Public parks are great places to relax, hang out and breathe in the fresh air. The thing is, there are so many parks around Singapore and some of them are great while some of them are not really that interesting. If you want to head to a Singapore public park and want to know which ones are worth checking out, this article will help you by counting down the 6 best public parks in Singapore. Some of the public parks featured in this article include things like shelters, play areas, the various types of plants and trees, beautiful views surrounding the park along with other unique features. Scroll down or click Read More to see the full list.
6. Gardens By The Bay East
Gardens By The Bay East is an awesome public park simply because of three things. Beautifully-designed visitor centre, the various types of plants and trees available and stunning views of the Marina Bay area. It's a great peaceful park with very few people and even if there are people here, they will all be enjoying the various facilities around the park. I came here on a Saturday in September and while I was there, many people were enjoying themselves. Some of them took photos of the city skyline, a group of children can be seen cycling, I could also see some joggers enjoying their jog here along with a group of friends having a picnic under the beautiful sun.
Although the park is located in a rather inconvenient place, it is still worth going here mainly because of the three things that I mentioned earlier on. Other than those three factors, Gardens By The Bay East also has these 'sections' showcasing various plants and plantations. This public park is certainly worth visiting on a Saturday morning or afternoon. Also, you can check out the main part of Gardens By The Bay which I will touch on a little bit later. If you want to see a full write-up of this public park, click here to check it out.
5. Gardens By The Bay
Remember the main part of Gardens By The Bay that I mentioned earlier? This is the one that I was talking about. Gardens By The Bay South also known as the main Gardens By The Bay, is the biggest out of all the three Gardens. Unlike its eastern sibling, Gardens By The Bay is conveniently located with an MRT station near the iconic Marina Bay Sands hotel. Very soon, an MRT station will be located right inside the Gardens itself. There are so many things to talk about here at the main Gardens By The Bay. A lot of tourists and locals can be found exploring this beautiful public park that was recently opened in June 2012. Here are some reasons why Gardens By The Bay is one of the best public parks in Singapore. There are so many great amenities you can find at Gardens By The Bay such as the SuperTrees, the OCBC Skyway, the OCBC Light and Sound Show, the Heritage Gardens, Satay By The Bay and so much more.
SuperTrees (shown in the picture above), are actually tall man made structures made to look like trees. They have a pretty unique shape and real plantations can be seen on the sides of the structure. One of them has a restaurant right on the inside of the man made tree. Very cool isn't it? There is even a link bridge connecting one SuperTree to another SuperTree called the OCBC Skyway. For S$5, you can have an up close and personal view of all the SuperTrees. Each night at around 7.45pm, there is even a light and sound show. As of this writing, I have not seen the light and sound show but I heard it was very awesome due to the beautiful lights and music playing during the show. Heritage Gardens are also great because you can see the plants that various races in Singapore used along with some history and culture. Satay By The Bay on the other hand, is an open air food court selling various kinds of local food like the ever popular Satay also known as barbecued skewered meats. Gardens By The Bay is a great place to visit anytime of the week and you can read the full article on Gardens By The Bay right over here.
4. Singapore Botanic Gardens
Singapore Botanic Gardens is one of Singapore's oldest public parks and it's conveniently located since it's a stone's throw away from Orchard Road, a popular shopping district. It even has its own MRT station. What I like about the Singapore Botanic Gardens is that it has a character and charm of its own. You get to see a wide array of beautiful plants, trees along with other facilities and amenities like restaurants, Symphony Lake, Rainforest and so much more. Everyone enjoys coming here especially tourists and locals. There are so many things to do here and a lot of things to explore so here are some activities that I truly recommend you to do while you are here at the Singapore Botanic Gardens.
The Rainforest at the Singapore Botanic Gardens is the only forest left in Singapore's city centre. You don't really have to worry about entering the forest and getting lost in it because it has a pathway so all you have to do is to just follow the pathway and you are on the right track. Just like a typical forest, there will be a lot of thick plantations, giant trees and big roots of trees sticking out of the ground not to mention the high amounts of insects found here. Despite all that, it's still a great place to explore for adventurous people. If you are not so adventurous, maybe you can relax at the Symphony Lake. At the Symphony Lake, you can have picnics with friends or family or play a friendly game of frisbee. On certain weekends, there will be free performances at the stage so you can enjoy listening to great music. Also, don't forget to check out the tree found on Singapore's S$5 note along with the Swan Lake and the Bandstand. More information about the Singapore Botanic Gardens can be found right over here.
3. Sengkang Riverside Park
Apart from the public parks located in Singapore's city centre, there are also great public parks that are worth checking out in Singapore's neighbourhoods. Sengkang Riverside Park is a great example. The Sengkang Riverside Park is one of the most peaceful public parks I have been to and there are just so many things to check out right here. It's located quite far away from the hustle and bustle of Sengkang's town centre which is what makes it more peaceful. Unlike the public parks that I have mentioned earlier, Sengkang Riverside Park is only accessible via the Sengkang LRT Line which is much faster than simply taking a public bus. Here are some reasons why you should visit this particular public park.
There is a wetland located near the park also known as Sengkang Floating Island whereby you can look at various kinds of plants floating on the water up close by walking along a bridge. These greenery give Sengkang Riverside Park a great look. Not only that, the floating island also has unique street furniture in the shapes of giant half oranges and a gigantic mangosteen. Children will definitely love the colourful and unique street furniture. Apart from that, there are also unique looking shelters along Sengkang Riverside Park and it's also a great place for kite flying enthusiasts and joggers thanks to the big open field and generous jogging tracks. Sengkang Riverside Park is a great public park for everyone especially Sengkang residents. I have already written a full write-up on the public park which you can read right over here.
2. Bishan - Ang Mo Kio Park
Another great public park located in a Singapore neighbourhood is Bishan - Ang Mo Kio Park. Formerly known as Bishan Park, this park is one of the biggest neighbourhood parks in Singapore. The park stretches from Bishan Road all the way to Upper Thomson Road, which according to Google Maps, is a pretty long distance. Nonetheless, I didn't really feel tired thanks to all the great park amenities that can be found at Bishan - Ang Mo Kio Park. This public park did actually underwent an overhaul. It was closed in 2009 and they started adding new things to the park like a meandering river which is also known as Kallang River@Bishan - Ang Mo Kio Park. Here are some other reasons to why this public park claims the number 2 spot in this list.
It's located right in between the estates of Bishan and Ang Mo Kio and this park is often frequented by residents that live near the area. As you can see from the photo above, lush greenery can be found almost everywhere. A fitness corner, jogging tracks and a children's playground are also included in the public park just like typical public parks. However, what's unique about Bishan - Ang Mo Kio Park is not only the meandering river, but also other things like unique chairs that remind me of beach chairs, a mini water park, a very curvy pavement and the fact that you can actually cross the meandering river without using any of the bridges. The addition of some restaurants also make it an ideal place for families to hang out together. Bishan - Ang Mo Kio Park is truly the most happening public park in Singapore and it's no wonder it belongs in the second position of this list. Oh and a full write up of Bishan - Ang Mo Kio Park will be coming soon so you can immerse yourself with more photos of this totally happening public park very soon.
And the best public park in Singapore is...
1. The Southern Ridges
There is however, a metal bridge that is built above the forest so you don't really have to walk along the Earth that may be filled with lots of plants and tree roots. So you can actually get up close and personal with nature even if you walk with sandals which may get dirty if you walk on the ground. Visitors can walk on the ground if they are willing to by using any of the provided staircases. Other than that, you can also walk along Singapore's tallest pedestrian bridge known as Henderson Waves which is of course, a pedestrian bridge with a unique wooden shape. Unlike regular pedestrian bridges, you can actually sit down and maybe have a picnic while enjoying the great view from above. I am not going to waste your time by describing every detail of The Southern Ridges over here so you can head there and check out the place yourself. Bring your friends or family along and I can assure that you will have fun exploring the Southern Ridges. Don't forget your walking shoes also because you may get tired after walking long distances. More details on the Southern Ridges can be found right here in this article.
Final Thoughts
And there you have it, a list of the 6 best public parks you can find in Singapore. Number six belongs to the short but great Gardens By The Bay East and number one belongs to the Southern Ridges, a massive public park with a combination of three smaller public parks and eight different walking trails. Of course, this list is based on my opinion so your choice of the best public parks in Singapore may be different. On the other hand, if you want to get yourself up close with nature and want to see the great public parks in Singapore, you can use this list as a reference. If you want more details of the public parks in this list, I have already written full articles on each of them (except for Bishan - Ang Mo Kio Park in which I will have a full write-up coming soon) right here on Frenzeelo. If you know there are other great public parks in Singapore, do tell me what they are in the comments section. If you have any other ideas or suggestions for future ZeeloTips articles, email me or tell me in the comments section. Thanks for reading this article and don't forget to regularly check out Singapore's public parks because they are great places to relax and they are great stress relievers.
ZeeloTips is a monthly article series whereby I talk about how to make your stay in Singapore a fun one. You can check out previous and future ZeeloTips articles in the ZeeloTips label. If you want to know how to get to these public parks, you can look up the full articles of these places right here on Frenzeelo.
