Manila Ocean Park

Our visit here is my first taste of summer getaway this year. It was just a day tour but I enjoyed it so much with Jaimie and Jelly! Tulog na tulog yung dalawa sa kotse on our way home. Hahaha! It was actually my treat for them because they made it to be on top of their class this school year once again. They both bagged medals as honor students and as a surprise reward, I took them to Manila Ocean Park. Weeee! Galing galing! I’m one proud Tita! J

Going There

Manila Ocean Park is located at the back of Quirino Grandstand along Roxas Boulevard in the bright city of Manila. Since we are coming from Cavite area (South of Manila), I referred to an online map with SM Mall of Asia as my starting point. By the way, we travelled by car. For more direction assistance whether you are travelling by car or by bus, I found this site very useful: Directions, Routes, maps, Shortcuts in Metro Manila (http://www.metromaniladirections.com/). The map on the website of Manila Ocean Park (www.manilaoceanpark.com) also helped me memorize the route going to the park. Grrrr. Unfortunately, I turned right too soon at Star City so I had to turn around at Buendia back to Macapagal Ave until we reached CCP Complex again. After a few kilometers, we reached US Embassy and then the Quirino Grandstand at the left. There is a little chance you will get lost at this point after turning left at the traffic lights because you’ll immediately see the Manila Ocean park signs.

Parking

At the end of the road, you’ll see a paid parking area, which could be your option when the main parking inside the park is already full. Turn right to go to the main gate of the park. Don’t forget to get your parking ticket because you don’t want to pay extra when you exit. Parking fee is P25.00 for the whole day (flat rate).

Buying Tickets

The ticket booth is located at the entrance of the main building beside H2O hotel. There are attendants who could help you decide on the perfect packages for you and your group or whether there are great promos available on that day, so do not hesitate to ask them what’s best for you. Read ahead and you’ll find the available shows/areas you could visit and enjoy!

For our visit, I picked the Ultimate Experience for P800.00 each. The promo runs until April 15, 2012.

The Sea Lion Show

That's the two smart sea lions with their two trainors and two new friends.

This large open stadium is located across the ticket booth. Thirty minutes before the show starts, guests may enter the area and find their seats. The moment we entered the show area, Jaimie blurted right away: “Tita, you should have told me to bring swimsuits!”. It’s because the park allows guests to swim at the pool inside the show stadium. This kiddo was totally drooling to swim! When the show is about to start, swimmers are asked to get out of the pool and join other guests to watch the performance. The show, for the most part, displays the intelligence and charisma of the sea lions. And they incorporate educational message against water pollution. I loooove to see then clap their fins ^_^, wave to the audience and look shy! Hahaha! Artista ang lola mo! Although there are instances where the male sea lion did not follow instructions from his master, but the female was so into her performance!

The show is scheduled 3 times within the day: 11:00AM, 2:00PM and 4:30PM

The Oceanarium

Right after the Sea Lion Show, we headed straight to The Oceanarium, where most guests go because the next available show is after 3 hours pa. This area showcases different marine animals in large tanks of sea water lighted with beautiful colors. Flash photography is strictly prohibited in this area so turn this off on your camera flash settings to avoid scaring the marine animals ^_^

At the shark area

Jaimie and Jelly while enjoying the fishes

At the dome

At the shark area.

Camera flash is prohibited in this area so we have to maximize
the light source at the back :-)

The Penguin Encounter (The Antartica)

This is not included on our chosen package but if you want to see live penguins, you need pay an extra P300.00 for the Penguins exhibit. Who doesn’t want to know why penguins wear tuxedo!? ;-) Hahaha!

Eating ice cream at Antartica??? Hahaha!

The Fish Spa

The doctor fishes are always in! Fish spa is definitely an exciting activity here but I think ten minutes for each session is sooooo bitin! They are also called the nibble fishes, which nibbles the dead skin leaving the healthy skin to grow with teeny tiny sensation but without pain.


According the Manila Ocean Park site, admissions are the following:

Php 120 per head
2 ft & below free of charge

Monday & Tuesday
10:00 am - 7:00 pm
Last selling of tickets: 6:30 pm

Wednesday to Friday
10:00 am - 8:30 pm
Last selling of tickets: 8:00 pm

Saturday, Sunday & Public Holiday:
9:00 am - 8:30 pm
last selling of tickets: 8:00 pm

The Souvenir Shops

Manila Ocean Park also has interesting shops and offers pasalubong sales for their guests. There are a lot of stuffs to choose from especially for balikbayans and foreigners. There is also a BPI automatic teller machine(ATM) which I find very convenient especially for those who run out of cash.

Restaurants

There numbers of restaurants and food kiosks inside so you'll never get hungry just prepare for the pricey food!!! So i suggest that you bring enough water and snacks so you don't have to spend too much. It is located after the souvenir shop.

Jellies

One of the areas that we enjoyed is the Jellies room. There are several illuminated tanks of jellies inside perfect for the dancing lights. Don’t forget to get your pictures taken at the largest tank like we did ^_^

I created a mosaic showing our favorite Jellies shots!

The Musical Fountain Show

The show that I enjoyed the most is the Musical Fountain Show at 7:00PM- 7:30PM daily. There is only one show for the day so make sure you’ll be at the stadium at around 6:30PM. The red-colored seats area in the middle is the most perfect place to watch the show.

The amazing Fountain Musical Show!

H2O Hotel

They also have a hotel and spa named H2O. So if you feel like having overnight with your friends and families, this a perfect summer getaway for you!

We spent 6 hours to enjoy our ultimate experience package and headed straight to Yellow Cab in Macapagal Ave for our late dinner J All in all, it was fun… except for the pricey tickets! ^_^v

For more information, please visit Manila Ocean Park website:

http://www.manilaoceanpark.com/