Haw Par Villa Park

Want to visit Singapore’s most quirky and instagrammable park that is filled with Asian culture, history, philosophy and religious figurines? This free admission park is Singapore’s largest outdoor art gallery built in 1937, open daily from 9 am to 8 pm (last entry is 7.30 pm), including weekends and public holidays (in the UK, we call it bank holidays).

Haw Par Villa park is located at 262 Pasir Panjang Road Singapore 118 628. It is very easy to get there by public transport, especially by MRT Haw Par Villa Station CC25 (Circle Line) or you can cycle there or drive there by car. By bike, the parking fee is $1 cash only. Do remember it is always good to insure your bike, so get a bike insurance quote that you are comfortable with. By car, the car park fee is $5.

This eclectic park is built by Aw Boon Haw, a very successful Myanmar-born businessman who owned the Tiger Balm brand. He built this villa for his brother, Aw Boon Par, because he missed home. Their parents were originally from China. His father asked them to perfect the Tiger Balm product and it was so successful in Burma and the rest of East and Southeast Asia. You can even buy them from many chemists in the UK now! They moved to Singapore in 1924 due to problems with the British Raj Colonial government in 1924. Haw (Tiger) is represented by Aw Boon Haw and Par (Leopard) is represented by Aw Boon Par and it is a villa, hence the name Haw Par villa. It was also known as Tiger Balm gardens in the past. Anyway, since 2015, it has been managed by Journeys Pte Ltd in preserving and bringing the heritage gem to greater heights.

This park is free admission for all but please don’t get confused with the Hell’s museum, which has a paid admission. The Hell’s museum stretches over 3,800 sqm and is an indoor and outdoor exhibition exhibiting the world’s major belief systems and how different communities around the world, as well as in Singapore, draw meaning from death and the afterlife. It also provides a deeper understanding of Haw Par Villa’s infamous 10 Courts of Hell on how concepts behind the graphic representations of sins and punishments in the afterlife evolved as ancient civilisations shared their cultures across time and space. It is situated inside the park, near the Visitor Centre. I will blog about it soon.

The park allows you to stroll through the many Buddhist element figurines, dioramas, the 12 Chinese Zodiac animals and even a miniature Statue of Liberty. You can also feed the fishes and tortoises, maybe get to see some otters, pray to the Buddha etc. If you are tired, you can stop by the Sixth Milestone, a transport-themed bistro and cafe serving kopi and teh, a range of beers, and snacks. It is a great day out to bring the family to see this quirky park!

Disclosure: This is a featured post.