On Location: Jewel Changi Airport on HACKS
Welcome to On Location , a weekly feature spotlighting landmarks and establishments seen on screen that viewers can visit IRL. Whether you're seeking a fun selfie, breathtaking vistas, or maybe a show-accurate treat, follow along for some bucket list destinations.
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The Season 4 finale of Max's Hacks , 'Heaven,' is a departure for the series in both the literal and the narrative sense. Not only does it turn a page for our protagonists' lives, careers, and relationships, it takes them to the show's first international location, Singapore, via the spectacular Jewel Changi Airport complex, known simply as 'Jewel.'
Disclaimer: The following article contains minor plot spoilers for Hacks Season 4 Episode 10, 'Heaven.' If you haven't watched it yet, you may want to stop here. Photo Credit: Sam Chin/Max The Jewel Changi Airport on Hacks
After publicly quitting her dream job as a late-night talk show host ( Hacks Season 4 Episode 9, 'Bulletproof'), Deborah Vance (Jean Smart) finds herself professionally hogtied by the network's non-compete clause. Since she can't perform or try out any new material on audiences, she agrees to take a vacation to Hawaii. Ava (Hannah Einbinder) goes along, excited to get her aloha on.
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However, inspiration strikes mid-air, and Deborah reroutes their flight to Singapore instead, where she can deliver her stand-up sitting down through a translator to receptive audiences without leaving herself open to litigation. Ava, unaware of the itinerary change, soon realizes they are not getting lei-ed. Her first clue is the 40-meter-high indoor waterfall pouring through a glass-domed rainforest INSIDE. THE. AIRPORT. Photo Credit: Max The Rain Vortex
The waterfall is called the Rain Vortex and is the centerpiece attraction of Jewel, the nature-themed entertainment and retail complex opened in 2019 as an extension to Changi Airport's Terminal 1. The Rain Vortex pumps recirculated rainwater to the donut-shaped roof where it free-falls through the center hole at a rate of up to 10,000 gallons per minute. At night, the waterfall is lit up at 8 and 9 o'clock (additional show at 10 pm on weekends) with a breathtaking sound and light showcase.
Beautiful jewels require appropriate settings, and the Rain Vortex is perfectly showcased by the surrounding Shiseido Forest Valley. Five stories high, encompassing approximately 240,000 square feet, it houses over 2,000 trees and palms and about 100,000 shrubs of 120 species from around the world. Above that, at the top level of Jewel is Canopy Park, a 150,000 square foot recreation and leisure facility. Photo Credit: Jewel Chiangi Airport
Admission to Canopy Park costs about 6 USD per visitor — under 5 USD if you're a Singapore resident — and includes access to the Discovery Slides, Foggy Bowls, Petal Walk, and Topiary Gardens. To add the other attractions — Hedge Maze, Mirror Maze, Bouncing Net, Walking Net, and Canopy Bridge — there are Bundle Deals costing about 42 USD per adult and 30 USD per child.
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Hacks isn't the first time North American audiences have oohed and aahed over the Rain Vortex and its surroundings. Coldplay filmed scenes from their 2024 'Man in the Moon' music video in Jewel as well as other major sites around Singapore. Image Credit: Pulse Films/Coldplay Not That Into Waterfalls?
Well, Jewel's got you covered. In imagining Jewel, its creators set out to design a destination, not just a thoroughfare. Locals plan staycations at Jewel, while visitors are welcome to make it a part of their sightseeing itinerary. Jewel offers over 250 retail options for shopping, dining, and recreation. In the Changi Experience Studio, you learn about the airport's history and tech through 20 interactive programs. At 30,000 square feet, the studio contains 10 different content zones. Tickets can be bundled with a 15-minute flight simulator experience for about 50 USD.
RELATED: Read our previous On Location articles
The Yotelair Singapore Changi Airport is the first in Asia. It offers rooms termed 'cabins' for stays as short as four hours, a 24/7 dining lounge, free wi-fi, and several discounts and services in partnership with other Jewel businesses. Overnight stays start at approximately 115 USD. Image Credit: Courtesy of Max
If you're looking to live it up Deborah Vance-style, you'll need to venture out of the airport. The Resorts World Sentosa stood in for the Sentosa Casino in Hacks . She and Ava dine with the fishes at the Ocean Restaurant in the Equarius Hotel. Marina Bay provides the backdrop for their water-level outdoor night-time conversations. Meanwhile, Deborah's sky-high dramatics are shot on the Marina Bay Sands' SkyPark Observation Deck.
All four seasons of Hacks are streaming on Max.
STAR TREK: STRANGE NEW WORLDS Season 3 Trailer Promises Romance, Action and Exploration Diana lives in Vancouver, BC, Canada, where she invests her time and energy in teaching, writing, parenting, and indulging her love of all Trek and a myriad of other fandoms. She is a lifelong fan of smart sci-fi and fantasy media, an upstanding citizen of the United Federation of Planets, and a supporter of AFC Richmond 'til she dies. Her guilty pleasures include female-led procedurals, old-school sitcoms, and Bluey. She teaches, knits, and dreams big. You can also find her writing at The Televixen, Women at Warp, TV Fanatic, and TV Goodness.
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