Dreams Come True: Unlocking the Newest World-Class Landmark in the Magic City

**Trip to Shanghai Haichang Ocean Park: A Colorful Dream Fulfilled** **Duration:** 2 days **Time:** [...]

**Trip to Shanghai Haichang Ocean Park: A Colorful Dream Fulfilled**

**Duration:** 2 days

**Time:** August

**Average Cost per Person:** 500 yuan

**Companions:** Friends

**Activities:** Photography, Cultural Exploration, Free Travel

**Places Visited:** Shanghai

**Published on:** 2020-08-25 16:48

From the time we were children, we dreamt of exploring distant lands in pursuit of freedom and dreams. We envisioned ourselves with wings to fly through the skies and with fins to swim freely in the vast, blue ocean, exploring the seabed and interacting with our favorite marine life. These childhood fantasies have now become a reality. I never imagined that one day I would be able to get so close to marine creatures, even sleeping and playing with them. This vibrant dream was realized at Shanghai Haichang Ocean Park.

**Shanghai Haichang Ocean Park Overview:**

The park is a marine cultural scenic spot, seamlessly integrating five major themed areas: Mermaid Bay, Polar Town, Ice and Snow Kingdom, Underwater Wonderland, and Ocean Tribe. It features sixteen major star performances such as ‘Orca Science Show’, ‘Dolphin Serenade’, ‘Sea Lion Adventure’, and ‘Ocean Electric Music Party’. The park also houses six major animal display venues with over 30,000 rare marine animals, including polar bears and emperor penguins, and offers six major entertainment facilities.

**Our Experience:**

**Marine Animal Exploration Pavilion:**

Our first stop was the Marine Animal Exploration Pavilion in Polar Town. This venue stands out for its diverse display of marine animals, housing nearly a hundred of six different species. We observed sea lions, manatees, otters, and spotted seals in their natural environments. The first floor is an open-air bay where sea lions and seals can be seen basking in the sun and playfully interacting with food. The negative first floor features otters and manatees in glass tanks, allowing for a 360-degree view of their aquatic life. A paid feeding experience is also available for 60 yuan per session.

**Arctic Iceberg Pavilion:**

Next, we visited the Arctic Iceberg Pavilion, home to Arctic ‘residents’ such as walruses, beluga whales, polar bears, Arctic wolves, Arctic foxes, bearded seals, and spotted seals. Two polar bears, ‘Pizhu’ and ‘Yatou’, are highlights of the pavilion. Pizhu, known for his love of swimming, even starred in the movie ‘Midnight Sun’. Despite their cute appearances, polar bears are incredibly strong, able to break through solid ice with ease. The Arctic fox, with its petite and lovely appearance, and the beluga whale, with its captivating presence, are also notable inhabitants of the Arctic Ice Kingdom.

**Conclusion:**

Stepping into Shanghai Haichang Ocean Park allows you to embark on a vibrant and fantastic ocean dream journey. With its diverse marine life, engaging performances, and interactive experiences, the park is truly a place where childhood dreams come to life.**Beluga Whale Love Story**

The most enchanting performance in the park is undoubtedly the “Beluga Whale Love Story.” It’s a spectacle that captures the essence of beauty, romance, struggle, and dreams. The beluga whale, with its classic snow-white skin, is often referred to as the “white and rich beauty” of the whale family. Its round head and melodious voice make it the ocean’s singer, embodying intelligence, kindness, and loyalty. Through the vast glass windows, visitors witness a beautiful love song performed by conservationists and these gentle giants, turning the icy kingdom into a paradise for love confessions.

**Seals and Walruses Fun Journey**

For the most amusing performance, look no further than the “Seals and Walruses Fun Journey.” Here, walruses and conservationists collaborate to deliver a lively and engaging show. Walruses, under the guidance of their trainers, can perform high-difficulty acts such as hoop jumping, handstands, ball juggling, and diving. They also playfully interact with their trainers, eliciting laughter from the audience. Sitting in the front row offers a chance to get up close and personal with these charming creatures. You might even find yourself competing with them in sit-ups or touching their bodies. After the interaction, small gifts are handed out as a memento.

**Antarctic Penguin Pavilion**

In the Polar Town, the Antarctic Penguin Pavilion is home to the world’s first “Penguin Super Bowl,” offering a 360-degree view of the living conditions of Antarctic penguins. The acrylic glass allows visitors to observe penguins swimming freely and their adorable antics as they leap from land into the water. The venue is a two-story cylindrical tank, with the upper floor providing a view of penguins swimming above, while the lower floor hosts a variety of penguins, including the largest, the emperor penguins, and the skilled swimmers, the Adélie penguins. The “gentleman penguins,” or Papua penguins, are also on display, known for their cute appearance and gentlemanly demeanor.

**Orca Science Show**

For families with children, the Orca Theater in the Orca Science Show area is a must-visit. Here, you can witness the awe-inspiring “Orca Science Show,” where scientific knowledge is displayed on a big screen before the show begins, providing an educational and bonding experience for the whole family. Orcas, known for their intelligence comparable to that of a 6-10-year-old child, are the ocean’s “top students.” Their leaps out of the water are particularly touching and unbelievable, offering a close-up view of these rare creatures. Under trainer guidance, orcas perform acrobatics and produce ethereal sounds from the water’s surface. For an intimate encounter, sitting in the front row on either side of the exhibition hall may grant you a chance to go on stage and kiss baby orcas through the glass. Be prepared for playful orca babies to create huge waves with their tails, splashing water to the first six rows—a special treat from the orcas! It’s highly recommended to wear a raincoat to avoid getting drenched.

**Time Cable Car**

The Time Cable Car is a favorite among couples, resembling a time machine and offering an uninterrupted view of both water and land. It’s the best vantage point for the park’s panoramic view and the parade. One end is located in the Iceberg Arctic Pavilion in the park’s southern part, while the other end is in the Volcano Shark Pavilion in the north, dividing Shanghai Haichang Ocean Park into two major sections.Between Ice and Fire: A Journey on the Time Cable Car

The fully enclosed Time Cable Car traverses 600 meters in the air, offering a high-angle view that is particularly wide. As the cable car progresses, we can take in the entire park’s scenery, a truly worthwhile experience.

Dolphin Love Song: An Interactive Spectacle

The Dolphin Love Song is a wonderful large-scale interactive show performed at the Dolphin Theater. Smart and elf-like dolphins are the main characters in this spectacle. The theater, capable of accommodating up to 3000 visitors, showcases the country’s most technologically advanced interactive dolphin show. It integrates sound, light, electricity, and water screens to present an immersive sensory feast led by dolphins.

Here, you can witness the beautiful scene of the ocean’s most intelligent creatures living closely with humans. Under the guidance of their trainers, dolphins display their close relationship, occasionally leaping out of the pool to touch a ball with their mouths before falling back into the water. Their charming and agile movements are complemented by their ability to play hula hoops and make dolphin sounds. Watching their tacit cooperation with trainers, it’s hard not to applaud and cheer for these cute creatures. The performance also includes interactive links, making it recommended to sit in the front row for a chance to get close to the dolphins and receive a kiss you’ll never forget.

Shark Pavilion: Inside the ‘Volcano’

Following the venue’s guidance, we arrive at the Shark Pavilion, located inside a ‘volcano’. Its appearance is a testament to a surging and thrilling perception. The Volcano Shark Pavilion features the world’s first inclined seven-degree design of its display tank, which stands out prominently. Standing in front of the giant glass tank, it feels as if one is submerged beneath the sea, offering an immersive experience as if we are in the deep blue ocean. Occasionally, large-bodied whale sharks swim by, creating a self-evident visual impact.

During performance times, the deep sea comes alive with mermaids swimming alongside various marine creatures. Watching this in the dimly lit exhibition hall is quite a shock; the mermaid performers move effortlessly in the water without oxygen tanks, appearing like true sea creatures living in the ocean. They occasionally perform complex dance moves, their slender and graceful dance forms navigating through the deep sea, weaving through schools of fish, spinning and leaping, and sometimes blowing a long string of bubbles towards the audience, creating a beautiful scene as if in a fairytale underwater world, truly awe-inspiring.

Shanghai Haichang Ocean Park: Amusement Rides and Thrills

If you think visiting an ocean park is just about observing marine life, think again! Shanghai Haichang Ocean Park offers more than ten amusement rides, ensuring you’ll scream all summer long. The Dolphin Coaster, a masterpiece from Intamin, the world’s top roller coaster equipment manufacturer, is an outdoor project you must not miss. From the moment the roller coaster starts, neither shouting nor screaming can stop the transformation of time and space. During the journey, you’ll transform into a dolphin, flying through the sky and diving into the ocean, piercing through the belly of the great white shark. The 75 seconds are stretched infinitely by the extension of time and space, breaking the sound barrier with several accelerations, flips, and leaps, causing screams to echo under the sky.

Volcano Rafting: An Exciting Water Adventure

In addition to flying, you can also choose to experience the Volcano Rafting, created by Canada’s WHITE WATER, a world-scale water equipment manufacturer. This rafting project integrates multiple water entertainments, combining various water slides with magic bowls, where excitement and joy burst forth simultaneously. The 1-kilometer fast adventure journey, a 10-minute escape from the volcanic lava, and a 21-meter drop make the waves roll and the lava pour, truly making you feel the tension and excitement of high-speed spins.

Rotations and leaps, with the magic of love spinning along the way, not only provide excitement but also test your balance significantly. Let’s forget all our worries amidst the screams, follow the rafting, and charge into the cool water world to alleviate the summer heat; let’s enjoy the carnival to the fullest.

Riding Restrictions:

– Children who are too thin, adults who are overweight need to be assessed by the staff before riding.
– Tourists with high blood pressure, spinal diseases, the elderly, pregnant women, those who are drunk, and those who have recently undergone large or small surgeries are restricted from riding.Height restrictions: 1.3 meters and above to 1.96 meters and below.

The Jellyfish and Coral Pavilion is truly amazing. As you step into it and walk through the dimly lit corridor, you will encounter large colorful coral towers and thousands of jellyfish swaying with the lights. Corals and jellyfish are the most dreamy creatures in the ocean world. Although the exhibition hall is dimly lit, we can still witness a grand and magnificent visual symphony of corals. This is one of the top single-coral jellyfish themed exhibition halls in the country, with a vast variety of coral species such as feathered mushroom corals, mushroom sunflower corals, and more. The vibrant and enchanting scenes are irresistible, urging visitors to capture these captivating moments with their cameras. Further inside lies the jellyfish theater, where rainbow-like lights change back and forth, refracting through the glass mirrors to create a beautiful jellyfish theater. Transparent by nature, the jellyfish appear to change colors under the illumination of the colorful lights, swaying freely in the water, transforming into the most dreamlike marine sprites. The dreamlike scenes here are perfect for photography, with the colorful lights reflecting on the jellyfish tanks, and the shutter clicking incessantly. Every photo taken in front of the tank is a beautiful masterpiece. Within the exhibition tanks, a picture of free and cozy warmth is conjured. The Coral Jellyfish Pavilion makes every moment of companionship meaningful, a dreamy treasure for families. After appreciating the enchanting Coral Jellyfish Pavilion, we step outside to experience a refreshing and unique Wet and Cool Party. On a hot summer day, under the scorching sun, nothing but cool water can quench the heat. This is undoubtedly a favorite entertainment for children. In addition to enjoying various performances full of childlike fun, they can also participate in interactive games to win small prizes. The most exciting part for children is touching the peculiar bubbles that emit a wondrous fragrance and engaging in a cooling water gun battle. Finally, join the party with the music. Once you decide to step into this party, be prepared to get wet. If you don’t want to get wet, remember to wear a raincoat in advance before joining the party. This cool and thrilling summer water carnival is sure to make you scream with excitement. In addition to appreciating various marine life and performances within the park, there is also a children’s amusement area outdoors, which is also very suitable for families to experience various child-friendly amusement projects, such as the Ocean Merry-Go-Round, Happy Little Flying Fish, and Pelican Adventure, all of which are suitable for children to play. As you sit on the rotating Ocean Merry-Go-Round and the galloping Happy Little Flying Fish, imagine at this moment that you are walking with penguin babies and swimming with dolphins and white whales in the ocean. This place is like another ocean world, filled with laughter and joy, spending your ocean dream journey with your family.

It is a must to visit the Underwater World Pavilion when you come to Shanghai Haichang Ocean Park. The Underwater World Pavilion has a distinctive dual-channel underwater tunnel in China. Walking into the Deep Sea Voyage, you can see the colorful sharp-nosed stingrays, pearl groupers, and colorful coral reef fish schools swimming freely through the underwater tunnel. This is a future world full of childlike fun and dreamy colors. You must take portraits here, which can definitely produce a different underwater dream scene. Different perspectives allow you to fully appreciate the quiet and majestic underwater world. If there is an unmissable high-difficulty free diving performance, it must be the ‘Dance of Fishes’ appearing underwater. Two underwater fairies with graceful figures dance lightly and delicately in the water, like souls wandering in the water, interpreting legendary stories through the deep blue sea. With the music, a large group of fish circle around their dancing bodies. The moment they swim out from the fish pile, it seems like a blooming underwater flower bud, beautiful and touching. Dancing like beautiful butterflies, swaying like graceful willows, the beauty is intoxicating. The integration with the sea and the dance with schools of fish exudes an ethereal aura, a realm where dreams and reality blend. It’s a free dialogue with the vast ocean through the joyous rotation of postures.

If you’re tired and hungry after playing in the park, don’t worry about finding a place to eat and rest. The park features five distinctive themed restaurants: Penguin Restaurant, Whale Shark Restaurant, Time Restaurant, Sand Tower Restaurant, and Aurora Restaurant, along with cafes, water bars, and dessert shops to meet the diverse dining needs of visitors. This time, we chose to dine at the Penguin Restaurant, where the moment you step in, you’re immersed in a strong penguin-themed atmosphere.Operating hours:
Peak days: 9:00-20:30
Weekdays: 9:30-20:00. (Note: Night sessions are open, entry after 15:00)

Ticket prices:
(1) Adult standard ticket price
Weekdays: ¥299
Peak days: ¥360
Note: Adults or children above 1.4 meters (not included).
(2) Concessions
Weekdays: ¥180
Peak days: ¥240
Note: 1. Children between 1.0 meters (not included) and 1.4 meters (included).
2. Elders aged 65 and above with valid ID.
3. Active duty / retired / disabled persons with valid documents.
4. Firefighters and students of fire rescue academies with disabilities.

Performance times (subject to the daily entertainment schedule):

Recommended park routes:
Counterclockwise: Entrance – Polar Town – Ice and Snow Kingdom – Cable Car – Underwater Adventure – Ocean Tribe – Mermaid Bay – Exit Sea Beast Exploration Hall – Iceberg Arctic Hall – Beluga Love – Walrus Theater – Antarctic Penguin Pavilion – Orca Theater – Time Cable Car – Dolphin Theater – Volcano Shark Pavilion – Mermaid Fairy Tale – Dolphin Roller Coaster – Coral Jellyfish Pavilion – Wet and Refreshing Party – Underwater World Pavilion – Water Dance Fish Space.

Transportation Strategies:
(1) Public transport options:
(2) Surrounding self-driving routes:
(3) Flight routes: Since the park is located in Pudong District, you can choose to fly to Shanghai Pudong International Airport.

Warm Tips:
1. If you purchase your tickets in advance, simply swipe your ID card at the entrance without the need to exchange for paper tickets, allowing for a very quick and convenient entry. However, please note that for certain types of tickets purchased online, they become usable only after 2 hours from the time of purchase, so it is essential to buy your tickets well ahead of time.
2. Haichang Ocean Park is equipped with a parking lot, costing 50 yuan per entry. The parking lot is quite large, and there are usually spaces available for early arrivals. If the lot is full, you may need to park in a more distant parking lot.
3. The park does not encourage bringing your own food and will inspect bags for safety reasons. Alcoholic beverages and knives are not allowed.
4. There are some affordable dining options within the park, so it is not recommended to bring too much food, as it will increase your burden.
5. Regarding item storage: There are storage points outside the park, but they come at a cost. Small packages (under 20 inches) are 40 yuan per day, and large packages are 60 yuan per day. Items must be retrieved on the same day; otherwise, a 20 yuan management fee will be incurred if collected the next day.

They offer a variety of set meals at moderate prices and suitable flavors. Another recommended restaurant is the Whale Shark Restaurant, where the environment feels as if you’re in the ocean itself. As you savor delicious dishes, you can also enjoy the sight of thousands of wondrous and diverse marine creatures swimming before your eyes. The visual feast adds excitement to the taste sensations on your palate. Dining at the Whale Shark Restaurant is a dual touch of sight and taste, with Western meals costing around 300 yuan per person, making it suitable for dressing up and taking photos in a great environment.

If you’re looking to purchase cultural and creative products or souvenirs, the park’s nine distinctive themed shops will surely meet your needs. Shops in different areas and venues have unique design styles, complemented by a dazzling array of themed products. Entering these stores feels like traveling through exquisite treasure troves, with the cultural and creative products truly irresistible. Especially places like Ocean World, Mermaid Treasure, and Penguin Store are worth a visit. It must be said that this is also a favorite place for children, with cute and orderly arranged dolls, making one’s ‘girl’s heart’ emerge. Leveraging the trend of cultural and creative products, these have become an important carrier for tourism promotion, as each item contains the culture and stories of the park. It’s as if the wonderful performances we’ve seen are frozen in time, leaving a lasting memory.

In the end, the stories of our childhood are filled with our dreams and vigor, the grandeur of the vast smoke and waves, and in the books of youth, there are drawings of our boundless green waves, giving us a sense of anticipation; looking forward to the day our childhood dreams come true, looking forward to dolphins leaping out of the water, looking forward to the dreamy mWhen taking photos inside exhibition halls, please be mindful of the following guidelines to ensure the best experience for both you and the animals on display:

1. Refrain from using flash. The use of flash can have adverse effects on the animals and cause severe reflections on the numerous glass items within the exhibition. This can result in poor photo quality, detracting from your overall experience.