SINGAPORE (Commonwealth Union)_ Bird Paradise in Mandai offers new features that were unveiled at the park’s grand opening on Wednesday, six months after its soft opening in May.
The 17ha park – the size of about 24 football fields has so far received over 600,000 Singapore and international visitors, said Mandai Wildlife Group, which manages the park.
A new breeding and research centre has been launched as well as a two-day, one-night glamping experience with penguins, next to the Winged Sanctuary, where guests can witness chicks being raised by hand in the nursery. Raising chicks by hand involves keepers building a close relationship with them in ways similar to parental care while it maximises their chances of survival.
While the centre will offer visitors a behind-the-scenes peek into how the park cares for its birds, one of its aims is to increase the population of critically endangered bird species.
Also making its debut is a Glamping with the Penguins experience that permits guests, to spend a night at the park’s Penguin Cove in glamping bell tents. The cove is three times bigger than Jurong Bird Park, the penguin exhibit at Bird Paradise’s predecessor.
The two-day, one-night experience has been designed for families of four, who will be able to wind down with the penguins, watch a Southern Lights showcase screened at the exhibit, and go on guided tours of the facilities such as the park’s avian hospital, aviaries etc.
Prices start from $1,699 a tent. The glamping space has the facility to hold up to four tents and 16 guests a night. Participants should be five years old at keast. It will run for 10 days in December, while bookings could be made via the Bird Paradise website. Right now, there are no scheduled dates for the glamping programme after December, said Mandai Wildlife Group.
The park’s website said that while pillows and blankets will be provided, guests must bring their own towels and amenities. While facilities are available for a simple wash-up in the morning, showers are confined to the first evening.
Jurong Bird Park offered a glamping programme with flamingos in 2022.
Glamping options such as one in East Coast Park that costs about $330 a night for four people are offered elsewhere in Singapore,.
Mandai Wildlife Group and national postal service SingPost also unveiled a limited-edition commemorative stamp set with 3 of the 6 stamp designs featuring some of the park’s most threatened species: the Philippine eagle (80 cents) and knobbed hornbill (51 cents) and the Negros bleeding-heart dove (valued at 80 cents), The other three designs take inspiration from the park’s aviaries. One is modelled after South America’s coastal wetlands (90 cents), while the others replicate Bali’s rice terraces ($1.15) and mimic the forested valleys of continental Africa ($1.50).
