This post may contain affiliate links. Read the full disclosure
Singapore Zoo has a reputation as one of the best zoos in the world, and after spending two days exploring Mandai Wildlife Reserve, we can see exactly why people say that.
With one important caveat: it’s not just the Singapore Zoo that earns that title. It’s the whole Mandai experience.
Mandai Wildlife Reserve is a 126-hectare wildlife hub in northern Singapore that contains five separate wildlife experiences under one roof: Singapore Zoo, River Wonders, Night Safari, Bird Paradise and Rainforest Wild Asia.
Each has its own entrance and its own tickets. Together, they’re something quite special.
We spent two nights at Mandai Rainforest Resort by Banyan Tree, and our package included multi-park passes and Breakfast in the Wild, which gave us access to everything. We still didn’t manage to see it all. Here’s our honest account of what we did, what we missed and what we’d do differently.
Mandai Wildlife Reserve – Quick Guide
- ✔ Location: Northern Singapore, around 30 minutes from the city by Grab
- ✔ Best for: Families, wildlife lovers
- ✔ Time needed: 2 days minimum. 3 full days to do it all properly.
- ✔ Tickets: Single attraction or multi-park passes available
- ✔ Our highlight: Breakfast in the wild
- ✔ Good to know: Each attraction is a separate experience with separate ticketing
- ✔ BOOK MANDAI TICKETS HERE
Is Mandai Wildlife Reserve Worth It?
Yes, but context matters. If you visited Singapore Zoo alone, it would be a great zoo, but probably not the best zoo in the world. For comparison, Australia Zoo here in Queensland is one of the best we’ve been to, and it holds its own against most international zoos.
What makes Mandai truly stand out is the combination of all five experiences.
River Wonders, the Night Safari, etc and Singapore Zoo itself- each one is a full, separate experience that would stand alone in most cities.
The fact that they’re all within the one reserve, bookable together and walkable (mostly) between each other, is what elevates the whole experience.
If you only have one day, go to the main Singapore Zoo plus one other experience if you have time. Bird Paradise is meant to be a fantastic place to start the day with the morning wildlife presentations before moving over to the main zoo.
Or you can do a unique experience such as Breakfast in the Wild, an extra add-on with a buffet breakfast and animal encounters while you dine.
If you have two, add the Night Safari and River Wonders. If you have three, do the Wild Adventure East and West as well. Two days is a rushed version of all of it. Three full days is our honest recommendation.
BOOK MANDAI WILDLIFE RESERVE TICKETS HERE
Planning Your Visit
How Many Days Do You Need?
We had two nights at the resort and still didn’t make it to Bird Paradise, which is apparently one of the highlights of the entire reserve.
Even with multi-park passes included in our accommodation, we simply ran out of time and energy.
- 1 day: Singapore Zoo plus one other zoo area. That’s a full day.
- 2 days: Add Night Safari on your first evening and Breakfast in the Wild on your second morning. Then add in another zoo area during the day.
- 3 days: The only way to do all five properly without feeling like you’re racing through a checklist.
Ticket Options
You can buy single attraction tickets or multi-park passes depending on how much of Mandai you plan to cover. If you’re doing two or more areas, the multi-park pass is worth calculating against individual tickets.
If you’re staying at Mandai Rainforest Resort, check if they have any package deals available that include tickets with your accommodation. Ours covered all park admissions and Breakfast in the Wild, which made the resort premium considerably more justifiable.
Getting There
Mandai Wildlife Reserve is around 30 minutes from central Singapore by Grab (Singapore’s ride-hailing app). Public transport can get you to the general area but the last stretch into the reserve is awkward, particularly with kids or luggage. Grab is the practical option.
If you’re staying at the resort, you’re already there.
Where To Stay
Staying at Mandai Rainforest Resort by Banyan Tree is a luxury splurge that transforms the whole experience.
You’re inside the reserve, 10 minutes’ walk from Singapore Zoo and Night Safari, surrounded by rainforest and pleasantly far from the city in the best possible way. Read our full Mandai Rainforest Resort review for the details.
The alternative is to stay in the city and Grab each day, which is completely practical but removes the immersive quality of the stay. There aren’t any other resorts or hotels within such close proximity to the zoo.
The Five Mandai Wildlife Reserve Areas
Singapore Zoo
The main zoo, and the heart of the whole Mandai experience. We visited on our second morning, after Breakfast in the Wild, which meant we arrived into the zoo already having had an incredible animal encounter before we’d even officially started.
It’s a beautiful, well-maintained open zoo concept where animals are in naturalistic habitats rather than traditional cages. The variety of species is excellent and the layout encourages you to discover things at your own pace rather than following a rigid circuit.
By the time we got here we were running on four days of accumulated Singapore exploration exhaustion, and we still had a good couple of hours. Fresh legs would do it far more justice.
If you have time, the Splash Safari show in the Shaw Amphitheatre is well worth watching. We sat in the front row, which is the splash zone, and got absolutely saturated but it was a nice way to cool down on a hot day. Plenty of laughs too!
The zoo is also where Breakfast in the Wild takes place every morning.
Read our full Breakfast in Singapore Zoo review of that experience separately, but briefly: orangutans climbing trees next to your breakfast table, a zookeeper walking an owl alongside the table and our youngest, who wants to be a vet, completely losing her mind with joy.
River Wonders
This was a surprising highlight of our entire Mandai visit and the biggest surprise of the trip. We actually had no idea what this section was involved and thought it was just a cruise, but there was so much more.
We arrived in the early afternoon of our first day and spent a couple of hours here. The theming is river habitats from around the world and the animal collection is beyond what we expected.
We saw pandas and red pandas and a long list of animals we weren’t expecting at all.
The most memorable unplanned encounter: a capybara in one of the walkthrough enclosure areas that had clearly decided the railings were more of a suggestion.
It was very keen for human attention despite the signs suggesting otherwise. We may have given it some attention. It was very charming.
Amazon River Quest is the highlight of River Wonders and one of the best zoo experiences we’ve had anywhere. It’s a relaxing boat ride through animal enclosures along the Amazon River zone, and because the animals are right next to the water, the sightings are far better than most zoo walk-throughs.
It was quiet on the day we visited, so we rode it three times. No regrets.
Rainforest Wild Asia
We visited the new east zone on our first afternoon before River Wonders, which turned out to be a mistake in hindsight, not because east zone is bad, but because we didn’t realise there was also a west zone and we ran out of time to do both.
If you’re going to Rainforest Wild Asia, check which zone you’re heading to and plan accordingly.
The east zone was a little underwhelming compared to the rest of Mandai. We struggled to spot many animals and left after about 1.5 hours feeling like we hadn’t quite got what we came for.
This is partly the nature of any wildlife experience. Animals don’t perform on demand, but River Wonders and the main zoo both gave us considerably better sightings.
The big claim for these areas are the extra ‘thrill’ attractions on offer which are each an extra cost on top of admission. We did just one of these.
The Canopy Glider is an extra paid experience within Rainforest Wild Asia, a glider that takes you through the treetop level of the reserve. The concept is really cool and the views are great. But in terms of animal sightings, we spotted two wild boars, and that was it. Our youngest missed those entirely.
It’s a luck-of-the-draw experience, and on the day we went, the luck wasn’t particularly with us. Worth trying if the price feels right, but lower your expectations for animal sightings specifically.
It was $10 SG each at the time, and each glider fits 2 people, like a chairlift that goes over enclosures.
There are other bigger thrill attractions within the East and West zones too.
Night Safari
The Night Safari deserves its own full review, which you can read here.
It runs every night from 6 pm until midnight and it isn’t just the main zoo at night. It’s a whole separate section of its own, with many different animals and enclosures.
The short version: absolutely do it, book the Creatures of the Night amphitheatre show the second you arrive (scan the QR code at the entrance before you do anything else). We didn’t and only the 10:30 pm session was available by the time we thought about it
The tram tour is a guided tour around the Night Safari where you can spot animals. It’s luck of the draw like any zoo experience but we were lucky enough to see almost every animal on our tour.
Bird Paradise
We didn’t make it to Bird Paradise and it’s our biggest Mandai regret.
Everything we heard from other visitors and locals pointed to it being one of the strongest experiences in the whole reserve, with spectacular bird shows and an impressive collection.
We simply ran out of time and energy across our two days. The lesson is the three-day recommendation above if you want to fit each of the wildlife zones into your itinerary.
One of our Grab drivers said it was best to visit first thing in the morning so you can watch the morning wildlife presentations, and if you can only visit 2 of the zoo zones, to do this one first then the main Singapore Zoo.
BOOK MANDAI WILDLIFE RESERVE TICKETS HERE
Our Honest Verdict
Mandai Wildlife Reserve is worth it. Australia Zoo in Queensland is still one of our all-time favourite zoos and it absolutely holds its own, but when you stack up the Night Safari, River Wonders, Breakfast in the Wild and the main zoo together, Mandai as a whole experience is hard to match anywhere in the world.
The individual parts vary. Rainforest Wild Asia (east zone, at least) was our weakest experience. River Wonders and the Night Safari were our strongest. Singapore Zoo is a beautiful open zoo that would be excellent anywhere.
Allow three days. Visit Bird Paradise. Book the amphitheatre show the second you arrive at Night Safari. We only had 2 full days because we had our Disney Adventure cruise the following morning.
What We Would Do Differently
- Visit Rainforest Wild Asia’s west zone as well as the east, or prioritise the west zone if time is limited
- Book the Night Safari amphitheatre show immediately on arrival
- Build in a Bird Paradise day, it needs its own full day based on what we’ve heard
Tips For Visiting Mandai Wildlife Reserve
- Download the Mandai app before you arrive. It maps all five attractions and shows animal feeding times and show schedules you can plan around.
- Wear comfortable shoes and pack layers for the night. The temperature drops noticeably once you’re in the forest at night.
- Bring insect repellent, particularly for Night Safari.
- Book Breakfast in the Wild in advance. Walk-ins are possible but it fills up. See our full Breakfast in the Wild review for everything you need to know.
- The hawker centre within the zoo complex is the easiest and most affordable dining option for dinner between daytime zoo activities and Night Safari. We ate there on our first night before heading to Night Safari and it was excellent.
- Grab is the best transport option if you’re not staying at the resort. Book your return trip before you leave the park in the evening.
BOOK MANDAI WILDLIFE RESERVE TICKETS ONLINE
FAQ
Is Singapore Zoo worth visiting?
Yes. On its own it’s a world-class open zoo. Combined with the other Mandai experiences, it’s part of one of the best wildlife destinations in the world.
Do you need separate tickets for each attraction?
Yes, unless you get a multi-park pass, you will need an individual ticket for each section of Mandai Wildlife Reserve, including Singapore Zoo, Bird Paradise, Night Safari, River Wonders and Rainforest Wild Adventure.
How many days do you need at Mandai Wildlife Reserve?
Two is possible but rushed if you want to cover more than two or three of the five experiences. Three full days is the honest recommendation to do it all properly.
What is the best part of Mandai Wildlife Reserve?
Breakfast in the Wild, River Wonders and the Night Safari were our personal highlights. Bird Paradise is reportedly exceptional, but we didn’t make it there. The Breakfast in the Wild experience is unlike anything else at a zoo.
Can you visit Mandai Wildlife Reserve in one day?
You can visit one to three of the attractions in a day (if one is the Night Safari), but not all five. Don’t try to do the whole reserve in a single day.
What’s the difference between Singapore Zoo and Mandai Wildlife Reserve?
Singapore Zoo is one of five separate attractions within Mandai Wildlife Reserve. The reserve also includes River Wonders, Night Safari, Bird Paradise and Rainforest Wild Asia, each with separate tickets required and a separate experience.
Do I need to stay at the resort to visit Mandai?
No. You can visit all five attractions as a day tripper from the city by Grab. Staying at Mandai Rainforest Resort just makes the whole experience significantly more convenient and immersive. It is a luxury resort so it’s a bit of a splurge but beautiful.
Plan Your Trip
Here are a few things we always organise before travelling:
- Stay connected: We use Airalo eSIM
- Car hire: Compare options with DiscoverCars
- Travel insurance: Check SafetyWing or World2Cover via Klook
- Airport transfers: Book with Welcome Pickups
- Accommodation: Find the best deals here
- Tours: We always use GetYourGuide