Take a MINT to Enjoy Yourself

There’s a whole building filled with toys. Just one catch though. We are not talking about a play area where kids can go around touching and throwing things. But you can get them to stand in awe and gasp in admiration at the thousands of collectible toys accumulated over the past 40 years by dedicated hobbyist, Chang Yang Fa. Welcome to the MINT Museum of Toys.

Opened in 2007, MINT museum of toys is a private museum operating from a small shophouse tucked away behind the Raffles Hotel. It houses over 10,000 toys on four different themed levels, sourced during the 1930s to 1970s from 250 countries. Disney fans here’s something for you, it has one of the biggest Mickey Mouse collections in all of South East Asia.

‘MINT’ which not only stands for the condition of these vintage collections also acts as an acronym symbolising that special ‘Moment of Imagination and Nostalgia with Toys’. Thousands of toys are showcased according to genre on 4 different levels: Outerspace, Characters, Childhood Favorites and Collectibles. Where kids will be delighted to find some of their favorites like Batman, Superman and Star Wars, parents will  be sure to have a blast from the past when they see collections consisting of Popeye, Astroboy, Tintin and Golliwogs.

Once you’ve finished examining all the different toys and collections, be sure to head to the basement gallery where you will not only be able to view over 70 original enamel advertising signs but also sit at one of the adjoining café tables to discuss all the vintage toys you saw over some light bites.

Once the vintage toy bug has bitten your kids, they’ll be wanting more. And MINT is here to deliver. In the 1-day workshop, Drawing Comics Characters for Young Beginners, kids can let their comic character imagination run wild encouraging them to create original designs with confidence and flair. 

During the June holidays, kids interested in robotics can sign up for the Hello Robota for beginners workshop enabling them to apply their knowledge and skills of robotics to not only gain proficiency but also increase their knowledge of the museum’s key toy collections.

MINT also offers guided tours for pre-schools all the way to tertiary where informed docents encourage students to identify differences in toys from different countries thereby boosting their problem solving skills and decreasing their fear of public speaking. In addition to all this, the museum offers itself as a unique venue to host everything from baby showers and birthday to corporate events and even weddings.

Make your next special occasion a MINT one.