Singapore scores top marks for family adventure

Singapore’s attraction as a great destination for families has been further enhanced with the introduction of several thrilling adventure attractions.

These include the Megazip Adventure Park and Sentosa Nature Discovery Gallery on Sentosa Island, as well as the new international standard skate board park, Xtreme Skateboard @ East Coast on the main island. These latest outdoor additions highlight Singapore as a great choice for adults and children, which is further endorsed in Lonely Planet’s most recent “Travel With Children Guide,” ranking the Garden City as one of the world’s top 10 cities to visit with children - 8th in the world and top city in Asia Pacific.

Sentosa Island’s new outdoor adventure attractions appeal to visitors of all ages. New for adrenaline junkies is the exhilarating outdoor zip wire ride called the Megazip “flying fox”, the centrepiece attraction of the new Megazip Adventure Park. The ride launches from a treetop forest tower at a height of over 70 metres (equivalent to a 30 storey building), glides over the jungle canopy of Imbiah Hill and the hip and trendy Siloso Beach, and then across the bay to a small islet offshore.

Incorporating all the latest wire ride technology, the tandem facility means that younger riders can hitch a ride with Mum or Dad or be intrepid solo! It’s a truly breathtaking adventure ride over the island, and at 450 metres in length with a descent of 75 metres, is one of the longest and steepest in Asia.

The Megazip Adventure Park also offers Climbmax, a three level aerial obstacle course suspended from 15 metre timber poles. This extends around the top of Mount Impiah and includes a series of 36 fun obstacles. There is also a 15 metre high climbing wall (“The North Face”) and a power fan descender (“Para Jump”) providing a moment of freefall before a simulated parachute descent and soft landing.

More than just a thrill ride, these soft adventure attractions require effort and skill. Alexander Blyth, the former British Army officer behind the new adventure park project comments, “It’s all about having fun and is aimed at all ages. If you’re of a robust and inquisitive nature... this is the answer!”

For lovers of the great outdoors the newly opened Sentosa Nature Discovery Gallery at Imbiah Lookout is a treasure trove of information, interactive skill learning and surprises. Designed to make visitors of all ages into “nature detectives”, it provides facts and colourful exhibits and is a wonderful forum to learn about the birds, insects, natural habitats and rocks that are found on Sentosa Island.

Particularly appealing for children, the Sentosa Nature Discovery gallery is literally a living classroom; the building that houses the information gallery was the former monorail station and the old monorail track now forms the bridge between the nature gallery and Imbiah rainforest.

Already one of Asia’s leading leisure destinations and Singapore’s premier resort getaway, the 500-hectare island offers beautiful sandy beaches, lush rainforests, an exciting array of themed attractions, award-winning spa retreats, resort accommodations, world-renowned golf courses and a deep-water yachting marina, making it a vibrant and enticing destination for families. Singapore is committed to keeping 60% of the island green by actively preserving and enhancing the island’s natural environment and there are eight different nature reserve habitats on Sentosa, representing 134 species of birds and dozens more rare species of flora and fauna.

New on the main island is the Xtreme Skateboard @ East Coast, Singapore’s first international standard skate park. It occupies an area of approximately 1.4 hectares and comprises combo and vertical bowls as well as a street course. Catering to beginners and professionals, the new facility will host the Singapore Xtreme Championship on the 29 and 30 August 2009. The Xtreme Skateboard joins the already popular Cable Ski Park, where participants are pulled on water via overhead cables up to speeds of 58km per hour.

Additional family attractions in Singapore include the Jurong Bird Park which features 1,500 free-flying birds and the tallest manmade aviary waterfall; the perennially popular Singapore Zoo; the Night Safari; the Singapore Flyer and Botanic Gardens.

Opening this October is the Wave House at Siloso Beach on Sentosa Island and in 2011, the River Safari, Asia's first freshwater river-themed attraction. This S$140 million attraction aims to raise awareness of freshwater habitats, and will be located within the compound of the Singapore Zoo and the Night Safari.

Comments Divya Panickar, Area Director, North and West Europe, Singapore Tourism Board, “Our latest soft adventure activities are indicative of the fabulous range of outdoor attractions available throughout Singapore.

"We’re so much more than a city metropolis offering families the excitement of action-packed adventure activities, alongside our cultural attractions, cuisine, and warm and friendly hospitality. The Garden City is truly a destination all by itself.”