This unique walk takes you over a 250 meter long suspension bridge among the canopy of the rainforest in the MacRitchie Reservoir. It gives you a unique birds-eye view of the surroundings that you can’t find anywhere else in the city! Find out everything you need to know in this detailed guide to the Tree Top Walk in Singapore!
quick facts
Opening hours: Weekdays*: 9am to 5pm (last entry 4:45pm)
Weekends & PHs: 8.30am to 5pm (last entry 4:45pm)
*Closed on Mondays (except PHs)
Distance (round trip from Windsor Nature Park to TreeTop Walk and back): About 7km
Estimated walking time: 3 to 4 hours
Dogs and other pets are not allowed on this trail or in the nature reserve in general.
where does the tree top walk start?
As mentioned before, the Tree Top Walk is located within the MacRitchie Reservoir. There are two main entrance points to the park. However, unless you want to be walking for like 10 hours, I’d recommend you to enter through the upper entrance. The entrance you’re looking for is called “Windsor Nature Park” and the main street you’re looking for is “Venus Drive”. You can look up the exact entry location via the coordinates listed below:
1.359487, 103.826947
Since the whole walk is a loop, you will end your hike at the same location that you started it!
how can i reach the park entrance?
by car
As already mentioned, the walk is a loop. Hence, if you’re travelling by car that is no problem, and you can park in the car park right in front of the entrance mentioned above. According to the website the carpark is open from 7am to 7pm, which will give you plenty of time to explore in between!
by bus
I personally don’t have any experience with the bus system in Singapore. However, there is some information on this on the official website. Check it out here.
by metro
If you prefer the metro over the bus, well same! The closest station to the entrance is “Upper Thomson”. You’ll need to get on the brown line to reach this station. You can hop on in Marina Bay or Maxwell (which is close to Chinatown). If you’re located in a different area, you can change onto the brown line from the green or red line. Check out the map below to see which lines might work for you.
After you come off at “Upper Thomson”, you’ll immediately see the Thomson Plaza. This is a decent mall where you could grab breakfast, some snacks or a coffee before you head off to the hike. From the Thomson Plaza you need to start walking to the left, against the direction the cars are coming from.
After a couple of minutes of walking you will see a gas station to your left. Take a left right after the station onto Windsor Park Walk. Soon after you will reach Jupiter Road, where you need to turn right. Once you reach the end of the street turn right and then you’ll be on Venus Drive, which will take you directly to the entrance.
what’s the trail like?
The trail in general is very straight forward. There are plenty of signs along the way, and if you want to do the Tree Top Walk simply follow this direction. It is important to know that you can do the loop only in one direction. This is also indicated in the map below. I repeat, you MUST do the loop counter-clockwise, otherwise they will not let you on the Tree Top Suspension Bridge.
There is one other thing that I want to highlight. When you look at the map, you will see a number 3 towards the right. From there you see a striped line and a red line. I recommend you to take the striped line, which will take you along a more interesting path. The regular line will almost take you out of the park and you will be walking on a regular road besides the forest. We unfortunately ended up on this path, which was a shame. I believe the sign guides you to the outside road, but if you do end up there don’t hesitate to turn around. It’s better to walk back 10 minutes in order to enjoy the more scenic walk afterwards!
Other than that, everything else is pretty self-explanatory. Until you reach the suspension bridge you should follow the direction “Tree Top Walk”, and after you reach the bridge follow the direction back to “Venus Drive Car Park”. The nice thing about the sign posts is that they also indicate the distance in km until the indicated destination, which gives you a rough idea how much you have left to go 🙂
what is there to see along the way?
The trail allows you to completely immersive yourself in nature while still feeling safe. The trails are all marked very well and generally easy to follow.
You will walk on natural pathways, where your shoes might get dirty, and you will also pass on some nice man-made, organic looking pathways that blend beautifully with the nature.
You will see many different types of trees, and you’ll feel as if you are in a movie theater with 360 degrees surround sound. You’ll hear birds, monkey, frogs – and if you’re lucky you’ll even get to see the animals! So if you see something rattling in the forest, maybe stop and look for a while! For more information about the local wildlife check out this brochure.
And of course, the most famous part of the walk: The Tree Top Walk suspension bridge. Once you reach the bridge you will understand why everyone HAS to walk in the same direction. The bridge is super narrow!! But it gives you some amazing views of the surrounding rainforest. According to the signs along the bridge, if you’re lucky you should even be able to spot some wildlife (e.g. snakes!!!) in the trees.
how long does the hike take to complete?
The official website suggests that you should plan at least 3-4 hours to complete the trail. Personally I’d even say maybe count in 5 hours, because you might want to sit down and rest for a bit and enjoy the surroundings. It’s definitely a longer hike considering that you are in the middle of the city, but it’s definitely worth it.
We were there during the weekend and there were many people that were also jogging here. So if that’s something you’re into definitely consider the option of running the trail, which would reduce the time needed drastically…
are there bathrooms along the way?
Yes! If you’re coming by metro you can stop at the gas station or the Thomson Plaza mall along the way if you need for a bathroom break. Along the hike the options are of course a lot more limited… We only came across bathrooms once during the whole hike, shortly before you reach the famous suspension bridge. I would therefore recommend to use the bathroom anytime that you see one, even if you don’t really need to! You’ll thank yourself later haha!
what should i wear?
In general I would say you can complete the hike in any attire. While there are some areas that are unpaved, and can get muddy if it starts raining, it’s nothing that you can’t handle with city shoes. But if you really want to be prepared, here’s what I suggest wearing:
1. gym shoes
I’d recommend to wear gym shoes/sneakers, which you don’t mind getting dirty! You don’t need hiking boots or anything like that for this hike.
2. sports attire
Or anything that is athleisure. Your clothes should be comfortable, light-weight and breathable. Hiking really is a sport and you will likely work up a sweat during some sections.
3. waterproof jacket
Surprise, surprise – you are still in Singapore, hiking in a RAINforest! The weather is very unpredictable, so be sure to have something to cover up in case it starts raining!
4. (waterproof) backpack
I highly recommend taking a backpack or some other type of comfortable bag with you. It’s a long hike, you definitely need to be carrying water and some snacks with you.
5. sunglasses
Self-explanatory.
6. hat
While a large portion of the walk is usually in the shade of the trees, there are areas (like the suspension bridge), where you are exposed to the sun. To protect your head bring a hat with you!
7. sunscreen
Sunscreen: And lastly, don’t be fooled by the fact that you are in the rainforest. The sun is still somehow strong and will manage to get through to you. Wear sunscreen!
what else do i need to bring?
Here are some other things you should consider bringing along with you for the day:
1. snacks
Definitely pack a light lunch and plenty of snacks. The hike is quite long and there are no restaurants or kiosks along the way to purchase something. However, do be careful about the monkeys! Always be aware when you take out food and don’t eat in front of the monkeys, the WILL steal your food. Also make sure to take any trash back home with you 🙂
2. water
Singapore gets really hot and really humid!! Make sure to drink plenty of water along the way. I’d recommend to pack at least, and I mean the very least, 1L per person!
3. good camera
If you have a camera, I’d definitely recommend to bring it on the hike. While phone cameras have a decent zoom nowadays, some of the animals might really be far up in the trees and hard to capture. Therefore, if you can, bring a camera.
That’s it, you’re all set to go hike the Tree Top Walk! If you’re wondering on what else to do in Singapore check out this action packed 5 Day itinerary. If you’re on a budget, you can read more about budget friendly options in this post!
Let me know if there is anything else you’d like to know! Have you done the walk before? I’d love to know what animals you saw!