Supertree Grove, Gardens by the Bay

Vertical-garden 'trees' 25–50 m tall that collect rainwater and light up in a nightly sound-and-light show.

Gardens by the Bay covers 105 hectares and was part of Singapore's plan to change from a 'Garden City' to a 'City in a Garden'. It was announced in 2005 and has become one of the country's national icons. It had 6.4 million visitors in 2014 and more than 50 million by 2018.

What do the Supertrees do?

They are not only for show. They are vertical gardens that give shade and act as 'environmental engines'. Each Supertree has technology that copies the jobs of real trees. Solar cells collect sunlight, a little like photosynthesis, to power things such as lighting. Rainwater is collected for watering plants and for fountain displays, and the trunks help vent hot air from the nearby greenhouses. Their plants include many bromeliads such as Neoregelia and Tillandsia.

Light, music and a skywalk

Every night at 7:45 and 8:45 pm the Supertree Grove comes alive with a light and music show called the Garden Rhapsody. A walkway high above the ground, the OCBC Skyway, links two of the larger Supertrees. The Supertree Observatory opened on 27 December 2019 inside the tallest Supertree, 50 metres high, with an indoor area and an open-air rooftop deck.

More to see

Bay South Garden, which opened on 29 June 2012, was designed by Grant Associates and inspired by an orchid, Singapore's national flower. It also holds two cooled conservatories. The Flower Dome, about 1.2 hectares, was listed in 2015 as the largest greenhouse in the world. The Cloud Forest has a 42-metre 'Cloud Mountain' covered in ferns and orchids, with a 35-metre waterfall. In 2024 TripAdvisor ranked the gardens the eighth-best attraction in the world and the best in Asia.

On the globe

The model shows a grove of tall tree-shaped towers with wide canopies; look for the cluster of steel trees.