Taking advantage of the National Day public holiday, we decided to bring our small one to Tayo Station! The capacity was still capped at 25% then and I was nervious as to whether we would manage to get slots. Thankfully, we did even though it was a PH. We purchased tickets for 2 adults and 1 child via Klook, spending $31. This is cheaper than buying from their website/over counter, which costs $34 for the same 2 adults and 1 child. Prices are slightly discounted for weekdays.
Tayo Station is located at E-Hub, Downtown East. Since we had booked the earliest slot which was play time of 10.30 am – 12.30 pm, we arrived at Downtown East pretty early. The whole place was rather quiet except for NTUC, where there were many people purchasing groceries. When we reached Tayo Station, there were already some families outside waiting for the place to open. At 10.25 am, a queue started to form. It was cleared very quickly. We were asked to show our tickets via the Klook app, do Tracetogether scan, temperature taking and clean our hands using sanitizer and then – in we go!
Because it was only 25% capacity, I estimated there were only about 30 children or less per slot. With adults, it was roughly about 50 pax at most, which is wonderful. Can’t imagine how crowded it would be at 100% capacity. There was an area where parents can sit and dine, and there were sufficient tables for each family to claim one table and place their belongings on it.
The first area we went to was the giant playground filled with tunnels and 2 slides – Gani’s Playground. Parental supervision is required for kids below 3. Our child was around one of the youngest at the park that day, so I think most families rushed to book slots for Tayo’s Road Circuit when we went in. We had a blissful 20 minutes or so of the Gani’s Playground entirely to ourselves. Baby L couldn’t climb most areas on his own though and Mr Messy and I followed him very closely for each step. Take note that there are some sudden drops within the place – so make sure to watch your child carefully.
There are two slides within Gani’s Playground, and both are not suitable for children 3 years and below due to the speed. It is also not allowed for parents to slide down with their child on the lap for safety reasons. However, we observed many parents violating this rule, and after a while we went with the crowd and my husband brought Baby L down on his lap for the less steep slide. It was fast, but not dangerous as my husband could control his speed.
The next area we tried was the ball pit area! Keep your belongings safe on you – for a moment I lost my handphone and had to search for it among numerous balls. Luckily I managed to locate it within a short while. We spent a short time at this area and did not return to it for two reasons. First, it was one of the most crowded play areas and given the narrow space, it meant coming into close contact with other families. Some of the children were also too excited and were jumping into the pit/throwing balls repeatedly, which was not safe for Baby L, who was much smaller compared to them. Secondly, the ball pit was deep relative to Baby L’s height and there were times he got buried among the balls. He thought it was fun for sure, but we were worried he couldn’t breathe well.
We then brought Baby L to the Toddler area, which had 2 slides and a Tayo bus. Boy, he was really happy at this area! We spent the most time here. Although he couldn’t climb up to the slides himself, it was the first time he could slide down on this own, as the slides were not steep. He enjoyed himself so much I think he went on the slides at least 20 times. The slide on the bus is much steeper though and he got a shock trying to go down on his own – landed on the floor as he couldn’t control his speed.
There’s also the Tayo Road Circuit – we didn’t manage to take photos here, only videos. Although it is more suitable for older children, the staff said we could bring our son to ride together on one vehicle. He wasn’t that interested in riding though – he was more interested in the tools at the toolbox station, and wanted to bring the toy hammer with him /sweat. In the end we ended our ride earlier and returned to the toddler playground above.
Another area is the sand pit area. What I like about this sand pit is that the ‘sand’ is actually small cuboid blocks, and not tiny sand like the ones found at Poporo Park. I did not have to worry that much about him swallowing those blocks. He spent some time here burying himself in the pit.
Finally, there is a resting area you and your child can go to to watch videos on Tayo Station. It wasn’t a popular place though – guess the kids prefer running about!
At the end of each section, a Tayo Station mascot would come out and walk one round around the area. Sadly we missed it as we were busy playing at the Toddler’s area. Take note that Tayo Station, unlike Pororo Park, does not have a diaper changing station or hot water area. They also do not have a cafe that sells food, though there are some vending machines selling drinks and snacks.
Let us know if you have been to Tayo Station, and what you think of it!