If you are wondering what you can do with your kids this weekend, you can try taking them to the Luge at Sentosa!

The Luge is a part go-cart, part-tobaggan with a built in braking system that promises thrill for the kids and the family. This sleigh-like contraption, is safe enough even for my 2yo girl, and it brought much smiles and laughs for the whole family.

We bought tickets for the Luge at Mount Imbiah, which is located at the Cable Car Station.

Basically, the Luge is like a sleigh which goes down the slope at high speeds.

Needless to say, helmets are not a fashion accessory, but a safety requirement for the ride.

Is the Ride really that Fast?!?

Although the kids are allowed to go for the ride, they all had to ride “pillion” with us. Children need to be taller than 130cm, if they want to travel alone.

As the kids travelled with an adult, we basically controlled how fast we wanted to go. Therefore, the ride is perfectly “safe”, as long as you are not Mr. Bean!

The ride is really fun, and as there are 2 trails, almost everyone goes for at least 2 attempts at the Luge. As the Ride works on a the concept of a sleigh, you will need to make your way up the hill to try it out again.

I know…you must be thinking…So I must walk all the way up the hill in the Hot Sun to try out the ride again….there must be a better way!

Well, YES! There is!!!

When you buy your tickets, go for a round trip ticket.

This entitles you to take a sky ride up to the top of the slope again!

Yes…The sky ride is the common Ski lift that you see, when you take vacations on the slopes of Switzerland…and this lift seems to be put to good use on this attraction.

Frankly, we were a bit nervous about the kids riding the lift, but the Staff  at Sentosa were very good at getting us onto the lifts, and the children were very well behaved throughout the ride (We noticed that some kids rode the life barefoot, as parents wanted to make sure that their shoes did not drop along the way)

Were they Paranoid?!?

Not really…I saw a foreign family walking up the slope looking for their shoes….looks like you can’t be too careful!

Is this a Good Family Activity?

As I like to bringing the kids outdoors, I think that this is a really great action ride for the whole family. My wife was a bit nervous about bringing the kids at first…but once you learn the ropes, it is actually quick an easy ride!

Although it is on the more expensive side, with 2 rides including the sky train costing about $17 dollars , it is definitely worth the experience. (I managed to get the ride at half price, as AMEX was offering a half price promotion on weekends!) *Children are charged differently.

Detailed Pricing

Luge & Skyride Combo
One Luge & Skyride:
S$12 / Person

Two Luge & Skyrides:
S$17 / Person

Three Luge & Skyrides:
S$21 / Person

Five Luge & Skyrides:
S$29 / Person

Family Deals*
Four ride family pass: S$29
Eight ride family pass: S$49

Skyride only
One Way: S$8 / Person
Two Way: S$12 / Person

*Family deals are applicable for families with a child below 16 yrs old
Age and Height restrictions apply.

Skyride
Min. height 85cm to ride with an adult
Min. height 130cm to ride alone
Luge
6yrs and 110cm or taller to ride Luge alone

Opening Hours
10 a.m. – 9.30 p.m. daily

I have been wanting to blog about this for some time…but I have only just found the time! It is about our trip to The National Museum on National Day!

Besides the Museum offering FREE Admission to all that day, it had a children’s program for all visitors as well! Based on the theme
“The Swinging Sixties”, there were lots of games and activities based on that era!

The Fun Fair was designed in such a way that you had to complete all the activities to get a special prize!

Here’s a picture of my enthusiastic models with their game cards!

Basically, as the games were based on those that were played in the 1960s, the booths were all very simple in design. However, the games still required a lot of skill, and they were still a challenge for the adults and children. From tossing the hoop into the cans, the kids also had to shoot at objects with a toy gun! Full marks to the museum for their creativity!

One of the booths that the family enjoyed, was when we were given the chance to make our own badges!

Here is a sample of the badges that we could make:

Cool right! With the vision of our badges presented to us, the kids got into a colouring mode.

After colouring our papers, we brought them to the staff manning the machines. With a pull of the lever…

The kids all loved it… and many families all huddled together to make their badges…

There was even a dance workshop, so that you can swing like the “Swinging Sixties”

Daddy’s Favourite activity was the 60’s costume dress-up.

The queue was mega long, and we were blessed to be one of the last families that had a chance to dress up!

Check out Elvis…:)

And Baby Elvis…

And my little La Mei! (Spice Girl)

And of course…the Psychedelic family

Museum Day is really fun…and the family are converts! Look out for Museum events as they are really cool…and best of all…it’s FREE!

My adventures at Club Med Bali continue on…

Today was our 1st full day at Club Med and we were excited!

The very first thing we had to do at the resort, was to get our kids used to the child care services provided by Club Med.

Club Med Petit Club is a Full Day childcare service for kids between 2 to 4 years old, and a really essential service for families that want to maximize their holidays.

Parents need to make sure that the children have to take all necessary injections before they are allowed to enter the centre, and they have more than enough workers to take care of the kids. In fact, Club Med is so multi-national that they have special workers who can speak languages such as French, Mandarin and Japanese.

We dropped off the kids during “Water and Beach play” period, and the excitement of the event, did help erase some of their fears.

However, my youngest girl did cry when it was time to separate, and she took some time to adjust to the new environment. All part of growing pains!

Nicole who is 5 years old went to Mini Club Med instead. Located on the other side of the resort, this centre is meant for the older kids.

What’s great about these facilities in general, is that they are packed with activities. In Mini Club Med, Nicole went for tennis lessons, had beach play, and could even be sent for circus training (we woke up too late for that!) . Here, she can spend time doing somersaults and fly on the trapeze. In fact, Club Med Bali is one of the few Club Meds that has a “Circus” curriculum for children and for the adults.

To tell you the truth, the kids and myself have not tried it out yet…looks a bit scary to me!

After dropping the kids off,  Mummy and Daddy headed to the swimming pool for some aqua aerobics!

The GOs are really the life of the party at the resort. At every activity they are the ones who make things happen, and here they were leading a mass dance at the pool, after the aqua aerobics. They even had golf at the pool, where men and children “chipped” a tennis ball into a life buoy.

With the kids off our hands, we were also able to have some “couple” time together and we went snorkelling in the ocean. It was really cool, as we saw many colourful fishes, and they really swam very close to us! Bali is really a very nice island!

We went back to look for the kids in the late afternoon, and they were having a children’s soccer tournament. Nathan’s age group was too young to play, but they still managed to have a kick around…they even had mini goal posts for them

Check out the full article at Maybe Baby’s Blog…or just click on the link.

This is so exciting! We have landed, and we are now taking our half an hour taxi ride to Club Med Bali.

Situated on the part of the island called Nusa Dua, the Club Med experience provides an extensive list of services and activities in one single package. The best thing about Club Med is that the resort is ALL- INCLUSIVE!

With Buffet Meals all day, sports activities such as Archery, Tennis Golf, Windsurfing and even the circus– this is the place to be…Hey! even the Beer is Free Flow.

Check out the full article and pictures at the Maybe Baby Blog!

Looking for stuff to do on the weekend?

Check out Changi Airport Terminal 3 for some Free Activities for the family during the Olympic Season.

In conjunction with the Youth Olympic Games, the Airport has some fun activity booths for the kids…

Check out my Little Champions on the Winner’s Podium:

Located on the Departure level, and placed just opposite “Coffee Bean”, there’s a hustle and bustle of activities for the family.

For example, there was a trampoline for the adults & older kids which seemed like great fun!

There a long queue for this activity. However, as my kids are younger, I don’t think that they were too keen on this one…

The other booths tested other skills such as Strength:

The kids managed to try out the machines with a little assistance of course!

For Soccer Enthusiasts, there is a also machine there that measures your strength in kicking the ball. Many soccer fans were really having a “Go” at it!

Coupled with the large space to run about, and the Longest Slide in Singapore for older children…the Airport is proving to be a hit with parents over the weekend.

Btw, the Airport is also having a promotion for patrons at its restaurants and shops:

Dine and Shop at Changi, and you could Win a Million Dollars…

Nathan is of course excited about it!

The Jewel Cable Car to Sentosa is a common sight when one makes his way to the Island Resort. However, its doors have been closed for the last few months due to an upgrade. Just recently, the Cable Car has opened its doors again to the public!

Closing its doors in September 2009, the Jewel Cable Car reopened last month, after going through an upgrade costing  S$36 million.

The buzz has been going on around town, and we were glad to be invited by our friend  to try out the new Cable Cars.

The kids were really looking forward to it! Check out Nathan’s Big Smile as he got onto the Cable Car!

With the upgrade, all 67 cabins are now bigger and can contain 8 passengers instead of 6. This change is rather significant, as I remember that the previous cabins were a bit cramped.

The views in the cabin have also been brought up 1 level! We took the cable car from Mount Faber to Sentosa and back again. It was a really pleasant experience especially for the kids!

The maximum height of the Cable car have been shifted up an additional 30m to facilitate the bigger cabins. The highest point now stands at 120 m above sea level.

If you are thinking about bringing your kids to Sentosa via the cable car, be prepared for the revised prices.

Tickets are at:

Adult:
S$24 – one way trip
S$26 – two way trip

Child:
S$14 – one way trip
S$15 – two way trip

(Prices include Sentosa island admission) 

Opening Hours: 8.30am – 10pm daily

Parenting Tip

1. Do not expect the new cabins to be air-conditioned! The technology for air-conditioned cabins is not in yet and therefore dress the kids in light clothing. My youngest was really sweating, when we went in the afternoon.
2. Trip across to Sentosa takes about 5-10min. Do something on the island when you get there, as it will really keep the kids excited! No child would want to stay enclosed in a cabin for too long:). On Sentosa, we went for the Luge and the kids loved it!