SINGAPORE - With 24 treehouses set among the foliage and 338 rooms in total, the upcoming eco-resort in Mandai will be called Mandai Rainforest Resort and is set to open in the first half of 2025.
Operated by home-grown luxury hotel chain Banyan Tree, the resort will be located in the midst of five wildlife parks. These are the Singapore Zoo, Night Safari, River Wonders, Bird Paradise and the upcoming Rainforest Wild, the Mandai Wildlife Group said on May 9.
The resort was initially set to open in 2023, but delays brought about by Covid-19’s impact on the construction sector pushed back the opening date. Other areas of the Mandai precinct such as Bird Paradise, which opened in May 2023, were also affected.
The new resort overlooking Upper Seletar Reservoir sits on a 4.6ha site, comprising a four-storey building with standard and family rooms, as well as facilities such as a ballroom and meeting rooms, a gym and a rooftop swimming pool. Besides all-day dining, it will also house a speciality restaurant highlighting sustainably sourced ingredients.
It will also have 24 elevated seed pod-shaped treehouses nestled within the existing vegetation, treelines and natural topography of the area, some with a view of the reservoir.
An opening date has not yet been announced for the 12.6ha Rainforest Wild, which is modelled after the rainforests of South-east Asia and Africa.
At Rainforest Wild Asia, visitors will be able to navigate the various layers of the rainforest ecosystem, via wheelchair-friendly boardwalks and forest trails closer to the ground, or higher up near the canopy where they can climb, jump and abseil in safety harnesses.
Another layer houses a 220m-long cavern experience, inspired by Sarawak’s limestone Mulu Caves, which will have cave racer snakes, scorpions, hissing cockroaches, and a variety of other reptiles and invertebrates.
A Francois’ langur – a species that is being exhibited in Singapore for the first time – will join the likes of a Malayan tiger and Malayan sun bear, among the animal sightings at the wildlife park.
Rainforest Wild Africa will debut the okapi alongside animals such as the pygmy hippo in an Afro-Tropical and Madagascar-inspired landscape.
From later in 2024, the public will also be able to enjoy a freely accessible 3.3km boardwalk, built along the edge of the Upper Seletar Reservoir and skirting the perimeter of River Wonders and Singapore Zoo.
Also on the cards for the precinct are indoor, nature-based experiences and an outdoor activity centre for children, all located near the eco-resort.
Family-friendly spaces like Curiosity Cove will house an interactive playscape of hypernatural landscapes, designed for children to nurture a love for nature and wildlife through play and imagination. Meanwhile, the ZooSchool will introduce children to nature-based outdoor adventure programmes, said Mandai Wildlife Group.
Mr Mike Barclay, Mandai Wildlife Group chief executive, said: “While we continue to focus on expanding our positive impact in the fields of nature conservation, animal wildlife and zoological research, we are excited by the prospect of immersing our guests in a wide array of nature and wildlife experiences at the fully opened Mandai Wildlife Reserve.
“We are excited to unveil new options for stayovers, with the Mandai Rainforest Resort acting as the perfect launch pad for exploring our wildlife parks and the many other offerings at the Mandai Wildlife Reserve.”
