There’s more to the world’s most tranquil theme park than its Supertrees

Seven wonders within Gardens by the Bay, Singapore

This expansive nature park in central Singapore might be famous for its eye-catching Supertrees, but you’ll find much more to see and do.

1 Climb the Supertrees

The Supertrees and Skywalk are central to the gardens.

The centrepiece of the gardens is the Supertrees, made of steel and draped in fabulous beards of ferns, orchids, bromeliads and lianas. They’re impressive from below, but walking the elevated walkway suspended under the canopy provides you with great views over Marina Bay and downtown’s skyscrapers. You can get even higher at Supertree Observatory lodged atop the tallest of the 12 structures. Its new café serves the delectable delights of famed local dessert maestro Janice Wong, one of Asia’s best pastry chefs.

2 Cool off in the splendid Cloud Forest Dome

Exploring the Cloud Forest Dome.

This magical glasshouse is a cool retreat from Singapore’s humidity. It is crammed with lush vegetation and a 35-metre waterfall that you can explore on multiple levels, making you feel more like an explorer than a mere garden stroller. The tropical highland and mountain plants on show include ferns, showy begonias, rhododendrons and the world’s largest insect-gobbling pitcher plants. But don’t be entirely distracted by size: Secret Garden near the exit invites you to peer at tiny orchids through magnifying glasses.

3 Check out the world’s largest glasshouse

The spectacular Flower Dome is the world’s largest glasshouse.

The cavernous Flower Dome seems all the bigger because it has no supporting columns, but rather it soars above you in a giant, shell-like arch. Its nine zones – which include a semi-desert Australian garden – showcase arid habitats. Among the standouts are a grand 32-tonne African boab and a 1000-year-old Mediterranean olive tree (the Queensland bottle tree remains, for the moment, relatively svelte). A seasonally changing Flower Field in the centre of the multi-level dome provides huge splashes of colour.

4 Find your Zen in the Serene Garden

Wake up to a garden view from the Garden Pods.

Gardens by the Bay can seem more theme park than garden. Get out into its outdoor sections and you’ll encounter far fewer people and discover two bird-paddled lakes, small themed gardens, and a contemporary sculpture trail: you won’t miss Planet, a massive floating baby. The nicest spot is the Japan-themed Serene Garden, which will relax you with mini-waterfalls as well as bamboo groves, pine trees and water lilies. You can even stay in a Garden Pod and wake up to a tranquil green view.

5 Get rocking in The Canyon

Fantastically weathered rocks have long been a treasured feature of traditional Chinese gardens, and the 60 examples here – some up to seven metres high – are fine examples of nature’s artistry, which could pass for modern art in granite. The rocks alone are worth a look, but sculptural and weird-looking plants such as yuccas, cycads, wax palms and the spiky-trunked Central American pochote tree add to the striking look of this odd but refreshingly unusual garden.

6 Step inside the fairy-tale Floral Fantasy

The fairytale Floral Fantasy is like stepping into Alice’s Wonderland.

This indoor space of 15,000 fresh-cut and dried flowers, right at Bayfront MRT station exit, is like stepping into Alice’s Wonderland, or perhaps like eating too many magic mushrooms in the 1960s. You wander through a floating garden suspended from the ceiling, spot poison dart frogs (luckily inside vivariums) and end up in a “cave” of luridly coloured South American plants. Then you can take a virtual-reality dragonfly’s flight across Gardens by the Bay. Trippy, man.

7 Come back after dark for the illuminations

Night lights on the Supertrees.Credit: iStock

The Supertrees are even more futuristic-looking when lit up at night, so return for the 7:45pm Garden Rhapsody sound and light show, which changes frequently, setting the Supertrees twinkling and glowing in fantastical purples, blues and pinks. The kids will love it; the Christmas show that runs all of December is especially jolly. A new Northern Lights show (Mondays at 8pm or weekends at 9pm) more ethereally recreates the effect of the aurora borealis in drifting blue and green clouds.

The writer travelled as a guest of Visit Singapore (visitsingapore.com) and Mandarin Oriental Singapore (mandarinoriental.com).

See gardensbythebay.com.sg