The Best Known Waterfalls in Singapore

While its hot, tropical climate means it’s often raining somewhere in Singapore, the Southeast Asian city-state lacks natural waterfalls. This is less surprising than one may initially imagine. Not only is it small, around half the size of London, but it’s also almost entirely flat. However, that’s not to say that there are no Singaporean waterfalls. In fact, some of Singapore’s best waterfalls are record breakers. Ready to learn more? Let’s plunge right in.

When it comes to an iconic cascade, it doesn’t get much bigger than the Changi Airport Waterfalls. Known as the Rain Vortex, this seven-storey high manmade marvel is the world’s tallest indoor waterfall. The water falls from an oculus in the ceiling in a sheer vertical drop, forming a perfect 130-foot high cylinder as it connects the top of the building to the bottom. This high-tech water feature appears to be something straight out of science fiction.

The cloud forest at Gardens by the Bay is a world away from your typical misty subtropical jungle scape, but is spectacular in its own right. An artificial mountain bedecked with exotic greenery from around the globe, its peak also marks the top of another of the waterfalls of Singapore. And if the Changi Airport Waterfalls are from sci-fi, the one in the cloud forest is a fairy tale made real. Backed by a vast wall of foliage, streams of water shoot down some 115 feet.

From the wandering flamingos to the brightly hued plants, you could be forgiven for thinking you’re in the wetlands of South America in the shadow of the imposing cataract at Mandai Bird Paradise’s Crimson zone. But no. This is yet another of the astonishing waterfalls of Singapore.

It’s off to the country’s first UNESCO World Heritage site for the next on this list of supreme waterfalls in Singapore. The Ginger Garden is part of Singapore Botanic Gardens and, in addition to hundreds of ginger species, it houses a bucolic cascade. There’s even a walkway behind it.

A trio of Singaporean waterfalls are spread throughout the Imbiah hiking trail on the island of Sentosa, including the multi-tiered Tempini Falls and Dragon Falls.

To paraphrase a law of physics, water always finds a way. And people have found a way to recreate one of nature’s most powerful features in the waterfalls of Singapore.