Singapore Maritime Gallery - Bring your kids there!

The Singapore Maritime Gallery seems to be a lesser known museum in Singapore. BUT it is not any lesser exciting. In fact, my kids had a blast there!

The gallery focuses on Singapore’s maritime history, with an emphasis on the commercial development of one of Asia’s historical trading hubs, the technical descriptions of various types of vessels and how Singapore upkeeps her port to ensure harmony with the surrounding marine life.

With its recent refurbishment, the gallery now houses an upgraded Ship Bridge Simulator. We visited the gallery years ago and an older version of the simulator was there. But because we went on a weekend, the simulator was occupied most of the time. It was a pity that we did not get to try out at all. I planned a visit this time around on a weekday, just to ensure that we could try out the simulator.

Ship Bridge Simulator

I will start by sharing the most exciting part of our visit. The rest of the gallery was not as fun for my kids.

Standing at the helm of the boat, we faced a few real-life boat controls such as the steering wheel and the throttle. I was fortunate that the museum officer was available to guide me the elementary knowledge of steering the simulator properly. Thanks to him, I had a lot more fun than I had expected.

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There are eight missions for visitors to try out, from the most straightforward point to point to get you acquainted with manoeuvering the boat, to locating a boat on fire in the open sea. My son tried out the hardest mission too, which is to steer a pleasure craft back to the pier under a stormy weather condition. It was tough, and the real-life simulation caused us to feel a little nauseous during the ride.

Explorer’s Corner

At the end of the museum is a little corner for the little ones to hang out. Other than a fun session of maritime cosplay, the kids also get their version of a boating session.

The Dawn of Maritime Singapore

Back to the less fun but more educational sections of the gallery.

The first section of the gallery introduced visitors to the long maritime history of Singapore. Archaeological evidence dating back to the 14th century shows that Singapore was a thriving trading post long before Sir Stamford Raffles arrived in 1819.

Inside Maritime Singapore

Inside Maritime Singapore shares the significant turning point of Singapore’s evolution from a trading post to a Global Hub Port.

One of the significant events was the beginning of the Tanjong Pagar Terminal in the 1972. Before that, Keppel Harbour handled break-bulk cargos brought in by ocean-going ships. However, with ongoing competition from regional harbours such as Penang and Hong Kong, it was clear that Singapore needed to build a container port. It was a controversial decision as it would mean heavy investment cost and lower labour requirement. World Bank lent Singapore $45mil for the port construction, and PSA managed to float bonds for the remaining $80mil shortfall to continue with the project.

Below is the model of MV Nihon, the first container ship that travelled from Rotterdam on its maiden voyage.

Interactive Ship Spotter

Check out this ship spotter, especially if you are interested to learn more about vessels. Tilt the scanner around to spot some ships, and you will learn about the unique features of each different vessel.

Preserving Our Seas

A section of the gallery is dedicated to environmental awareness. On display are examples of marine life surrounding the Singapore seas, as well as explanations on efforts put in to ensure a healthy marine ecosystem.

All stakeholders in the shipping industry are encouraged to minimise activities that will potentially harm marine lives. The Maritime Singapore Green Initiative has put in incentives to motivate local and international ship operators to monitor and reduce harmful emission.

Moving towards the next milestone

The new mega Tuas port will open in phases from 2021. The new port will eventually house current operations at Pasir Panjang, Tanjong Pagar, Keppel and Brani. Click on the links below for more information.

Go to the Rooftop!

Kids get a session of their outdoor play on the rooftop when the adults take in a beautiful harbour view.

Going There

The Singapore Maritime Gallery is located just next to the Marina South Pier MRT Station. Try not to drive there because parking space is quite limited.

Admission is free!

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Hope I have shared something useful today.

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