Right after our visitation in Singapore Zoo last July 2017, I am looking forward to exploring River Safari Singapore. And we finally went back to explore this place with the complimentary tickets given to my wife by the Corporates from Singapore Zoo.
According to some sources, this place is the first and only River Theme Wildlife Park in Asia. The area is huge and there are a lot of activities inside this park.
The entrance of River Safari was amazing. Upon entering this place, it gives me the feeling as if I am entering a new world. The River Wonders section is fantastic. I saw immediately their different types of fishes especially their African Tiger Fish (piranha). Their teeth were really sharp.
Our journey to this section directs us to their Mississippi River gallery area of which I saw their Alligator Snapping Turtle. They also have their alligator gar that is believed to be existing for over a million years. The African Dwarf Crocodile was also cute but dangerous. The crocodile is really small compared to an ordinary crocodile that we normally watch in a national geographic show.
One of the most intriguing species in this exploration was their Giant Puffer Fish. My son loved it. This fish is considered to be the largest freshwater puffer and known as the “mbu” which means rock in some African dialects.
As we explored this beautiful place, I also discovered that Mekong River is known as the 7th Longest River in Asia. It is also the most productive river in the world as it can produce up to 2.5 million tonnes of fish a year.
As a first time guest in this River Safari, the experience was really overwhelming. Prepare yourself to see a lot of fishes from different parts of the world from different angles. Their Chinese Giant Salamander is very rare, unfortunately, the fish was hiding during that time.
My wife and son also liked the close up of the Lesser Adjutant Stork. It is a bird with a long white sharp beak.
I also had the chance to see their polar bear while swimming inside cold water. He is so big.
Aside from fishes, you can also see their endangered cute Red Panda. He was friendly and he was not afraid of the guests. We also had the chance to see the famous Giant Panda Kai Kai and Jia Jia. The last viewing of them was only at 6PM.
We also experience their Rivers Safari Cruise. This experience was very relaxing since after having a long day of walking looking at their animals and fishes, this ride allows us to discover the river side of River Safari for about 15 to 20 minutes. My son slept during this adventure. By the way, the last cruise was always at 6PM only.
We also went to their Amazon Flooded Forest. We saw their Giant River Otter named “Carlos:, fresh water stingrays, electric eel, red-bellied piranhas, their famous Manatee named “Canola”, their giant arapaima, Pacu and lot more. This adventure was amazing as it is aircon inside.
Overall, this place was amazing. My son loved it.
How to get here from Malaysia:
By Train:
We took the KTM train from Johor Bahru to Malaysia. It was only about 5 minutes train ride to stop at Woodlands. From Woodland Train Station (Woodland Town Garden), we took SMRT bus no. 170 to go to After Mandai Rd ( Stop ID: 46091). From there, we went to the other road and took SMRT 927 bus to go straight to Singapore Zoo. It was very easy. Public transport in Singapore is very straightforward. It cost us about SGD3.40 per person for the bus fare (both ride at the SMRT no.170 & 927).
When going back to Woodland Train Station, take SMRT Bus No. 927 from Singapore Zoo to go to After Mandai Rd and go the other side of the road. From the other road, take the SMRT Bus No. 197 and take a stop at the Woodlands Train Check Point (Stop Id 45071). The fare rate will still be the same (SGD 3.40).
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Note: This article was published in another site of the writer on October 11, 2017.