Upside Down House @ Port Dickson

15.01.2018 by LadyAlly

Sorry for the hiatus! Things have been pretty crazy as mentioned in our Facebook post earlier, but now that things have settled into a predictable routine, it is now time to clear the backlog! What is more apt to start the new year than a post on a fun holiday we had during the holidays! During the recent school year-end break, our family took a short trip to Port Dickson together with my mom, sister and her boyf, just to spend some time with the little ones before school begins. It was a nice trip, and although many of our friends warned us that Port Dickson can be boring, we managed to make a trip to the Upside Down House that we’ve heard about.

Staying in Port Dickson

We stayed at one “end” of Port Dickson, which was at D’Wharf Hotel & Serviced Residence located along Port Dickson Waterfront. It was a decent place that was recently refurbished and can sometimes you may experience a beautiful view from your unit, but don’t expect it to be luxurious. It is clean and the staff friendly and helpful, and the best thing about staying here is the close proximity to all sorts of convenient stores such as Starbucks (for your coffee addiction), McDonald’s (if you don’t like the local fare, or if you have picky kids), and there is even a local supermarket nearby to stock up your instant noodles, midnight snacks, and forgotten toiletries.

The beach is nearby, and although it is a public beach, there is a small section that has been closed off for guests only. The beach isn’t the greatest, but the kids enjoyed it immensely. Sand flies were scarce and there weren’t many biting bugs, so it was a decent trip to the beach.

There is also 4 pools at this hotel – 2 wading pools, and 2 larger pools. Don’t expect deep pools for swimming laps as even the larger pool is only at chest deep. Good news is that the hotel provides pool towels, so you don’t have to bring your own or the ones from your room. Bad news is that you will expect 90% of the guests using the pools to not be wearing proper swimwear and just regular tees and shorts/track pants. (-_＼)

The Upside Down House Art Gallery

The Upside Down House Gallery is quite a distance from PD Waterfront as it is closer to the “other” side of Port Dickson. Took us a good 15-20 minutes from our hotel to the gallery. Was it worth it? It all depends. It is a quirky place, and if you are not the type to like taking photos of yourself or others, then maybe this is not the place for you. However, our whole family enjoyed it (sans #littlenugget as he was hanging out with his grandmama instead).

Visiting Tips

There are a few things you need to know when planing your trip to this gallery.

#1: No strollers allowed

You are not allowed to bring strollers/prams/wheelchair in, and of course, no pets, food, drinks, or smoking allowed either. Shoes are also not allowed in the gallery so make sure you leave your holey socks behind. The place is not very large and won’t cater to things like wheelchairs and strollers. So, do plan ahead in case you’re thinking of taking your aged parent there.

#2: Just wear flip-flops

You can leave your shoes outside at the shoe racks but do take note that when the place is crowded, you probably will just have to leave your shoes by the side instead. Don’t wear your designer shoes in case it gets stepped on or worse case, stolen.

There is a place to wear your shoes once you come out so at least the kids will have it easy. If we knew this earlier, we would’ve just all worn flip-flops.

#3: Free entrance for little people

If your child is below 90cm in height, he/she can enter free-of-charge. There is a chart there to measure when you bring a small child, so you don’t have to measure before going.

#4: Locals and foreigners are charged differently

If you’re a Malaysian, make sure you bring your MyKad along with you to enjoy local tourist rates. Although the entrance fees are not too pricey, you still save around RM5 per person, which can be a significant sum if you have a large family. In case you can’t view the photo above, here is the price list:

Malaysian with MyKad

Adult: RM20
Children (below 12 years old) : RM15
Senior citizen (above 60 years old): Rm15

Non-Malaysian

Adult: RM25
Children (below 12 years old) : RM20
Senior citizen (above 60 years old): Rm20

FREE ENTRANCE FOR CHILDREN UNDER 90CM HEIGHT

Enjoying the Upside Down Gallery

The gallery consists of 2 floors and 2 combined shoplot. So it isn’t very big but with enough “stages” to keep you entertain for at least an hour or two. It all depends on how elaborate you want to pose for your photos.

If you’re not sure how to pose or which would be the best angle, there are some examples around to give you an idea. This way, at least you will know where to stand to take the best photo to make it look as believable as possible.

Be Silly!

The whole point of being here is to do all the silly poses and just snap away! Using your phone is usually the best, but we used our trusty Sony RX100 Mk3 since the place is a little dim and we also want to have a larger format in the event we want to print it out.

The kids had the most fun even for #theSmally who don’t really like taking photos. Maybe it is because he can do as many silly faces as he wants.

Our family favourite? I think we all can agree that the toilet scene is the funniest and took quite a number of photos there.

. . . . .

So, if you have some time during the weekend and planning a little staycation, why not head over to Port Dickson for a relaxing weekend and fun with the family?

UPSIDE DOWN HOUSE ART GALLERY

BUSINESS HOURS | Monday – Sunday, 10am – 8pm

ADDRESS | No 15, Jalan Kemang 13, Si Rusa, 71050 Port Dickson

PHONE | +6016-336 8751

MAP |