Coastal PlayGrove

The old waterpark went in 2017. Its tower stayed, and the tallest outdoor slide in the country runs down it.

Coastal PlayGrove is the best free afternoon in East Coast Park for a family with a spread of ages, provided you divide and conquer: one adult on tower duty, one by the water. Bring swimwear, come late in the afternoon when the metal slides have cooled, and avoid Mondays, when the water play and the Vertical Challenge close for maintenance. The catch for younger children: NParks' guidance for the tower is ages 13 and above.

The tower with a past

Big Splash opened here on 23 July 1977 with an 85-metre slide billed at the time as the longest and highest in the world, then lived several lives: a facelift, a closure, a 2008 reinvention as Playground @ Big Splash and a final closure when the lease ran out in October 2016. When the structures came down in 2017, the famous tower was kept. NParks opened Coastal PlayGrove around it on 28 March 2021, across 4.5 hectares, and the 16-metre play tower reconstructs the old one in the bright colours of the old water slides. Nostalgia for parents, a vertical obstacle course for everyone else, and a story the older generation will tell without being asked.

What the children do

The Vertical Challenge climbs four colour-coded levels: swaying wave-like nets at the blue base, rope obstacles and disc swings on green, link bridges and grip walls with bigger gaps on yellow, and a wobbly platform up to orange at the top. Two enclosed tube slides drop from the upper floors at 7.3 and 11.9 metres; NParks calls the higher one the tallest outdoor slide in Singapore. There is one entrance at the bottom, so if someone loses their nerve halfway, the external ramps to the slides are your friend.

Smaller children have their own territory. The water-play area, for ages five to 12, links wading pools with a stream of jets that light up at night. The nature playgarden, for three to 12, swaps plastic for wood, sand and gravel across three habitat zones planted to draw butterflies and bees, and it is open round the clock. There is also NParks' first outdoor classroom by the sea, built for preschoolers.

How to do it well

Go late afternoon or evening. The metal slides get very hot at midday, and NParks says they aren't recommended when wet, so a shower can reshuffle the plan. There have been no lockers, so pack light, but bring swimwear and a full change, because everyone gets soaked. A weekday after school is the better bet if you want space. The Monday rule has a twist: after a public-holiday Monday, the water play closes on the Tuesday instead. Come in via the Amber Gardens underpass from Marine Parade MRT, and finish with a stroll along the promenade while someone explains the slide that used to be here, again.

Good to know East Coast Park Area B, 902 East Coast Park Service Road, via the Amber Gardens underpass; Marine Parade MRT is the nearest station. Hours differ by zone, and NParks lists the Vertical Challenge and water play as closed on non-public-holiday Mondays for maintenance. Check the NParks page before you go.

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Coastal PlayGrove | East Coast Park Area B, 902 East Coast Park Service Rd, Singapore 449874 | Nearest MRT: Marine Parade