Gardens by the Bay Singapore: A Half Day Between the Yellow Pumpkin Truck and the Waterfall Mountain

Gardens by the Bay on Marina Gardens Drive is always a "place where I miscalculate time." I go in thinking two hours will be enough, but I end up spending four. This visit was no d…

มารีนา สวน ไดรฟ์ · Gardens by the Bay

Gardens by the Bay on Marina Gardens Drive is always a "place where I miscalculate time." I go in thinking two hours will be enough, but I end up spending four. This visit was no different. I went with my child and entered the Flower Dome first—outside, the humidity made my shirt stick to my back, but the moment I passed through the glass doors, goosebumps rose on my arms. The dome is definitely cool. If you stay long in just a short-sleeved shirt, my child says it gets cold. In fact, halfway through the Cloud Forest, my child actually pulled out a thin windbreaker.

Flower Dome — Pumpkins Had Taken Over the Exhibition That Season

When I visited, Flower Field had an autumn harvest theme. As soon as I entered, beside the palm trunk stood an enormous orange pumpkin sculpture—about twice my child's height—with its mouth gaping open, and on the back wall vegetable bas-reliefs of garlic, tomatoes, and eggplants lined the surface. Children don't just pass through here. They get stuck.

A large orange pumpkin sculpture beside the palm trunk in the Flower Dome with vegetable bas-relief decorations on the wall
A gaping pumpkin sculpture under the glass roof. The perfect place to lose a child's hand.

The exhibition area is enclosed by wooden railings in a circular path with a vantage point looking down. Leaning against the railing gives you a complete view of the vegetable wall, pyramidal false cypress, and piles of watermelons and peaches in one frame. It's a popular spot for photos, but the crowds thin out quickly if you step just a little to the side.

An adult holding a child in front of the wooden railing, with the vegetable wall and pumpkin sculptures visible behind in the Flower Dome exhibition area
The railing all the way around serves as the exhibition viewing route. On the side, some families were lifting their children onto the railing to show them the displays.

On the opposite side of the railing, you can see the sea and buildings outside the glass wall. The composition where the palm stems, glass grid, and horizon overlap is the most Singapore-like scene I felt in this dome. Thanks to the air conditioning, I stood there and caught my breath for a while.

An adult and child sitting in front of the Flower Dome railing, with palm trees and the sea beyond the glass wall in the background
The spot where you can see the sea beyond the glass. Everyone rests here because the dome is so refreshing.

The Yellow Pickup Truck, Star of This Exhibition

Going down the stairs below, there's an old yellow pickup truck loaded with pumpkins in its bed. It's full-size. Pumpkins spill over the sides and scatter across the floor, with yellow and purple chrysanthemums filling the gaps. There are so many varieties of pumpkins that I spent a long time looking them over. It's not just smooth orange pumpkins—there are bumpy ones, slate-colored ones, white ones, and ones with green stripes mixed in.

A yellow vintage pickup truck loaded with pumpkins and yellow chrysanthemums in its bed, with various pumpkins scattered on the floor
The yellow truck. It's positioned beside the stairs inside the exhibition area, so you can see it from both above and below.

The low steps right next to the truck are perfect for sitting. We sat there for a bit and rested, and from a seated eye level, the pumpkins press right up to your face, making for much more interesting photos. The flowerbeds behind have flowers like calla lilies and daffodils planted, so the background isn't boring.

An adult and child sitting on low steps next to the pumpkin pile, with calla lilies and various colored flowers blooming in the flowerbed behind
When you sit on the steps, the pumpkins come to eye level. The trick is to sit before the crowds arrive.

A Giant Made of Fruit and Vegetables

In the center of the exhibition sits a massive figure wearing a straw hat. Its face is made of apples and corn, its beard of leeks and Chinese cabbage, with a necklace of persimmons and peaches around its neck. It holds a watermelon under each arm and banana bunches in its hands. A large pumpkin sits in front of its knees. It has the feel of an Arcimboldo painting rendered in three dimensions, but in person it's much larger than you'd expect. Viewed from the side, you can see the peaches stacked in layers, making the side view more interesting than the front.

A giant figure made of fruit and vegetables viewed from the side, with peaches and grapes stacked in layers and a pumpkin wall stacked on the left
The side view. The pumpkin wall on the left is made by stacking real pumpkins in layers.
The giant figure wearing a straw hat viewed from the front, with a face made of fruit and a beard made of vegetables, with the Marina Bay Sands building visible beyond the glass roof
The front view. The Marina Bay Sands building is visible through the glass on the right.

The Halloween Corner Outside the Dome — Children's Reactions Vary

ยื่นบัตรขาเข้า (SGAC)

When you exit toward the Flower Field Hall, the atmosphere completely changes. A tower of five jack-o'-lanterns stacked on top of each other, a scarecrow draped in rags, and pumpkins with eyeballs and clown faces painted on them are scattered across a woodchip flowerbed. There's a "Please Do Not Touch" sign posted, so watch your child's hands. My child ran around excitedly, while a child in a nearby stroller slept soundly through all the commotion.

A tower of five stacked jack-o'-lanterns and a scarecrow in rags, with various painted pumpkins scattered on the ground and a child sleeping in a stroller
The jack-o'-lantern tower and scarecrow. There's a sign in front saying not to touch.

A bit further on is a photo spot with a coffin with its lid broken open and a hand sticking out, a tombstone engraved "BILLY THE KID," a shovel, and a raven. The top of the coffin is open so you can put your face in for a photo. If your child is easily scared, it's best to move quickly through this area. I actually saw a couple of children cry here.

A tombstone engraved BILLY THE KID and a coffin with a hand sticking out, with a raven perched on top creating a Halloween photo spot
The coffin photo spot where you put your face in. The tombstone is engraved with BILLY THE KID.

Location and Route — Which Entrance You Choose Determines Your Half-Day Visit

Gardens by the Bay, when viewed on a map, is on the east side of Marina Bay, right behind Marina Bay Sands. From MRT Bayfront Station, you can follow the underground passageway, which is much better than walking on the surface. If you walk on the surface during the day, you'll be drenched in sweat before you even arrive. However, from the station to the domes' entrances is quite a walk following the signs, so if you're with a stroller or children, it's good to allow extra time.

I'd recommend visiting the Cloud Forest first and the Flower Dome second. The Cloud Forest has a structure where you take an elevator to the top and walk down, so it requires more physical effort. Ticket prices and operating hours change by season, so it's safer to check the venue or official information.

Cloud Forest — The Sound of Falling Water Comes First

As soon as you open the door, you're hit by the sound of falling water and cool mist on your face. From a 35-meter-high green mountain, a waterfall cascades down in multiple streams. Looking up from below, you can see ferns and red flowers layered across the mountain's surface. Waterdrops splatter on lenses, so it's good to bring a cloth if you're using a camera.

A massive waterfall cascading down in multiple streams from an artificial indoor mountain in the Cloud Forest, with ferns and red flowers covering the mountain surface
The indoor waterfall visible right from the entrance. The mist hits you directly if you stand below.

Taking the elevator to the top, the plaza below comes into full view. You can see the outside road and even the lane markings beyond the glass roof, a contrast that reveals the nature of this greenhouse. People become mere dots.

The plaza below as seen from the upper level of the Cloud Forest with fern forest, a falling waterfall on the right and red anthuriums
Looking down at the plaza from above. You can see the outside road beyond the glass.

The most impressive feature is the suspended walkway that wraps around the mountain. Thin steel bridges hang in mid-air, with the sea and ships docked in the harbor visible beyond. There's a gridded floor section where you can see straight down, so if you have a fear of heights, you can walk on the central steel plate instead. When there are many people, you can feel the bridge sway slightly.

Visitors walking on the suspended walkway of the Cloud Forest with red flowers blooming on the green wall on the left and the sea and ships visible beyond the glass
The suspended walkway wrapping around the mountain. The harbor and ships are visible beyond the glass.
A child in an orange windbreaker standing in the middle of the Cloud Forest suspended walkway with other visitors leaning against the railing behind
The dome's air conditioning was strong, so I put a windbreaker on my child. It was definitely needed here.

Looking down from the railing of the walkway, the fern forest, gray walking paths, and puddles between them unfold like a map. People walking on the bridges extending to the left and people walking on the paths below appear in the same frame. This angle only appears from the upper level.

Looking almost vertically down from the top of the Cloud Forest at the suspended walkway and fern forest with people walking on the gray path
Looking almost straight down. People become like dots.

Halfway down the descent, looking up at the mountain from below the walkway, you can see how the walkway curves dramatically around the green mass. The wall is densely packed with epiphytes like bromeliads and begonias, and it still amazes me every time that all of this was planted by hand.

Looking up at the artificial mountain of the Cloud Forest with the suspended walkway wrapping around it, covered with epiphytes
The structure of the walkway wrapping around the mountain. All the plants on the wall were planted by hand.
A child in an orange windbreaker standing on the bridge with a green plant wall as the background, with other visitors passing by
The middle of this bridge with the green wall as the foreground is the best background for portraits.

Don't Miss the Restroom Entrance

After coming down to the lower level and looking for the restroom, I discovered something unexpected. On a wall carved like an entire tree root is an enormous beast's face, and its open mouth is the passageway entrance. The restroom sign is posted inside, so at first I wasn't sure if we should enter. My child had the most fun playing here—not at the exhibitions, but on the way to the restroom.

A passageway entrance carved in the shape of a beast's mouth with tree roots, with a child standing in front with arms spread, and a restroom sign visible inside
The beast's mouth-shaped passageway. The restroom sign is posted inside.

Next Time I'll Do This

There were some drawbacks. During busy times, the suspended walkway becomes a line where you can barely move forward, and you have to check over your shoulder to take a photo. The queue for photo spots in front of the sculptures is also long. Coming early in the morning or late in the afternoon makes a definite difference. On my second visit, arriving late in the afternoon, the same walkway felt much more spacious.

อ่านต่อไป