Five highlights at the Avatar-themed Changi Festive Village 2022

Changi Festive Village is making waves this year with installations inspired by Avatar: The Way of Water, featuring light shows, orchestra performances and life-sized Avatar models.

Running from Nov 11 to Jan 2, 2023, here are five highlights we experienced at the Changi Festive Village 2022.

When you first step into Terminal 3’s Departure Hall, the magnificent life-sized Marui Pods inspired by the homes of Avatar’s Metkayina Clan are sure to catch your eye.

The interior of the Marui Pods are also decked out with furnishings like dreamcatchers, shrubs and a life-sized model of the blue humanoid Na’vi to pose with for your Instagram feed.

Visitors can book photo sessions through the iChangi App and get their pictures taken in the pods by purchasing photo passes at $5 each. While the area is open from 11am to 10pm daily, photo sessions are only available from 11am to 7pm.

The Avatar Marui Pods also serve as a band performance venue for Ventus Music, that will play iconic tunes from the franchise along with a small light show.

Performances will take place at 7.30pm and 8.30pm on Nov 11, 12, 19, 26 and Dec 10, 17, and 23.

When night falls, you can enjoy the bioluminescent light displays at Canopy Park, located at level five of Jewel. Named Christmas Odyssey at Jewel – Canopy Park, the start of the trail resembles a secret bioluminescent waterfall entrance.

As visitors make their way in, they will be greeted by beautiful bioluminescent light displays which provide them with an immersive underwater experience.

Several screens displaying marine creatures like dolphins, seals and manta rays are also scattered around Canopy Park. The aquatic animals will respond to movements by visitors with playful actions like backflips.

Other interactive installations in the Canopy Park include a four-metre tall smoke bubble tree and glow-in-the-dark corals.

Adding to the immersive aquatic experience is an interactive floor screen in Petal Garden. Those who step on the screen will find themselves leaving bioluminescent waves in their wake.

Canopy Park is open from 10am to 10pm every Monday to Thursday, and 10am to 11pm from Fridays to Sundays.

The standard rate for an adult or child is $8, and Singaporean residents can enjoy the Canopy Park trail at $6 per visitor.

A massive Christmas Tree can be found at Jewel’s Shiseido Forest Valley with a marine-themed oceanic tunnel installed at the base that visitors can enter.

The tunnel not only provides a soothing atmosphere to visitors, but also contains tips on methods to unwind and improve your mental health.

Making my way through the tunnel, I arrived just in time to catch the HSBC Rain Vortex Light and Sound show to the soothing soundtrack of Avatar: The Way of Water. 

Adding to the theatrics, “snow” will fall five minutes after the start of every performance.

The Shiseido Forest Valley Light show runs from Nov 11 to Jan 2, 2023 at 7.30pm, 8.30pm, 9.30pm and 10.30 pm daily, and is a free event.

Changi Festive Village 2022 has also introduced a new online game named Oceantopia, which can be accessed from the iChangi application, where players can win cash prizes or the latest iPhone 14.

To play the game, simply tap on bubbles to receive missions and participate in minigames, which include matching identical cards or visiting Changi’s various web pages to spot the Oceantopia game icon.

For each mission completed, players will receive an aquatic life collectible in-game that they can add to their marine zone. Fun facts on the collected species are also provided to educate the public on marine life.

Ultimately, players should aim to fill up the Oceanpedia, their personal collection of marine collectibles, to complete the game. 

The first five winners will receive the latest iPhone 14, while the next 10 people who complete Oceantopia can walk away with prizes worth more than $400. Oceantopia will only be available from Nov 10 to Jan 3, 2023.

Before ending the day at Changi Festive Village, you can check out The Underground Carnival at Terminal 3 for an adrenaline rush at the Dino Kart Circuit 3.0.

Visitors can enjoy the neon sights and views of iconic Singapore sights leisurely or speed their way through the circuit like a professional racer.

To ensure racers’ safety, a compulsory safety briefing and trial lap around the circuit is provided before the official race begins.

For those preferring more laid-back fun, there are other carnival booths and activities ranging from archery and dart throwing to testing their strength at the King Hammer Strongman Challenge.