If you've not traveled much internationally, I can think of no better "first taste" of Asia than a visit to Singapore. The world's best airport welcomes you to this island nation, nestled between Malaysia and Indonesia. A former British colony (I know, that doesn't exactly narrow things down on this planet), Singapore is the Epcot World Showcase of the Pacific Rim. And it's home to an actual world-class theme park, too.
But before we get to that, a few words about the rest of the country. About half the size of London, Singapore offers plenty for tourists, from its zoo and world-famous Night Safari to its hawker centres that serve tastes from the multiple cultures that met and blended within this commercial hub. You can get an overview of the city from the Singapore Flyer observation wheel on Marina Bay or explore it up close by visiting its many gardens.
For theme park fans, though, your top destination will be Resorts World Sentosa, on the island of the same name off the south coast of the main island. This integrated resort includes multiple hotels, museums, restaurants, a water park, and one of the top-10 highest grossing casinos in the world. And, oh yeah, our destination on this stop of our worldwide Virtual Theme Park Trip, Universal Studios Singapore.
At just 49 acres, this is Universal's smallest theme park, but it is packed. Take a walk around and look for yourself.
You'll find many familiar Universal attractions here, including the original installation of Transformers: The Ride, the best (and darkest) version of Revenge of the Mummy, a Jurassic Park ride with "river rapids"-style boats, and an installation of Shrek 4-D in the Far, Far Away fairy tale castle. So we will focus on some of the attractions you won't find in any other Universal Studios theme park, starting with Sesame Street Spaghetti Space Chase. (Yes, Universal has the Sesame Street theme park rights in Asia.)
The most recognizable icon on USS's central lagoon is likely the intertwined tracks of the two Battlestar Galactica coasters from Vekoma, the sit-down Human...
... and the inverted Cylon.
Across the lagoon in the Shrek-themed Far Far Away land, a Vekoma Junior, Enchanted Airways, offers some nice views of that land as well as the rest of the park.
Deeper in that land, you will find the Zamperla inverted "story coaster," Puss in Boots' Giant Journey.
But let's pour one out for Universal Studios Singapore's indoor water ride - being removed to make way for Minion Mayhem - Madagascar: A Crate Adventure.
I visited Universal Studios Singapore IRL back when Transformers opened and I've been longing to return. Out international ticketing partner has discounted tickets to Universal Studios and many other Singapore attractions, if you'd like to plan a visit, too.
Theme Park Insider's Virtual Roadtrip:
When I was flying to Oz in Singapore airlines, the safety video (which has my vote for best in class) has people demonstrating the video in non-plane contexts.
When it came to the life jacket they demonstrated it in a water park, but I don’t remember the name. Anyone know the name and if it’s worth a visit?
And yes, Singapore Airport is the worlds best. Butterfly garden, free cinema, ample seating, easy to avoid the mall part if you’d rather watch panes, indoor rainforest....
A big +1 to this. Gardens by the Bay is one of my favourite tourist attractions I've visited anywhere in the world, and everything else mentioned is well worth a visit. We took some very easy day trips to the islands around Singapore too, and did some incredible hikes and bike rides.
I have to admit being disappointed by the Night Safari, though. The built attraction is nicely designed, but the enclosures were far too small for many of the animals there - they looked unhappy, and in a few cases genuinely distressed. It's not somewhere I'd want to go back to.
Universal is indeed excellent. For my money, the Jurassic Park rapids ride is better than any other more conventional flume-style versions Universal have built elsewhere. The T-Rex jump gets the kind of shock that the others fail to pull off, giving it a more effective climax.
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I got the pleasure of visiting Singapore this past August. It has a wonderful night life riverwalk area in Clarke Quay and the SEA aquarium on Sentosa is legit too, along with the other cool stuff mentioned here.
The Universal park is a winner! The Jurassic Park rapids ride is the best "river raft" ride in the world. The Sesame street ride is also one of the better themed family rides anywhere too. Puss in Boots is also a fun ride packed into a small area. I also remember the service being real friendly too. Good times. I combined a visit to Singapore and Hong Kong last summer and definitely worth the trip!