welcome Nuraini Binte Hassan Eighteeth Temasek Polytechnic ©Glamouresque. References Official opening of the Singapore Zoological Gardens. Retrieved from http://infopedia.nl.sg/articles/cfe46b25-0e9b-4791-8aed-c4b0761e2939.html on 20th May 2013 Park Experience.Retrieved from http://www.zoo.com.sg/visitor-info/park-experience.html on 20th May 2013 Free-Ranging Orang Utan.Retrieved from http://www.zoo.com.sg/exhibits-zones/free-ranging-orang-utan.html on 21st May 2013 Singapore Zoo. Retrived from http://infopedia.nl.sg/articles/SIP_403_2005-01-19.html on 21st May 2013 Dining with Animals. Retrived from http://www.zoo.com.sg/special-experiences/dining-with-animals.html on 21st May 2013 The 10 Best Zoos in the World. Retrived from http://www.ratestogo.com/blog/best-zoos/ on 21st May 2013	Monday, May 20, 2013 Hello Zoe! I can't wait for your arrival in Singapore. There are so many exciting attractions for you to visit here in this beautiful "Garden City" but one amazing place you absolutely have to go is Singapore Zoo. Being ranked one of the top attractions in Singapore (by TripAdvisor), it is definitely worth every penny you pay for. From the excellent services to the convenient user-friendly facilities, it is a place for all ages! (The entrance of Singapore Zoo, greeted with panda mascots) (My entrance tickets and map) Classification of Singapore Zoo Singapore Zoo was first built to educate Singaporeans on the importance of animal conservation and also an excuse for a getaway for families to bond together. This is hence a man-made site designed to attract visitors. Singapore Zoo is both a public and private sector. I say this because Singapore government contributed $9 million for the development of Singapore Zoo which officially opened on 27th June 1973 and it's main priorities are animal conservation and educating the visitors. On the other hand, the maintenance of the animals and facilities are very expensive which hence caused another one of Singapore Zoo's priority which is profit. From the money they have gained through visitor's tickets, they are able to ensure animals are well-fed and all the necessary maintenance can be made.  Beside being one of the top ranked attractions in Singapore, Singapore Zoo is also classified as the top zoo in Asia. Singapore Zoo experience overwhelming number of visitors per year that can even be more than 1.6 million! Singapore Zoo is a "must visit" for majority of the tourists. I would hence classify Singapore Zoo as an international, urban catchment area. Singapore Zoo provides a lot of entertaining programs and shows. It also provides rental of prams or wheelchairs to ensure visitors have the best experience without any inconvenience for those with younger children, the disabled or even the older ones. You can also pay $5 to ride the trams that will bring you around the zoo. The rides are unlimited which means you can alight and board anytime you want!  (The booth to rent strollers, wheelchairs or wagons for children to sit in) (The trams) From my observation, I believe Singapore Zoo caters and is able to attract almost anyone. Children as young as 1 years old and elders on wheelchairs are all able to experience Singapore Zoo. However, Singapore Zoo must of course still have a targeted group of people to ensure that the Zoo is always filled with people. In my opinion, Singapore Zoo targets people who seeks for knowledge regarding animal conservation, such as school groups and tourists. Many of the tour guides provided in Singapore includes Singapore Zoo. It also targets families with young children, aging from 2 years old to 7 years old. (Young children stunned by the Orang Utans) Most of the people who come to Singapore Zoo wants an opportunity to learn and observe the animals. The experience they would like to gain are mainly knowledge. However the benefits they seek for vary from person to person. Some go to zoo to complete their assignments and some go to zoo to have their wedding photoshoots. That is probably the best thing about Singapore Zoo, you can visit it for all sorts of reasons. (The bride and groom!) Motivating Factors Singapore Zoo is popular in many other countries due to its unique way of caging the animals. Singapore Zoo uses nature, such as bushes, slopes or even rocks, as a form of barrier or fencing for the animals. Animals which have a better jumping ability are placed in glass. Through this way of "caging" the animals, the surroundings of these animals can feel as natural as possible. (Rhinoceros) Singapore Zoo is the first zoo in the world to allow Orang Utans to be "free". The Orang Utans are literally on top of you when you're walking around the Singapore Zoo! (Orang Utan hanging and posing for the visitors taking pictures) (Orang Utans swinging from tree to tree together) Since one of the target market of Singapore Zoo is young children, they have equipped the zoo with boards that shows information regarding the animals nearby. The language used is simple and the colourful boards are designed to capture these children's eyes. These boards will help in ensuring visitors get what they came here for, knowledge. (A board showing simple facts about the Cheetahs) Inside the Singapore Zoo, there are many Food & Beverage outlets such as Ben and Jerry's Ice Cream and Ah Meng Restaurant. Some visitors come to Singapore Zoo with a secondary intention of eating at the restaurants provided here as some of the restaurants can only be found in Singapore Zoo.  (Ben and Jerry's Ice Cream) As I have mentioned earlier, trams are provided in the zoo with a charge of $5. The existence of trams can lighten the burden of visitors, especially on a humid day when a lot of visitors just want to relax without sweating too much. The trams also acts as a guided tour as there will be a staff explaining the surroundings everywhere the tram goes to. Unique nature of attraction as service product & challenges faced Since service is part of product, the services provided by the staffs in Singapore Zoo contributes a lot to the experience of visitors. What Singapore Zoo offers is perishable and cannot be stored. In other words, it has to be produced and consumed at the same time. An example of what Singapore Zoo offers that is perishable is its "Splash Safari" show. Splash Safari consists of a California Sea Lion showing off different skills to the visitors. One of the challenges staffs would face is if the Sea Lion refuses to cooperate during performance. This could cause many unhappiness and assumptions amongst visitors. Some may assume that the staffs did not treat the Sea Lion properly and hence causing it to be frustrated. This may cause Singapore Zoo to have a bad reputation and losing potential visitors. To prevent these assumptions from occurring, the Singapore Zoo had placed up a board that states the way animals are being treated here in the zoo. (The board that convinces visitors that the animals are being treated properly)  (The Sea Lion jumping and catching a ball held by the staff) (The Sea Lion balancing a ball using its nose) (A photography session with the Sea Lion and it kissed me!) Singapore Zoo is also not standardised. Being an outdoor attraction, weather can cause different experiences for the visitors. For example, when it is raining very heavily, visitors cannot walk around to take a look at the animals. Nonetheless, there are many sheltered walkways in the zoo. Visitors may miss out on certain animals, but majority of the animals can be seen from a sheltered area too. Like any other attractions, Singapore Zoo does not have any tangible product to carry home. If a visitor finds Singapore Zoo unpleasant, he/she is unable to refund or return the ticket. This may cause uncertainty or insecurity for the visitor to purchase the tickets. However, the dedicated staffs are always very enthusiastic and full of energy to entertain the visitors. I have been to Singapore Zoo a few times and in my most honest opinion, I have never met a staff that doesn't smile or unwilling to help.  Reasons why Singapore Zoo has been highly ranked on TripAdvisor In my opinion, Singapore Zoo definitely deserves to be highly ranked on TripAdvisor. There are many reasons to my statement. Firstly, the customer service they provide is excellent! I have complimented the staffs earlier in the post but I cannot emphasize enough on how good the service is in Singapore Zoo. Absolutely with no doubt, their staffs especially in the front desk are extremely friendly and will be more than glad to offer their help to you. For example, based on my own experience, I went to Singapore Zoo on my birthday. I was given a free pass (but there are terms & conditions for this privilege) and they greeted me by singing me a birthday song at the entrance. I was also given a personal guide by one of the staffs and they even reserved seats for me for the animal show! The well trained staffs provided me with one of the best and most memorable experience. Secondly, Singapore Zoo is accessible. There are direct public buses from convenient interchange that will only take 30 minutes. If you are going with your family and want an even more convenient transportation, you can always flag a cab and in a blink of an eye, you will reach your destination (as they say, we are a small island) You can always find more information in the user-friendly website, www.zoo.com.sg. (Direct buses services) (MRT and public bus) (Self-drive or taxi) Thirdly, where else can you see a lion or an Orang Utan in Singapore besides the Singapore Zoo? Some may argue that we can also see animals in the Night Safari, but like most attractions, flash photography is not allowed. Not having any tangible product to bring home is bad, but not having any photographs to bring home with you is even worse! The staffs are also more than happy to help you take pictures with the animals. (Orang Utans and I) Lastly, Singapore Zoo offers a unique activity, "Jungle Breakfast with Wildlife". This is the only place that offers an eating session surrounded by Orang Utans. Impact of Singapore Zoo on Singapore Even though the government had to contribute $9 million for the opening of Singapore Zoo, it has brought a lot of benefits to Singapore. One of the benefits it brings about is economic impact. Many people come from all over the country to Singapore just to visit the Singapore Zoo because Singapore Zoo provides many unique features and activities that other zoos do not offer. Examples are the natural form of caging, the free range Orang Utans and also Jungle Breakfast with Wildlife. This will hence increase the tourist tickets and they would of course spend on accommodation, food and beverage and also shopping which leads to a contribution to Singapore's economy.  Before Singapore Zoo was first made, the trees in the area had to be cut down to build pavements and roads and also to restructure the place. This caused changes in the environment negatively. Furthermore  with the increase of visitors will lead to increase of pollution in many forms such as when the visitors litter into the habitat of the animals. To prevent visitors from bringing a negative environmental impact, the Singapore Zoo also made an extra effort to educate visitors on how to contribute on saving the enivornment. (Eye catching board that teaches you what you can do to help save environment) I hope you will have an enjoyable experience at Singapore Zoo like I did!