Gardens by the Bay, Tulips and Satays

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From now till 20th May, Tulipmania is in Full Bloom at Gardens by the Bay (GBTB, 滨海湾花园). Please go in the morning when the blooms are most enchanting.

GBTB’s management must have spotted hardworking Boon Yee planting his tulips earlier, our whole family were invited to see boy’s labour of LovE.

We quickly tour the cacti and baobab in Flower dome.


We are too early by two days, and most of the Tulips are still sleeping, so we make do with more family portraits. We are recommending you to pop by CheekieMonkies’s blog to see Tulips in full bloom :)

We all agree Flower Dome 很漂亮 (so pretty).

Windmill, clogs and almost everything else, is fun-worthy for SengkangBabies :)

This coming weekend, maybe you would like to bring Mummy down to admire the Tulips? We wish all the 妈妈 out there Happy Mother’s Day in advance :)

Since the real tulips have not bloom yet, we improvise with bookmarks :)

Next stop, Cloud Forest. We plan our entry to catch the mist at 4pm.
(daily timing 9am, 11am, 2pm, 4pm, 6pm and 8pm).

Awesome atmosphere, with the blurred vision, kids must have felt a tinge bit of chill, but their limbs were warming up to explore the surroundings :)

Cloud Walk, can you imagine yourself playing hide and seek with the clouds?

Someone added a train set at the ground floor.

As we climb higher, we saw some L-O-N-G slides in the distance, a New playground will be ready around 2013 Q3 or Q4.

Last stop is Satay by the Bay. This hawker centre styled joint tries to recreate the old Satay-club ambiance. We heard it can accommodate up to 1,000 diners but parking lots might be difficult to find in the evenings.

We ordered Rojak and Satays (since this is Satay by the Bay right?) from the other stall (not CitySatay). There are quite a few seafood BBQ stalls too.

Most food price starts from $4 onward, and our satay was $16 for 20 chicken sticks. Daddy loves the gravy, but too bad the parents only got 1 stick each !

That is the kids’ way of telling parents Satay is good :)

Satay by the Bay is actually nearer to Marina Barrage, did you see Tray “BAY” ? We would recommend dining here, and enjoying the sea breeze at the same time :)

If you run out of fun itinerary for the family, maybe Marina South will keep your family occupied for half a day.

Our Love story with Marina South started in 2008, when Marina Barrage just opened. Before that, Marina Bay MRT is the end of the line, full stop.

Since then, MBS, Gardens By The Bay have totally transformed the area :

- How are Tulips planted?
- All our Gardens by the Bay experiences :)
- Pop by our Satay and Tulips (郁金香) photos on our Fanpage.
- Latest events updates and promotion, do drop by GBTB website and Fanpage.
- Admission rates

Did you know you can take Bus 400 from Marina Bay MRT to reach GBTB? The other option is walking from Bay Front MRT. A free shuttle bus to Satay-By-The-Bay during weekday lunch period (1130 to 1430).

Top 3 new attractions in Singapore

Slides and HugH Aquariums, Pandas, Manta-rays and Dolphins are all fighting for families’ wallet attention. We are talking about River Safari, Marine Life Park’s Sea Aquarium and Adventure Cove Waterpark.

SengkangBabies are fortunate to enjoy the latest attractions, let us share our experience and recommendations with you. If we can only choose one attraction, which one will SengkangBabies prefer?

1. River Safari (河川生态园)

Highlights :
* Pandas (go early to catch Kai Kai and Jia Jia roaming around)
- we can view 7 River systems from around the world
- the giant creatures, Manatee, Catfish and Stingray
* Amazon Flooded Forest
* Mekong river tank
- Amazon Square (12pm animal show)
- River Quest (not ready yet)

Experience :
- Interaction with rare mammals and fishes
- Pandas are too cute for everyone (if crowded, visiting time might be limited to 15mins)
- amazing experience to watch the Giant Manatee and catfish swim in their tanks !
- Kids learn about life-cycles and how animals survive in their ecosystem
- The information counters at each exhibit gave us extra knowledge about the animals
- River Safari is shaded offering visitors a relax experience
- Path is friendly for strollers
- We need a shelter at Amazon Square, it is too hot to watch the animal show at 1230

Entrance Fees : (Adult $25, Children $16 (3+).
When River Quest is ready, Adult $35, Children $23.

Click for our review or more Panda photos.
- River Safari website

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Resorts World Sentosa (RWS)’s Marine Life Park (海洋生物园) has two new attractions.

2. Adventure Cove Waterpark (水上探险乐园)

Highlights :
* Rainbow Reef !
* Adventure (Lazy) River
- Bluwater Bay waves
* Slides, try all the Slides !

Experience :
- Daddy and boys’ best experience is snorkeling among 20,000 fishes at Rainbow Reef!
- Grab a tube, and go around Lazy River a few times, there are exhibits (like Rays) to entice swimmers
- simply sit on the slope and let the waves push you (Bluwater)
- Smaller kids will love Big Bucket Treehouse :)
- You will need minimum 4 hours to enjoy all the slides
- AVOID weekend. You do not want to queue 30min for a 1min slide
- “Lightning” will shutdown Adventure Cove, with no refund policy. Management might wish to consider some goodwill (partial) refund

Entrance Fees : Adult $29, Children $20 (4+)

Click for our review and more Snorkeling Photos.
- Adventure Cove Waterpark website

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3. S.E.A Aquarium (海洋馆)

Highlights :
* Dolphins are ever friendly
* poke a few starfish at “Discovery Touch pool”
* Open Ocean’s Manta rays (Daddy can linger here for hours)
- Jellyfish (are cute!)
- Sharks
- all sorts of fishes swimming everywhere !

Experience :
- Look Left Right Up Down, there are so many exhibits fighting for attention
- Get up close with the sea creatures (maybe not Sharks)
- Play with the friendly dolphins
- Get hypnotised by the bobbing jellyfish
- kids are bewildered by the colours from the fishes
- Peep into the Open Ocean with some amazing Rays !
- The only bad thing is the crowd, kids will find it difficult to squeeze infront

Entrance Fees : Adult $29, Children $20 (4+)

Only (part 1) of review is ready, catch all the Jellyfish Photos on our Fanpage.
- SEA Aquarium Website

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If we can only choose one attraction to visit, which one do we prefer?

In order :
A) The Adventure Cove waterpark
B) Sea Aquarium
C) River Safari

Video : Want to know why they chose slides over Panda? Catch this video.

But if kids are looking for fishes, Daddy thought the exhibits at SEA Aquarium would be more alluring. The game changer could be River Safari’s River-Quest :)

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Now, we know Singapore’s attractions are world-class but how many families can enjoy the Fun? This is the entrance fee breakdown for SengkangBabies (2A + 4C) :

- River Safari – $114
- Adventure Cove – $118 (under 4years old free)
- SEA Aquarium – $118

All receipts are above $100, not exactly cheap and affordable, and we have not factor in carpark and F&B yet. We are fortunate as we get to enjoy River Safari and Sea Aquarium for free, and Adventure Cove tickets were discounted.

We always try to feedback that the fees can be more affordable:
- we know gardens and parks are nice (and free), but families might want to enjoy some Singapore attractions occasionally
- We are not expecting $3 entrance fees like Taiwan’s Zoo, but $20 is on the high side
- Singapore attractions might be able to provide pro-family promotions once a year (per family), with up to 50% discount
- Singapore’s attractions can definitely go out to target residents, besides the tourists
- This discounts mean a drop in profits, but companies’ bottomline should still be healthy
- More affordable tickets must mean more family-bonding opportunities, Yes?

What do you think? Do you believe Singapore attractions are too expensive?
If Yes, Help to feedback through your own channels, MSF, Reach, Newspaper forum, chat forums, or even blog about it.

We would be honoured if you share our article :p

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Not every attractions in Singapore is costly, just pop by our “Places of Interest” recommendations. We do lament the lack of time (and sometimes energy) to bring the kids out. And from 2013 May onwards, a few Museums will waive entrance fees YES ! (Fanpage I ♥ Museums)

River Safari 河川生态园

Think Animal Planet and River Monsters. Now imagine all these monsters appearing right infront of you. Man-eaters, menacing, powerful, 1 ton monsters, razor sharp teeth, these freshwater fish are the perfect casts for a nightmare!

Daddy ask Yi to pose below a real-size stingray. This fellow originates from Mekong, has a 2m wingspan and maybe weighs 500 kg (not our Bbq variant)

Last Friday, Daddy grab his company’s corporate card and we troop to Mandai. River Safari is in between Singapore Zoo and Night Safari.

River Safari is not only about the Pandas, but woe betide the parents who skip the Panda enclosure. What we wish to say is the giant fishtanks from Mekong to Amazon are cool, and should captivate everyone’s attention.

Talking about water tanks, a few are making splashes (the biggest, the tallest) in Singapore recently. River Safari, Marine Park (Sea Aquarium), and we even snorkel in the Rainbow fishtank at Adventure cove !

Kang loves the Alligator Gar (not related to alligators, adults around 2m and 100kg). Watch them feed with lighting speed (1st Video below)

Did you know River Safari is Asia’s first and only River-themed wildlife park? We get to identify 7 of the World’s river systems.

The cute Red Pandas greeted us at the Giant Panda forest. We saw his cousin in Hong Kong’s Ocean Park last year.

If you are going on a weekend, expect long queue for the pandas. We recommend that you book the earliest timeslot, and proceed straight to The Giant Panda Forest (15min walk)

Panda’s menu.

Video : Kai Kai(凯凯) and Jia Jia(嘉嘉) caught on video + various exhibits

In an earlier story, we knew how the Pandas (Very Important Pandas) took Singapore Airlines from Chengdu (China) to Mandai (Singapore).

Hello Panda, SengkangBabies are here to visit :)

Ironically, not many people will have the opportunity to photograph the Pandas together.

The hugh bamboo wallpapers outside the Panda enclosure is ideal for Panda portraits.

At every corner, information billboards allow us to learn about the habitats, ecosystem, and the animals or fishes. Daddy did not even know crocodiles exist in China’s Yangtze.

The information provide an immersive experience for the kids to learn through fun and interaction.

We cross Upper Seletar Reservoir to reach Amazon basin.

Looking at the map below, almost half of River Safari is dedicated to the Amazonian system! A pity the Boat ride (River Quest) down Amazon is not ready yet.

No Xena here, but we did caught a lot of cute animals ! (1230 at Amazon Square)

Eagles, Pelicons, Snakes and cute hedgehog thrill the audience. Those kids sitting infront get to touch the creatures, an unforgetable experience.

Squirrel monkies are so cute, and sometimes friendly. We still have to remind kids monkies are wild animals and we have to keep a distance :)

See, Hear, speak no evil, although we got some coordination problems :)

The Giant otters play hide and seek with us, Daddy told us these otters can be 2m long !

Not all monsters are carnivorous, the 1 ton manatees are herbivores, but some catfish (Goonch) has a reputation for feeding on human remains !

The amazing Amazon Flooded Forrest is Daddy’s favourite ! Imagine the 1000kg manatees cheek to cheek with yourself on the glass wall! Avoid their feeding time, as we found out the manatees will all be crowding around the diver haha :)

Video : Awesome Mekong and Amazon Fish tank

Random photos. There are too many to showcase, pop by our Fanpage for more photos.

We have completed one round (clockwise) of the River Safari, and we went through the earlier Rivers again. Basically it is the other six rivers Mississippi, Congo, Nile, Ganges, Murray and Mekong (we had skip them for the Pandas earlier).

Along the way, we had our Fun moments too, Daddy did remind kids not to roleplay the late Steve Irvin (our idol) and wrestle with real crocs !

Be it Crocodiles, Gharials or Alligator (gars), all look intimidating.

Our last stop is the majestic Mekong river. Daddy told us Mekong flows from China to Thailand! (Catfish can grow up to 3m and weighs 200Kg, Stingray can weigh up to 600Kg !)

Bye Bye our friends. This is the only group photo when Kai Kai and Jia Jia will pose together.

Tips :

1) River Safari is opened from 9 to 6pm. If you are the first visitors on a weekend, book the earliest Panda viewing slots (15 min interval). 3mins watching Kai Kai chew bamboo, 5mins searching for Jia Jia, and the remaining time spend with Red pandas :p

2) You will notice a lot of information about the fish, mammals, creatures, take time to explain to the kids (eg that 2m catfish can swallow a young child alive ! )

3) Everyday at 12:30, an “animal show” will be conducted at Amazon Square (after the bridge). This is a fun interactive event which all KIDS should not miss.

4) You will need about 3 to 4 hours to cover one round. A stroller might be helpful for the smaller kids.

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All our photos are on our Fanpage. The river is calling…

- Website
- Fanpage (WRS)
- Pricing (during soft launch, Adult $25, Child $16)
- Opening hours is 9am to 6pm
- map

credits .. All the maps above are from River Safari homepage

** Do you wish to compare Adventure Cove Waterpark, Sea Aquarium and River Safari?

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