A desinger’s rendition of the new polar theme park.

Shanghai authorities have announced plans to construct a polar theme park, the largest of its kind in the world.

Different from the traditional marine theme park model, Shanghai Haichang Polar Ocean World will position itself as a world-class marine life culture experience complex. The park is set to commence operation in 2017 and will set a benchmark for the domestic industry for innovation and thought leadership.

The construction is set to begin before the end of the year in Lingang New City and will be spread over 300,000 square meters. In addition, there will be a theme park occupying a further 145,000 square meters. Thirteen pavilions, four performance areas, four cinemas, and numerous other facilities are due to make up the park.

More than 500 species of polar animals and 20,000 types of fish will be the stars of the show at the new theme park. Visitors to the park will be able to see killer whales performing tricks in a large water pool and to visit the polar animal and ocean wild zones to see various kinds of wildlife, including polar bears, emperor penguins, dolphins and beluga whales. The additional pavilions will contain sharks, penguins and coral.

Adhering to the development concept of building "marine-themed culture", the park will bring together a holistic integration of entertainment, ecology, and the scientific in an extremely interactive way, to create the foremost sustainable tourism product system, whilst building a "situational experience resort".