The revamped Sembawang Hot Spring Park has drawn large crowds of people since its opening on Jan. 4, 2020.

And as with places with high footfall and human traffic, inappropriate behaviour is bound to arise.

Many reports of unsavoury behaviour at the hot spring park have surfaced over the past two weeks.

Inappropriate behaviours at hot spring park might be acts of ignorance

One Singaporean took to the blogosphere to detail a list of concerns she had with the lack of social etiquette observed at the park.

The author observed that people did not wash their feet before dipping them in the communal pool, and visitors misusing the buckets for egg-cooking to dip their feet in.

Another photo of an elderly man who was spotted soaking his body in the communal foot bath area has sparked much furore online as well. Many then voiced their concerns on the hygiene of the pool, both for other pool users, and for the man himself.

Some of these acts might not be intentional as Mothership understands that the man in question did not realise that it was a foot bath pool when he soaked his body in it.

The daughter of the elderly man, Lee, shared with us that her father followed suit after seeing some children dipping their entire bodies inside the pool. Lee initially thought that he could wash off any dirt afterwards but later realised he was ignorant of the right etiquette after speaking to his daughter.

Lee's daughter would like to highlight that more visual aids with obvious placement can help the elderly, especially those who are not well-educated or well-travelled enough to be aware of the hot spring culture.

Educating people through staff and signs

In a recent statement, the National Parks Board (NParks) told Mothership they had also received feedback on inconsiderate users' behaviours at the park.

This included cooking eggs at the communal pool instead of the taps at the water collection station, and pouring hot spring water back into the pool or into the plants nearby.

To address these recent issues, NParks revealed that they had deployed staff on the ground to "advise people on proper behaviour".

More signs with proper guidelines on how to use the park's amenities have also been installed.

Rigorous cleaning regime

To better maintain hygiene and sanitation at the park, a more rigorous cleaning regime has also been implemented.

The agency added that pools will be cleaned more frequently on occasions where there are higher visitorships.

NParks also assured people that the water that overflows from the communal cascading pool into the drain will not be recycled.

Guide to enjoy hot spring park

Visitors to the Sembawang Hot Spring Park need to do their part too to keep the environment clean and hygienic.

Here is a set of basic etiquette that visitors should take note of:

• Eggs should be cooked at the main water collection point, with a separate bucket for egg-cooking.

• For safety and hygiene reasons, visitors should not bathe, immerse or swim in the cascading pool.
• Unwanted hot spring water should be emptied into drains and not poured back into the pool or on the plants. This will keep the hot spring clean and allow the flora in the area to thrive.

NParks also reminded visitors to "be considerate of others when enjoying the park’s facilities".

Top photo by Ashley Tan