Underwater World Singapore

Underwater World Singapore is an oceanarium located at 80 Siloso Road on the island of Sentosa. Its key features include the Dolphin Lagoon housing endangered pink Indo-Pacific humpbacked dolphins, as well as an 83m moving walkway enclosed by an observation tunnel with surrounding views of the oceanarium's collection of marine creatures and corals. Considered Asia's largest tropical oceanarium when it opened in 1991, Underwater World is one of Singapore's most popular tourist attractions.

Background-

The idea of an oceanarium or marine park was proposed as early as 1978, when the operators of Ocean Park in Hong Kong submitted a proposal to the Singapore government to build an oceanarium where visitors could observe marine animals in their natural habitat.

Although the idea was not taken up, in the early 1980s the Sentosa Development Corporation (SDC) became interested in building an oceanarium as part of plans to attract more visitors to Sentosa. At the time, the only similar attraction in Singapore was the Van Kleef Aquarium.

In August 1983, the SDC invited proposals for an oceanarium to be built on a 3ha site on Sentosa. Subsequently, the Singapore government established a joint venture with Underwater World International (UWI), a subsidiary of the Western Australia Development Corporation, and New Zealand company Marinescape Corporation to build and operate the new attraction.

Costing an estimated S$20 million,Underwater World took two years to build and opened on 13 May 1991. The oceanarium was an immediate hit with visitors to Singapore as well as residents. It drew more than 200,000 visitors in the month following its opening, and welcomed its millionth visitor in 1992. The opening of Underwater World caused visitorship to the Van Kleef Aquarium to fall significantly, and the latter closed by the end of May 1991.