My philosophy; late is better than never and this opportunity to check out the observation deck came when I finally got to stay at Marina Bay Sands; access is free for hotel guests! Without further ado, let's now proceed to access the deck from an entrance next to Tower 3 of MBS.
Note: opening hours are from 11.00 am till 9.00 pm. I actually visited twice during my stay (late afternoon and late morning) and the photographs taken and shown here were a mix from the two visits.
The irony - visiting an observation deck in the sky but had to access through an underground passage. Maybe it's to show the contrast between bright and dark for a better experience, at least in the daytime.
Ticketing counter with option to pay via the self service kiosk too! Prices were not cheap in my opinion; S$26 for an adult, S$23 for a senior (65 years and above) and S$20 for a child (between 2 and 12 years old).
Complimentary access for me; so I proceeded directly to the gantry.
Photo-taking time which I declined for my first visit as I knew I would never pay for it. However, I decided to go ahead for my second visit; for the sake of wanting to find out how much the photos would cost me.
My photo ID slip.
Do remember to bring your key card!
Imagine if this was the panoramic view greeting you as you step out onto the observation deck. It's a whole lot of difference and the one word that's likely to come out of the mouth of a first timer shall be "wow".
First visit during the late afternoon session was super hot and it didn't help that the sun would be setting in the direction that faces the entrance to the Sands SkyPark Observation Deck.
Passage for the deck; taking up just a corner of the same skypark that included the famous infinity pool, do keep in mind to rein in your expectation that it would be a humongous arena.
On foot, you can cover the entire observation deck very quickly. However, the purpose of an observation deck is to have a bird's eye view of the surroundings and immerse into them. Panels were also installed to provide more information of notable buildings and structures in ahead of you.
Going forward to this "open space" that's at the forefront of the "boat" that sat atop the three hotel towers for Marina Bay Sands.
I am more interested in that strange looking structure in the middle; a lighting rod, a weather monitoring device or both? No information panel next to it so it's all pure speculation.
Taking this photo from the 'boat's bow". That restaurant with the red umbrellas and other crimson design is CÉ LA VI which offers rooftop dining. A section that I almost missed was the flight of steps beside the restaurant, that went up another level.
Infinity pool, said to be the world's longest elevated swimming pool at 146-meter long is on a lower level. As the height difference is not that significant for most people, most hotel guests prefer to just lounge out at the pool rather than getting themselves all hot and sticky on the observation deck.
However, for visitors of the Observation Deck, this spot is good for two reasons; you don't have those unsightly metal wires and secondly, some people are less keen to climb the stairs and you get fewer photobombs; p.s. the gentleman in the picture is definitely not a photobomb.
Singapore's cityscape is just so beautiful; okay, maybe I am biased as a Singaporean. In the above, youc can see the Merlion, Clarke Quay, Victoria Theatre, Singapore National Gallery, the new Supreme Court and even the historical flag staff on Fort Canning Hill.
Tallest building here is ION Orchard which has an observation deck at 218 meters by the name of ION Sky. There's also the Singapore's tallest hill, bukit timah at the back on the right. It's quite funny even though in context, I am the tallest in my family, until my elder sister's marriage.
Bad thing about this deck is that you only get the view of in front, the right and a little bit of the left since it was kind of blocked by a section of CÉ LA VI. Well, free access so I am not complaining.
On the lower deck again; due to COVID-19 safe management measures, stickers are placed for the 1-meter safe distancing. Honestly, I think it's hard to monitor although good to have at least for a rough gauge of how far apart you are from strangers.
View at this position; Marina Bay area with The Float @ Marina Bay, Singapore Flyer, East Coast Park and Bay East Garden; a still developing section under Gardens by the Bay that used to be a golf course. Of course, nothing beats looking at the entire landscape with your own eyes; the camera can only do that much to capture the panorama.
Interesting structure is the Keppel Marina East Desalination Plant; given the constant threats to shut down our water supply, it's necessary for Singapore to have its own water source. We have three desalination plants now, with two more in the works!
Not sure what this construction was for.
Two views of Gardens by the Bay; the top one was taken in the late afternoon, hence the shadow from the towers of Marina Bay Sands and the bottom was shot in the late morning.
Informative panel showing the outline photo of the view ahead of you, with indication of the notable places of interest. In many such observatories, they would show color photos for ease of comparison but I feel the outline photos were better in the sense that it works your brain more.
Supertree Grove - 11 artificial trees, tallest of which is 16-floor high. There's a sky bridge at 22-meter high which I have always wanted to check out. Maybe I would do it on my next staycation at Marina Bay Sands.
Marina Barrage - Singapore's 15th reservoir and effectively a dam that holds the water from three rivers and two canals; namely Kallang River, Geylang River, Singapore River, Rochor Canal and Stamford Canal. This was also covered in the posting on my jog in the city!
Check out the video above!
Oh yes, remember to check out your photos here! From the recording I made; hotel guests would have to pay S$30 for five photos and two videos. Clarify with the friendly staff for other photo packages. For non-hotel guests, I need to check again as I can't hear myself well in the recording!
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Address
10 Bayfront Ave,
Singapore 018956
(Access from side of Tower 3)
Opening Hours
11.00 am to 9.00 pm
Website
Discounts
Enjoy 30% off standard tickets and earn 3% instant Reward Dollars with your FREE Sands Rewards membership. Hotel guests have complimentary access; please bring along room keycard.
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