Legacy Entertainment, the theme park and resort design company, and its subsidiary, The Aquarium Design Company, have revealed the design of Beijing Haichang Ocean Park. Located adjacent to Universal Beijing Resort in the city’s Tongzhou district, the 150,000-square-meter (1,614,586-square-foot) facility will rank among the world’s largest aquariums upon its debut in 2027. The project is being developed in partnership with Beijing Tongzhou Urban Construction and Operation Group (TCJ).
This project also marks the second cooperation that the Legacy Entertainment team has worked with Haichang.
Barry Kemper, Legacy’s Chief Operating Officer and one of the owners of the company, said, “Following the success of our design work at Shanghai Haichang Ocean Park, which opened in 2018, we are honored to now have this opportunity to create an all-new Ocean Park for Beijing. Visitors familiar with Haichang’s other properties will be delighted to see that for the Beijing park, we have imagined something completely shocking and truly unique there.”
The Shanghai Haichang Ocean Park recently reported record attendance, having hosted 4,200,000 visitors in 2023. Mr. Kemper notes that unlike its sister park in Shanghai, the upcoming Beijing Haichang Ocean Park will be primarily set indoors, accounting for the region’s harsh winter climate.
To bring the project to life, Legacy has assembled a team of talent, with collaborators including Hetzel Design, Visual Terrain, Management Resources / ProFun, and Rabben Herman Design Office. Working together with Haichang under the shared vision of creating “the aquarium of the future,” the team has designed a next-generation facility which incorporates all the latest trends in environmental design, guest experience, and animal husbandry.
