I’ve been longing to get a sweeping aerial view of Singapore. Great to finally have my Singapore Flyer experience! The Singapore Flyer is one of the city-state’s biggest crowd drawers. Giant Ferris wheels (at least ones built taller than the original Ferris Wheel) aren’t exactly an original idea. Many cities around the world have already ripped-off the concept behind the London Eye. Though, the Singapore Flyer beats all others by being the tallest Ferris wheel in the world at a dizzying 165 meters. Talk about taking your run-of-the-mill children’s ride to the next level!?


Full view of the Singapore Flyer, the tallest Ferris wheel in the world.

Singapore Flyer Experience

A ride on the Singapore Flyer is regularly priced at S$29.50 or a little more than PHP1,000. The Singapore Flyer was conceptualized to mimic a 30-minute flight over the city of Singapore.


Singapore Flyer ticketing booth.


Singapore Flyer information stall.


Finally got my ticket on the Singapore Flyer!

Waiting in line was like getting ready for take-off. The queue also took 30 minutes during our visit since there were a lot of “flyers” that day. Consider spending at least an hour for your trip on the Singapore Flyer to account for the waiting time.


Gorgeous architecture and refreshing “urban nature” concept at the foot of the Singapore Flyer.

Panoramic view of Singapore

Definitely much much more than being on a glorified Ferris wheel ride, my main goal of taking the Singapore Flyer was to see and take aerial photos of Singapore. Particularly, the many famous structures and exciting mega projects in Singapore.


Take-off


Altophobic view 


Benjamin Sheares Bridge, the longest and tallest bridge in Singapore, and the residential towers of Tanjong Rhu (orange-roofed buildings).


Facing the Golden Mile area


The Concourse building (175m). Nice post modern architecture. It was designed as a “tropical skyscraper” by maximizing the use of passive solar shading.


One of the Suntec City towers surrounding the “Fountain of Wealth,” the largest fountain in the world.


Facing Marina Centre area


L-R: Floating Statium, Ritz Carlton-Millenia Hotel (102 m), Millenia Tower (218 m).


Awesome view of Singapore CBD high-rise cluster from the top of the Singapore Flyer.


Shutter happy bloggers when our capsule reached its highest peak at the Singaopre Flyer.


Singapore Central Business District Skyline. The three tallest buildings in Singapore at 280m can be seen here: (L-R) Republic Plaza , Overseas Union Bank Centre (OUB), OUB Plaza One. Collectively they are the 70th tallest buildings in the world. Buildings in Singapore have a “height cap”, which is why taller buildings cannot be built here.

Fullerton Hotel and One Fullerton at the “foot” of Singapore CBD.


Marina Bay Sands Area.


Taller than the Marina Bay Sands :)


ArtScience Museum, designed to resemble a lotus flower.


City Hall Area dominated by the spiked twin buildings of the Espalade.


Singapore’s Old Supreme Court Building.


Constructions at the south portion of the Gardens by the Bay. Singapore never runs out of good ideas! The 101-hectare Gardens by the Bay was conceptualized to make Singapore as the world’s premier tropical garden city (scheduled completion by June 2012)


Looks like a cousin of the durian-shaped Eslplanade, huh? These “bio domes” are large greenhouse structures, which will house a wide variety of Mediterranean, Tropical Montane and temperate plants. One dome will be the cool dry conservatory, and the other, a cool moist conservatory.


The WOW! factor of Singapore’s Gardens by the Bay. These metal structures or “supertrees” will function as unique, vertical tropical gardens connected by aerial walkways.


Marina Barrage Dam … not as visually stunning as the Gardens by the Bay but equally impressive. The dam acts to keep salt water out and turn Marina Bay into a fresh water reservoir. Very innovative! The BIGGER plan is to surround the whole Singapore with a dam-like structure to save the islands from rising global water levels.


The “green” roof at the lifestyle hub of the Marina Barrage.


Ever changing Singapore Skyline.


Self-portait with the Singapore Skyline.


Double Helix Bridge.


Floating Stadium.


Closer view at the colorful floating stadium of Singapore


Marina Bay Financial Towers (underconstruction; 245m).

The Sail @ Marina Bay, the tallest residential tower in Singapore (245m). I love the architecture of this building … my one of my favorite skyscrapers in Singapore! The design of the two towers were inspired to look like a sail. 

Singapore Flyer Capsules

Unlike regular Ferris wheels, we didn’t notice the movement of the capsule, which felt really really safe. Even people with a fear of heights would probably enjoy a ride at the Singapore Flyer.


Each of the 28 capsules were innovatively designed with an outer shell attached to the main wheel structure and an inner capsule, which rolls mechanically depending on its position on the wheel. Cool huh?


End of the Singapore Flyer ride

Singapore Flyer Food Trail

At the ground floor is a 1960s-themed “Singapore Food Trail,” which serves a wide selection of local hawker food. We didn’t have to go far to sample Singaporean Food :) The prices weren’t far from prices at the old hawker stalls in the city center. Average prices for a dish was around S$3 (up to $5).


Food Trail at the Singapore Flyer.


(Bugis St. Ah Huat) Hainanese Chicken Rice Stall. Do not leave Singapore without getting a taste of this celebrated Singaporean dish.


Roasted Chicken Rice.


(Kattong Keah Kee) Fried Oyster Omelette. Talaba wrapped in a dizzying cholesterol packed (2-egg) omelette … I give it a half YUM.

Around the Singapore Flyer

After lunch we had some free time, which I spent going around the other attractions of the Singapore Flyer.


Urban Nature Park.


Urban Beach Bar.


Pedestrian views of the Singapore Flyer.


Duck Tour vehicle at the Singapore Flyer parking lot.

If you just want to see a great aerial view / take photos of Singapore, an alternative is the SkyPark at the Marina Bay Sands (cheaper at just S$19.00 but, of course, minus the “flyer” experience).

Singapore Flyer Tips

  • How to Get There: The Promenade Station (Circle Line, CC4) provides you with a fuss-free, mere five-minute walk to Singapore Flyer! Take Exit A and look out for blue pedestrian signs to Singapore Flyer. You can catch public buses 106, 111 and 133 to Temasek Avenue. Singapore Flyer is just across the road.
  • Admission Rates:
    • Adult (13 years or older) – S$29.50
    • Child (3 to 12 years old) – S$20.65
    • Senior (60 years or older) – S$23.60
  • Website: http://www.singaporeflyer.com/ (book your tickets online for discounts / freebies)