No Name

Review of Manila Ocean Park

I have been to city aquariums around the world and...

I have been to city aquariums around the world and this is by far the worst.

First of all, the place is a death trap! The overall facility is large and might have a decent capacity, however, the feature, the aquarium itself, they overfill. If any event happened which might cause any type of panic such as a fire, there would be a big problem. There are not enough readily available exits and the overcrowding would cause people to trample each other (see photo). The place is elbow to elbow. Most of the facility is the hotel, restaurants and shops. There is very little in the way of an actual aquarium. There are some tiny tanks in the outdoor area before you get to the main section. A few medium tanks. Maybe 2? And the main feature which is the short tunnel. It was such a disappointment and definitely not worth the entrance fee. I've seen comparable aquariums at petting zoos overseas that charge half the price. The place is essentially nothing more than a place for people to take selfies for facebook in front of a fish tank.

Second, as another reviewer mentioned the animal rights are atrocious. The tanks seem dirty and overcrowded. Some of the sealife is too large for the habitat they are in. It almost looks like fish farm tanks with how they are filled. To add insult to iniury, they have "mermaids" and visitors who pay to scuba in the habitat. When I was there, a total of 6 people were in the main tank. This is aweful for the inhabitants. It is a shock to them to have so many foreign objects/people constantly intruding, contaminating and polluting their environment.

I won't even go into the uncouth behavior of most of the visitors that is not kept in check by the staff as it seems par for the course here.

Lastly, I would like to point out that the inside of this facility is not handicap accessible and they do not bother to inform you when you pay to get in, even when a person of limited mobility goes straight to the ticketbooth. Now to get TO the facility, there is a ramp but once inside the actual aquarium you either have to go back up front and ask to be let through a locked side or find a way to carry any handicapped person(s) up the flights of stairs.

I'd like my money, time and cost of transportation back because we wasted all of the above visiting this facility.