How much time to spend at Singapore Zoo
Visiting Singapore’s Zoo can easily take up half your day, including all the transport and food associated with visiting the Zoo. As the Zoo is open from 8:30am to 6pm, you could easily spend a full day there, however I don’t recommend it. I put this guide together, based on my last visit in June 2024, to help visitors to Singapore, planning a trip to the Zoo, figure out how much time they need to budget for a good visit.
A visit to the Singapore Zoo will typically take 4-6 hours, including visiting animals, watching shows and presentations, and having something to eat. The quickest you can get through the Zoo is about 3 hours, and it takes at least 45 minutes to travel each way to and from the Zoo.
I usually recommend visitors budget at least 5 hours to get to the Zoo, do some activities, having something to eat, and get home again.
In this guide I’ve included how much time to budget for:
| Activity | Time |
|---|---|
| Visiting Animals | 10-20 minutes per exhibit |
| Eating | 30-45 minutes + queue time |
| Feeding animals | 15 minutes per animal |
| Shows and presentations | 20-30 minutes including arriving early to get a seat |
Visiting Animals - 10-20 minutes per zone
The bulk of time spent at the Singapore Zoo is spent watching animals in their habitats going about their business.
There are in excess of 300 species of animal spread over 12 zones to visit at the Zoo. Even if you budget 15 minutes per zone, you will spend hours seeing it all.
I recommend budgeting 10-20 minutes per zone depending on how interested you are in the animals living there. If you are bringing children, I suggest budgeting additional time for KidzWorld.
Shows, feeding animals, and keeper talks take extra time (see below for my estimates).
Based on my last visit and my preferences (I enjoy spending more time at cage-free habitats, and tend to breeze past animals living in tanks and behind glass), I spent roughly the following at each zone:
| Zone | Time I spent (approx.) |
|---|---|
| Orangutan Island | 10-15 minutes |
| Wild Africa | 15-20 minutes |
| Fragile Forest | At least 20 minutes |
| Reptopia and Reptile Kingdom | 15-20 minutes |
| Tortoise Shell-ter | 10-15 minutes |
| Primate Kingdom | 15-20 minutes |
| Elephants of Asia | 15-20 minutes |
| Australiasia | 10-15 minutes |
| Great Rift Valley of Ethiopia | 10-15 minutes |
| Treetop Trails | 10-15 minutes |
The zone I spent the most time in was probably Fragile Forest because I got stuck watching a bird build his nest. The elephants exhibit only takes so long because of the walk around the elephant enclosure.
KidzWorld time depends on whether you have children and how interested they are in it. If you’re only stopping by briefly to play with the rabbits, you could spend less than 15 minutes there. However, if your kids want to play on the equipment and get an additional something to eat, you might spend half an hour in KidzWorld alone.
Rope Course and Carousel can also add 10-15 minutes each if you are planning to do those.
Walking time between exhibits should be added to the above, this is roughly 2-5 minutes each depending on how fast you move. I didn’t really think much about walking time as the zones usually blend together well, but when I was calculating my time spent for this guide I realised I spent a lot of time walking.
In summary, the quickest you could get through Singapore Zoo would be 3 hours, based on the minimum time above and assuming you do not visit KidzWorld. I recommend spending 4 hours at least in the Singapore Zoo though, plus additional time if you are visiting KidzWorld, watching shows, and having something to eat.
See below for the time to spend on food,activities, and shows throughout the day at the Zoo.
Eating - 30-45 minutes
I recommend budgeting at least 30-45 minutes for eating. If you come at peak hour you will likely have to queue for a table which could add extra time (15-30 minutes).
The two most popular eateries are Ah Meng and KidzWorld; you can also eat outside the Zoo and come back in (though a long walk). I wrote a full guide on eating at the Zoo (including cost), check it out here: reachingsingapore.com/zoo-food-drink
Last time I visited I went for lunch at 11:30am on a weekday and there was no queue at all. I could order my food and get a table for 4 without having to wait. It took about 30 seconds to order, and 5 minutes to cook (bring your ticket to the kitchen to start cooking, allowing you to secure a table first before they prepare your food).
Given the length of rope I observed marking out the queue line, I imagine during peak hour the wait can be 15-30 minutes for a table. If you’re having trouble finding a table inside, you can always take your food to the outside seating area.
Bringing your own food is possible at the Singapore Zoo, there are even areas for you to sit and eat your own food. This can be quicker if you prefer.
Feeding Animals
When I visited (June 2024), the animal feeding schedule was as follows:
| Animal | Feeding Time |
|---|---|
| White Rhinoceros | 1:15pm |
| Giant Tortoise | 1:15pm |
| Giraffe | 10:45am, 1:50pm, 3:45pm |
| Zebra | 10:15am, 2:15pm |
This schedule is of course based on animal availability and the Zoo’s own planning - it’s subject to change. Elephant feeding can also be available, but wasn’t on the day I visited.
Allow 15 minutes for animal feeding. Though if you’re in a rush you can technically feed them for less than 5 minutes then leave.
Feeding tickets can be bought using the app and cost S$8 per portion per animal.
Shows and Presentations
There are a few main shows held every day at the Zoo in large open spaces. These are supplemented by “Keeper Talk” presentations delivered by animal keepers at the animal exhibits. Not all animals have talks.
Shows and their run times are included in the table below:
| Show | Time |
|---|---|
| Animal Buddies, for the kids, located in KidzWorld | Starts at 11am, 2pm, and 4pm, takes 10 minutes |
| Into the Wild, located in Shaw Amphitheatre | Starts at 12pm and 2:30pm, takes 20 minutes |
| Splash Safari, located in Shaw Amphitheatre | Starts at 10:30am and 5pm, takes 20 minutes |
I recommend adding 5-10 minutes to each of the above if you’re budgeting your time carefully. You will need to arrive early to get a good seat at these shows, particularly on weekends at the Shaw Amphitheatre (it gets crowded!).
Tickets are not required for shows at KidzWorld or the Shaw Amphitheatre. Seat reservation is generally not possible, though if you have a wheelchair or large group, arrive early and ask staff for help.
“Keeper Talk” presentations are also available throughout each day where animal keepers will talk through some interesting facts about the animals at an exhibit. When I visited, these included:
- Probiscus monkey, 11:30am
- Elephants, 11:30am
- African Lion, 1:25pm
- Gibbons, 1:30pm
- Meerkats, 1:30pm
- Cheetah, 1:35pm
- African painted dog, 1:40pm
- Primate Kingdom (starts at Howler Monkeys), 11am and 2pm
- Indian gharial (crocodile), 2:30pm
- Pygmy hippo, 2:30pm
- Malayan tiger, 2:40pm
- Fossa, 3:30pm
- Orangutan, 3:30pm
- Animal pack (for the kids), 4:15pm
- Celebes crested macaque, 4:15pm
- Chimpanzee, 4:35pm
Each talk takes around 5-10 minutes. The talks are designed somewhat consecutively allowing you to follow the programme to move around the Zoo. Budget a little longer for the elephants as you will need to navigate a larger space.
If you do as many of the Keeper Talks as possible, you would end up spending 5 hours at the Zoo, including lunch. If this timing suits you, following the talks can be a great way to see a lot of the highlights of the Zoo; remember to budget additional time for zones that don’t have keeper talks (e.g. currently Reptopia and Fragile Forest).
Travelling To/From the Zoo
It can take a long time to get to the Singapore Zoo. In fitting with the wildlife theme, the Singapore Zoo is located within the wild jungle lands as far out of the city as they could make it.
Here are some of the typical travel times and costs involved with getting to the Zoo:
| Transport | Cost | Time |
|---|---|---|
| MRT + Mandai Khatib Shuttle | S$5 per person | 60-80 minutes |
| MRT + public bus route 138 | S$2 per person | 60-75 minutes |
| Taxi | S$25-35 per taxi (up to 4 people) | 30-45 minutes |
| Mandai City Express Coach | S$8 per person | 45-60 minutes |
Actual travel times depend on where you’re coming from and how fast you move (e.g. a young couple can move faster than a family with a pram).
Coming back from the Zoo takes roughly the same amount of time as getting there. I don’t usually recommend taking a taxi though as it has a longer wait time and it slightly more expensive due to a surcharge (government effort to reduce wait time by encouraging more taxis).
The Mandai Khatib Shuttle might take longer than suggested above as it often gets full and you have to wait for the second one after your arrival - this can mean you spend up to 20 minutes standing in the queue! For this reason, I usually direct visitors to any of the other options (even taxi can be a better option particularly for getting to the Zoo as a family).
A full guide on Mandai transport and costs (including the Zoo) is available on my website here: reachingsingapore.com/zoo-transport-guide.
Next Steps
To keep researching on the Singapore Zoo, check out my other guides in this series:
- How much food costs at the Zoo: reachingsingapore.com/zoo-food-drink
- Transport guide to/from the Zoo: reachingsingapore.com/zoo-transport-guide
- How much it costs to visit the Zoo: reachingsingapore.com/zoo-cost
Also make sure you download the Mandai Wildlife app before visiting the Singapore Zoo. It will help you plan out your visit, and you can even use it to buy tickets for entrance and animal feeding. You can find instructions on how to download and use the app here: mandai.com/…
