Explore Chinese Mythology: Haw Par Villa Walking Tour
Singapore, Singapore
Trip Type: Cultural Tours
Duration: 2 hours 30 minutes
Take an unforgettable guided 2.5-hour walk through the otherworldly landscape of Haw Par Villa (aka Tiger Balm Garden), a Chinese mythology theme park in Singapore. Built in 1937 by the brothers who created the Tiger Balm salve, the offbeat attraction showcases more than 1,000 eclectic, and at times disturbing, statues and dioramas depicting Buddhist, Taoist and Confucian folklore. The park doesn't charge admission, but the insight provided by your interpretive guide is worth the money as you walk through sections such as the Ten Courts of Hell.
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Take an unforgettable guided 2.5-hour walk through the otherworldly landscape of Haw Par Villa (aka Tiger Balm Garden), a Chinese mythology theme park in Singapore. Built in 1937 by the brothers who created the Tiger Balm salve, the offbeat attraction showcases more than 1,000 eclectic, and at times disturbing, statues and dioramas depicting Buddhist, Taoist and Confucian folklore. The park doesn't charge admission, but the insight provided by your interpretive guide is worth the money as you walk through sections such as the Ten Courts of Hell.
Meet your expert guide outside the Haw Par Villa MRT Station and make your way on foot to the nearby theme park. The eccentric brothers Aw Boon Haw and Aw Boon Par,
best known for their popular pain-relieving ointment called Tiger Balm, opened Haw Par Villa in the 1930s; however, the Singapore Tourism Board has operated the park since 1988.
While entry is free for the general public, you’ll gain far more insight into the eclectic dioramas as well as the park’s fascinating historical background with the assistance of your interpretive guide.
While entry is free for the general public, you’ll gain far more insight into the eclectic dioramas as well as the park’s fascinating historical background with the assistance of your interpretive guide.
During your 2.5-hour tour, walk through the mythological park to marvel at the truly unique dioramas and sculptures constructed of cement plaster and wire mesh. Sumo wrestlers, topless mermaids, and a human-crab mutant are among the 1,000 displays you pass as your guide shares tales of the eccentric Aw brothers and Buddhist, Taoist and Confucian beliefs and folklore.
Discover how locals once brought their children to
Haw Par Villa to educate them on morality, and learn about efforts to
restore the park to its former glory in areas such as the Tiger’s Den, Aw Family Memorials, Eight Immortals, Vices and Virtues, and Journey to the West.
However, the most bizarre, and gruesome, displays can be found at the Ten Courts of Hell, an area where adult supervision is recommended if you're traveling with kids. Steeped in symbolism, the tableaus and accompanying placards tell the ageless story of good versus evil. Ponder this idea as you stroll past dioramas of demons pitchforking loan sharks and a family surveying a car crash, among other unsettling scenes.
However, the most bizarre, and gruesome, displays can be found at the Ten Courts of Hell, an area where adult supervision is recommended if you're traveling with kids. Steeped in symbolism, the tableaus and accompanying placards tell the ageless story of good versus evil. Ponder this idea as you stroll past dioramas of demons pitchforking loan sharks and a family surveying a car crash, among other unsettling scenes.
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