Suoi Tien Theme Park can be described as the Disneyland of Vietnam. Located in district 9, the amusement park features the usual rides, restaurants, and experience zones, but with a Buddhist touch. The decor consists of dragons, Buddha, and Vietnamese gods. One House of Horror takes you through the various levels of Buddhist Hell, while a waterslide emerges from the beards of Buddhist sages.
Suoi Tien Theme Park has been designed to contain four sections dedicated to four sacred animals in Buddhist mythology: the dragon, the unicorn, the tortoise, and the Phoenix. Each year, it sees around 1.5 million to 2 million tourists who marvel at this strangely wonderful theme park. While some travellers find the theme to be tacky in execution, with large statues of eye-popping at every turn, everyone agrees that Suoi Tien Theme Park is a fun location for families and groups to spend a day because of its many offerings. Go early and make the most of this quirky, one-of-a-kind amusement park!
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Suoi Tien Cultural Amusement Park Theme
Not only does Suoi Tien Theme Park pay tribute to Vietnamese religion and legends, but its architecture and design has also put it in the country’s record books. One of the park’s statues, built in tribute to the Goddess of Mercy, is made of ebony and recorded as the heaviest statue in the country. Meanwhile, local history such as Au Co and Lac Long Quan (a fairy and a dragon king associated with the creation myth in Vietnam) and even battles like the Battle of Son Tinh and Thuy Tinh are memorialised in the park’s landscaping. Every year, Suoi Tien Theme Park celebrates major cultural events like the Southern Fruit Festival and the Hung King’s death anniversary.
Source The name ‘Suoi Tien’ translates to ‘fairy stream’. The park earned this name from a local legend. Decades before, the land on which the park currently stands was forest area with a stream crossing through. It is believed that seven young girls went swimming in the stream, but drowned due to the fast current. Believing that they were then turned into sacred fairies, the local people built a shrine on this land. The uninhabited land was then converted to a forestry farm before becoming Suoi Tien Theme Park.
Suoi Tien Theme Park Rides & Attractions
Suoi Tien Theme Park is comprised of two sections: the water park and the amusement park. The water park is built on the man-made Tien Dong Beach. You can’t miss it – the beach is marked by the gigantic head of an old Vietnam king, the Hung King, whose mouth is the beginning of a large cascading waterfall. This leads down to soft sandbanks and multiple water-based rides. A lazy river worms around with little boats shaped like turtles for you to lounge on while slippery slides emerge from the mouths of Buddhist statues all around. If you’d prefer to lie back and relax, look no further than the seawater pool ideal for sunbathers. There’s even a pool with the statue of a turtle in the middle, supporting the world.
Suoi Tien Water Park Source The theme park is full of dragon statues, brightly painted in hues of orange and blue, large gardens with welcoming grass to lie on, and tons of slides to keep you entertained. If you’re someone who enjoys splashing about, this is certainly the place for you! Behind the water park, you’ll find Suoi Tien Theme Park’s aquatic animal attractions. They have dolphin and sea lion shows and a huge pool to let you swim with friendly dolphins. An aquarium and underwater world lets you watch these creatures in their natural state. There’s also a crocodile farm that houses almost 1,200 crocodiles. You can buy some raw meat from nearby stalls, attach it to a fishing pole, and get a chance to feed these intimidating creatures. If you’re feeling adventurous, you can try the ‘air bicycles’ where you pedal suspended above the crocodile farm.
People feeding crocodiles at Suoi Tien Theme Park Source The Suoi Tien Amusement Park has a variety of rides. The most popular is the misleadingly named Unicorn Palace. Far from its joyful connotation, it’s actually a walk-through tunnel intended to depict Buddhism’s nine levels of Hell. Some of the gory installations inside include being boiled alive, ripped into pieces, and eaten by wild animals. Aside from the lights emanating from these installations, the tunnel is pitch dark. Every few minutes, you’ll even get to hear distant screams of terror. Perhaps not a great ride for children, but the Unicorn Palace is hugely popular amongst locals. Another haunted house is Harry Potter-themed. Leading down a pitch dark tunnel, you’ll get to witness plenty of JK Rowling’s magical creatures leap out at you from the shadows, screaming intimidatingly. Even the universally-loved house elf, Dobby, is menacing here with glowing red eyes and a fierce growl.
Suoi Tien Theme Park includes a dinosaur garden, a roller coaster, a raging bull ride, a rock climbing wall, a Ferris wheel, a 4-D cinema, and even a little Snow World. Here, temperatures go down as low as -150 celsius while artificial snow, polar bear installations, and snowflakes is released routinely from a snow machine. Children will love it! Another child friendly space is the “Kingdom of Childhood”, a sandy beach with a large statue of Lac Long Quan facing Au Co Mountain, Huoung Khu Mountain, and Bong Lai Mountain;. and a fun paintball arena where guns, gear, and paint are provided.
Source Interestingly, the park includes multiple temples as well. Far from being mere showpieces, they are fully functional Buddha temples where you can light incense and pray. There’s even a ‘Zodiac Park’ that pays tribute to the 12 animals of the Chinese zodiac – rat, ox, tiger, rabbit, snake, horse, dragon, monkey, pig, dog and sheep. Every year, a large red arch is attached to the animal of the year. As 2019 is the Year of the Pig, the red arch will remain at the pig statue through the year. At over 100 hectares, Suoi Tien Theme Park offers a whole day’s worth of entertainment. Admittedly, it isn’t as large as amusement parks in other countries of the world but at Suoi Tien Theme Park, you’re bound to enjoy everything in a colossal scale. The staff even dresses like golden monkeys on occasion to provide entertainment through tricks and performances.
Suoi Tien Theme park is located in District 9 (Thu Doc District), around 15 kilometres from downtown Ho Chi Minh City. It is accessible by bus, taxi, or private transport on following Ha Noi Highway. It is planned as one of the stops on the first line of Ho Chi Minh City Metro that is currently under construction.
A taxi from the city centre would cost approximately VND 200,000 (INR 620) and would take around 40 minutes. For a more economical alternative, Ho Chi Minh City’s Ben Thanh bus system can be used from multiple points in the city. You can take bus numbers 19, 50, 52, 53 or 150 with Suoi Tien Theme Park as the final destination. While this trip will take at least an hour, it will cost around VND 6,000 per person.
Tips
1. Most of the rides have places for four people per seat/ cabin. If you’re a group with an odd number of people, you’ll have to find others to join you on the rides 2. Although there are plenty of restaurants and cafes to grab a bite here, there are designated picnic areas as well. You’ll even find a ‘rest area’ with hammocks that can be rented for the hour. Just bring your own food and enjoy a lovely little picnic with family and friends!
