I need to conclude the Singapore posts before I forget it even happened 😂. This is the last of Singapore, and it is for two of the most famous landmarks in the country.
Sentosa is an island resort off Singapore's southern coast, complete with hotels, beaches and various attractions such as theme parks and rides. It is eassily accessible by car, bus, taxi, cable car and monorail. My favorite method is by cable car since it's the most scenic. We purchased passes that gave unlimited access to the main cable car lines within the Island, and also enrty and exit out of the Island.
There are also dining options within the cable car which you can purchase. I believe if you purchase this, you do 2 or 3 revolutions on the cable car. We didn't do this option.
The island is pretty big as it has a few theme parks: a water park and Universal Studios Theme Park. We did not go to either, but I went to Universal Studios on my last trip. It's probably about half the size as the one in California, but it had some decent rides and attractions.
The list of attractions at Sentosa Island are:
Universal Studios
Adventure Cove Waterpark
Air Combat VR Experience
Dolphin Island
Hydro Dask Floating Aqua Park
Hyperdrive
iFly indoor skydiving
Madame Tousauds Wax Museum
Mega Adventure Park (Zip Lines and Bungie Jumping)
Sky Helix
Skyline Luge
S.E.A Aquarium
Trickeye
These attractions require admission fee. There are some passes where you the pass gives you a certasin amount of points and you can redeem rides for certain amount of points for each attraction. You can mix and match the smaller attractions such as Sky Helix and Trickeye. We found the pass experience to be very confusing and we were getting the runaround on how to redeem the points. Problem is that some attractions need reservastions before hand. We ended up not using all of the points. Also, the pass can't be applied to bigger attractions wuch as Universal Studios and require separate admission. There are some free attractions such as the Musical Fountains, Nature Discovery, Fort Siliso Skywalk and the many beachs such as Palawan Beach.
The Sky Helix was one of the attractions we used the pass one.
It's an elevated rotating platform that gives you a great view of all of Sentosa Island. You're up there for a fair amount of time (maybe 15 minutes) and the ride include a canned soft drink. The guide was cool. We asked him what food is good in Sentosa Island. He was honest and pretty much said there was no good food at the Island 😂
Trickeye was a neat interactive musem where they have unique backdrops/displays that creatively plays with perspective
The neat thing is that you can install an app on your phone which uses Augmented Reality and enhances the illusion by giving it a more virtual environment and unique digital effects.
We started getting hungry and just went to the closest food court as the heat does influence your plans. It was just too hot to roam the Island for food. We found this strange food court where there were several food stalls serving different cuisine, but it wasn't really a food court that you can go straight to the stall and order. There's a QRC code where you would order from any of the stalls from your phone and a waiter would bring it over. And when you are done, you pay your bill at a central cashier. It was such a strange setup and it was pretty empty when we were there.
The food was actually pretty good. I got the fish and chips and it was fairly large. It was a bit more expensive than a Hawker Center but that is to be expected.
After lunch, we decided to go to one of the beaches. There is a free tram that covers part of the Island, mainly the beach areas. The trams can get extremely busy. When we were riding, there were very few people getting off the tram at the stops, so alot of people waiting for the tram at the stops had to wait for the next tram and hope enopugh people get off of that one
One of the main beaches we went to was Palawan Beach. One of the main attractions at this beach was the Southernmost Point of Continental Asia, which Palawan Beach was a part of. To get tto that particular spot, you had to take the suspension bridge to the tiny piece of land signifiying the southern-most point.
There's a lot of things to do in Sentosa Island and we didn't even scratch the surface. If it is your first time in Singapore, you must visit it, although it is best to make a day of it because there is so much to see and do. Plus with the heat, you don't want to rush yourself trying to pack so much to see in a few hours.
On to the next.
Marina Bay Sands
Next to the Jewel and Chaingi Airport, The Marina Bay Sands is another of Singapore's Crown Jewel. It is probably their most famous landmark in the country. It is a symbol of wealth and architechtual marvel. It boasts three towers of hotel rooms and the Infinity Pool at the very top that spans all three towers. There is also an observation deck and a restaurant and nightclub at the top.
The Infinity Pool is as good as it looks. The view from the top is magnificent and you get an awesome view of the city. The pool was nice. The water temperature was just right. It wasn't a deep pool. Maybe 6 or 7 feet deep. It wasn't as busy as I would expect. You can order drink and food too.
Got a good glimpse of the Merlion. Both trip, I did not make if down there. Was going to try to, but ran out of time, and it was too far and too hot.
At the base of the Marina Bay Sands, there is a full shopping mall. About three levels, mostly high end clothing. There are some restaurants and attactions (such as a movie theater). There is also a large food court modeled after a Hawker Center. The prices were pretty reasonable, and you still had to bus your own tables.
Gardens by the Bay is a nature park that is adjacent to Marina Bay Sands. There are several attractions within the park such as the Flower Dome, Cloud Forest, OCBC Skyway and Supertree Grove. Most of the larger attractions require a fee and you can purchase combination packages. There are several gardens and lakes that are free. There is a free light show at the Supertree Grove twice nightly. The whole park is pretty big (250 acres) and it is easy to get lost there (which I did, most of the time.
There was a nice scenic view as you're walking on the bridge from the hotel. It looks like you are walking towards a Yes album
The park is not only beautiful but clean and well-kept, as with everything else in Singapore.
A couple of the popular paid attractions are the Flower Dome and Cloud Forest. The Flower Dome is pretty much a big greenhouse with a collection of flowers and plants from around the world. In fact it won the Guinness World Record for largest greenhouse in 2015. The Cloud Forest is a collection of indoor waterfalls and plants from aroud the world. It's made to look like you're beside a mountain. From time to time, they will have special themed displays, such as Avatar, which I missed. From other people's reviews, in choosing between the Flower Dome or Cloud Forest (if you only have a few hours to spend), it is better to skip the Flower Dome, unless you reall, really like flowers. We skipped Flower Dome and went to the Cloud Forest.
The Cloud Forest was beautiful. The man-made indoor waterfalls were nice, and the plants were beautiful. You can go up to the top and slowly descend downward. The walkways give alot of photo ops both inside and of the view outside. Most importantly, it was air-conditioned ☺️.
Nighttime is probably the best time to visit Gardens By The Bay. Not only is it cooler, but much more beautiful as the trees and gardens light but. Also there is a nice glow coming from the Marina Bay Sands. The light show (with music) is scheduled at 7:45pm and 8:45pm
The OCBC SkyWay was the other attraction we went to. It is a walkway suspended between two Supertrees at 22 meters above the ground.
The Skyway gives such a beautiful view of the city and Marina Bay Sands and has to be experienced in person, and at night. The view here is much better than from the top of Marina Bay Sands.
Marina Bay Sands and Gardens by the Bay are must visits, along with Sentosa Island, if you visit Singapore. You will need to plan accordingly as you really need a full day for each of these landmarks.
Until next time, Singapore....
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