With rising food prices and the forecasted economic slowdown, belts are tightening.
That means painting the town red could be a once-in-a-blue-moon activity for many people.
We wondered whether clubbers could have a good time on $50 a week in a city where club entry charges cost between $20 and $30 and where alcohol prices are high.
So we posed a challenge to three clubbers in their 20s.
The rules were simple.
The $50 was the total amount they had to spend for the week, which included food and transport.
Nursing students Su Qingfeng, 25, and Charlene Li, 23, along with their friend, 24-year-old graphic designer Ho Moon Kiat, took up the challenge.
From the onset, Mr Su and Mr Ho were not sure if they could pull it off.
Mr Su said: 'Fifty dollars, no way. Drinks are very expensive here. We can spend at least $150 a week clubbing.'
The trio started their experiment in Clarke Quay last Wednesday, where they had a beer at $14 each at Clinic. They had missed the happy hour there.
They then headed to Ministry of Sound, where Miss Li got in free since it was Ladies' Night and the guys paid a $20 cover charge each that came with two drinks.
They finished clubbing at about 2am and had hunger pangs, so they bought two herbal canned drinks, a bottle of oolong tea and shared a packet of chicken and mushroom sandwich from a convenience store.
The purchases totalled $5.80.
Since there were no night bus services on weekdays, Mr Su, who drove, took his friends home.
He paid $2.68 for parking at Central.
By the end of that first evening, Miss Li had $36 left while Mr Ho and Mr Su had $14.10 and $11.42 left respectively.
FREE ENTRY
The next foray for the trio was St James Power Station last Friday.
As tertiary students, Miss Li and Mr Su got in free before 11pm.
Mr Ho 'cheated' a little by getting in free with a friend, who had a St James' membership that entitles a member and two guests free entry.
But Mr Ho and Mr Su had to top up $40 to pay for drinks with what was left from their budget.
They took the NightRider bus home after that, which cost them $3 each.
Their verdict: Women can club on $50 a week, while men certainly can't.
Miss Li said: 'It's because of Ladies' Night. Free entry, free booze, it is possible for us to club on a budget.'
And the two guys felt that men had a distinct disadvantage in that respect.
Mr Su said: 'On Ladies' Night, we have to pay cover charge. Weekends, we have to pay cover charge. It is not possible to club on the cheap.'
He is not the only young clubber who felt that way.
Miss Thulasi Mahadevan, a 22-year-old university student, said:. 'Even if women have to pay the cover charges on weekends, in some clubs, they pay lower charges than men.'
Her friend, full-time national serviceman Viswam Chandran, also 22, who clubs at least twice a week, said that there was no way he would be able to last on $50 a week.
He estimated his clubbing bill to be between $100 and $200 a night.
'Guys meet girls and if they like them, they would want to buy them drinks. Or sometimes, the girls would ask them to buy drinks,' he said.
One pretty young woman in her mid-20s, who declined to be named, said that it is easier for girls to get free drinks.
'If you are an attractive girl, it is easy to sponge drinks off guys who don't seem to mind paying,' she said.
Transport is another issue.
Since there are no night bus services on weekdays, clubbers would have to take a taxi home if they are not driving.
Mr Ho said: 'Usually, we will share taxi cost, but if you have a friend who drives, it might be cheaper just sharing the parking cost.'
The clubbers believe that while it is not cheap, they can still stretch their dollar by planning their night better.
Mr Su said: 'It can be done if you are not planning on drinking much and you share the costs with friends.'
This article was first published in The New Paper on Aug 15, 2008.
