Singapore Zoo is famous around the world for its interactive and open concept design where some animals roam freely and moats are the only thing separating you and animals. But did you know that you can also stay there overnight at the Mandai Rainforest Resort by Banyan Tree and have a free breakfast in the wild? Find out more about it here and how to get some great deals to make the most of your time at Singapore Zoo, Bird Paradise and Mandai Rainforest Reserve.
This year we are visiting Singapore a bit more to see my mother and sister. My mother isn't very mobile any more so she can't really travel but she still likes staying at hotels and she has had a later in life interest in animals. My sister Blythe suggested the Mandai Rainforest Retreat by Banyan Tree that opened in November 2025. Singapore Zoo is located within the Mandai Rainforest Reserve so you can pair a zoo visit, feed the animals and stay at the lush rainforest retreat.
Booking Discounts at Mandai Rainforest Resort, Singapore Zoo & Bird Paradise
My sister got an amazing deal for staying at the Mandai Rainforest Retreat for Singapore citizens and permanent residents (there often are great hotels deals for locals). It was only for a limited time and for limited dates but there are deals out there to be found especially as the resort is on the newer side.
Singapore Zoo spans several different areas and you can buy tickets based on what you want to see. For example zoo entry to the main zoo is $49SGD but if you want to visit Bird Paradise that is an extra $49SGD and the Night Zoo is also extra. So compared to Taronga Zoo which is $49AUD entry, Singapore Zoo is pricier if you want to see both areas.
One thing we found was that Mandai Rainforest Resort isn't really that well integrated into Singapore Zoo's offering. At Taronga Zoo's Wildlife Retreat, lodge guests can come and go into the zoo via a special entrance which is a fantastic privilege. At Mandai Rainforest Retreat, there is no zoo entry included. Every entry you want to make is paid for separately unless you purchase a specific accommodation package that includes it.
One way to save is with your credit card. There are deals if you pay with certain credit cards. The biggest discount is for a free breakfast when you book Singapore zoo tickets and pay with a Mastercard. Normally "Breakfast in the wild" is $47SG a person but it was free with the zoo entry ($49SG per person) so this is a fantastic deal.
Also all stores within the zoo give 10% off if you pay by Mastercard (even the food ones). One thing that we didn't know until we arrived was that if you pay for Bird Paradise with a Trust credit card you get between 30-50% off entry to Bird Paradise and Night Safari which is an amazing deal as they don't often discount them.
Breakfast In The Wild
We booked the Breakfast in the Wild for the morning that we were staying at the zoo. This was to make the most of our time at the hotel and the zoo. Breakfast in the Wild starts at 9am til 10:30am at the Ah Meng cafe which is an outdoor cafe with a buffet breakfast. It is an interactive breakfast where they bring some animals out for a meet and greet and photo opportunities. The animals start coming out at 9:15am and start with a trio of orangutans as well as Merlin the macau and an owl and lizard. Guests can take photos near the animals although you can't touch them.
The buffet is quite comprehensive spanning Asian and Western cuisines and is designed to be sustainable so no items contain beef. All items are also free from pork and lard. There are pre-made omelettes, chicken breakfast wraps, roasted tomato gratin, sausages, a range of pastries, cold cuts, cheese, hash browns, French toast and a pancake making machine.
The Asian breakfast includes siu mai and har gow prawn dumplings, bee hoon noodles, nasi lemak, roti prata with a vegetable curry and kaya and lotus steamed baos. There are also several juices, organic soy milk and hot coffee and tea. Iced coffee or barista coffee is an extra charge. I fill a range of plates for everyone to try and we all enjoy the siu mai and Asian goodies while our helper Del loves the pastries and French toast. Mr NQN and I feast on the plentiful, sweet blueberries.
The Mandai Rainforest Resort Room
Prior to us checking in, the service from Mandai Rainforest Reserve wasn't very helpful. Any requests for information were met with a "Look on the website" aka find it yourself which was a surprise as the brand is usually known for great service. Once we were at the resort, service was very good.
Many pictures of the Mandai Rainforest Resort show the seed pod shaped villas. We stayed in the main building at a non villa room. The common areas have an avatar grown over jungle sort of vibe (it reminded Mr NQN of Ta Prohm temple in Siem Reap). However I absolutely loved the design of the room. Entry level rooms are often plain and lacking in details but this has to be the one of the nicer entry level rooms I've stayed in (and for $470SGD you would want it to be at least nice).
Our room is a Rainforest King. The rooms are 36 square metres and are well designed to maximise space and with views of the resort but with some foliage in between (so close those shower blinds when showering just in case!). The bed is extremely comfortable with very smooth, cooling sheets with easy to use controls by the bed including electric blockout blinds.
The rooms are air conditioned also with a fan for extra cooling. The bathroom has double sinks with a comprehensive amenity kit that has double of everything. The products smell gorgeous and are good quality.
There is also a fridge, mini bar (although our mini bar wasn't stocked), coffee machine and good quality teas. 4 cartons of glacier water from Finland are provided and there's a comfortable day bed to relax on. It's truly a serene space where you can just sit back and listen to the birds. You can also open up the doors as there is a mosquito mesh. And if you're one of those people that always gets bitten (like me!), hotel reception and concierges will give you cute little animal themed mosquito patches that do seem to work.
Special Occasions at Mandai Rainforest Resort
We stayed here as part of my birthday celebration. They gave us a complimentary Happy Birthday balloon and a chocolate almond layer cake that was actually really delicious and the perfect sweet to have after dinner.
Singapore Zoo
Mr NQN and I spent all day at the zoo until late afternoon when we checked into the hotel. We enjoyed the roaming primate feeding where they walk through the primate exhibit and explain a bit about each primate and feed them.
The Fragile Forest is also really lovely and features a two toed sloth busy resting on a tree as well as bats chewing on watermelon pieces and myriad birds with colourful plumage.
We also booked some animal feedings which were $9 per basket of food. For the 5 of us we got 3 baskets to feed the southern white rhino, the giraffes and zebras. All proceeds from the feedings go towards animal conservation. My mother particularly loved feeding the animals.
Bird Paradise
One of the things that I was most excited to do was visit Bird Paradise as I love the shoebill stork, a prehistoric looking bird that stands 5 feet tall and makes the sound of a machine gun with his beak. Shoebill storks originally hail from East Africa and there is one Shoebill stork at Singapore Zoo. Zane the shoebill even has his own instagram account with over 14,000 followers. Alas Zane's partner Zola passed away and they're looking for a replacement partner for him. In the meantime he free roams through the Heart of Africa area of Bird Paradise.
As soon as we walked in I asked where Zane the shoebill was and the man warns me gently that he is very elusive and difficult to see. Mr NQN looks at me in alarm as he realises that we may have paid $100 for tickets to not see the shoebill stork. We head to the Heart of Africa area and look closely among the foliage. Shoebill storks stay very still and are known for not moving for 15 minutes while they stand in the water waiting for a fish. Then they strike suddenly grabbing a fish with their beaks. I spot a zookeeper walking along the path below. "Excuse me, do you know where Zane the shoebill is?" I call out from above. She points us towards a direction further away and we head there. We trace the path slowly, looking for the slightest movement. We see tiny, colourful birds, elegant storks and little rodents go about their life below the sky bridge but still no Zane.
We bump into the zookeeper again and she leads us to him. She takes her phone and zooms in and shows us where Zane is, perched way in the distance about 75 metres away through a thicket of trees. His distinctive head, beak and body are unmistakable and he sits down moving his head back and forth occasionally when he hears a noise.We stay there for 10 minutes watching him. Full disclosure for any shoebill stork fans: we would never have seen it if it weren't for the help of the zookeeper. Spotting Zane is extraordinarily difficult.
The flamboyance of flamingoes at the Crimson Wetlands is also worth a visit for their sheer number and spectacular colour. These intermingle with scarlet ibises-yes there is a bright scarlet version of the humble bin chicken and it is rather gorgeous! And if you need to cool down, head to the Penguin Cove. There are also plenty of interesting eateries in Bird Paradise including an afternoon tea.
Food At Mandai
Mandai Rainforest Retreat has two restaurants: the all day dining Planter's Shed and Forage, their upmarket restaurant on the fourth floor. We didn't eat at either as the menus at both didn't really appeal to my mother as she prefers Chinese food and we didn't want to eat buffet food for dinner. However there are also a plethora of dining choices just next to the resort. There's a hawker style centre called Food Republic that is purpose built for visitors (with air conditioning) and a bubble tea place Chica San Chen next to it. There is also the Dining Alley with Sushiro, Waami, Roberta's pizza, Song Fa Bah Kut Teh and Xiang Xiang Hunan food which we ordered.
You can pre order online or by phone and if you become a member (free) you get the members prices which really adds up. Help yourself to the complimentary bags of crackers too. This dinner was $100 and was delicious and spicy and more than enough for 5 people. The tofu hot pot was divine as was the dual chop spicy seabass which we all loved. We also ordered the Hunan stir fried pork with green capsicum and the 18 second Angus beef stir fry which we also really good.
For breakfast we ordered in again as my mother loves yum cha. We order a range of siu mai, noodle soup and a delicious chicken and lup cheong pork sausage on rice. Delivery drivers deliver to the lobby but can also deliver to the concierge who can hold food for you.
There is also a complimentary refreshment bar in the Mandai Rainforest Reserve lobby with chilled water, spa water as well as a selection of Kacang puteh which are inspired by the roadside snacks brought to Malaysia by Indian migrants and consists of roasted peanuts, peas and crackers that you can self serve into paper cones. This is very popular with guests who flock to this for a tasty snack!
Tips for Singapore Zoo and Bird Paradise:
Wear comfortable footwear and breathable clothing. The weather is hot and sticky in Singpapore.
Is any part of Singapore zoo air conditioned? Yes in the main zoo, most of the restaurants are air conditioned. At Bird Paradise, there are air conditioned areas just before you enter the specific bird exhibits to give you some cool relief. You often see people resting there on beanbags.
Make use of the free tram that circumnavigates the main zoo. There are frequent trams and this means less walking in the heat.
Bring a cooling portable fan with you. You can also buy one at the gift shops for $22 but it is only partially charged and won't last you a whole day.
Bird Paradise is around 1km away from Mandai Rainforest Resort and Singapore Zoo. Take a free coach to Bird Paradise. Take a picture of the map to help you find your way.
So tell me Dear Reader, have you ever been to Singapore Zoo? Is there an animal that you'd really like to see one day in real life?
All activities and this stay were independently paid for.
Mandai Rainforest Resort
60 Mandai Lake Rd, Singapore 729979
Phone: +65 6038 3939
Reader Comments
Loading comments...Add Comment