Opened in 2002, this nature park in Bukit Panjang skirts around the Central Catchment Nature Reserve and serves as its green buffer.
In November 2015, a 3.8ha extension featuring a wide variety of plants expanded the park to 17.3ha. New facilities added include a pavilion, a multi-purpose lawn, a children's playground, an exercise station, public toilets, shelters, as well as jogging and cycling tracks.
Because of its link to the nature reserve and its diversity of plant life, the park attracts rich wildlife. 37 bird species have been spotted there, including the olive-backed sunbird, flameback woodpecker, pink-necked green pigeon, greater racket-tailed drongo and long-tailed parakeet.
Long-tailed macaques, squirrels and monitor lizards are other common sights.
Where: Segar Road entrance (nearest LRT station is Segar or Fajar), Bangkit Road entrance (nearest LRT station is Bangkit), Chestnut Avenue entrance (bus numbers 700, 700A and 966)
Lighting hours: 7pm to 7am
Jurong Central Park brings a new twist to the board game experience. At its snakes and ladders playground, the pavement on the ground is marked with numbers and players move through the playground based on the number they "roll".
When players land on a ladder, they have to climb across an obstacle to a higher number. When they land on a "snake", they have to go down a slide to a lower number. The first player to reach the number 100 wins.
Meanwhile, the Ludo Garden features a life-sized Ludo board game and players act as the "pieces" that move around on the board. Instructions on how to play both games can be found at the park.
Opened in 2007, Jurong Central Park was the first park here to have life-sized board game features. Nature lovers can also explore and discover the various types of aquatic plants, wildlife species and dragonflies that thrive in the ponds.
Where: Jurong Central Park is situated across Boon Lay MRT station.
Park lighting hours: 7pm to 7am
Tucked away in the northern corner of Singapore facing the Johor Straits, this park features one of the few remaining natural beaches in Singapore.
The park, which is laid out on undulating terrain, also offers visitors a glimpse of Singapore's colonial past.The Sembawang Naval Base was developed there by the British in the 1920s to 1930s. Some remnants from that era remain.
For example, the walkways in the park are restored old pathways used during the British occupation. The Sembawang jetty was built by the British and later completed by the Japanese. It is now a favourite spot for anglers to hang out.
Overlooking the jetty is Beaulieu House, built around 1910 as a private seaside retreat and later occupied by the British during the naval base years. It now houses a restaurant, which serves Chinese seafood, Western cuisine and local delights.
In 2011, the 15ha park underwent an upgrading. New amenities include a promenade, a fitness area and barbecue pits. The old playground was replaced by a new one built in the form of a battleship, to tie in with the park's past as a naval base.
Where: At the end of Sembawang Road. It can be reached by bus number 882. The nearest MRT station is Sembawang
Park lighting hours: 7pm to 7am
Opened in 2011, this ecopark is designed to look like a savannah, with various natural habitats such as marshlands, secondary forests and freshwater ponds.
At 36ha, it is also home to more than 75 species of birds, 20 species of dragonflies, 35 species of butterflies and 32 species of spiders. It has many eco-friendly features including benches and signage made from recycled tree trunks.
Three bird hides, created with recycled twigs and branches, are used to shield birdwatchers so they do not disturb the birds. Instead of a concrete footpath, the walking trails are covered with creeping grass. The park also features the first flush-free ecotoilet in public parks here. This converts human waste into compost using bacteria and wood shavings.
Note that the park does not allow cyclists or pets because "this brings a very different feel to the environment".
Where: Alight at Tampines MRT station and walk 20 minutes to the park via Sun Plaza
Park Lighting hours: No lighting after dark
Shortly after the launch of Pokemon Go in Singapore, this 13.9ha park made the news as a Pokemon hotspot and hundreds of people gathered there nightly to play the augmented reality game. The Pokemon fervour has since receded, but the park remains a favourite spot for residents nearby to exercise and relax.
It has two children's playgrounds, one which has a sand pit – an uncommon feature in new Singapore playgrounds. It also features fitness corners, an amphitheatre and a multi-purpose court.
Built in the mid-1990s over an old rubber estate, the park is home to an array of tropical fruit trees such as durian, rambutan, jackfruit, star fruit, coconut and bread fruit. There is also the Dipterocarp Arboretum, or a living gallery of dipterocarps, which are a family of giant trees unique to tropical lowland rainforests.
Where: A 15-minute walk from Yishun MRT station
Park lighting hours: 7pm to 7am
A 3ha seawater fishing pond can be found at this park, which is full of mature shady trees. There are also smaller ponds for catching crabs and prawns. By the ponds are two bistro-bars and a halal seafood restaurant, Warong Kim's Seafood, that are popular at night.
The ponds and the restaurants were opened by D'Best Fishing in August 2014.
Seamstress Romnah Omar, 53, has been living in the HDB block across the road with her family since 1992 and can see part of the park from her flat.
She also enjoys having dinner with her friends at Warong Kim's Seafood after work. "The food is good and reasonably priced. It's a nice alternative to the malls. It's more quiet and peaceful. You can see people fishing or prawning and children running on the grass."
Where: Opposite Pasir Ris MRT station
A version of this article appeared in the print edition of The Straits Times on April 07, 2017, with the headline 'Greenery at your doorstep'.
Lighting hours: 7pm to 7am
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