PLACE GUIDE

Shanghai Ocean Aquarium 上海海洋水族馆

Shanghai Haiyang Shuizuguan

Shanghai Ocean Aquarium is an indoor aquatic attraction in Lujiazui.

Street frontage of Shanghai Ocean Aquarium · 上海海洋水族馆街景
Street frontage of Shanghai Ocean Aquarium · 上海海洋水族馆街景 Photograph date recorded by the source: 6 March 2010. · Peter Potrowl · © Peter Potrowl · CC BY 3.0
Photo adjustments

Full frame retained; proportionally resized and converted to WebP. No retouching or changes to the photographed subject. Card displays may crop the view.

City & district guides

Pudong New Area · 浦东新区 →

About Shanghai Ocean Aquarium

Its exhibits use geographic zones alongside an underwater tunnel sequence.

The tunnel passes through designed settings representing a coastal reef, open ocean, grouper cave, shark cove and coral reef. These changing environments provide the clearest organizing theme for a visit. Follow the aquarium’s current route and treat individual animal sightings as variable rather than guaranteed. The nearby Oriental Pearl Tower makes a separate architectural stop in the same district.

The aquarium opened to the public in February 2002. Its building has a total floor area of 20,500 square metres, including 12,000 square metres of exhibition space. The displays are organised into nine thematic zones.

The China Zone focuses on aquatic life and ecosystems of the Yangtze River basin. Its exhibits include Chinese sturgeon, Chinese alligators and Chinese giant salamanders, giving the aquarium a freshwater theme alongside its marine tunnel.

What to look for

  • Geographic zones organize the aquatic exhibits.
  • The tunnel sequence moves through several different marine settings.

Background & history

The Shanghai Ocean Aquarium (Chinese: 上海海洋水族馆) is a public aquarium located in Shanghai, China. Designed by Advanced Aquarium Technologies, the aquarium includes a 168-meter (551 ft) tunnel that takes visitors through a coastal reef, open ocean, a kelp cave, shark cove, and a coral reef, and is one of the longest such tunnels in the world. The aquarium takes visitors through several exhibit "zones," including China Zone, South America Zone, Africa Zone, etc.

Excerpt from Wikipedia: Shanghai Ocean Aquarium · Wikipedia contributors · CC BY-SA 4.0. Selected introductory sentences; formatting simplified. Background information, not current visitor-service advice.

The surrounding area

A large district containing major museums and the tower skyline. A hotel near one attraction may still be far from another.

Location & getting there

Getting to Shanghai Ocean Aquarium

Approach 1388 Lujiazui Ring Road near the Oriental Pearl Tower, using Lujiazui station as the local rail reference.

General visit reminders

Follow the aquarium’s current exhibition route through the geographic zones and underwater tunnel. Check opening hours, ticket options and visitor rules directly with the operator before visiting. The Oriental Pearl Tower is a separate stop; nearby attractions do not share an admission ticket.

Combine your visit

A suggested sequence linking the specific features of this visit.

  1. Geographic exhibition zones

    Begin with the different regional aquatic environments.

  2. Underwater tunnel sequence

    Compare the designed reef, open-water and cove settings.

  3. Oriental Pearl Tower exterior东方明珠

    Add the nearby tower as a separate ground-level architectural visit.

This order is editorial. Confirm access and any transfers between stops; it does not establish a walking route, same-day connection or common admission ticket.

AI illustration: AI illustration: marine coral polyps; general category detail, not an actual photograph.
AI illustration · AI 示意图（景观类型参考，非实拍） · 海洋珊瑚群体细节 — A general visiting detail, not an exact view of this place.
Ecology & wildlife · 生态／动植物 →

Find Shanghai Ocean Aquarium

上海海洋水族馆 · 浦东新区

Amap · 高德地图Approximate pin · 近似位置Apple Maps · 苹果地图

The pin marks the area, not the entrance.

More places nearby

Approximate straight-line distances between map pins, not travel distances.

Oriental Pearl Tower东方明珠

Less than 1 km away

The Oriental Pearl Tower stands in Lujiazui on the eastern bank of the Huangpu, opposite the Bund. Its futuristic arrangement of spheres and supporting columns made it one of the city’s most recognizable television towers.

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Shanghai Tower上海中心大厦

Less than 1 km away

Shanghai Tower rises beside Jin Mao Tower and Shanghai World Financial Center in Lujiazui. Gensler’s design divides the skyscraper into stacked zones for different uses, with public sightseeing spaces high above the river.

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Huangpu Park黄浦公园

1 km away

Huangpu Park occupies the triangular green space at the northern end of the Bund, between the Huangpu River and Suzhou Creek. Its origins lie in the treaty-port Public Garden, later reshaped as a commemorative riverfront park.

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Sources & visit information

The sources below support the place-specific description and arrival information. Suggested combinations are editorial planning ideas; confirm current opening, entry arrangements and transport services for your date.

Visitor information adapted and edited from Wikipedia contributors, “Shanghai Ocean Aquarium” · CC BY-SA 4.0. Source revision 1361796838.

Visitor information adapted and edited from Wikivoyage contributors, listing “Shanghai Ocean Aquarium” · CC BY-SA 4.0.

Background paragraphs translated and condensed from Wikipedia contributors, "上海海洋水族馆", Chinese Wikipedia · CC BY-SA 4.0. Source revision 92160875.

China Revealed · Editorially updated 2026-10-07