Lujiazui Aquarium: A Treasure Spot for Family Fun, Know All the Pros and Cons!
For families who love parent-child trips, Lujiazui Aquarium is definitely a must-visit destination. It not only features a rich variety of marine life but also offers a comfortable environment and thoughtful services, though there are a few minor flaws. Here, I’ll share my detailed experience.
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Indoor Fun for Kids: Comfort and Convenience Combined
Constant Temperature Environment, Enjoy All Year Round
As an indoor attraction, Lujiazui Aquarium is equipped with a complete air conditioning system, warm in winter and cool in summer. Whether it’s the blazing summer sun or the biting winter wind outside, the aquarium maintains a suitable temperature inside, providing a comfortable play space for children and relieving parents from worrying about weather changes affecting their outing.
Early Entry Perks: Fewer Crowds, Beautiful Scenery
If you choose to enter early, you’ll be pleasantly surprised by how few people are inside. Without the hustle and bustle of crowds, children can explore the marine world more freely, and parents can take photos more leisurely. Plus, you can cover the main areas in about an hour, making the visit very efficient.
Affordable Parking, Worry-Free Travel
Regarding parking, arriving before 10 AM usually guarantees a spot at the aquarium’s parking lot, costing only 10 yuan per hour. In a bustling commercial area like Lujiazui, this parking fee is very reasonable, greatly reducing travel costs and allowing parents to start their family trip more easily.
Detailed Explanation, Full of Childlike Fun
The aquarium’s guides are friendly and patient, especially with kids. They use lively, interesting, and easy-to-understand language to explain marine life knowledge and fun facts, sparking children’s curiosity and desire to explore the ocean world. During each explanation, kids listen attentively and often ask adorable questions.
Featured Creatures, Embark on a Wonderful Ocean Journey
The Aquarium’s Treasure — The Large-Toothed Sawfish
Lujiazui Aquarium’s treasure is the nation’s only large-toothed sawfish, a unique and rare creature not to be missed. Seeing its distinctive shape and huge saw-like teeth makes one marvel at nature’s wonders. I even bought some related merchandise as a souvenir. However, watching it live alone in a small tank felt a bit lonely; compared to that, the sharks swim freely in spacious waters, looking much more at ease.
Diverse Marine Life, A Visual Feast
Besides the large-toothed sawfish, the aquarium houses various marine animals such as the Yangtze alligator, seals, tiger cuttlefish, and electric eels. The recent bioluminescent creature exhibition attracted many visitors’ attention, with many glowing marine animals shimmering mysteriously in the dark, as if entering a magical fairy tale world. Children watched with wide eyes, amazed again and again. Also, the aquarium now offers QR code explanations—just scan with your phone to get detailed information about the creatures, very convenient.
Unique Creatures at Changfeng Park Aquarium
Changfeng Park Aquarium also has its own highlights, such as the grass sea dragon, a very rare Australian imported species with a peculiar appearance, like an underwater fairy, attracting many to stop and admire. Additionally, the aquarium has many seahorse species and a dedicated seahorse display area, like a little kingdom of seahorses where children can observe their shapes and habits up close.
Environment Setup, Each with Its Own Merits
Lujiazui Aquarium: Immersive Experience
Lujiazui Aquarium excels in environment setup, creating immersive atmospheres in each exhibition area through carefully designed layouts, perfectly matched music, and lighting. The illustrations are clear, glass is clean and transparent, and the water is crystal clear, making visitors feel as if they are truly underwater. The aquarium features several large fish tanks and jellyfish tanks, especially the jellyfish tanks, which are spacious and where jellyfish dance beautifully under the lights. There are also several underwater tunnels, claimed to be among the longest in the world. One tunnel with a white fish school is a perfect photo spot—any shot looks like a masterpiece. However, a minor downside is that the information displays on the tunnel handrails are a bit dense, slightly affecting the overall photo aesthetics.
Changfeng Park Aquarium: Room for Improvement
In contrast, Changfeng Park Aquarium’s environment setup still needs improvement. The illustrations are very unclear, displayed via TV screens that make it hard to match with specific creatures. The glass is not clean enough, and some water areas are quite murky, affecting the viewing experience.
Exciting Activities and Attractions
Polar Pavilion and Deep Sea Elevator’s Wonderful Experience
The penguins in the Polar Pavilion are adorable and attract many visitors. Children laugh heartily watching the penguins waddle around. There is also a 100-meter-long deep sea elevator that immerses you in the underwater world, making you feel like you are deep in the ocean. This immersive experience keeps children wide-eyed and excited throughout.
Feeding by Keepers, Lots of Interactive Fun
Watching the keepers feed the animals is another highlight, always drawing a crowd. Seeing the marine creatures compete cutely for food makes children laugh nonstop. However, more interactive activities would be even better, allowing kids to learn more deeply about marine life habits.
Tips for a Great Visit
Follow the Route, Don’t Miss the Jellyfish Area
It’s recommended to follow the route in order since the aquarium is a one-way path. The jellyfish area is especially recommended; the combination of lighting and jellyfish creates a dreamy atmosphere perfect for photos, and children love it.
Subway Travel: Convenient and Eco-Friendly
For transportation, taking the subway is strongly recommended. Lujiazui is a busy area, and the subway is not only fast and convenient but also avoids traffic jams and parking difficulties, making your trip easier and more enjoyable.
Minor Flaws, Looking Forward to Improvements
Souvenir Shop Lacks Character
The only somewhat disappointing aspect is the souvenir shop, where most products lack uniqueness, resembling cheap toys and ordinary plush toys from wholesale markets. There isn’t even a single fridge magnet with the aquarium’s logo, which is truly regrettable. Hopefully, the aquarium will put more effort into developing souvenirs and launch some with unique commemorative value.
Lujiazui Aquarium is a fantastic place for family trips. Despite some minor issues, overall, it provides an excellent platform for children to explore the ocean world. Bring your kids and start a wonderful ocean adventure here!
I went for the second time and still loved it. The variety of tunnels was amazing, and the 1.5-meter tunnel was perfect for photos. This time I also brought my mom and kids, so it was a fun trip for everyone.
The location is excellent, situated in the city center. There are many fun places to visit near the aquarium, so you can explore other attractions afterward. The aquarium itself is beautifully decorated, boasts a rich variety of marine life, and importantly, its environments are scientifically designed with excellent lighting. There's also a giant glass enclosure that's perfect for taking photos.
Just only a few zone that felt like a aquarium . A bit disappoint
The Shanghai Ocean Aquarium is located in the Lujiazui area of Pudong. There are many large-scale themed biological exhibition areas in the ocean aquarium, which are divided into Asia, South America (Amazon), Australia, Africa, cold water, polar, seawater, deep ocean and other exhibition areas, showing hundreds of species and tens of thousands of fish and marine life from all over the world. The 155-meter underwater tunnel gives visitors an immersive feeling. The Shanghai Ocean Aquarium is very suitable for families and children to visit, especially for tourists who like marine life and the natural environment, it provides a wealth of learning and viewing opportunities.
In the bustling city of Shanghai, there is a mysterious and charming blue world - Shanghai Ocean Aquarium. The moment you step into the aquarium, it seems like you have started a fantastic ocean journey. Behind the glass window, colorful fish swim freely, like a flowing scroll. Some of them are small and exquisite, smart and cute; some are huge and majestic. Walking in the underwater tunnel, it seems like you are in the deep ocean. Sharks roar over your head, turtles swim slowly, and there are all kinds of strange marine creatures that you can't name, which makes people dazzled. The blue light sprinkles on your body, as if you are gently embraced by the sea. Here, you can see marine life from all over the world and feel the vastness and mystery of the ocean. Each exhibition area is like a vivid marine encyclopedia, telling the story of marine life and their living environment. Shanghai Ocean Aquarium is not only a place to watch marine life, but also an educational base for us to respect nature and protect the ocean. Let us walk into this blue dream world together, explore the mysteries of the ocean, and protect this beautiful blue home.
I like the penguin pavilion on the second floor of the basement. The Antarctic gentleman is fun and fun. There are sound waves that transmit the sound of penguins looking for their mother, the sound of hungry looking for food, the sound of looking for friends, and the gravity test. The three-story deep sea area is also good, the teeth of the big shark are extremely sharp, and the close distance is clearly visible. The sea turtle's leisurely swimming posture is unique.
It's really worth it! There are basically no people on weekdays, and the experience is very good! You can park your car in the parking garage and walk out to check in with the Oriental Pearl Tower and take pictures. Each venue is basically reserved, and it is easy to take pictures. Although the Lujiazui Ocean Aquarium is not the largest in area, the scene setting is very beautiful! There are many kinds of elevators inside, and they are all underwater passages. The most beautiful is the jellyfish wall. It feels very healing to look at it for a while. If you come during the day, there are also feeding performances of penguins and other small animals. The last section of the tour is a 155-meter-long underwater tunnel. There are several different themed exhibition areas where you can see various continents.
As soon as you enter the Shanghai Ocean Aquarium, it feels like you have entered a mysterious underwater world. Various colorful fish swim in the water, which is beautiful. ^^Source: Personal real experience^^ A huge shark swims over your head, which is amazing. There are also cute penguins and cute seals, which make people stop and watch. The interactive area is also very interesting, and you can touch some marine life with your own hands. Summary: Shanghai Ocean Aquarium is full of charm and is a good place for parents and children to play.