Endless fun @ Sunway Lagoon - 5 themed parks in 1 destination

Our first port of call during our Royal Caribbean's Mariner of the Seas cruise was at Port Klang in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Since we did not book the excursions beforehand, we were looking through the brochures only after we boarded the ship and from a range of heritage, food, shopping, nature and sightseeing shore excursion tours, we decided to skip visiting mosques, shrines or the Petronas Twin Towers. Instead, we chose the one that would appeal to the kids most - A Day at Sunway.

Sunway Pyramid is Malaysia’s first themed shopping and entertainment mall which boasts 4 million square feet of retail extravaganza and more than 800 specialty outlets. In an recent online voting contest by Tourism Malaysia, Sunway Pyramid has been publicly voted as Malaysia's Favourite Mall out of more than 300 malls.


With its five shopping precincts – Fashion Central, Oasis Boulevard, Asian Avenue, Marrakesh and Kidz Zone, Sunway Pyramid offers an eclectic mix of shopping themes and is a paradise for shoppers of all ages. We were there on the eve of Christmas Day and boy oh boy, the Christmas decorations were so beautiful that they took my breath away. Don't just take my word for it, let me show you!



Don't the designs and colours look perfect? I was in love with the giant Christmas tree, the gorgeous flowers, the exquisite lighting, the picturesque swing and the enchanted angel's wings.

But wait, picture taking aside, although we were in this alluring shopping kingdom, did we even stop to shop? Neh. Seriously, shopping is not our cup of tea and so right from the start, we decided to make the most of that short 5-hour period we had and cut through the mall so that we could go straight to our destination - Sunway Lagoon. Yes, it's Sunway Lagoon!


With five different themed parks in one amazing destination. Sunway Lagoon has been recognised by the International Association of Amusement Parks and Attractions (IAAPA) as Asia's Best Attraction for four consecutive years from 2007 to 2010.

Whether you are looking forward to cooling down in the tropical sun at the Water Park, getting into a hair-raising experience at Scream Park, enjoying the family rides at Amusement Park, pumping up your adrenaline at Extreme Park, or coming up close with your favourite animals at Wildlife Park, there is bound to be something for everyone.

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Amusement Park @ Sunway Lagoon

Our first stop was the family-friendly Amusement Park where the kids had fun on the carousel and ferris wheel. It was a great way to start the day for the girls and although it was already a hot day, my heart felt even warmer when all I could see on their faces were big, wide smiles.

Ariel was denied entry on a few rides like the planes, spinning rides and river rapids but the elder sister, she had a blast. I can't imagine why she loved those spinning rides, wait this was not the slow, graceful spinning kind, it was one of those that would spin at top speed and make you see stars, and she would request to go not once, not twice but thrice. Honestly, I felt giddy even watching her from the sideline.


There was also a Wild Wild West corner where you could come up close with Native Indians and let the kids ride on horses. Well, fake ones are better than nothing, right?


 Scream Park @ Sunway Lagoon

To think about it, this would probably be a strong contender for my favourite park of all before I became a mum. I used to dig thrills, watched horror movies and was one of the boldest freshies on fright nights in university days. For one reason or another, the guts have vanished and with two kids to look after, it is as though my heart has shrunk and getting into a cage filled with zombies or getting scared by faceless ghosts don't really seem to entice me.


After we had a glimpse of the park at the Scream Cafe where we had lunch, it was not hard to come to a consensus to give it a miss. If you do come here with older kids who are brave enough to face the walking dead, this will be your chance to meet Pontianac, Freddy Krueger, Michael Myers and Jason Vorhees and go on the latest walkthrough scare attraction based on "World War Z Live" starring Brad Pitt.


For Angel, well, just so you know, she watches shows like "Underworld", "Vampire Diaries" and "Walking Dead" with me on TV. Yes, I have a penchant for such shows. But, those are still shows and I always tell her about the disguises, makeup, cameras, computer effects and everything that go behind into the making of the show. When she sees them in real life, that is another story altogether. Although she was eventually willing to take the below posed shots with the fake zombies at the cafe, I couldn't imagine how she would react to a whole park of roving, bleeding, screaming monsters. So for now, let's just move on.



Extreme Park @ Sunway Lagoon

For the thrill seekers and adventurous parents,  you can also challenge yourself to a variety of feats, including archery target shooting, driving a Go-Kart or All-Terrain Vehicle, soaring through Malaysia's longest Flying Fox at 206 meters, bungy jumping or going on Asia's highest slingshot ride on the G-Force X.

Wildlife Park @Sunway Lagoon

Not surprisingly, judging from how we love to visit zoos, this was the park where we spent the longest time. With more than 150 species of animals from around the world, we were in for a treat as we reveled in the beauty of these amazing creatures, some of which we had never seen so close before, like the Albino monkey and Binturong.




The park, which turned out to be much bigger than we expected, is divided in different sections including the Aviary, Jungle Trail, Pet Village, Nature's Walk, Bird Savannah and Rimba.



The kids' favourite section would no doubt be the Pet Village because that was the first time the sisters got to feed rabbits together. Seeing how Angel would stop at almost every enclosure and every glass window to marvel at the animals, how she would ask life cycle questions that would stump me at times, how she would compete with the Daddy to spot the hidden spiders and scorpions, it was a worthwhile experience and since all of us were badly bitten by mosquitoes, we had to at least make those bites count and make the best out of every moment spent in that afternoon.

Water Park @ Sunway Lagoon

Miraculously, we managed to save a bit of time which sufficed to let us make a trip to the Water Park, where the world's largest water ride, Asia's highest man-made erupting volcano and world's largest man-made surf beach are located.


Despite missing her afternoon nap, the lively Angel was all set to jump into the water once we reached! We asked her to choose between playing the water rides, exploring Little Zimbawe - the interactive water playground or build sandcastles at the surf beach. Without hesitating, she chose the sand.


Just a few days ago, we were told by some relatives that as their daughters grew older and became more mature, they began to fall in love with nail polish, cosmetics and pretty dresses. On the contrary, they also started to dislike going to the beach and even started to find sand yucky. Omg. Well, I hope that day never comes for my kids. I want them to continue loving to dip their feet in water, to feel their fingers in the sand, to build castles beyond their wildest imagination.


I turned around and asked the hubby "What happens if one day our girls act like princesses and don't like sand and outdoor stuff anymore?" His reply was "I will throw them into the sea." Yes, being such a sporty and outdoorsy type of guy, I think these girls will be in a for a sandy, even muddy time, for a long time to come.

While I can't be sure of what the future holds for us, at least, we are doing our best to cherish every bit of the present. It was a day well spent at Sunway Lagoon and while our fellow cruise mates went back to the bus with armfuls of shopping bags, we returned with sandy feet, wet towels and happy hearts filled with precious memories.

Sunway Lagoon
3, Jalan PJS 11/11, Bandar Sunway
47500 Selangor Darul Ehsan
Malaysia

Tel : 603 5639 0000

Fax: 603 5637 0050

Admission Charges

Adult - RM120

Child/Senior Citizen - RM90

Family Package (2 Adults, 2 Children) - RM275

Free admission for children below 90cm. 

*Additional charges apply for PayPerRides and equipment hire.

Opens daily from 10am to 6pm. For more information, visit their website or Facebook page.

Disclosure: This is not a sponsored post. We paid for the cruise and all the shore excursions. All opinions are our own.