What grandma 👵 and grandchild can play together at Sentosa, Singapore

When Singapore is really close to Thailand, about 2 hrs. flight away 🛫 , a vacation for only 3 days 2 nights is easily made happen. So if you are looking for a trip abroad for little ones or elders who can't sit still on board for many hours, this country could be a perfect choice. Also this (Mer)lion city is appealing for its safety and convenient living.

Like our trip 🧳 which is consisted of my family with my mom and my friend with his mom, we, 5 adults and 2 children, took off to Singapore for only 3 days during last 12-14 Oct. after the yearly smog crisis there. (Luckily, the situation had got better, phewwww.)

We planned the duck tour 🦆 on the first day, #Sentosa island the day after and Jewel airport on the day back to Bangkok. I highly recommend Sentosa where even seniors aged more than 60 years old and children younger than 4 as my boy can have so much fun together.

You might have a question if one day at Sentosa is enough ❓❓❓. I could answer yes for a group with grannies and grandkids like ours, however, we can do lots of activities as much as Sentosa can offer from day to night. We went there on Sun(ny)day. Amazingly, it wasn't crowded as we thought. We took a cable car 🚠, played in Universal Studios Singapore (USS), visited S.E.A Aquarium and enjoyed Wings of Time show. You can see here and save our Sentosa day schedule in your mobile phone;

However, we bought these activities as a bundle at cheaper price at Terminal 2 of Changi airport since arrival, at the same counter of a limousine from the airport to hotel. Actually, there're another three ways to Sentosa island apart of a cable car which are Sentosa Express (monorail) 🚝, taxi 🚕, and on foot 🚶‍♂️ by Sentosa boardwalk. We chose the cable car for a skypass experience and on the island, we have to use a free monorail as the main transport anyway. Let me suggest, you can buy only one-way ticket from Harbourfront Tower II to Sentosa and use the free monorail back to the city to save your budget even though the round trip ticket entitles you to Mount Faber peak (by Mount Faber Line) which, for me, is not in use due to lack of time.

Price details show the discounts for the aquarium and Wings of Time when buy them as a bundle package.

Cable car takes 15 minutes from the city to Sentosa island.

Let me pass you to S.E.A Aquarium before USS review about the best happy rides for the elders and kids. Upon my schedule, from USS, you can walk to the aquarium and spend one and a half hours there or less is possible too so you can prolong your fun in USS. My group took less than an hour to walk around and say hello to sharks🦈, Manta rays, Moray eel, coral reefs, etc. But if you want special experiences at extra costs like shark encounter (for 12 years old up) or walking in a giant fish tank (for 15 years old up), then plan to visit here by 5 pm (check activities timetable)

We couldn't help visiting USS on Sunday when it's expected to be crowded. However, we went there and noticed that there're not too many people so we didn't buy an add-on express pass at the entrance and the longest waiting time wasn't more than 15-20 minutes at the famous rides. That's not bad, isn't it? For the parent with a baby 👶 or a toddler, there's a child swap program allowing one of you to watch over the child while the other waits, rides and then swap places so that both of you can enjoy the ride. Ask for it to the attendants standing in front of each ride, they will assist you.

Imagine the layout of USS as a donut 🍩 on a stick. (download the park map online) The “stick” is where you enter the park. Called Hollywood, this zone is a tribute to Universal Studio’s Hollywood’s lineage where you will find a cluster of shops, eateries and park services. Once you are past the “stick”, the “donut” is a loop where the themed lands or zones are laid out.

The hole of the donut is Hollywood Lake which you can’t pass through. You have to head left or right to get to the different Park zones. We started going left as it is a bit more kiddy-oriented which heading right is more urban and with bigger thrills. However, there's a common tip to go right away to your hit-list and cover them first. This is a better strategy than trying to take every ride you come across in the park sequentially – which can end up draining your energy and time as most visitors do 🥴. Therefore, we headed left but we didn't take every ride/show.

Although there're additional height requirements at some rides (If your child is higher than 125 cm, no problem at all.), my 105-cm-girl and 95-cm-boy can take many exciting rides. And here're those rides my kids and their grannies 👵 have so much fun with that it could be once in their lifetime, even the thrill seekers mark them as the favorite ones;

Far Far Away Zone 🏰

1. Enchanted Airways. We skipped the first Madagascar zone which is more exciting for toddlers higher than 80 cm. to this junior roller coaster for a child higher than 92 cm. Hop on board with Dragon 🐲 and swoosh around the rails. I could say that it's not that junior level as you think.

2. Shrek 4-D Adventure. The must-see show. Shrek & Fiona will lead you through a fairytale adventure. You can FEEL the same action as them right from your seat! BTW, some seats at some rows don't well rock 😅.

The Lost World zone 🦖 (opens at 11 am)

3. Canopy Flyer. One minute ride for adventurer over 92 cm. tall. Enjoy a prehistoric bird's-eye view as you soar over Jurassic Park 🌋.

Grannies said loud scream can help reducing the fear.

4. Water World. A show in a stadium which is big enough for a thousand to fit in so no need to keep standing and waiting for the gate to open. Normally show at 12.30 pm, all death-defying stunts and awesome explosions will make you hold your breath. Caution: the explosions are so loud 💥 and the baby stroller is not allowed inside as it isn't recommended for the baby and toddlers.

live water show

We missed a famous Jurassic Park Rapids Adventure in this zone as some reviews say it's a bit boring. Anyway, you might find it cool. Bring along a poncho to not get wet while rafting through primeval dinosaur 🦖 habitats.

Ancient Egypt zone 🕷🕸

5. Treasure Hunter. Grannies and grandchildren can take a rest on a desert jeep running through an abandoned Egyptian excavation site ⚰.

The jeep slowly runs itself along the track.

6. Revenge of the Mummy. Kids below 122 cm tall are not allowed so we let grannies scream alone inside. Plunge into total darkness on this indoor roller coaster as you come face to face with warrior mummies and scarab beetles. This ride is high-speed including sudden motions, pls make sure your seniors are physically and mentally strong enough. When they came out of the ride, they confirmed how scary and heart-pumping it was🤣.

Normally there's a long waiting line but sometimes they close for the system check for a while.

Sci-Fi City zone 🎢

7.TRANSFORMERS The Ride : The Ultimate 3D Battle. Mark this ride ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ and shouldn't miss. So sorry for my boy below 102 cm tall and happy for my girl that she can join OPTIMUS PRIME and the AUTOBOTS as you become a freedom fighter in the ultimate 3D battle against the forces of evil.

Actually, the highlight of this zone is Battlestar Galactica, HUMAN and CYLON, two roller coasters over 14 storeys. If your child is over 125 cm tall, either HUMAN, traditional one on the red track or CYLON with 5 inversions on the grey rail should be tried.

New York zone 🎭

8. Sesame Street Spaghetti Space Chase. This ride is sooooooo cute🥰 and very family-friendly. You go on a space mission with Elmo and Super Grover 2.0. All light, sound and motions in the space are full of imagination and can steal everyone's heart.

7 hours spent in USS, my boy took a 2-hr-nap in a stroller with a detachable portable air purifier while others were enjoying those rides. Then we moved to S.E.A and rushed to have dinner before Wings of Time show at 8.40 pm. However, if S.E.A seems too ordinary for your family, I suggest you skip it and go straight to the show area where Luge car is located nearby and try it!!! This activity was one of our regret for this trip😥.

As Singapore is very well-known for the creativity of 3D water projections, also 30-min.Wings of Time night show set in an open sea is packed with imaginative lasers, sound, and fireworks display 🎆, you shouldn't deny when the seller encourages you to add this program in your Sentosa day and believe me Singapore trip will be much more memorable.

Before the end of one-day at Sentosa, luckily, we had this opportunity to say goodbye to the tallest Merlion which would be closed for the demolishment a week later. As part of its farewell, they hosted a special edition of the Sentosa Merlion Magic Lights show. We recorded some parts of it before it becomes a legend.

P.S. I found that a family trip is much more easier to manage when you have a good friend going along and helping solving problems happening on the way. Thank you my friend and his mom who also inspires my mom's strength to beat every fear in every ride at USS 🧡 .