Singapore

LeVeL33, Marina Bay Financial Centre — Singapore has no shortage of bars with a view of Marina Bay Sands. LeVeL33's advantage is that it looks at it rather than down from it, which is the photograph most people actually came for. The terrace faces across the water to MBS, Gardens by the Bay and the Flyer, and on a clear evening the whole bay lines up in front of you.

What makes it the pick, though, is the beer. This is the world's highest microbrewery in a building — Guinness confirmed it in December 2024 — and the tanks are right there behind the glass, run by a German-trained brewmaster who has been in the job since 2012. Everything is brewed on site with organic malt and hops. Order the tasting paddle and work through the five house pours; the Brut, fermented a second time in the bottle with Champagne yeast, is the one people remember. The kitchen folds spent grain into its breads and pastas, which sounds like a gimmick and isn't.

Two things to plan around. It closes at 11pm, so this is a sundowner and dinner rather than a late night — aim to be seated by 6.30pm. And purists should know the 33rd floor isn't strictly the roof; there's tower above you. We think the view, and the beer, more than settle the argument.