Don’t let rain stop play, take the fun indoors instead! Thanks to our fun tropical climate, we’re blessed with the best selection of indoor playrooms and soft plays in Asia, so if it’s looking like it’s going to be wet, wet, wet, take yourself off to one of our fabulous recommendations… We’ve let you know those where there’s something for mama on offer too, like a great cafe or free wifi. Oh, and remember your socks mama – we ALWAYS forget!
Psst… don’t forget to check out our Rainy Day Survival Guide Part 2… it’s packed with creative ideas to keep the munchkins busy at home when the rain comes down!
Amazonia
Great World City Mall #03-08, 1 Kim Seng Promenade, Singapore 237994
Tel: (+65) 6235 4522
This rainforest/dinosaur-themed soft play is fab for kids’ parties (they can even serve them up a full dinner), and comes complete with a 3D Glow Goft putting course (naturally). Mama will probably be forced to go down the terrifyingly-high slide, but can retire to the café or relax in the toddler area, which is conveniently fenced off from the rest of the “fun”. Not cheap at $33 a pop for over-3s who are non-members, but you can save a bit when you buy a package. Saturday afternoons are a bun-fight, so probably best to pack off daddy with the kids while mama has a little browse in Zara downstairs.
Canopy Playground
Changi Airport Viewing Mall, Terminal 1, Level 3
Kids love airports, so if you’re scratching your head to come up with a new adventure, why not combine a trip to watch some planes, with a visit to Canopy Playground? It’s also great to know about if your flight ever gets delayed and you have some time to kill (it’s open ‘til 10.30pm!). Suitable for kids aged 18months to 12 years old, there’s something for everyone and it’s a bit of a bargain at $6 per 30 minutes of play.
The City
#03-04A Liang Court, 177 River Valley Road, Singapore 179030
Tel: (+65) 6250 6507
With a miniature supermarket, coffee shop, police station and doctor’s surgery, little ones will get a kick out of playing in “real world” scenarios, and chaotic fun ensues when all the different toys and costumes get mixed up into a surrealistic jumble where tiny policemen raid the shelves of the grocery store and nurses feed their babies coffee. Tots under 1 year old are free, for everyone else it’s $18+ for unlimited free play.
eXplorerkid Indoor Children Playground
E!hub @ Downtown East, 3/F, 1 Pasir Ris Close, Singapore 519599
Tel: (+65) 6589 1668
Billed as the largest indoor play area in Singapore, this is the perfect place to take slightly older kids to as tinies might be a bit overwhelmed by all the action! Highlights include the glowing ball pool, enormous play structure and climbing wall, rope course and “ball ‘o city” where foam balls are shot from vacuum canons. Check out their little workshops in cooking and art if you’re looking to kill even more time. Psst… they’ve also recently opened at AMK Hub, #04-02 AMK Hub, 53 Ang Mo Kio Avenue 3, Singapore 569933.
Fidgets
#04-05 The Grandstand (Turf City), 200 Turf Club Road, Singapore 287994
Tel: (+65) 6469 5069
This is soft play super-sized, perfect for getting little terrorists out of the house on rainy days and burning maximum energy as they slam themselves repeatedly into padded walls and throw themselves from great heights. It’s slightly hellish for mama with its super slides and sheer number of kids, so take yourself off to the little adjacent café to soothe your nerves with their (surprisingly good) coffee and watch your little ones from the TV screens instead. Best for ages 3+ as tinies can get trampled on busy days (rainy weekends are a stampede!). Also at Marina Bay Sands, #B1-57, Galleria Level. Tel: (+65) 6688 7406.
GoGo Bambini
#01-15 Dempsey Road, Block 8, Singapore 247696
Tel: (+65 6474 5492)
Go Go Bambini probably has the nicest mama café set up of all the soft plays in Singapore, so if your kiddo is old enough to entertain themselves crawling and climbing about, you can have rather a civilized time for yourself reading the newspapers and mags laid out for you. If you’ve got a teeny toddler, you’ll need to keep a close eye on them as the 2yrs and under section gets “crashed” by the older kids, so mama will need to play policeman. Also hosts playgroups and is great for kids’ parties.
Happy Willow
1 Fusionopolis Way, Fusionopolis, Connexis Tower, #B1006, Singapore 138632
Tel: (+65) 6466 6300
The new kid on the block, literally, this adorable little Buona Vista playroom has a little more charm than your average soft play, with colourful murals, an art nook and “book burrow”, climbing wall and dedicated “Toddler’s Turf” area. There’s free wifi for mamas who dream of getting a little quiet time to surf the net (and munch on some cake) while junior hits the Play Garden. Suitable from 9 months to 9 years.
Hokey Pokey
9 Raffles Boulevard, Millenia Walk #02-42/43/44/45, Singapore 039596
Tel: (+65) 6884 5385
A lot like Royce Kids Gym in that it’s more of a toy space than a soft play, Hokey Pokey gives the impression of being spotlessly clean and organized, and there’s a ball pool and some more educational toys to complement the usual selection of plastic bits and bobs. Good for very little ones as it’s quite peaceful. Call ahead though as they often host parties and you wouldn’t want to arrive and find yourself disappointed.
Kiddy Fun
#04-04/05 Turf City, Singapore 297994
Tel: (+65) 6463 7028
This candy land themed play-space in the heart of Turf City is a welcome change from the norm. Pastel colours, mechanised climbing equipment, a balloon-blow space (we’re not quite sure how to describe it!) and lots, lots more (including cafe area which helpfully is actually right next to the play area), we’re big fans here at Sassy Mama and even find Kiddy Fun strangely relaxing.We clearly need to get out more.
Kids Amaze
SAFRA Toa Payoh, 293 Lorong 6 Toa Payoh, Singapore, 310190
Tel: (+65) 6355 4550
Kids Amaze is a ginormous indoor play area (over 12,700 square feet) with two party rooms and a toddler play zone which is totally separate from the main area so you don’t have to worry about big kids bowling over your littles. The play space is separated into three interconnected “zones”: The Cave, The Treetops and The City. The Cave is arranged around a large pool filled with spongey balls, which you can post into various machines that suck them up, store them in a big wire basket and then when it’s full enough, the basket tips and the balls pour into the pool. It’s pretty fantastic. The other two zones are made up of bridges, tunnels, slides and climbing frames. Sassy Mama tip: Definitely pop your mummy shorts on or you’ll be flashing everyone! Kids Amaze also has an even bigger Jurong Branch.
The Polliwogs
East Coast Park Branch, 1020 East Coast Parkway, #01-02, Singapore 449878
Robertson Walk Branch, 11 Unity Street, #02-18/19 Robertson Walk, Singapore 237995
Tel: (+65) 6442 2805
Now with two branches on the East Coast and Robertson Walk, Polliwogs is a pretty slick operation and hugely popular. The East Coast branch has an outdoor patio for mama to sun herself (or quietly melt into a puddle) and an outdoor bouncy castle. Complete with obligatory café serving up junky food, we’ve found ourselves at this brightly-coloured, brightly-lit soft play more times than we care to remember. Avoid like the plague if you’re nursing a hangover. Buy a package if you live nearby, you’ll be back!
Royce Kids Gym
Liang Court, 177 River Valley Road, #02-20/21, Singapore 179030
Tel: (+65) 6720 1111
At a glance this place looks like a really messy, smallish overloaded nightmare… Which is why your kids will LOVE it! There are toys everywhere (really, everywhere..). You’ll need to sign up for a membership to use the facilities, but it’s worth it for how often you’ll come if you live nearby. We’re tempted to create a drinking game based on how many rules you can break each time you visit (slurping from our illegal water bottle of course!), and you get bonus points for spotting the soft toys that have hanged themselves off the side of the plastic castle. There’s no café either, so you’ll have to hit up Starbucks downstairs if you need a caffeine fix.
Paragon Indoor Playground
Paragon Shopping Center, 290 Orchard Road, Singapore 238859 (Just outside of Mothercare, #05-25/29)
One of the many things we love about Singapore are all the shopping mall playgrounds readily available. And with Paragon being a really great playground for mama, we’re pleased that they offer something to keep the kids busy too. Mama does the mall and the kids do the indoor playground, simple equation but gets ‘em every time.
Tickle Tickle
Delta Sports Complex, 900 Tiong Bahru Road, #01-01, Singapore 158790 (entrance via Alexandra Road if you’re driving)
Tel: (+65) 6472 4770
You might not have known that as well as the fab public swimming pool at Delta, there’s also a great Candy Land-themed soft play for littlies, as well as an opportunity for role-playing with a mini home, café, supermarket and workshop complete with themed toys. With high quality toys from the Early Learning Centre and Melissa & Doug, this is a great easy option for getting the tiny tykes out of the house. Plus, only $12 for unlimited play – hurrah! Check their website to make sure they don’t have any exclusive bookings before you head over. Also at Hougang Sportshall, 93 Hougang Avenue 4, #01-04, Singapore 538832 (Near Hougang Swimming Complex). Tel: (+65) 6556 9560.
VivoCity Open Door Playground
1 Harbourfront Walk, Level 2
And lastly, how about if you fancy embracing the wet? Well, the open door playground that’s located at level 2 of VivoCity is… awesome. It’s a nice and big playground with a wet and dry play area as well as a large slide, jumping water fountains, climbing structures and tunnels to name a few things. Let the kids go nuts, because that is what everyone else seems to be doing. What’s also great about it is that you can nip into Cotton On Kids (conveniently located right next to it) to stock up on some dry after-wet-play-clothes for your little one.