Sentosa's Central Beach Bazaar opens as visitor numbers rise

Sentosa, which has been drawing almost 50 per cent more visitors following the easing of border measures, on Thursday opened its fourth new attraction since the pandemic spiked in 2020.

Highlights of the Central Beach Bazaar at Siloso Beach include an 80m-tall Sentosa SkyJet fountain, the return of the Sentosa Musical Fountain, and a multi-concept food street.

Come December, visitors will be able to have a go at power boat simulator rides and carnival games, said operator Mount Faber Leisure Group, a subsidiary of Sentosa Development Corporation (SDC), on Thursday.

GrillFest will also return to Siloso Beach in October, as part of the Sentosa Food Fest, said SDC chief executive Thien Kwee Eng.

SkyHelix Sentosa, Singapore's highest open-air panoramic ride which opened last December, was the first new attraction since March 2020, which saw the opening of floating water park HydroDash just as the pandemic began to bite.

The subsequent attractions that opened were lifestyle destination Southside - home to Trickeye @ Southside and virtual reality theme park HeadRock VR - and Scentopia Sentosa, where visitors can customise perfume with augmented reality.

The new attraction's opening comes as SDC said on Thursday that the number of visitors to the island resort went up by 48 per cent between April and August, compared with the same period last year.

Here are Central Beach Bazaar's highlights:

At 80m, which is as high as a 24-storey building, Sentosa SkyJet is the tallest fountain in South-east Asia. At night, visitors can see it illuminated with colour-changing light-emitting diode, or LED, lights.

Opens from 10am to 10pm daily, except 5pm to 5.30pm and 7.40pm to 9pm. It does not operate when the Sentosa Musical Fountain and Wings Of Time shows are running.

This is a modern version of the famous musical fountain in the 1980s, and it is back with two shows lasting five minutes each - one that plays songs from the 1990s and another that belts out a medley of National Day songs.

It runs half-hourly from 11am to 5pm, except 2pm to 3pm.

Helming the night slot is the Wings Of Time, which features effects such as 3D visuals and pyrotechnics. The 20-minute show runs at 7.30pm daily, with an additional show at 8.30pm on weekends until the end of September. From October, the shows begin 10 minutes later. Standard seat tickets are $18 each.

Under-$10 meals such as chicken quesadilla or prawn gyoza are available at the International Food Street - a collection of eight food and beverage concepts housed in a mix of food trucks, vintage vans and upcycled shipping containers. Vegetarian and halal options are also available. It opens daily from 10.15am, with last orders at 9.30pm.

The Power Boat Racing simulator and Beach Carnival Games will open in December.

Adrenaline junkies can experience high-speed boat races as they travel through tropical seascapes on the simulator, while those who play carnival games stand to win plushies as prizes.