Ocean Park Hong Kong, 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 became popular but by 2005 was unprofitable and widely expected to lose out to the new
Hong Kong Disneyland. However, the Park responded with a bold HK$5.5 billion development plan that saw it expand to over 80 attractions and rides, and steadily grow visitor numbers to 7.6 million in 2014, making it the world's 13th most visited theme park, and the largest theme park in Asia. Half of all visitors now come from mainland China, in growth that parallels rising mainland tourist visitor levels to Hong Kong over the same period.