Genting 11-13 Oct 07

Had my first trip to Genting with Alex and his parents from 11 to 13 Oct. I have to say it was quite an enjoyable trip for me. Was initially worried about not having much to do there. But two days at Genting was just nice for me to get acquinted with the place and to have a good time there. Not to mention good company as well.

I slept over at Alex's place the night before as the coach was supposed to leave early next morn from Lavender. Our coach was a double decker bus from Transtar Express Premium. The trip was much further than the previous KL trip. This time it was about 7 hrs. Hence we got a better coach, with additional facilities as built-in massage capabilities, personal video entertainment system, and automated chair adjustment controls. True enough the long ride was made more bearable. We supposedly paid an additional of $10 for this upgrade, which I thought was well worth it. On the way there the video system had some malfunction, hence some of us could not enjoy the videos that were being played. Pity.

It took 5 hours plus to reach KL area and 1 hour more to ascend Genting. We stayed at the 17th storey of Resorts Hotel. It was an extremely large room for two that is much bigger than my living room at home. The facilities were good as well. I later found out that we had upgraded the rooms from the usual stay at First World Hotel. Met an NTU fren, Ting Min, there as well.

The weather on top was great. It was 20deg mostly and an early morn walk was superb. Haha. We woke as early at 4am to walk outside. But most of the shops are closed, except the casino and cybercafe. Genting is quite colourful with many attractions within a contained environment. All the hotels were linked to each other, so you can easily move around without going outside. The casino was like other casinos bah. We didn't gamble cos we were more interested in the rides. I did a little shopping too, prices were comparable to spore, but the designs and brands are diff. The rides are not that scary as they are low and only scary at a few points. I think it is quite family oriented. Ya, I realised shouting and shrilling helps to relieve tension and make the experience more enjoyable. Thankfully, there are not familiar ppl around. No, I don't think I have overcomed my fear of heights, but at least I got something to talk about.. haha.

Spent 205$sing for package. brought 200$sing to spend. Anw we went during a peak period. Weekday though. So it was more exp, but at the same time less crowded. Saturday was extremely crowded. So do avoid such timings if you don't want to squeeze with others.

Some of the notable experiences include

Outdoor Theme Park 2 day pass 55rm
Pirate Ship - Viking look alike. Now I understand why ppl say the Viking is scary. I was like cringing and clinging for my dear life when the ship came down. I really hate free falls. haha
Flying Coaster - This is probably the most exciting ride for me. You are locked in a superman position with your hands and head facing forward and your legs behind. I must have given off lots of shrills at this station.
Spinner - Imagine being flung around like a slingshot. Surprisingly not as scary as it looks.
Corkscrew - The classic rollarcoaster.
Space Shot - An extremely scary station to try. you will be strapped onto a seat and propelled to as high as 10 storeys above ground before being forced down to ground level at a fast speed. My legs were like jelly before we attempted this. But as it was not free fall, the process wasn't as bad as I thought it to be. But the apprehension before the descent can really give ppl heart attacks.
Grand Prix Fun Kart - A kiddy version of Go-Karting. Extremely fun nonetheless

Fly - An 1.5 hr dance and magic choreography show comprising of german/russian dancers and chinese acrobats. It was more dance than magic actually. I guess it is interesting to catch some shows at Genting. We only paid 15$ for this, so I guess it was quite worth it. I enjoyed the acrobatics more.
Van Helsing - Excellent 3D effects and be ready for an interesting experience.
4D Motion Master - Lousy attempt at a 4d experience as the 3d images were not calibrated. Do not try this one.
Ripleys' Believe it or not - Not that interesting actually. Do not be fooled by the exhibits at the entrance. But there was an interesting bridge at the end of the exhibits where there were lights rotating around the bridge. And this caused the human senses to perceive the bridge was tilting, when it was not. Haha, you imagine us both clinging on to the sides for our lives.
Genting Cable Ride return trip 10rm - It was a 15min trip down from Genting to the bus terminal below. The scenery was breathtaking. Definitely recommended. At the bottom, there was a horse riding area, but as it was raining, we could not check it out. There was also a shopping mall there, where we found some good buys for pasteries to buy back. There was also a pet safari to take photos. But if you do go there, get the combo tix for the cablecar return trip and pet safari from the indoor theme park area.
Ming Ren Restaurant - We had a dinner at this posh restaurant. They had some great signature dishes. However it was not that cheap. Think we paid 200rm for 6 people. Still I greatly enjoyed the food.
Sky Venture - The highlight of the trip for me. It costs 38rm when you present the theme park tag. An additional 18rm for the video dvd of your session. I have to say it was surprisingly easy to float above winds of 195kmh. you just have to lie flat. Pity I didn't try more interesting manouveurs. Even if you do not want to try, do go there to see other's session.
Happy Valley Restaurant - This restaurant is located on the pitstop on the return trip. I have seen it many times but have not tried the food before. They promise to serve in 8mins, and provide a variety of set meals. The food is not bad actually. It sure beats eating at the foodcourt there. We paid about 10rm per person. They do charge extra for the tidbits and tea and extras. But the extras charges are still quite reasonable.