Kidzania Singapore is located at Palawan Kidz City, Sentosa. It's just a 5 minute walk from the Beach Station. You can either drive in or take the Sentosa train.
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| Kidzania Singapore at Palawan Kidz City |
The first thing that will catch your attention is the huge life-size plane that hangs in midair as though the building had caught it before it could take off. What an awesome first impression!
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| Underneath the belly of the plane |
We met up with Gerald, the Marketing AM, who brought us to "check in" and enter the city of Kidzania.
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| Clockwise from top left: Looks quite like the airport doesn't it?; Checking in at the Qatar "check-in" counters; Putting on the trackers; Each child is tied to a parent. Neither can leave without the other for security reasons. |
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| Excitedly reading the map and telling me which jobs she wanted to try first |
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| Kidzania is a real city so they use "real" money called Kidzos and a debit card to transact. The debit card has to be activated at Maybank before you can store Kidzos. |
Most people will head first to the bank to activate their cards but we were advised to do that later in the afternoon when there's usually no queue. You can still earn Kidzos in cash. Kidzos are serious business here at Kidzania! Gerald told me that there's a whole department of staff in charge of handling the circulation of the Kidzos!
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| Left: All ready with our boarding passes!; Right: Departure! And we're off! |
Kidzania works like a real city with 'real' money and 'jobs' at establishments. There are many Kidzanias all over the world and use the same currency, Kidzos, so do keep your kidzos at the end of your visit in case you wanna visit Kidzania again.
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| Little shophouses, like a real city except kid-sized |
As advised by our Kidzania guru and fellow blogger Bumblebeemum, we decided to get the B.Kidzanian CitiZen PaZZport before starting any activity. The PaZZport is a rewards programme that allows you to earn more Kidzos for each job. You'll also get a chop for each station, which are accumulated. Once you reach 30 chops, you'll get promoted to the next level where you can earn even more Kidzos. There're other benefits of course but as Kidzos rule in Kidzania, the more the merrier =)
There's a one time administrative fee of $22, which is pricey but you do get a goodie bag and a personalised PaZZport that looks just like the real thing.
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| Go to the PaZZport Office at Level M2 to get your Kidzania PaZZport |
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| Clockwise from left: Excited to get her PaZZport and goodie bag; It really looks like the real passport doesn't it?; Her first chop in her PaZZport. You can get about 10 chops per visit, give or take. |
The PaZZport can be used at participating Kidzanias around the world (see the B.Kidzania website for more details). The nearest to us are Kidzania Kuala Lumpur and Kidzania Manila. If you really want to save money, the PaZZport is only MYR 38 in Kuala Lumpur!
There's always a different theme running at Kidzania; it was Kids for a Greener World when we were there. There are signs everywhere reminding kids to save water and recycle.
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| The Kids for a Greener World booth |
There are more than 60 jobs that the kids can role play (see all the activities here) in Kidzania Singapore. Here are those that my girl chose:
Pizza Chef @ Pizza Hut
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| Pizza Hut's counter where you can buy pizzas with SGD |
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| All food establishments require you to pay Kidzos rather than earn because you'll get a pizza in exchange for your "services" |
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| Clockwise from left: Wearing her hairnet and apron; Remember to keep your hairnet and reuse it to get 1 Kidzo for each time that you do; Parents are welcome to join but instead of paying Kidzos, you pay in SGD. Very unfair if you ask me since parents pay entry fees too. |
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| Hand-washing is a must at all food establishments. The sinks and all the counter tops are lowered to cater to the children! |
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| Making their very own pizzas |
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| Proudly showing the pizza she made before proceeding to eat it all except one slice, which she grudgingly gave to me *laughs* |
I'd say that this job is a must to fill your stomachs before continuing with the other jobs =)
By the way, because the most popular jobs in Kidzania Singapore are pilot and cabin crew, you'd need to queue to get a queue card. Don't forget to get it early so that you can complete other jobs while waiting for your turn.
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| Our queue card for the 12 noon Pilot session |
We headed to Spritzer as the queue was the shortest while waiting for our pilot session.
Water QC Specialist @ Spritzer
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| Clockwise from left: Wearing her lab coat and looking just like her daddy, who's a microbiologist/ quality assurance specialist; Earn extra 2 Kidzos as this job is in line with the Kids for a Greener World theme; The water that she is supposed to test. |
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| Getting a certificate and a bottle of water for her efforts |
My girl said this job was quite boring but well, at least she got a free bottle of water (cheap thrill *laughs*)!
Pilot @ Qatar
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| Clockwise from left: The stairway up into the cabin; Proudly sponsored by Qatar Airways; The area where the kids get dressed for their jobs. |
Do note that parents are usually not allowed in the cabin for the pilot session. I was given special permission to take photos for the blog =)
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| The little pilots getting a briefing from their Captain |
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| Simulation that looks about 60% like the actual cock pit. Super cool! |
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| Clockwise from left: My girl looking very serious as she attempted to steer the plane; I have to say, flying a plane is probably not my girl's forte; I found it really cool to look out of the same plane that we saw when we entered! |
I thought it was nice that most of the jobs were wheelchair accessible. The Aviation Academy was no exception.
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| Left: Elevator for those who need it; Right: One of the pilot seats can be removed to accommodate a wheelchair! |
The girl had so much fun! She enjoyed it so much that she asked to join the cabin crew. Usually kids are only allowed to choose either pilot or cabin crew to role play (not both). This is so that more kids can have a chance to experience being in the aircraft. However, we were allowed to experience both and document them on the blog so that you/ your child can make an informed choice on which job you'd prefer =)
Cabin Crew @ Qatar
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| Left: our queue card for the 12.40pm Cabin Crew session; Right: The queue to get the card starts in front of Lifebuoy. |
As usual, parents are not allowed onboard when the kids are doing their job. However, for the cabin crew, parents get to board the plane to act as passengers!
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| Clockwise from left: Saying "Kai" the Kidzania greeting to all the passengers; The chairs look just those on an actual plane; The "meal" that I was served. |
I was very proud when my girl got to take turns making the inflight announcements! She really looked the part!
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| All the girls taking a group photo. Well done! |
Overall, I think both jobs are fun though my girl looked like she preferred being a cabin crew =)
Dentist @ Sunstar
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| Learning to be a dentist and basic dental hygiene at Sunstar Dental Clinic |
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| I have no idea what they're doing but it seems like it's really serious business. My girl told me later that they were afraid that the man was real and that they will hurt him by pulling out his tooth! Haha! |
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| Left: Queuing up to choose a free gift to take home after watching the video; Right: You can choose between a toothbrush or toothpaste! The girl chose a toothpaste because she uses an electric toothbrush. |
I was very keen for my girl to do this job, not just because it came with a free gift (I'm a sucker for free stuff *laughs*), but because I secretly hope my girl will become a dentist one day. Not a doctor, they don't have much of a work-life balance as compared to dentists. My orthodontist told me dentists don't have to work OT and can sit around all day (the joker was trying to get me to join dentistry *laughs*). In my opinion, there's always good money to be earned from extracting wisdom tooth and/or braces! I seriously hope my girl will consider this! *laughs*
Nursery Doctor & Surgeon @ Mount Elizabeth Hospital
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| Clockwise from left: Waiting for her turn to be a nursery doctor; There's a lift that can cater to kids in wheelchairs; A peek of my girl taking care of newborn "babies". |
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| A glimpse of the operating room where the kids were hard at work as surgeons |
There was a long queue for the surgeon job so the girl was asked to be a baby doctor first while waiting for her turn in the operating theatre. As both occurred at the second level where parents are not allowed to follow, I visited the neighbouring establishments to check out other jobs that my girl did not
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| Clockwise from left: Help others find the perfect eye wear as an optician; There's a Kidzania Stadium for kids role-play as athletes; The only establishment that is not available in other Kidzanias: a Peranankan Museum! |
When my girl was done with her job, I asked her what she did because I couldn't watch her. She said she changed a baby's diaper as a baby doctor and she did a kidney transplant as a surgeon (evidently surgeons still have more street cred even in the kiddy world of Kidzania!). She looked like she thoroughly enjoyed it!
ER Doctor @ Mount Elizabeth Hospital
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| Clockwise from left: The Emergency wing of the hospital was located on the ground floor. Her coat had the words doctor on it. Really cool!; Learning basic first aid and how to measure someone's blood pressure; Looking so professional in her doctor's outfit, complete with a stethoscope. So cute! |
The kids needed a patient to practise on and that patient happened to be none other than yours truly!
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| They put on blusher on my arm to make it look like it was swollen from a burn |
The kids were delighted that they got to bandage me and all. It was really fun!
Banking @ Maybank
At around 2.50pm, we finally went to bank to deposit all the cash that my girl earned (she couldn't use her debit card as it was not activated yet). As expected, there was no one in sight.
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| Clockwise from left: The signboard looks just like the real thing!; Exterior of the bank; Miniature ATM machines that you can use to withdraw Kidzos! So cool! |
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| Kids doing their own banking because adults were not allowed to go in. The counter is right at a kid's height! |
Do note that the debit card can only be used in Kidzania Singapore. If you want to use your Kidzos at other Kidzanias, you'd need to withdraw it in cash.
Fire-fighter @ SCDF
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| Another very cool establishment, the SCDF! |
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| Clockwise from left: She was super lucky to slip in as the 8th and last person in the queue!; Listening to the briefing while waiting for the rest to get dressed in their firefighter outfits; They also got to watch a short film on fire safety. |
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| I love that the SCDF lent their logo to authenticate the experience for the kids! |
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| The kids boarded their Fire Truck and were off to save a burning hotel located at the opposite end of Kidzania |
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| The firefighters arrived to put out the fire while the police ensured that no one goes near the burning building. Very cute! |
I'd say this job is a must because come on, the outfit is so cute!
Window Cleaner @ Cleaning Master
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| She also got to be a window cleaner where she learnt how to give the windows a good wipe down! |
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| The kids were given instructions to go to the convenience store located at the other end of Kidzania to clean their windows. They had to do it without assistance once again. |
Chef @ Soup Spoon
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| As with all the F&B establishments, you can buy food from Soup Spoon with the usual SGD. Being a Soup Spoon lover myself, I found this to be such an interesting concept! |
The queue for this activity was always full every time we walked passed. We finally decided to wait for about 30 minutes till the next session just to guarantee that she'll be able to participate.
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| Left: Washing of hands is a must; Right: Learning how to make pastries. |
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| Hard at work |
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| She proudly showed off her finished meal! |
She became a new Soup Spoon fan after tasting the soup, declaring it to be her favourite job of the day. I suppose any job that comes with food is a good job (although technically it's not a job because she paid Kidzos and did not earn anything).
Ice Cream Maker @ Paddle Pop
The girl really wanted to go to Paddle Pop and again, she was super lucky to be the last person of the last session before closing!
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| Left: Paddle Pop Ice Cream Factory; Right: Wearing her Paddle Pop apron. |
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| Learning how ice cream is made and getting to bring home her own ice cream! |
And with that, we ran out of time to complete any other job. We'd just have to come back again! =)
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| It's not just the F&B establishments that require you to pay Kidzos. The above jobs of scaling a wall, doing a ropes course and driving also require you to shell out Kidzos. |
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| Other jobs that my girl didn't manage to try include Lim Chee Guan, Singapore Police Force officer, theatre actress and Kiss92 DJ. |
There is only one thing that I did not like about Kidzania, and one thing only: the hefty price tag of $38 that parents pay to be their kid's bodyguard/ photographer. I found it rather unfair that kids could get pizzas and soup using Kidzos while parents had to pay even more money for food. There should at least be a free lunch coupon or something is what I think.
Anyway, the best way that you can maximise your money, since there's so little benefit for parents, is for a high parent to child ratio of at least 1:3. That way, there are more kids to get more pizzas/ soup/ chicken to make your money's worth! Also, don't bother bringing your kids if they're younger than 4 years old. There's only a small play area also known as the Kindergarten for them, which to me is so not worth the toddler + adult entry fee of $63 ($25+$38). There are so many indoor playgrounds in Singapore that offer younger kids so much more at one third the price.
Alternatively, you can also look out for special promotions at Kidzania Singapore's website. While you're there, you can also check out the special event that Kidzania holds on certain Friday nights where adults can go to Kidzania and role play like the kids do! You'd get to earn Kidzos too! =)
Overall, the girl and I had an awesome time and we both became Kidzania superfans overnight! This will definitely not be our last visit to Kidzania! =)
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This post is part of my MadPsychMum Fun in Singapore Guide to all things exciting for kids!
Check out other fun playgrounds and attractions in Singapore! =)
Disclosure: Complimentary entry was received from Kidzania Singapore for the purposes of this review (we purchased the PaZZport). No monetary compensation was received; all opinions are my own.