When Jurong Bird Park’s closure was announced, my friends and I eagerly made plans to visit it for the last time on Nov 19.

On Oct 30, we bought tickets at $32 each from a third-party agent.

To our dismay, just three days before our planned visit, the bird park announced a promotional entrance fee of $10, from Nov 19 to Jan 3, 2023, for local residents who sign up for a free WildPass.

I checked with the third-party agent, who replied that he had also learnt about the promotion from news reports that day.

Feeling short-changed, we approached the staff at Jurong Bird Park when we went there on Nov 19. They suggested that we buy bird park tickets at the promotional rate and convert our tickets for entry to River Wonders that would be valid for the rest of the year.

The offer was of little comfort. We were not willing to pay another $10 to enter the premises. We are also not able to make time to visit River Wonders before the year end.

We relived some childhood memories and made new memories, but also left Jurong Bird Park with the thought that we had paid much more than we should.

I hope Jurong Bird Park’s marketing team will make allowances for those who made arrangements to visit the park before the promotion was announced.

Lee Yilin