Building impressive Tourists Attractions

Jewel Changi Airport. Marina Bay Sands. Gardens by the Bay. The Supertree Grove. Cloud Forest Dome. Flower Dome.  All these iconic structures are part of the Singapore mystique. How does Singapore do it?

One at at time. One at a time.

Jewel

Jewel is strategically positioned at Changi Airport, where travellers with a layover can take the opportunity to catch Singapore's best offering. 

Changi airport has over 70 million passenger arrivals (pre-pandemic), but less than 20 million actually stay in Singapore for more than a day. So, for those transiting through Changi Airport, we give them a taste of Singapore at the Jewel...

(Basically, the message to these layabouts - that's what people on layovers are called right? - is, "this is Singapore... well, this is ALL the Singapore you can see. For now. Imagine what else you can see, if you had a few days here!")

How Singapore built the Jewel

Marina Bay Sands

Yeah, it's not the tallest building in the world. Going for the "tallest building in the world" is so lame. You're only the tallest until someone else builds a taller building. But... put a ship on  top of three towers... That's something... different!

(So far we have not heard of anyone trying to put another ship on another building. But I did hear somewhere in the Middle-East, there is talk of building something taller than the Burj Khalifa. Those Middle-Easterners! Sooooo unimaginative.)

Of COURSE someone could try to copy MBS and build a building with a ship on top (I'm betting China's doing this now!) but everyone will know it's a copy of MBS...

BUT... a building with BOOBS...

In 2022, "Top Gun: Maverick"/UIP had a collaboration for the launch of the movie and you could catch this at the Spectra Light and Water show:

That was an... experiment. One night only. With pyrotechnics. The usual shows don't have fireworks.

Supertrees! (Gardens by the Bay)

Gardens by the Bay (GBTB as Singaporeans will "acronym" it) has a light show, "Garden Rhapsody" every night at 7.45 pm and 8.45 pm. The music (and light show) will change about every month.

Singapore knows that you can't just build a tourist attraction and then you're done. Upkeep and maintenance is important, especially in tropical climes like Singapore.

Marina Barrage

This is one of the lesser known locations in Singapore, but it may be more known in time to come with the opening of the "Gardens by the Bay" station on the Thomson-East Coast Line. The Marina Barrage is right next to this MRT Station, so people heading to GBTB (or heading back) might explore the Marina Barrage.

This place is probably more popular with the locals who picnic and fly kites at this rather windy spot. 

Bird Paradise

Have you been to Jurong Bird Park? Well, it's gone now!

That old park is closed, and the birds have moved to their new home at Bird Paradise.

Wonderfall

Then, when you have run out of water, but have a few spare LED screens...

This is at Terminal 2 of Changi Airport. So if your flight lands or departs from there, you'll see this. Or if you are at any of the other terminals, you can take the shuttle to Terminal 2 to look at this. Or you can watch it here... then go see the Rain Vortex at Jewel.