If you are currently unsure about what to do for the upcoming weekends or Total Defence Day, fret not.

On Oct. 2020,  the Singapore Discovery Centre reopened after six months of renovation.

The edutainment attraction has since added several new attractions, including a laser tag arena and an escape room, as well as revamped its exhibition gallery.

What’s more, there are several unique programmes which it is running in conjunction with Total Defence Day.

For those of you who are keen to rediscover Singapore, here’s our own one-day itinerary at the centre to help readers best enjoy these new features and maximise their experience.

Touring the Total Defence Exhibits

First up are the Total Defence Exhibits titled “RE: OUR SCARS - For Your Necessary Action”, which casts the spotlight on several crises that Singapore has gone through.

These exhibits run from 11am to 7:30pm on Mondays to Thursdays, and from 10am to 10pm on Fridays to Sundays, and during public and school holidays.

Focusing on events such as the Japanese Occupation, Konfrontasi, Covid-19, among others, the exhibits examine how such crises forged each of the Total Defence Pillars over the years to help the country emerge stronger and moulded Singapore as it is today.

These exhibits incorporate enhanced technology, such as Augmented Reality (AR), to bring the stories and lessons from these crises to life for viewers.

The exhibits also have an interactive component in which viewers can retrieve a ‘secret agent’ card from the ticketing counter to begin a mission to collect ‘artefacts’ around the exhibition area.

Guided tours will be held for these exhibits at specific timings for those of you who are keen to gain deeper insights.

Note that the tours are held only on Feb. 20, 21, 27 and 28, at 11am and 4pm.

Admission is free. Each session is limited to 40 pax.

Lunch: Wild Thyme Cafe

If you are feeling hungry by this point, you can check out the Wild Thyme cafe, which has a menu designed by local celebrity chef Charlie Tham.

Dishes that they serve include Hainanese chicken curry rice, beef casserole with butter rice, seafood hor fun and fish and chips.

Hainanese Chicken Curry Rice (S$5.50) and Beef Casserole with Butter Rice (S$6.50)

After lunch: N.E.FLIX

Depending on your lunch plans, you can also check out the N.E.FLIX programme which features two films that are each around 25 minutes long.

The first film, titled “Gallant”, is focused on a man’s attempt to escape with his pregnant wife on the third day of the Japanese invasion of Singapore.

Meanwhile, the second film, titled “SQ117”, is, as the title suggests, a docu-drama on the hijacking of Singapore Airlines flight SQ117 in 1991, and the subsequent rescue operation carried out by SAF commandos.

Both films will be shown on the following dates: Feb. 20, 27 and 28.

Do note that the first film, “Gallant” will be shown at 1pm, while the timing for the second film is at 2:45pm, so you might want to tweak the itinerary timing beforehand.

Admission for both films is free, on a first come first serve basis, with a maximum of 140 people allowed for each screening.

Mid-afternoon: XD Theatre

While waiting to watch the second film, you can also head to the XD theatre, an exciting 4D simulation ride that involves motion, special effects and sound applied to short animated features, which run for about five minutes.

A Total Defence simulation ride, titled ‘What you cannot defend, you do not own” focuses on the Singapore Armed Forces and the importance of defending the country, as told by a father to his children through a storybook.

The Total Defence simulation ride will be held on Feb. 20, 21, 27 and 28, at a 30-minute interval, from 11am to 9pm. A maximum of eight people are allowed for each session.

Admission to this ride is also free.

Black Lake Laser Battlefield

If you are keen on something a little bit more intense, while waiting to watch the second film, there is the Black Lake Laser Battlefield - the first laser tag arena in Singapore to use projection mapping to create an arena environment for the gameplay.

As such, players will be able to interact with the environment and encounter elements like aliens, monsters and zombies.

Gameplay lasts for about 30 minutes, with each game costing S$12 (for children aged seven to 12) and S$15 (13 years old and above). Players must be seven years of age and above. You can book your tickets here.

Black Lake Facility (Escape Room)

There is also the Black Lake Facility which is the largest multi-storey escape room attraction in Singapore.

The facility has a total of 13 rooms covering four themed chapters intertwined in one story.

These themed chapters include the Research Lab:

And the Basement:

The escape room uses smart technology such as motion sensors, touch sensors and UV lighting as part of the immersive experience.

Each escape room game costs S$24 (for children aged from three to 12) and S$30 (13 years old and above).

Each game runs for a total of 60 minutes.

Children under 13 years old are encouraged to be accompanied by an adult. Book your tickets here!

5pm: The Last Light - mixed media drama show

Afterwards, you can check out The Last Light, a unique 20-minutes long interactive drama show about the importance of National Service at the centre’s interactive multimedia theatre, The Interchange.

This show screens on Feb. 20, 21, 27 and 28.

It also screens at two timings each day - 2pm and 5pm. Each timeslot has a limit of 45 pax.

If you have children: Drop-in colouring craft

Last but not least, for those of you who have children in tow, there is a drop-in colouring craft programme titled “Salute Singapaw”.

This programme features a little mascot, Singapaw, which visitors can dress up in various uniforms (i.e. SAF, SPF, SCDF) in recognition of their hard work.

You also get to bring your handiwork back home.

The programme runs from 2pm-7pm on weekdays and 11am-7pm on weekends and public holidays.

Here’s a summary of the timings and dates for each activity:

• Total Defence Exhibits (With guided tour)

  • Now till 28 Mar
  • Monday-Thursday: 11am to 7:30pm,
  • Friday-Sunday, public holidays and school holidays: 10am to 10pm,
  • Guided tour: Feb. 20, 21, 27 and 28, 11am and 4pm

• Wild Thyme Cafe

  • Monday-Thursday: 11am to 7pm,
  • Friday-Sunday, public holidays and school holidays: 10:30am to 9:30pm

• N.E.FLIX

  • Gallant: Feb. 20, 27 and 28: 1pm to 1:30pm,
  • SQ117: Feb. 20, 27 and 28: 2:45pm to 3:15pm

• Total Defence XD Simulation Ride

  • Feb. 20, 21, 27 and 28: 11am to 9pm (at a 30-mins interval)

• Black Lake Laser Battlefield

  • Monday-Thursday: 1.45pm to 7:30pm,
  • Friday: 1:45pm to 10pm
  • Saturday, Sunday, public holidays and school holidays: 10am to 10pm

• Black Lake Facility (Escape Room)

  • Monday-Thursday: 1.30pm to 8pm
  • Friday: 1.30pm to 10pm
  • Saturday, Sunday, public holidays and school holidays: 10am to 10pm

• The Last Light

  • Feb 20, 21, 27 and 28: 2pm and 5pm

• Salute Singapaw

  • Now till 28 Feb
  • Monday-Friday: 2pm to 7pm
  • Saturday, Sunday and public holidays: 11am to 7pm

In addition, in commemoration of Total Defence Day, SDC is offering a limited time offer for all signups for the Family Explorers Membership — a 20 per cent discount for the membership if you sign up onsite on Feb. 20, 21, 27 and 28.

To find out more on the benefits of a Family Explorers Membership, visit here.

For more information on the Total Defence activities, visit here.

This sponsored article made the author think about making a trip there.

Top image photos from Singapore Discovery Centre