Volcano Land

If you learnt about volcanoes in school but never saw one IRL, Volcanoland was the place to go. There was an artificial volcano standing at 20m tall that “erupted” by spewing smoke every half hour or so – even adults got excited by its striking sound effects and grand set design.

Singapore is multicultural city, but the Mayan culture – that was a first. Visiting Volcanoland was thrilling, but it became a learning journey too. Families would walk through exhibits and statues depicting the long-lost Maya civilisation without having to travel to Mexico.

Unique? Check. Rides and cool attractions? Check. For 7 years, this $20 million theme park was quite the charm. After entering the volcano, kids could cross a rope bridge over hot boiling “lava”, or stare in awe at underground waterfalls and prehistoric fossils. And did we mention, a 3D show on the creation of the universe? It was like a real-life Geography lesson. It shut down in 2002 and was replaced by a resort hotel.