Amid the staggering diversity of life beneath the waves, few creatures capture the fascination of humans quite like sharks.
Now, Singapore Oceanarium is allowing visitors to satiate that curiosity with a new tour that includes a rare behind-the-scenes look at its shark-feeding operations.
Sentosa’s Singapore Oceanarium launched its ‘Ocean in Focus: Apex Predators’ programme on 14 July, in conjunction with World Shark Awareness Day.
Visitors will embark on a 60-minute tour helmed by an enthusiastic educator, journeying into the world of apex predators, both prehistoric and present.
Image courtesy of Singapore Oceanarium, Resorts World Sentosa
Along the way, they will learn how these creatures evolved over hundreds of millions of years, the adaptations that allowed them to thrive, and the important roles predators play in keeping marine ecosystems healthy.
Visitors can get a good look at a large model of the thankfully extinct Dunkleosteus, which has also been immortalised as an exclusive plush keychain for all tour attendees.
After examining fossils and meeting some giant salamanders, the guide will bring visitors somewhere regular oceanarium guests don’t usually get to go.
Through several restricted gates, visitors can get a behind-the-scenes view of the support area for the Shark Seas habitat.
Usually, you would catch sight of the many shark species through an underwater tunnel.
On the tour, however, visitors will head topside, above the vast habitat, and see how staff feed and care for the sharks.
They will also get a closer look at how Animal Care Specialists prepare and deliver food, as well as the planning and specialised care involved in supporting the animals’ health and wellbeing.
Our cheerful guide, Brenna, told MS News that the oceanarium uses three methods: broadcast feeding, target feeding, and dive feeding.
Broadcast feeding involves tossing shark food into the habitat from above the surface, a sight visitors may catch during the morning session.
Meanwhile, the afternoon session may feature target feeding, during which a staff member attaches a chunk of food to a pole.
They then dip it into the water and move it around to attract the more proactive sharks.
With a viewing window right below the surface, visitors get a front-row seat to the apex predators circling their meal before lunging towards it in terrific bursts of speed.
Dive feeding is perhaps the most exciting of the three methods, although whether visitors get to see it depends on the day’s schedule and is not guaranteed for every tour.
As the name implies, divers in wetsuits and scuba gear plunge into the shark-filled habitat.
They feed the larger, less active sharks that tend to remain near the bottom, with a spotter also carrying a pole to gently redirect any overly excited sharks.
Unlike the vicious killing machines often portrayed in movies, the sharks in the habitat are not aggressive towards the divers, although the risk of a bite is still present.
For protection, the divers wear a set of chain-mail armour over their wetsuits that weighs 9kg.
Their equipment weighs around 30kg or more in total, including their scuba gear and air tank.
Visitors will also learn more about marine science through hands-on activities, whether by feeling the chain mail and diving suit or touching a 3D representation of shark scales.
The programme is designed to encourage visitors to look beyond familiar perceptions of sharks and better understand why these predators matter to the wider ocean ecosystem.
Do be careful with the shark jaw specimens, though. Those teeth aren’t just for show.
Each participant will also receive an immersive programme lanyard, programme credential, and shark species identification postcard, along with the aforementioned Dunkleosteus plush keychain, as mementoes of the experience.
Those interested in attending the special hour-long tour can book tickets on the Singapore Oceanarium website.
There are two timeslots, one at 9.30am and another at 1.30pm, although only the afternoon session is available on Wednesdays.
Each session is conducted in English and can accommodate up to 12 participants.
The programme is priced at S$39 per participant, excluding admission to Singapore Oceanarium.
Singapore Oceanarium
Address: 24 Sentosa Gateway, Sentosa Island, 098137
Opening hours: 10am to 8pm daily (hours may vary, so check the website before visiting)
Nearest MRT station: HarbourFront
Also read: Science Centre Singapore offering free admission to SG Science Fest 2026 for 3 days only
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Featured image by MS News. Photography by Toan Ngo Huy.