Jurong Bird Park marks 50th anniversary with S$2.50 admission
An old advertisement of Jurong Bird Park indicating its S$2.50 admission price when it first opened in 1971 (right) and Mohd Saad Yahya, assistant manager of Animal Presentations and long time staff of Jurong Bird Park with Sunny the hornbill. (Photos: Wildlife Reserves Singapore)
SINGAPORE: Jurong Bird Park is set to mark its 50th anniversary with a year-long celebration that will include adopting its original 1971 admission price of S$2.50, Wildlife Reserves Singapore (WRS) said on Monday (Dec 28).
Tickets to the park are usually priced at S$15 to S$32, but will be only S$2.50 - the way it was when the park was first established - for local residents for the entire month of January next year.Â
As part of the celebrations, an egg-shaped "portal" will be set up at the Penguin Coast, where visitors can see and listen in on significant points of the park's 50-year history.Â
Photo points will also be set up around the park to show how it has progressed, as well as offer a glimpse into the park's future home in Mandai.Â
Here they can take photos of historic moments in the park's history, such as the early days of its operation and the visit by Queen Elizabeth II and the Duke of Edinburgh to the Waterfall Aviary in 1972.
Other features to mark the attraction's golden jubilee include special editions of Jurong Bird Park's shows, with appearances from pioneer birds like Big John the sulphur-crested cockatoo at the High Flyers Show. Big John is well over 50 years old and is the park's oldest cockatoo.Â
Visitors can also "symbolically foster" Jurong Bird Park's iconic flamingos with a contribution of S$50 through the Foster a Flamingo programme. Each contribution comes with an e-certificate and a voucher for a flamingo key ring.Â
All contributions will go towards the care of animals, research and education programmes across WRS' parks and support conservation projects.
Visitors can also bring home a limited-edition figurine depicting an animal presenter with a scarlet macaw, which was made in collaboration with Precious Moments to celebrate the park's 50th anniversary.Â
Admission tickets are available online at www.birdpark.com.sg/jbp50. Additional charges apply for gated aviaries and shows.Â
Pre-booking is mandatory so as to facilitate crowd management and safe distancing amid the COVID-19 pandemic, said WRS.Â
Jurong Bird Park has welcomed 30 million Singaporean and international visitors since its opening, said WRS.Â
