Jerudong Park

Jerudong Park is an amusement park in Brunei. It is the largest and most expensive amusement park in South East Asia, built and funded by the Bruneian government for $1 billion.

It is notable that during its first few years of operation, Jerudong Park featured no admission fees and free rides. It is currently larger than phase 1 of Hong Kong Disneyland. The public only had to queue up for rides. However, recently the number of visitors and tourists has dropped significantly and the administration has started a one time B$15 admission fee, and allride ticketing system. According to the park's website, many of its rides are for sale.

Currently, the theme park has reduced its footprint to Phase 1 and 2, the original Playground. It has introduced a revised system of ticketing called the ticket card system. The park is once again free entry to the general public, but guests have to buy ticket cards to be able to use the rides and attractions. These tickets come in $8 and $10 price range. The ticket cards have slots which can be punched using a single hole puncher - one punch equals one use of any ride or facility for one person. This system therefore gives the guest the choice to choose which ride he or she would want to use, and how many would be able to use the facility using the ticket card. An $8 ticket card has 4 slots and 1 free slot (effectively allowing one guest to use 5 rides/attractions - or 2 guests to use two rides with one extra). The $10 ticket card has 5 slots plus 3 free slots (which means a guest can use 8 rides attractions and so on). The free entry has seen a marked increase in the number of people going to the park, as shown on weekends where one can observe a large group of families having picnics in the field, or long queues on the remaining rides and attractions.

This sprawling amusement park was commissioned by the sultan in 1994 as a gift to his people. Entry was free until 2000, but when it started charging, locals lost interest. Now many rides languish, waiting for spare parts or to be re-insured but it's still an intriguing experience to wander round the massive semi-deserted grounds in the evening.

If the dodgems and laser guns don't capture your imagination, try catching a quick glimpse of the sultan's palace or have tea or dinner at the über-luxurious Empire Hotel nearby.