stuck there after his death. While they were just words printed on paper, she told me that she empathised with the ghost of the story – even feeling sad about what had happened.
With that weight in mind, we slowly headed to the site where these stories took place.
The iconic Old Changi Hospital.
Calling the Old Changi Hospital “creepy” would be an understatement. If it weren’t for the camera lights, we would be in pitch black darkness. As I stood there, in front of the gates, I felt nervous facing this rundown and abandoned building that held so many stories – distracted by my thoughts while Eugene was talking.
He ended his tour with one question for reflection: “Why is Changi haunted?” It was a challenge to think about history and the unheard stories that linger in places long abandoned.
Before we parted ways, Eugene lit a palo santo stick using the flame from his candle. It’s believed to cleanse negative energy around us, which was especially important as I’d been feeling uneasy walking around Changi at night. We sat down quietly as he started waving and moving the stick around us. After the cleanse, I actually felt a sense of peace.
Ironically, the future of dark tourism in Singapore is bright. “For as long as there’s history, there’s going to be dark tourism,” Eugene told us. In Singapore and in other Asian countries, there’s definitely a certain taboo about talking about anything relating to death. Maybe that’s why dark tourism hasn’t been popular in Singapore.
Since Eugene started doing tours 3 years ago, he’s seen them fully booked on multiple occasions. Last year, for the Heritage Festival, the National Heritage Board even approached him to incorporate ghost stories into official tours. He also created the Fort Canning Conspiracy tour for the Peranakan Museum and the Waterloo Ghost Tour for the Heritage and Night Festival earlier this year.
It’s an accomplishment to have our national boards recognise paranormal content as part of our local tourism scene. Eugene hopes that dark tourism will be normalised in Singapore, with others conducting their own ghost tours after he’s done.
As we said our goodbyes, I watched Eugene walking back into the darkness of Changi with his lantern one last time.
“Whether you’re a sceptic or believer in the paranormal, ghost stories are still a level of entertainment for people,” he shared with us. It’s Eugene’s role to give us a rush of adrenaline that makes us feel scared, excited, and entertained – all at the same time. But the magic is in listening without being a part of the story.
I hopped into a taxi back home and reflected on the tour and ghost stories we’d heard. To me, those stories were not of scary ghosts, but of ghosts who were once people. Changi may or may not be haunted, but Eugene believes that there’s a reason to every haunting, and he wants to get as close to the truth as possible and share it with those who want to listen.
If you’re interested in a Haunting Heritage Tour by Supernatural Confessions, the Walk with Hantu: Changi ($89/pax) is their most popular tour, and the one we went on. It runs every 1st and 3rd Saturday until 18th April 2026.
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