The 9-Step Guide to Enjoying the Skyline Luge Sentosa {Giveaway}

It's the school holidays! Time to get out and play!

We'll be headed out of town this term break, but if we were in Singapore, I know we would definitely be paying a visit to Sentosa. Ever since they got their first taste it earlier this year, the kids have repeatedly asked to go back to the Skyline Luge Sentosa for another turn at whizzing down the hill. So during the June holidays we did just that to satisfy their need for speed, as well as check out Skyline Luge Sentosa's newly upgraded facilities.

If you're planning your own Luge ride, here is our step-by-step guide to having an enjoyable time:

STEP 1: BUY YOUR TICKETS

Tickets please! If you find the choice of tickets at the counter slightly mind-boggling, you are not alone! We certainly felt that way when we first visited. The first thing to figure out if you're riding with children is whether they will be riding solo or in tandem with you. To do so, do keep in mind the height and age restrictions for solo riders.

Skyride:

• Min. height 85cm to ride the Skyride with an adult
• Min. height 135cm to ride the Skyride alone

Luge:

• 6 years and min. height 110cm to ride Luge alone
• Children under the age of 6 years can ride tandem with an adult

If your child is riding tandem with you, you can purchase a "child doubling" top up for an additional $3 per skyride-luge ride. This child will therefore not count to the headcount for the rides. 

There are a variety of individual and family tickets available, with the multiple ride passes being more value for money. You should plump for multi-ride passes anyway because as their slogan says, once is never enough! We certainly know this from experience.

Individual tickets start at a single $17 for a Luge and Skyride combo while family tickets (for families with children under 16 years of age) start at $39 for a four-ride family pass. Get more information on ticket prices here.

STEP 2: HOP ON TO THE SKYRIDE

The entrance to the Skyride is just behind the ticketing counter. Join the queue and hop on to the skyride, which is a continuous non-stop ride. The friendly staff will line you up (max 4 persons) and off you go!

This being an open chair lift that rises high above the ground, it can be a bit unnerving the first time round. Doubly so if you're riding with kids! I'm also always wondering if my slippers will slip off my feet on-route, so wear shoes with straps for peace of mind! Then sit back, relax and enjoy the view, which can be pretty spectacular, especially on a clear day. It isn't everyday that you get to look out to the horizon, even if we do live on an island!

Also, don't forget to look out the photo point along the way and flash your biggest smile! This is one of the photo points along the entire ride. There's another along the luge trail, before you reach the end point. 

STEP 3: CHECK OUT YOUR PICTURES

After smiling for the camera, don't forget to check out how the pictures turned out. These can be viewed and selected at the photo counters conveniently situated at the top of the hill right after you get off the Skyride. These have been recently renovated to add four more counters for a quicker and better experience. If you're going on multiple rides, you can ask the counter staff to hold your pictures so that you can subsequently select the best one.

STEP 4: GET IN THE LINE FOR FIRST-TIMERS

If it is your first ride of the day, get in the correct line for 1st time Luge riders. They will be able to identify you by the fact that you do not have a Luge stamp on your hand so don't get in the wrong line! The line for first-timers is typically quite long and the wait can be about 30 mins during peak periods, but be patient. The queue takes a bit of time as the staff will take each group of riders through a quick safety briefing and check that they can manage their Luge before letting them continue down the ride. If you are loathe to wait, do try to visit during off-peak hours. If you're going on second or subsequent ride, you can join the 2nd time riders queue which is much shorter and quicker.

STEP 5: GRAB A HELMET

Don't forget those helmets! The helmets are conveniently colour coded according to size: Green (XXS), Red (XS), Yellow (S), Blue (M), Orange (L). You can pick one up in the helmet bin situated along the queue path. 

STEP 6: SAFETY BRIEFING

Nearly there! While queuing, you would probably have noticed the instructional safety videos playing on screens overhead. These will give you an idea of what is coming up. When it's your turn, hop into a Luge and you'll be given a safety briefing and instructions on how to manoeuvre the vehicle. Simply place your feet on the foot rests and pull back hard on the handles. Release the tension on the handlebars by pushing them away from your body and you will feel the Luge start to roll forward. Pull hard to brake and turn the handlebars left and right like you would on a bicycle to turn. That's it!

Once they have ascertained that you are able to understand the basic workings of the Luge, you are allowed to roll forward to the brake test point for a final check. 

STEP 7: JUNGLE TRAIL OR DRAGON TRAIL?

Just one final decision: do you sped down the left and take the shorter and somewhat straighter 628m Jungle Trail, or the longer and more twisty 688m Dragon Trail? I personally prefer the Dragon Trail which I find more exciting with its many twists and turns, but Noey prefers the Jungle Trail, which allows him to go faster down the straights. I say, make sure you do both!

STEP 8: HAVE THE TIME OF YOUR LIFE!

The moment you've been waiting for: it's time to speed down the hill! Have fun! Watch out for folks around you and don't forget to smile at the camera towards the end!

STEP 9: DO IT AGAIN!

Inevitably, when we reach the bottom, the kids would be clamouring to do it again. Like they say, once is never enough!

EXTRA: DAY OR NIGHT? 

If you've ridden on the Luge before, I'm guessing that you, like us, rode in the day. But did you know that you can ride the Luge at night? The Skyline Luge Sentosa opens daily from 10am to 9.30pm, and according to my friends who have done it, offers a different and more thrilling experience in the cool night air as you navigate the turns on a track specially lit with RGB LED lighting. You can read more about night luging over at Owls Well, A Juggling Mom and Princess Dana Diaries.

You can also try it yourself for we have a special GIVEAWAY! That's right, we have THREE SETS OF 4-RIDE FAMILY PASSES (worth $39 each) to give away! All family deals include the Skyride to the top of the tracks and mulitple luge rides to share are applicable for families with children below 16 years of age. Children under 6 years or shorter than the required 110cm to ride alone may ride the Luge in tandem with a full paying adult.

To join this giveaway you have to complete the following steps:

1. Like the Skyline Luge Sentosa Facebook Page.

2. Like the Life is in the Small Things Facebook Page

3. Like and Comment on this Facebook photo, telling me what you like best about the Skyline Luge Sentosa!

You have to complete all 3 steps to qualify so don't miss any out! Use the Rafflecopter widget below to indicate that you've done the above. You can also get additional chances by completing the rest of the steps.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

This giveaway ends on Wed 3 Sept 2014, 11.59pm and is open to Singapore residents only. Winners will be contacted by e-mail and will have 48 hours to respond, failing which a new winner will be drawn. All incomplete entries will be disqualified. All entries will be verified before the winners are announced. To be fair to our sponsors, please note that all fake Facebook accounts (eg. accounts set up purely to take part in contests with no or very few real friends) will also be ineligible to win.

Skyline Luge Sentosa
45 Siloso Beach Walk
Sentosa, Singapore 
Tel: +65 6274 0472 

Find out more at www.skylineluge.com or at their Facebook Page https://www.facebook.com/skylinelugesentosa.

While you're at Sentosa, don't forget to check out the Sentosa Buskers Festival which is on this week from 6 to 14 Sep 2014! We had a lot of fun at the festival last year. (Click for last year's pictures!) In fact, when we saw the banners on a recent visit to Sentosa, Noey excitedly started recounting the acts he'd watched last year. Unfortunately he was a bit under the weather in the weekend so we were not able to go down and will be leaving on holiday later this week so I think we will be missing this year's edition. But if you're in town, do check it out. It is a lot of fun for the family!

* We thank Skyline Luge Sentosa for the media invitation and sponsorship of the giveaway passes. All opinions are, as always, authentically our own.