Friday 1 March 2013

Ocean Park, Hong Kong review



 
Location - Aberdeen, Hong Kong

Entry Price - Adult = $280HKD Children (3 - 11) –$140HKD

Opening Hours - 10am to 7pm – Times vary dependent on seasons, so please check details on web page prior to visit.  

Ocean Park web page

 

Layout

Ocean Park is a mixture of zoo, aquarium and theme park. It is a large park divided into two sections separated by a rocky mountain in the centre, all situated on the coast.  Both sections of the park are divided into smaller themed areas. 
 
view from cable car
The lower section called the Water Front includes Amazing Asian Animals, Whisker Harbour and Aqua City whilst the top section is called the Summit and includes Thrill Mountain, Polar Adventure, Rain-forest, Marine World and Adventure Land.  Both sections are joined by a cable car and themed funicular railway.
 
 
There is a good selection of both marine and Asian animal enclosures placed around the entire park.
 
The Water Front includes red and giant pandas, primates, exotic bird aviary and the largest dome aquarium in the world, holding over 4000 fish.
 
 
The Summit includes dolphins, walruses, seals, sharks, arctic foxes, snow owls, king and gentoo penguins, sturgeon aquarium and assorted rain-forest animals.
The rest of the park consists of themed rides, eateries and shops. The top section of the park has quite a few steps and escalators to negotiate including the second largest escalator in the world. 
 
A sea lion at Ocean Park 
Extra Activities  
As this is an amusement park there are plenty of rides and shows on offer.
The park does offer behind the scene animal experiences for most of their major exhibits as well as dolphin and sea lion shows. You will also find some great educational talks on various species of fish, birds and mammals at most enclosures throughout the day.  

 

 

Breeding Programes

Bottlenose Dolphins, Gentoo and King  Penguins, 
Eight young Koalas are being donated to the park by the South Australian Government and are are expected to arrive in 2014,once eucalyptus plantations for feed are established on  main land China.  This will be part of a world wide conservation ambassador program.    
 

Stu’s Favourite Bit

The giant pandas were by far my favorite part of the visit.
Ocean Park has four giant pandas, named An An, Jia Jia, Le Le and Ying Ying and their enclosures are world standard.  Located in large glass air-conditioned structure, they have plenty of trees, shrubs and large boulders lining the grassy knolls which gently slope upwards away from the large glass viewing windows. This allows visitors great views of the panda and their habitat, while also giving the pandas a suitable habitat.
(The video below shows the giant pandas getting stuck into some bamboo!.)
 
 
 
Stu at the panda enclosure
 
 
 

Stu’s review and tips

Ocean Park is a huge clean park covering 210 acres. There are 11 animal exhibits scattered between rides, shops and cafes.  Make sure you plan in advance on the park map if you want to see all the animal. For me it was all about the giant pandas and luckily they are located on the lower level of the park near the entrance.   
Ocean Park is the 12th most visited theme park in the world so it can get very, very busy, especially over the Chinese New Year’s period in February!  If you are visiting the park over a busy period make sure you plan your exit strategy in advance. Huge lines of people make their way to both the funicular railway and cable car at closing time. These are the only two ways to get down to The Water Front at the lower section of the park, where the exit is. So be warned....

The cable car is a must do. The journey lasts approximately 8 minutes and takes you over spectacular cliffs with views looking out to the South China Sea.
Be prepared for high humidity over the summer months. A lot of the shows on offer are subject to weather conditions so rainy days may affect your overall experience.
 
Giant Panda at Ocean Park
 
 
 
I came to this park to see a Giant Panda.  I left the park with sore feet, exhausted, soaking wet from the rapids ride and that horrific humidity. Oh...  and those crowds!  But I would absolutely recommend this park, if only to see those amazing giant pandas.   

 

Must See Animals 

Giant Panda 
Red Panda 
Sharks 
Sea Lions 
Koala 
 


  © February 2013-Stuatthezoo.blogspot.com.au

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