 | This articleneeds additional citations forverification. Please helpimprove this article byadding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. Find sources: "Underwater World, Singapore" – news ·newspapers ·books ·scholar ·JSTOR(April 2022) (Learn how and when to remove this message) |
| Underwater World | |
|---|---|
 | |
 Entrance to Underwater World, 2006 | |
 | |
| 1°15′31″N103°48′40″E / 1.2586°N 103.8112°E /1.2586; 103.8112 | |
| Date opened | 13 May 1991; 33 years ago (1991-05-13) |
| Date closed | 26 June 2016; 8 years ago (2016-06-26) |
| Location | 80 Siloso Road Singapore 098969 |
| Land area | 28 hectares (69 acres) |
| No. of animals | 2500 |
| No. of species | 250 |
| Major exhibits | Aquatic Creatures |
Underwater World, also known asUnderwater World Singapore Pte Ltd, was anoceanarium located on the offshore Singaporean island ofSentosa. It was opened on 13 May 1991 and closed on 26 June 2016.[1]
The oceanarium was developed by theWestern Australian Development Corporation in the late 1980s.[2] It opened to the public on 13 May 1991 and was sold to private investors a year later.[3] It had more than 2,500marine animals of 250 species from different regions of the world.[4] The oceanarium was mostly underground and it was owned by theHaw Par Corporation. The Underwater World's ticket included admission to the Dolphin Lagoon at Palawan Beach. It re-opened on 23 February 2010 after a revamp of several attractions within the park.[5]
Underwater World was also involved in several environmental and educational projects, such as the Living in the Ocean Programme, Ocean Ambassador Programme and theCoral Club. The Underwater World also provided exclusive venues to host events, such as ocean-themed functions.
Underwater World had a 83-metre (272 ft) longtravelator that moved visitors along a submerged 6-millimetre (0.24 in) thickacrylic-windowed tunnel from which they could look at an array of marine life includingcoral reefs,stingrays,moray eels,turtles,sharks and others.
The Underwater World and Dolphin Lagoon offered numerous adventures to the visitors. Some of them included:
The Dolphin Lagoon was home to severalIndo-Pacific humpback dolphins, also known as the "pink dolphins". Several "Meet-the-Dolphins" sessions were held daily that allowed visitors to enter the waist-deep pool and interact closely with the dolphins. The ticket to the Underwater World & dolphin show did not include the direct contact with the dolphins, an additional photo-coupon had to be purchased. The lagoon also included a Dolphin Suite where visitors could watch the dolphin performance from within an air-conditioned area.[1]
In August 2014 the organizations Wildlife Watcher Singapore, in collaboration withSea Shepherd Conservation Society, reported sub-standard living conditions for the animals.[7]
The pink dolphins have since been rehoused inChimelong Ocean Kingdom, an oceanarium inZhuhai,China.[8]
On 6 December 2006, Underwater World Singapore launched three new attractions—an interactive stingray feeding pool, a display of small marinereef species, and 'Fish Reflexology', Singapore's first fishreflexologyspa, where two species ofdoctor fish gently nibble away at the dead skin on visitors' feet. The new features cost S$650,000.
This was amid plans that were being proposed for Sentosa'sIntegrated Resorts.Genting Group's S$5.2 billion proposal, Resorts World, would feature the world's largest oceanarium at that point in time—the 8-hectare (20-acre) Quest Marine Life Park—which would house 700,000 marine animals in a 30,000,000-litre (6,599,000 imp gal; 7,925,000 US gal) lagoon. RivalbidderKerzner-CapitaLand's proposal would have an even larger marine habitat, with a capacity of 109,000,000 litres (23,977,000 imp gal; 28,795,000 US gal), including the world's largestjellyfish enclosure and anartificial reef fordiving andsnorkelling.[9] A week later it was announced that Genting International won the bid. In 2012, theMarine Life Park (also known as S.E.A. Aquarium) opened inResorts World Sentosa.
On 6 June 2016, it was announced by operator Haw Par that the venue would close on 26th of that month. Its pink dolphins, fur seals and otters had been transferred toChimelong Ocean Kingdom in Zhuhai, China the week before the announcement.[1]
TheUnderwater World Monorail Station used to serve this attraction, but it no longer does since the station closed in 2005.
A 3 Cabin Beach shuttle ( Beach Tram ) Serve the Former attraction but little is known about it.
Media related toUnderwater World, Singapore at Wikimedia Commons| MWG zoos | |
|---|---|
| Upcoming zoos |
|
| Aquariums | |
| Defunct zoos |
|
| Defunct aquariums |
|
