Our First And Last Visit In Star City

Star City is an amusement park in Pasay, Metro Manila, Philippines. It is located in the area of the Cultural Center of the Philippines (CCP) Complex.

The park boasted an indoor carnival and shopping center, rides for all ages (Giant Star Wheel, Grand Carousel, Star Frisbee and Viking, among others), playgrounds (Little Tykes, Ball Pool), museums (Art Alive Museum, Toy Chest), horror houses, and Snow World which featured ice carvings and a long ice slide. [mfn] Sources: Inquirer Archives, Star City website, Philippine Association of National Advertisers [/mfn]

Unfortunately, the structure was hit by a fire on October 2, 2019, causing indefinite closure due to the extensive damage that hit most of its premises. [mfn] Source: CNN [/mfn]

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As I am writing this article, as of now, the amusement is still closed while its reopening is truly uncertain. Thus, to commemorate our wonderful experience there, I am sharing you our first and last (but I hope it would not be the last) visit at Star City.

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My father is working in a hospital which celebrates a very special Family Day once every year, and most of the time, held in the month of October. So, it was sunny in the 23rd day of October 2016 when they organized to celebrate this day at Star City. It was perfect timing as I was on vacation leave from Dubai and it was also my first time to visit the place (didn’t get the chance before).

We traveled for almost an hour from our place in Pasig City to its location and we reached around 7 or 8 in the morning. Since a lot of other families were coming to celebrate, there was a long queue to wait.

For others, a long queue is a problem. For us, it was a chance to take lots and lots of memorable pictures. 🙂

Our entrance fee was free of charge since it was financed by my father’s company, though below were the standard rates:

Then, we collected our tags and tokens once we entered and proceeded to mix with the crowd.

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Every corner of the park was boasting with people from different ages, children to adult. All were very excited to use the rides and feel the extremes of adrenaline rush. And as always expected, each ride have had a long queue before one’s turn.

Interestingly, the park have housed over 30 rides and attractions including Grand Carousel, Annex Carousel, Happy Swing, Magic Forest Ride, Red Baron, Super TeleCombat, Dragon Express, Wacky Worm, Pirate Adventure, Giant Star Wheel, Gabi ng Lagim, Dungeon of Terror, Bump Car Smash, double-deck carousel, 360-degree-loop roller coaster or the “Zyklon Loop”, inverted roller coaster called the “Star Flyer” and the water log ride or the “Wild River” also called “Jungle Splash”. It also hosted the “Snow World”, the largest permanent ice entertainment area in the country, which featured ice carvings, a snow play area and the country’s longest ice slide.

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So firstly, we tried the Pirate Adventure as it was interesting, just like what we have watched in movie Pirates of the Caribbean, maybe we can meet Jack inside. 😉

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Next stop was the “Snow World”. It was a cold snowy environment with temperature of less than 15 degrees centigrade. It features a “White Christmas” setup with an igloo and a Christmas tree, a long 68-meter ice slide and ice sculptures from around the world.

Snow World is a very cold place to be in. You can request for jackets (approximately 5 jackets) for your kids, but it is still better to bring your own thermal clothing, gloves, and/or scarf too. Even with the proper clothing, the maximum time you can stay inside without freezing, or without your camera turning into ice, is 15 minutes. 

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Inside Star City were the indoor kiddie rides, themed trains and inflatable playground. Snow World and all the kiddie rides can be found in the covered and adequately air-conditioned facility so that everybody can enjoy the place even when it is raining. 

On the other hand, huge adult rides were located outdoors, just like the Zyklon Loop which is a 360-degree-loop roller coaster that I and my sister have tried once, again… only once. 😀

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Honestly, I am not a fan of extreme rides, my parents and siblings neither! But, it was a good challenge for us to face our fears.

I couldn’t remember how long that grueling ride was. but I think it was maybe around 10 or 15 minutes. Our experience was absolutely terrifying yet very unforgettable. We couldn’t even explain the emotions we felt during the ride; my father told he felt his blood pressure spiked, my mother said she almost fainted, my youngest sister just closed her eyes most of the time and my other sister just shouted the whole ride. But when it was over, we thought it was great and really fun. Just to remember the fact that we will not do it again, maybe after some time, but hardly ever again. 😀

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Fast food outlets are also available in Star City so feeling hungry after doing extreme rides would not be a problem.

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Spending time with family in this amusement park is such a wonderful and memorable encounter. We are glad that before its closure, we were able to experience the adventurous escapade flaunted by this theme park.

Actually, my siblings and my mother went there several times during their school ‘field trips’; it was a first for me and my father and it was truly exceptional. Nonetheless, we are very much looking forward to its reopening, though there is no assurance on to when it would be.

What is your most remarkable experience in Star City? We would love to hear about it! 🙂

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