Why drink bubble tea when you can be bubble tea? That’s the existentialist question that boba fans will be asking themselves when they prance around in the Bubble Tea Factory, a utopic Insta-wonderland inspired by Singapore’s fave beverage, happening at *Scape from Oct 19 to Dec 18. Spanning over 7,000 square feet, the whimsical experiential pop-up has 10 multi-sensory rooms, all brimming with cute ’grammable installations. Everything you love about BBT has come to life, upsized. You can soak in all this bubble tea goodness without having to worry about calories, for the most part.

Should you scurry over here immediately for some quali-tea time and on-point Instagrams, or are you are you better off queueing up for actual BBT? 8Days.sg got a preview of The Bubble Tea Factory (TBTF) and give you the lowdown.

The journey begins when you approach *Scape from Cineleisure or McDonald’s. Just follow the pastel rainbow walkway which leads you to The Bubble Tea Factory.

You get a ticket with a number at the registration counter, and it’s kinda like ordering the real thing. BBT aficionados should know the drill: Get a number, wait for your number to be flashed at the counter before you can enter. Your sojourn should take about 45 minutes to an hour (we took about 45 minutes at the media preview). Ready for your virtual walk-through of TBTF?

First up, you get a sneak peek at the inner workings of the factory, where even the machines are coated in pretty pastels and you get a glimpse of pearls in the production line.

Walk, don't run. Boomerang, don't bushwhack, in this forest thriving with LED flora and fauna and gleaming bubble tea straws.

Life is perfect when you have bubble tea in your hand, a few more in the fridge saved for later, and even some that are growing from trees, like they do here at the Blue Coral Utapioca. Turns out, boba trees have superpowers. Try speaking into the trees (via the straws) and your pal at the next tree may be able to hear you.

Exit Blue Coral Utapioca by crawling out a tiny hole and you’ll find yourself in a space-agey metallic zone.

Blink and you may miss this secret room, tucked away right next to the Wrap Zone. In case you're wondering, this is what the TBTF folks imagine the bathrooms of bubble tea bosses might look like these days.

Besides gold bath tubs with cash, boba ballers have bathrooms fully decked out with gold toilet bowls too. You may get distracted by all the cash in this room, but here’s a tip: keep your eyes peeled for a full-length mirror here.

This room is also known as '???'. That is not a typo, but the actual name of the secret room that lies within the secret (bath)room. Enter via the full-length mirror from the bathroom into a trippy world of neon balls. Clearly, bubble tea towkays are inspired by Yayoi Kusama’s work.

This bubble tea IV drip takes bubble tea addiction to a whole new level. Relax, folks, this is not real life. It’s just the Insta-life.

Miley Cyrus would approve of this swinging boba pearl.

TBTF touts itself as a multi-sensory experience. And while some rooms have the heady aroma of tea wafting through them, it's only over here where your nose needs to get down to serious work. At this scent-sational wall are tea fragrances of every type and every note imaginable. Caution: You may need a drink after this - BBT, of course.

Don’t leave without snagging some sample portions of bubble tea flavoured popcorn and brown sugar beans at this snack kiosk. To get them, you’ll have to have completed one of the tasks stated in your Boba Booster Pack (included in the ticket). Love what you’re eating? These snacks are available for sale at the merch stand outside — it’s $4.90 for the popcorn and $2.90 for the beans.

What’s better than a large cup of boba? A larger-than-life sized one big enough to fit you in... for a photo opp, that is.

Sure, regular black tapioca pearls are yummy, but taro pearls are more photo-worthy, right? In this Pearl Pit, you can literally plunge into a lavender sea of a whopping 100,000 balls meant to pass off as taro pearls.

There are three doors in front of you, which will you choose? Tip: This makes for a better photo opp than what lies behind those doors.

…is a room full of confetti perfect for Boomerangs.

Pose with your boba bae for a snap guaranteed to be so sweet, as in, 200 per cent sugar level sweet.

Now, after journeying through the fantastical bubble tea universe, you probably are in need of the real drink. Each ticket comes with a complimentary cup of brown sugar boba milk tea from Jenjudan, which originally hails from Taiwan’s Shilin Night Market and has shops on our shores as well.

It’s time to whisk you back to reali-tea and TBTF does it in style. Get in line at the Tea Terminal to prep for your VIP take-off. Once you board the plane, there’s no returning to any of the rooms (unless you buy another ticket), so make sure you get all your photos, bubble tea and snacks before boarding your private jet.

Probably the closest most folks will get to hopping on a private jet. In this one, they serve (faux) BBT in the classiest way possible: in champagne glasses.

Before you roll out, leave a message on TBTF or post your Instagrams with the relevant hashtags to get your pix printed out.

There’s a whole slew of merchandise available, right next to the registration counter, inspired by the beverage (duh). Spruce up your home with BBT plushies ($29.90) or lamps ($24.90). There’s even boba slime ($18.90) for the little ones. Meanwhile, foodies will probably be carting home boba milk tea ice-cream ($3 per stick or $12.50 for a box of five).

If there’s something that Singaporeans love more than a good bargain, it’s a free one. So listen up. There’s free admission for the first 1,000 visitors at TBTF on opening day on Oct 19, from 12-6pm. Otherwise, you’ll have to fork out $24 to $28 for tix. All tickets include a one-time entry to the Bubble Tea Factory, a cup of bubble tea and a Boba Booster Pack that includes collectible cards featuring challenges for you to complete during your journey into the whimsical bubble tea universe.

Bubble Tea Factory is on Oct 19 to Dec 18 at *Scape. 4pm-10pm weekdays, 10am-10pm on weekends. Tix at $24 (weekday) and $28 (weekend). As part of an opening special, tix are going for $18 (weekday) and $23 (weekend) from Oct 20 to Nov 3. More info at https://www.thebubbleteafactory.co/.

Photos: Kelvin Chia