ORLANDO, Fla. — SeaWorld’s first theme park outside the United States, SeaWorld Abu Dhabi, will open in the United Arab Emirates next year with six marine environments, five floors of indoor attractions and no killer whales.
John Linn, SeaWorld’s vice president of global theme park development, said the park is the culmination of over 50 years of SeaWorld’s theme park experience and will include “all the cool things we wanted to do that we never got the approval to.”
“We’re not going to have to work very hard at all to differentiate ourselves (from similar attractions),” Linn said. “Frankly, the problem I’m going to have personally is how to explain to our board that this phenomenal product that we have in the Middle East — why aren’t we doing that in the United States?”
Speaking at the International Association of Amusement Parks and Attractions’ expo this month in Orlando, Linn declined to reveal details on park content but said it will rank among the world’s best aquariums and marine attractions.
“While I can’t give away any secrets, I can say without hesitation that what we are doing, what we are going to deliver on, is going to amaze everybody,” he said. “It’s going to be something different and something unique.”
Abu Dhabi developer Miral, which is partnering with Orlando-based SeaWorld Parks & Entertainment on the project, said in September that it had reached 90% construction completion on the Yas Island development and expected to open it sometime in 2023. SeaWorld CEO Marc Swanson recently confirmed that general opening timeline in a Nov. 9 earnings call.
SeaWorld Abu Dhabi was announced in 2016 with an initial target opening date of 2022. When it opens, the park will include one of the world’s largest aquariums, with over 6.6 million gallons of water and 68,000 marine animals, in addition to interactive exhibits, rides and a conservation-focused research and rescue center.
Since the park’s announcement, SeaWorld has said the park will not include orcas, also called “killer whales” for their natural hunting patterns.
SeaWorld has worked to distance itself from its fraught past involving orcas over the past decade. Backlash surged after the 2013 documentary “Blackfish” used the story of SeaWorld Orlando orca Tilikum, who caused the deaths of three people including trainer Dawn Brancheau, to highlight the hardships of orcas living in captivity.
In recent years, SeaWorld has ended its killer whale breeding program, phased out its entertainment-based orca shows and emphasized its longstanding focus on marine life conservation.
“Although killer whales are not part of the theme park, we will offer opportunities to educate the community and raise awareness about this inspiring creature alongside other marine life species,” SeaWorld Abu Dhabi’s website reads.
In an unsigned statement, SeaWorld said the park will include the United Arab Emirates’ “first dedicated marine life research, rescue, rehabilitation and return center” that will specialize in indigenous marine life ecosystems in the Persian Gulf and work to advance global conservation efforts.
Swanson said the park “really showcases what the next generation of SeaWorld could be and will be” as it expands SeaWorld’s brand to an international audience.
The park’s habitats will be completely indoors, something Linn said he was initially “scared to death” about due to the attraction’s focus on the natural world. But Miral has helped the project exceed expectations, he said.
“I couldn’t be prouder as to how we executed it,” he said.
One challenge of the indoor setting was recreating natural lighting for its resident sea creatures. Linn said SeaWorld’s teams created innovative lighting technology to mimic the full spectrum of sunlight.
“I can’t share numbers, but you could buy a minor, maybe even a major attraction for the amount that we invested on this project and the lighting for our animals,” he said.
Theme park companies have selected Abu Dhabi to expand their brands in recent years. Warner Bros opened the world’s largest indoor theme park, Warner Bros World Abu Dhabi, there in 2018 and announced a Harry Potter-themed addition to the park this week.
SeaWorld has tried to expand into the Middle Eastern country since 2006, Linn said. The company’s first attempt, the defunct Worlds of Discovery Dubai project, was canceled after the 2008 financial crisis.
He said SeaWorld also looked to build an attraction in China but ultimately, “the UAE really felt like the right place for us,” he said at the panel titled “The Future of Entertainment & Leisure in the Middle East, UAE and Abu Dhabi.”
That turned out to be a lucky decision, Linn said, as China’s “zero COVID” policies have closed theme parks such as Shanghai Disney multiple times during the pandemic.
“I am thrilled that we landed where we did,” Linn said. “I can’t imagine having worked on a project like this ... any place but Abu Dhabi.”
The property just scratches the surface of SeaWorld’s expansion plans. As the company completes that project, it is already planning for future international properties elsewhere, Swanson said Nov. 9.
“We continue to progress discussions related to other international opportunities and expect to have more to share in coming quarters,” Swanson said.
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