Singapore Oceanarium

Same giant window, new storyline. The small rooms are where the thinking shows.

Singapore Oceanarium is worth a visit even if you think you've done Sentosa's aquarium, and it is best with curious children or anyone who wants a slow, air-conditioned half-day. Book a timed slot if you're going in a peak period, bring a light layer, and give the small rooms as much time as the big window. It is not a quick stop.

The old S.E.A. Aquarium, which opened in 2012 and was once the world's largest aquarium by water volume, closed on 30 April 2025 and reopened on 24 July 2025 as Singapore Oceanarium. The new version is about three times the size of the old one, organised into 22 zones, and the big change is that it now tells a story. You start with how life began and the first fishes evolved, move through Singapore's own coastline and the open ocean, drop into the deep, and end on rising temperatures and what visitors can do about them. It is less a sequence of tanks than a book you walk through, with the worrying chapter saved for last.

The bits worth slowing down for

The Open Ocean habitat, with its sharks and manta rays, is the obvious photo stop. It was always the headliner: in its aquarium days, the tank held more than 18 million litres of water. But the smaller rooms are where the new thinking shows. Ancient Waters has a life-sized replica of Dunkleosteus, an armoured prehistoric fish. Ocean Wonders shows more than 20 species of sea jellies bred in-house, and they are hypnotic in a way the big tank isn't. Whale Fall centres on a walk-through whale skeleton, showing the deep-sea creatures that feed on a whale carcass. Singapore's Coast has touch pools; budget extra time there with younger children, because getting them out again is a negotiation.

Some of the residents come with stories too. Two zebra sharks here were born through parthenogenesis, without a male, in 2016 and 2021.

The serious side

Behind the exhibits is a Research and Learning Centre, a Green Mark Platinum Zero Energy building used for marine research and education, and Resorts World Sentosa now pitches the whole place as an ocean institute rather than an attraction. There are dive programmes, dolphin sessions and scheduled talks with animal care staff, all priced separately, and a guided Insider Experience that gives you time with the education team. Add one if you want more than the walk-through; the zones alone will fill the afternoon.

Give it a slow half-day and a light jacket, as the indoor zones run cool. Children under 4 enter free and need no reservation. HarbourFront is the nearest MRT, then onward to Sentosa. It suits curious children, couples who want air-con and something to talk about, and anyone who skipped the aquarium years ago and assumed they'd seen it.

Good to know Adult tickets start from S$55 and child tickets from S$43, timed entry applies in peak periods, and evening entry starts at 4pm. Check rwsentosa.com for exact hours, inclusions and any displays closed for maintenance. The nearest MRT is HarbourFront, then onward to Sentosa.

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Singapore Oceanarium | 24 Sentosa Gateway, Singapore 098137 | Nearest MRT: HarbourFront