Yay or Nay to Singapore's Night Safari?

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Marketed as the only wildlife park that operates till midnight, I'm always curious and excited to visit the Night Safari in Singapore. A simple google search online will reveal a series of mixed reviews. Therefore, it makes me even curious if its worth spending SGD$45 (adult ticket) to visit this place. Read to the end to find out if its a Yay or a Nay to visit Night Safari!


During our latest visit to Night Safari, it happened to be in conjunction with Twilight Encounters, a series of performances and parades by Night Safari. On top of that, we also get to meet Chawang. Chawang is this majestic Asian bull elephant residing in the Safari. He is also the new icon of Night Safari so you can spot him in all their publicity materials.


Entering Night Safari

There are 2 ways to get around the different parts of Night Safari. One is by the tram and the other is by walking the specific routes. The trams are the same ones which are used at the Singapore Zoo. However, as you will be in super close proximity with the animals, it is important for you to not use any flash lights or attempt to feed the animals. Oh and keep those selfie sticks inside the tram!


Just be warned that you would find yourself spending a long time queueing during the first 2 opening hours... even if you have pre-booked tram tickets. 


Inside Night Safari

Taking photos inside Night Safari is the toughest thing to do, especially when it's almost pitch black inside. The low light makes the spotting of some animals tough but just pay close attention and you may spot them. It came to a point whereby we ditch our cameras aside to just enjoy the time in the safari.




Meet and Greet Chawang And His Family!

We are really exhilarated to have an upclose experience with Chawang and learn more about elephants. I am appalled that elephants in Southeast Asia face the danger of extinction not because of poaching for its tusks, but more so because of loss of their natural habitats and habitat destruction. So thankful to learn about the efforts which Wildlife Reserves are putting into conservation!







Here's Chawang's favourite wife, Sri Nandong and his latest new born, Neha and his other wives, Jamilah and Tun. Neha is one active little elephant who squeals and runs around the area with excitment. 




Highlights of Twilight Encouters:

We'll start with Twilight Encounters. It is publicized as 2 components: (1) the animal character parade that allows you an upclose experience with the mascots and (2) an Illumi-light show.

Catch the pawsome animal parade at the Entrance Courtyard at 6.45pm and 7.45pm every Friday and Saturday (from now until 10 December 16) ! The parade is basically music and dance for character mascots, which disappoints me. But I could see that the little children around me were totally engrossed in the performance and enjoying photo taking with the "animals".




Moving on to the light show, we see 3 performers dancing around with props made of LED light. The LED lights would create different patterns while being swirled around. It's my first time seeing this. But to be honest, I was not really impressed. Maybe it is not my kind of performance.

Catch the light show at the Entrance Courtyard at 7pm and 8pm.


Buffet at Ulu Ulu Safari Restaurant


Buffet at the Safari sounds like a great plan to have dinner if you are waiting to enter Singapore Zoo from Night Safari, right?\ But we found the food to be only okay. It also had very limited seafood dishes, no sashimi and limited cold cuts. The only solace is that the chefs will top up the food promptly. From the dining crowd, it looks packed with tourists from various tour groups.

Marked at SGD$45 per adult and SGD$34 per child (6 years old and above), I think the buffet is definitely worth giving it a miss. You can get better selections at other hotel buffets with that same price. 

Here's sharing some of our honest thoughts as a visitor to Night Safari!

Why its a big YAY?

  • You are getting a  upclose experience with most of the animals, so much closer than the zoo. At some point, I was even thinking is it safe to be of such close proximity. But yes, it is safe!
  • You are like a safari hunter going around in the dark, spotting the animals in their natural state. 
  • Because there is this element of darkness, the park feels extraordinary mysterious and we look foward to exploring what's ahead of us.
  • It is a great place for us, especially the younger ones, to learn about animal extinction and animal endangerment. It makes good reminder that the animals in their natural habitats are facing so many threats that are endangering their livelihood and how we could prevent the destruction from worsening!
  • As a traveller, I will appreciate places that operate till midnight, especially I don have that many days in Singapore. Instead of wasting my day time, I can maximize my day time on exploring other areas of the city and spending the night with the animals.
  • The weather in Singapore is so HOT! But by night time, we only experienced gentle breezes which makes it really cooling to enjoy the visit.

Why its a Nay, especially if you plan to visit it on the same day as the Singapore Zoo?

  • It would be tiring after a long day at the zoo. #howtostayawaketillmidnight 
  • There might be a high chance of disappointment because most of the animals residing in the Night Safari also resides in the zoo. Nothing super special if we see them all in a day.
  • You are wasting unnecessary time queuing to board the tram, despite having a tram ticket with pre-allocated time slot. It will be better if you visit the park after 9.30pm, when most of the crowd would have left.
  • You would be swamped by lots of tour groups. Many tour groups arrived at Night Safari at about 5.30pm, when the restaurants and eateries are open. By 7.15pm, which is the official opening hours, most of them are already in the queue for the tram. #nokidding 
  • If you have night blindness, you probably will not enjoy because most of the animals are located in almost pitch dark areas. It might be difficult to spot them at all.
  • If you can't stay up past 10pm, you will doze off on the tram because it's so quiet! #truefact

In overall, it's a Yay for me. I love animals and this concept to seeing them in their natural state is pretty special. I also agree with the pricing of the tickets as it is difficult to maintain manpower costs when they work till midnight. I want to disclaim that the best time to go will be from about 9pm onwards so it cuts down on time wasted on just queueing. 



Instagram Contest Happening Now!


For now, Twilight Encounters is still happening every Friday and Saturday till 10 December. You can look out for the interesting light shows, animal characters parade show and animal light sculptures. If not, come here to have a different experience with the resident animals. Grab your tickets at Wildlife Reserves Singapore now!

For those who have visited Twilight Encounters, remember to upload your beautiful photos on Instagram and hashtag #TwilightEncounters! Stand a chance to win an upclose experience with the elephants at a Premium Safari Adventurer tour for 2, worth $400. Contest ends on 10 December 2016!



Note: Information are accurate as of 2016 and may be subjected to changes within the country. All photos are credited to Mr and Mrs OOPS. Follow @mrandmrsoops and @djoops on Instagram for more instant updates. Not sponsored or affiliated.
This visit to Night Safari was made possible with @InstaSG and Wildlife Reserves Singapore.

 We're loving it,
Mr and Mrs OOPS

Comments

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