The TreeTop Walk in Singapore – Hiking in the jungle of an Asian mega city

I had been planning to hike the TreeTop Walk since I have first been to Singapore. I had seen it on the map and after looking it up put it on my bucket list. The reason why it took me three stays and technically three whole months to finally go is that it’s not as easily reachable as the other nature escapes that I had been exploring such as the Bukit Timah Nature Reserve.  

Additionally, the TreeTop Walk is closed on Mondays for maintenance work. There are gates on both sides with a guard sitting on the end with the entrance. There is no guard at the exit but the door can only be opened coming from the bridge and not from the trail. You can still do the hike but you can’t cross the bridge.

Facts about the TreeTop Walk at a glance

Starting Point: Venus Drive Carpark

Distance: 250 meters for the suspension bridge, 7 km for the whole loop

Length: 3 to 4 hours

Opening Hours: 9am to 5pm (the gate closes at 5pm sharp!)

Entrance Fee: Free

How to get to the TreeTop Walk in Singapore

The TreeTop Walk is actually part of a trail system called the MacRitchie Trails. The whole loop that includes the TreeTop Walk is around 7 km long. Unfortunately, there is no MRT station close to the starting point, which means that you have to take a bus to the car park at the entrance called Venus Drive or get there by Grab or taxi. From there you simply follow the signs.

An alternative for all the hardcore hikers would be to walk the MacRitchie Nature Trail from the Reservoir itself, which is a 4.6 km walk.

The Loop

Getting to the TreeTop Walk from the starting point at the Venus Drive car park couldn’t be easier. There are signs at every crossing.

I had actually read in a blog post saying that it’s difficult to find the way, which is why I was a bit concerned when I went there. It was my last day in Singapore and I still had lots of errands to run. But I really wanted to go on this specific hike. Luckily, in the end, with around 8 km in total, it was a long hike for me but at least I found the way without any problems. So I guess all the signs are pretty new.

First, you walk the boardwalk along Venus loop. But you don’t follow this path. Instead, you take another wooden path called Squirrel Trail.

Yep, you will probably see lots of squirrels there. So be prepared with the right lens on your camera. Unfortunately, I was hiking with my wide angle lens and could therefore not get a photo of any.

Alternatively, you can walk the Venus loop a bit further and take the Venus link. After a while, the Squirrel Trail and Venus link cross and you can either follow Venus link or take the next wooden boardwalk called Drongo Trail. All paths are more or less the same length. So no need to worry! The two tracks end at Pierce Track, which finally leads to the TreeTop Walk.

If you’re not comfortable walking 7 km you need to turn around BEFORE crossing the bridge. It’s not possible to walk over the bridge from the other side. Turning around would save you more or less 1km.

At the beginning of the bridge, there was a monkey waiting to greet the hikers. Be prepared and hide all your food and water.

On the 250 meters long suspension bridge you can expect a panoramic view of the rainforest while walking 25 meters above the ground.

After the bridge, you hike Petaling Trail, which is a one-way road only. There are quite a lot of stairs waiting for you at this part of the hike.

To get back to Venus link, you take a track called Sime Track. I know, this does sound very complicated. But you really just follow the signs to the TreeTop Walk and then back to Venus Drive. It couldn’t be easier.  

Final Thoughts

The TreeTop Walk is absolutely stunning. I loved being welcomed by a monkey, having a panoramic view over the canopy of the rainforest, and feeling far away from the megacity of Singapore – no matter how much I like it there.

It’s a perfect escape from the hustle and bustle of the metropolis but I don’t want to hide from you that it was also the most exhausting track I did here. If you’re not at least a semi-experienced hiker get ready to have muscle pain the next day(s).

For the rest, it was an amazing experience and absolutely worth it!