HeritageFree entry

Merlion Park

#1of 8 places to visit in Singapore CitySingapore City, Central Region, Singapore

Also known as Merlion Statue · Singapore Merlion

Quick answer

Opening hours: No fixed opening hours. Entry is free. Allow 30 min. Best time: 07:00 - 09:00 or after 19:00.

Updated 18 September 2026 · Compiled by Traveliac, AI-assisted · 5 min read

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Photo: William Cho. / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 2.0

Opening hours: No fixed hours
Entry fee: Free
Time needed: 30 min
Best time of day: 07:00 - 09:00 or after 19:00
Best months: Feb – Apr, Jul – Aug
Address: 1 Fullerton Road, Marina Bay, Singapore 049213

About Merlion Park

Merlion Park sits at the mouth of the Singapore River in Marina Bay, home to the 8.6-metre concrete Merlion statue that has spouted water from its lion's mouth into the bay since it was relocated here in 2002. The statue's body was cast by local sculptor Lim Nang Seng and weighs 70 tonnes, standing on a rock base designed to look as if it is emerging from the water. A smaller, 2-metre 'Merlion cub' sits behind it, cast at the same time and installed as a companion piece rather than a separate work. The hybrid lion-fish form was designed in 1964 as the logo of the Singapore Tourism Promotion Board, combining a fish tail (for the fishing village Temasek, meaning 'sea town' in old Javanese) with a lion's head (for Singapura, 'Lion City' in Sanskrit-Malay, from the legend that a Sumatran prince mistook a passing animal for a lion on the shore). The statue itself, not the logo, was unveiled at its original site near the Anderson Bridge in 1972 by then Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew before being moved 120 metres to the current park in 2002 to make way for the Esplanade Bridge.

Best time of day: 07:00 - 09:00 or after 19:00. Early morning avoids both the heat and the tour-group crush; after sunset the Marina Bay Sands and downtown skyline light up behind the statue for photographs.

Merlion Park timings

Opening hours: No fixed hours; Mon–Sun No fixed hours
Closed on: Open every day

Mon–Sun	No fixed hours

Opening hours compiled from visitsingapore.com and public records, last updated 18 September 2026. They change without notice — confirm before you travel. How we write these guides

Merlion Park ticket price

Entry fees for Merlion Park
Ticket	Price
Standard ticket	Free
Concession (student / senior)	Free
Children	Free

Free and open access; no ticket required as of 2026.

Prices compiled from visitsingapore.com and public records, last updated 18 September 2026. They change without notice — confirm before you travel. How we write these guides

Best time to visit Merlion Park

Quiet
Moderate
Busy
Very busy

07:00 - 09:00
Early MorningBest time to go
Joggers and a handful of early photographers; the clearest window for an unobstructed shot at the main viewing platform.
Quiet
10:00 - 13:00
Tour Group Arrival
Coach tours and cruise-ship groups cluster here between stops at the Fullerton Building and Marina Bay Sands; the platform photo queue can run 10-15 minutes.
Busy
13:00 - 17:00
Midday Heat
Independent travellers continue to pass through but tour-bus volume drops; open promenade offers no shade and surface heat is highest in this window.
Moderate
19:00 - 22:00
Evening and Light Show
The busiest window of the day, driven by the free nightly Marina Bay light-and-water show and the illuminated skyline backdrop; railing spots fill up 20-30 minutes before showtime.
Very busy

History of Merlion Park

Merlion Park's statue was commissioned by the Singapore Tourism Promotion Board and unveiled on 15 September 1972 at the original riverside site near Anderson Bridge, close to where the Singapore River meets the sea. Sculptor Lim Nang Seng, who also produced other public statuary in Singapore, cast the piece in cement and given its lion head and fish tail a strict material logic: brown-flecked ceramic 'scales' cover the tail while the head is left smooth and white, echoing the STPB's original 1964 logo drawn by Fraser Brunner.

Construction of the Esplanade Bridge in the early 2000s required the statue's relocation; it was moved by barge along the river in April 2002 to its present site facing Marina Bay, roughly 120 metres from its original position, and a smaller companion cub statue was installed alongside it. The site was formally named Merlion Park after the move and has since become the anchor point for Marina Bay's waterfront promenade, sitting directly across the water from the Marina Bay Sands resort that opened in 2010.

Rules & etiquette at Merlion Park

Merlion Park has no gates, ticket booths, or fixed closing time, so crowd control depends on timing rather than access rules. Tripods are permitted on the open promenade but are frequently restricted during ticketed evening events staged nearby, such as the Marina Bay light and water shows; check signage on arrival.

The viewing platform directly facing the statue is small relative to visitor volume, and tour groups routinely form queues for the standard 'water spout from the mouth' photo angle between 10:00 and 17:00. Pickpocketing is uncommon here relative to other Southeast Asian tourist sites, but bag-snatching from unattended items on the promenade railings has been reported; keep bags closed and in view.

The park connects directly to the Jubilee Bridge and Esplanade Bridge pedestrian walkways, both of which are unshaded; sun protection matters more than crowd navigation on a midday visit given Singapore's near-constant equatorial heat and humidity.

Tips for visiting Merlion Park

1
Merlion Park works best paired with the Marina Bay waterfront promenade rather than visited alone, since the statue itself takes under 10 minutes to see properly. Walking the full loop from Merlion Park across the Jubilee Bridge to the Marina Bay Sands ArtScience Museum side and back takes roughly 45-60 minutes and covers the Helix Bridge, the Float @ Marina Bay, and views back toward the colonial Fullerton Building, a former general post office now operating as a hotel.
2
The nightly Marina Bay 'Spectra' light-and-water show, staged from the Event Plaza at the Marina Bay Sands side of the water, is visible free from the Merlion Park side of the bay, though sightlines are better from directly opposite; arrive 20-30 minutes early for a clear spot at the railing.
3
No food or drink vendors operate inside the park itself; the nearest options are at One Fullerton and the Fullerton Waterboat House a short walk south, both at Marina Bay tourist-area prices rather than hawker-centre rates. Tipping is not customary in Singapore and is typically waived by a service charge already added to restaurant bills.

How to reach Merlion Park

The red star is Merlion Park; the numbered pins are the 7 nearest places in our guides, each showing its rank in its city. Tap a pin for details.

1 Fullerton Road, Marina Bay, Singapore 049213Directions in Google Maps

From Singapore Changi Airport (SIN)
20 km · 30-40 min
S$2.50-3.50 by MRT; S$30-40 by metered taxi
From Raffles Place MRT Station
0.4 km · 5 min walk
Included in standard MRT fare from prior journey
From Orchard Road
3.5 km · 12-15 min by MRT (change at Dhoby Ghaut), 15 min by taxi
S$1.50-2 by MRT; S$10-14 by taxi

Nearest airport

From Singapore Changi Airport (SIN)

20 km, approximately 30 minutes by taxi or MRT via the East-West Line to Tanah Merah then City Hall.

Nearest station

From Raffles Place MRT (EW14/NS26), Exit H

approximately 5 minutes on foot.

Merlion Park FAQs

Is there an entry fee for Merlion Park?

No. Merlion Park is free and open to the public 24 hours a day, as of 2026, with no ticket or booking required.

What is the best time to photograph the Merlion statue without crowds?

Between 07:00 and 09:00. Tour groups arrive from around 10:00 and the platform stays busy through the afternoon, easing only briefly before the evening light-show crowd builds after 19:00.

Why does the Merlion have a lion's head and a fish's tail?

The fish tail represents Temasek, the fishing settlement recorded on the site before Singapore's founding, and the lion's head represents Singapura, the 'Lion City' name from a legend of a Sumatran prince sighting a lion-like animal on the shore. The design was created in 1964 as the Singapore Tourism Promotion Board's logo before the statue itself was built in 1972.

Has the Merlion statue always stood in its current spot?

No. It was unveiled in 1972 near the Anderson Bridge, about 120 metres from today's location, and was moved by barge to the current Merlion Park site in April 2002 to allow construction of the Esplanade Bridge.

Compiled with AI assistance from official sources and public records, and published only after the checks in How we write these guides. Nobody from Traveliac has visited this place. Last updated 18 September 2026. How we rank and check places