Ocean Park Hong Kong (Chinese: 香港海洋公園; jyutping: heung1 gong2 hoi2 yeung4 gung1 yuen4), commonly known as Ocean Park, is a marine mammal park, oceanarium, animal theme park and amusement park, situated in Wong Chuk Hang and Nam Long Shan in the Southern District of Hong Kong. Opened in 1977 by the then Governor of Hong Kong Sir Murray MacLehose, Ocean Park has grown to about 35 attractions and rides. The park has won several awards, including The World's Seventh Most Popular Amusement Park and 33rd Most Visited Tourist Attractions in the World by Forbes.
Ocean Park claims that it received 6.95 million visitors in 2011, awarding it the position of the world's 12th most visited theme park by annual attendance. However, reported attendance for the park's fiscal year 2010/2011 is 5.9 million visitors, placing it behind Hong Kong Disneyland's 5.94 million visitors.
Covering an area of 870,000 square metres (210 acres) of land, the park is separated by a large mountain into two areas, The Summit (Headland) and The Waterfront (Lowland) respectively. The areas can be reached by a 1.5 kilometres (0.93 mi) cable car system, a shuttle bus, or the Ocean Express funicular railway. As the Headland comprises several hills, visitors can also opt to take the world's second longest outdoor escalator.
The theme park currently has 19 rides, including three rollercoasters, but also houses 11 animal exhibits, such as a giant panda habitat, a jelly fish and Chinese sturgeon aquarium, as well as a four-story aquarium displaying more than 2,000 fish. Between 1979 and 1997, Ocean Park was most famous for its signature killer whale, Miss Hoi Wai (海威小姐).
Besides being an amusement park, Ocean Park Hong Kong also operates observatories, laboratories, an education department, and a Whales and Dolphins Fund.
Ocean Park Hong Kong was the first institution in the world to have success in artificial insemination of bottlenose dolphins, and developed numerous new breeds of goldfish.
Read more about Ocean Park Hong Kong: History, Cable Car, Major Annual Events, Unique Park Experiences and SmartFun Annual Pass Programme, Mascots, Development Plans, Attendance, Incidents
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