Neko no Niwa

I remember making an international phone call from Perth to Singapore to book for two hours spot at the first cat café in Singapore, Neko No Niwa (which means Cat Garden). I only had a day stop over in Singapore and I was so keen to go there. Based on Singapore’s standard, the cat café charged quite an expensive price but it was quite understandable because they have to take care of the cat’s litters, vaccination and the exorbitant rent cost. Sam, the owner of the cat café, always welcomed us and took his time to chat with us. On our latest visit to the cat café, he also gave us the dry food sample for our ragdoll cat, Melody.
The café was very easy to find and it was a 5 – 10 walk (depending on how fast you walk) from Clarke Quay Central and One Raffles Place. As you walk to the Level 2 of the 54A Boat Quay, you can see cat paintings on the wall. From time to time, Neko No Niwa sold some limited edition items such as paintings of their cat and painted cotton bags. They also have some cute cat collar and I bought one for souvenir purposes. The best time to visit was in the morning before lunch time or late at night before the café’s closing hour.
Neko No Niwa adopted all the abandoned cats, gave them loving human touch and let them heal get closer to human by putting them together with the customers. There are some rules that they put in place as a safeguard for both the cats and human patrons (e.g. do not disturb them when they sleep). Every customer who booked for a certain time period will be given a rule book to be read and they can also order some food or drinks from the café section. Each drink ordered will arrive with a wooden lid to ensure that the dust /​fur didn’t get in it (or maybe so the cat didn’t play around with it).
On three occasions I went there with hubby and on the last visit I took my friend (Nevertity) who was really scared of cats. In two hours time, she managed to pet some and even let one slept on her lap (I think it was Jia Jia)! The whole experience was very relaxing and I will definitely go back for another visit when I travel to Singapore. Until then, Neko No Niwa!

I’ve always wanted to visit a cat café and Neko no Niwa did NOT disappoint. We paid S$ 12/​hour for the first hour each and it seemed steep at first, but the drinks themselves were really reasonably priced and delicious! They had 13 cats when we visited and the menu has a small profile on each of the cats so you can ‘get to know them’. It was quiet when we arrived and mostly everyone was sleeping, but the cats were extremely friendly. You can pet them to your heart’s content and you can tell they are used to all the attention.
The location is absolutely adorable. Located on the 2^nd floor above Boat Quay, the café has a giant window for the cats to look out and they have a gorgeous view of the Marina Bay Sands. Yes, these cats live a more luxurious lifestyle than even I do. There are plenty of couches to relax on and lots of books and board games if the cats aren’t enough entertainment for you :)
I’d definitely visit again. The atmosphere was relaxing and the workers were incredibly friendly, constantly popping in to dote on the cats and show us things about them. The café is also really convenient to the rest of the popular downtown attractions. About a 5 minute walk to Raffles/​Long bar for Singapore Slings and then another 15 minutes to the Singapore Flyer/​Marina Sands. Not to mention the Boat Quay area that the café is located in has TONS of neat looking bars and restaurants. We were at the café at 11am, so things were just opening up, but would have loved to spent the evening in Boat Quay along the Singapore River.

My very first cat café! I thought $ 15/​hr/​person was a little steep but I guess it’s worth it for the free AC and wifi. We went in the middle of the day which was dumb because most/​all the cats were napping. We still had a good time though because the tea/​coffee was good and the place was bright with lots of positive energy.
They told me the cats are the most awake around 11am or 8p, I have no doubt it’s a 5 star experience then. All the kitties are super soft and I really liked all the art on the walls detailing the cats’ personalities and hobbies.

I don’t know about you, but they don’t have cat cafes where I come from. This is a completely new concept to me, and of course I am not surprised that these cafes are the norm in Japan. (Seriously, I stand by my belief that the Japanese come up with EVERYTHING.)
So excuse me as I excitedly tell you about the awesomeness that is the CAT CAFE!
This place is perfect for those who:
1) Enjoy cats and other furry four legged friends.
2) Are looking for a unique experience in central Boat Quay.
3) Love animals but can’t own a pet at the moment.
It’s recommended to make a reservation. I was able to call a day ahead for an appointment at 8 PM on a weekday. I only stayed an hour, but I was surprised at the amount of people who came in around 9 PM (especially since they close at 10 PM.) I guess they are right in assuming that the cats would be active around this time.
Before you walk in, you will be quickly briefed on the rules and given a small pamphlet with cute pictures and information on all of the cats.
The space where all the cats stay is very clean. Their litter is hidden outside and accessible via a small tunnel that runs behind the small coffee/​tea bar. They provide various toys you can use to play with the cats, and of course, you are encouraged to pet them (as long as they aren’t sleeping.) Although you’re not allowed to pick up the cats, the workers there can handle them and offer to put them on your lap (only if you want to, of course.) I had the opportunity to have Brown Monkey (the cats have silly names) on my lap, but after a minute she ran away because she wanted to play. :(
The $ 12/​hour that you pay goes towards taking care of these cats, all of whom were strays and adopted. I see so many strays around Singapore; it’d be awesome if they could have more of these cafes around the island!

A very cool place for cat lovers! Better book a few days in advance if you plan to go there. How it works is that, you have to pay for a cuddling fee of $ 12/​hour/​person. Then on too of that every half an hour is at a certain rate (not too sure). You will be removing ur shoes so I recommend slippers or easy to wear kind. Also will be required to wash hands with soap before going in the cats area.
As for drinks, their recommendation is ice chocolate and various teas they have. I don’t usually like chocolate but Since the waiter said it’s not too sweet but slightly on the bitter side ao I gave it a shot and it’s not bad!
Oh and they don’t make drinks or food in that place so mostly pre-​made. Didn’t try their cakes cause was too full but they all look pretty appetizing! Give it a try. :)
But most of the people leave their drinks on the table and go around the place to play with cats instead. And take photos and videos, in fact loads of them haha.