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As the clock ticks down to 2015, Singapore’s "Christmas in the Tropics" celebrations will wind up through a number of festivals and countdown parties.
The famous ZoukOut festival will take place on December 12 and 13. And on New Year’s Eve, two Singapore countdown parties will take place simultaneously: one at Marina Bay and the Esplanade waterfront, and another at Siloso Beach on Sentosa Island.
ZoukOut 2014
Singapore’s longest-running and most-awaited music dance festival takes place on Siloso Beach, Sentosa, on December 12 and 13, and will go on for two straight days, uniting partygoers in a sea of music, dance and good vibes.
ZoukOut organizer, the Singapore superclub Zouk, will bring in the world’s best DJs and dance music artists to perform a mix of Trance, Techno, Electro, House, Hip Hop and Mambo Jambo.
ZoukOut is a massive affair; CNNGo estimates that the party’s first ten years involved “200,000 party goers from 30 different nationalities dancing to 150 different acts and drinking 55,000 liters of alcohol, 23,000 liters of energy drinks and 75,000 liters of water”. (source)
Over 40,000 partygoers are expected to attend, raring to enjoy the cream of the world’s DJ set spinning beats; DJ Jazzy Jeff and Gilles Peterson have headlined past ZoukOuts. Complete lineup for 2014 can be found here: ZoukOut 2014 Full Lineup (offsite). More info here: Top 10 Trance DJs.
Limited edition ZoukOut merchandise will also be on sale at the premises. Tickets for both days cost SGD 208 (SGD 388 for Venus Stand).
Day one tickets cost SGD 128 for advance purchases, SGD 148 for walk-ins; day two tickets cost SGD 138 for advance purchases, SGD 158 for walk-ins. For details and booking, go to their site: www.zoukout.com.
Transportation to Sentosa: Sentosa is accessible by public transport. Just ride the MRT and disembark at HarbourFront MRT Station (NE1/CC29); you can then ride a bus at the HarbourFront Bus Interchange next to the station, or take the Sentosa Express monorail line across to Sentosa Island. Read more about Transportation Into & Around Singapore.
Marina Bay Singapore Countdown
Since 2005, Singapore has made Marina Bay the epicenter of its annual New Year welcoming ceremony, with fireworks and performances set against a highly-modern backdrop. The Marina Bay Countdown is a massive affair, with some 300,000 in attendance for last year’s event, and more expected this year.
- Images of Christmas in Singapore - New Year Fireworks over Marina Bay, Singapore
- Top 10 Things to Do in Marina Bay, Singapore
To mark the countdown, celebration, a Wishing Spheres visual art installation will pour into Marina Bay. Singaporeans write their wishes for the New Year onto 25,000 giant "wishing spheres”. (Read this article about New Year Wishes.) The spheres will be set afloat on New Year’s Eve, in time for the party.
(Treehuggers take note: the spheres are not biodegradable, but the ink used to write the wishes is pollutant-free, and the spheres will be cleared from the bay immediately afterwards. More info here: What Does "Biodegradable" Claim Really Guarantee?)
A number of musical performances are planned for the big night, to be conducted at The Promontory@Marina Bay and at the Esplanade Outdoor Theatre, among others.
The whole celebration will be illuminated by an eight-minute fireworks display set to music. Fringe activities - live performances and individual countdown parties - will take place around the entire Bay on New Year’s Eve. All in all, the Marina Bay Countdown Party ends Singapore's "Christmas in the Tropics" on an upbeat note.
Transportation to Marina Bay: To join the festivities, go to Marina Bay by riding the MRT and disembarking at the Esplanade MRT Station (CC3), Promenade MRT Station (CC4/DT15), Raffles Place MRT Station (NS26/EW14), or City Hall MRT Station (NS25/EW13). Email marinabaycountdown@marina-bay.sg for more information, or visit their website: www.marinabaycountdown.sg.
Accommodations in Marina Bay: For hotels in the vicinity of the Marina Bay Light-Up, read this article: Marina Bay, Singapore Hotels.
Siloso Beach Party
A far more lively event will be going on at Sentosa Island, where the Siloso Beach Party will ring in the new year.
Five zones have been set aside along Siloso's beach stretch - when filled with partygoers, the beach will become the best party setting from which to welcome 2015. Stilt-walkers, dancers and fire-eaters will amplify the excitement launched by the fireworks. And they're bringing back the foam pool!
The DJ list for the event includes DJ Funky T, DJ Auriezo, and "Asia's youngest video disc jockey", the Malaysian-born DJ Jenni F. The party starts on December 31, 6pm at Sentosa Siloso Beach. For more details, visit their official site: www.silosobeachparty.com.
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