Family Fun at The Polliwogs @ VivoCity

When we came back from our four-year stint in Sweden, the place where we became parents, we were clueless of what indoor playgrounds there were in Singapore. Having frequented Lekland in Karlskrona, which is a gigantic indoor playground complete with slides, giant balls, tunnels, obstacles, ball pools, multi-sports arena for football and basketball, rock wall, table soccer and hockey, ball shooter guns, and even a mini road safety park where kids get to drive their own cars, every indoor playground we found here paled in comparison and seemed tiny.

After visiting a handful of such playgrounds on the sunny island, the hubby and I thought we would sign Angel up for a value pass at the one that we love best: The Polliwogs. Back then, they had two outlets located at Robertson Walk and East Coast Park and because of the facilities, the location, the beach and the tranquility, we preferred the latter.

Recently, we were thrilled to learn that there is now a third branch available and that is The Polliwogs @ VivoCity! I'm not sure about you but I actually like to visit VivoCity because firstly it provides all the retail and entertainment needed, secondly there is an open rooftop for the kids to run around and a waterfront view, and thirdly, the North East Line takes us directly here on train. Plus, when you get bored or adventurous, you can always hop onto the Sentosa Express monorail and get onto the exciting island within minutes.

The new Polliwogs which opened in December last year looked inviting and promising with the vibrant splash of colours at the entrance.

We loved the cute illustrations on the wall and once we got our shoes off and socks on, the girls were all set for some fun!

The toddler's play area features spinning seats, ball pits, a mini carousel and various learning activities on the wall. I like that this area is separate from the main arena so that the little ones can get their fair share of fun without getting worried of being trampled on. Wait, you still have to keep a vigilant eye in here because plenty of bigger sisters and brothers love to hop over to play with their younger siblings.

I was surprised by how the cute little merry-go-round, which went round and round at an incredibly slow speed, could entertain Ariel for a good half an hour. Seriously. While most of the others were happy to hop on and off, run away and then come back for more, she was just contented to sit there, smile at me at every round and wave at every friendly stranger who waved to her.

For the spinning chairs, which are kind of like the spinning teacups at amusement parks except that these have to be powered by your own arms, they were fun for just the first few minutes, as usual, before you start to feel like you are seeing stars.

The ball pit is one of those things that I would love to have in my house, if I have a bigger house. Both Angel and Ariel simply love to dive into them, kick and splash around, throw balls at each other and hide beneath the balls. Or cover Mama up with balls if the pit is big enough. I know I know, your kids do that too, right?

The main arena for the bigger kids comes with tunnels, obstacles, ball pools, ball cannons and slides. I like how colourful everything looked, you could even see a rainbow of colours inside the tunnel. Be warned though, it might get a little challenging for an adult to pass through because it is soft on the inside with no solid supporting walls. I did it once and well, left it at that.

For the thrill seekers, there is also a small rock wall to keep them occupied. Angel doesn't have the skills or confidence to reach the top on her own yet, but one day, I know she will.

We also found a rather unique trampoline-like feature which consisted of intersecting, stretchable strips. Angel was rather afraid of balancing on this one and it took much persuasion before she was willing to try. The fact that we saw a girl topple over and fell down through the layers, don't worry there is a soft padding below, didn't help to boost her self-esteem too.

Introducing to you our favourite feature at The Polliwogs @ VivoCity - the slides! Not kidding, but we played on these for nearly an hour. Both the girls loved these slides and were excited to land in a ball pool instead of on their bums. For Angel, she was happy to try out new ways of going down slides like Superman style. For Ariel, she was contented to climb up the steps slowly time after time and lo and behold, she went down the slide on her own for like, erm, 20 times? Yes, for a moment I forgot she was just one year old, judging from the pure look of joy and zero showing of fearness on her face and how she was confident enough to slide entirely on her own.

Presenting to you - Happy Sisters on Slides

Last but not least, there are also function rooms available for guests to hold birthday parties. You can book from a range of standard party packages to themed parties including princess party, junior chef party and so on. For more details on party packages, click here.

It was an afternoon of fun and laughter for the girls and I would say a great workout for the hubby and I. Well, we sure wouldn't mind more family weekends like this!

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The Polliwogs
#03-12 , VivoCity
1 Harbourfront Walk
Singapore 98585
(At linkway to HarbourFront and opposite Marche Restaurant)

Admission charges: 
Weekday (unlimited play): $20 for kids aged 2-12, $13 for kids below 2
Weekends (2-hour play): $25 for kids aged 2-12, $13 for kids below 2

Value play pass are also available at $125 for kids above 2 years old and $65 for kids below 2, which gives you 7 visits of unlimited play (including weekends, public holidays and school holidays), $20 worth of Polliwogs cafe vouchers, free flow of coffee and tea, and are valid for 6 months.

*Socks are compulsory, so don't forget to bring them along!

Opening hours:
Daily 10am - 9pm

For more information on The Polliwogs and to find out more about their outlets at East Coast Park and Robertson Walk, visit their website or Facebook page.

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Now, how would you like to experience this new indoor playground for yourself and your kid? Good news! A Happy Mum is now giving away 5 x FREE PASSES to our readers!

How to take part
1) 'Like' The Polliwogs Facebook page.
2) Leave a comment on this blog post telling me your favourite indoor playground in Singapore and leave your email address so I can contact you.
3) Click on the widget below to indicate you have done the above and follow the rest of the options to increase your chances of winning.

a Rafflecopter giveaway
Terms and Conditions
1) This giveaway is open to readers residing in Singapore only.
2) Each free pass admits 1 child and 2 adults for one session of play. Passes are valid till 31 Mar 2014 and can only be redeemed on weekdays Monday-Friday only (excluding school holidays, weekends and public holidays).
3) Winners will be announced on 20 Feb and once contacted, they will have to provide their NRIC number for identification purposes.
4) Winners will have to respond within 2 days, for those who do not, new replacement winners will be picked. 

Best of luck!

*Updated 20 Feb 2014: Congratulations to Jackie Seah, Carol Lim, Steffi Tan, Liang Jingxian and Cen-Lin Ting for being chosen as the five lucky winners! I sure hope you will enjoy The Polliwogs @ VivoCity experience! Thanks to everyone who took part and stay tuned for more giveaways!

Disclosure: We were invited for a complimentary play session to review The Polliwogs @ VivoCity. No monetary compensation was received and all opinions are our own. For the record, yes it is true that we purchased a Polliwogs Value Pass when we came back..