The Big Splash was an aquatic centre located at East Coast Park near the Chinese Swimming Club along Amber Road. The centre was developed by Goldhill Properties at a cost of $6 million and was the first such recreational aquatic sports complex to be built in Singapore. Officially opened in July 1977, the Big Splash’s main attraction was its 85-metre-long and 17-metre-high water-slide, which was touted by the owners as the longest and tallest of its kind in the world. Other facilities found at the centre included a wave pool that could generate one-metre-high waves, a 230-metre-long flow pool that pushed swimmers continuously along a meandering path, a children’s pool, an air-conditioned restaurant, food outlets, an arcade and an open-air theatre. To create a beach effect, the various pools in the centre were filled with sea water and had sandy bottoms. After several changes in ownership, the centre was eventually closed down in 2006 due to falling visitorship and subsequently redeveloped by anchor tenant Seafood International into a recreational complex with food and retail outlets called Playground@Big Splash. The iconic water slide was demolished as part of the revamp.
