Yesterday, this huge project had its official groundbreaking and they also gave some updates on their plans: - They plan to invest 100 million Euros and to open in 2026. - The aquariums will hold between 9 and 10 million litres in total, with the largest alone holding over 7 million litres (for comparison: all of the tanks at the Berlin Zoo aquarium hold around 700,000 litres, while the Aquadom, which recently burst, once held 1 million litres). - There is talk of over 3,000 species of marine life. - The following habitats are to be on display: Red Sea, Great Barrier Reef, Caribbean, North Sea - how the total volume is distributed across the tanks and which of them can be dived into was not explained in detail (apart from the North Sea, these are all internationally popular diving areas). However, I believe that the Caribbean will be themed in the "roof lagoon" and as the company comes from Israel, I could imagine the Red Sea would be suiting for the giant pool. - Another highlight will be a modern 360° 3D dome cinema, in which a virtual dive with life-size whale simulations will be possible; in Stralsund there is a similar approach in a hall with life-size whale models, which are then staged with lighting and whale sounds. - The aim is to educate Berlin residents and visitors about the beauty of these mostly distant and hidden habitats as well as their secret destruction. - In addition to the aquarium and marine museum, there will also be a publicly accessible waterfront park with playgrounds and a beer garden, a few shops and a hotel with around 170 double rooms, as well as 100 car parking spaces. This image shows the size of the main aquarium: Image: SG+ Architekten Berlin/ Facebook And while the final design of the building hasn't been officially confirmed, they did publish some ideas: Pictures: Coral World Otherwise, the building continues to polarise Berlin. Although the initiatives have given up their resistance for the time being, demonstrations are planned again for the opening. In addition, public criticism and debate are still being widely spread in the media. The district mayor of Lichtenberg put it quite interestingly: Such projects of this size and quality are rare worldwide and Lichtenberg as a district is proud to have been chosen as a location. At the same time, this attitude is admittedly not shared by Lichtenberg residents. Nevertheless, Lichtenberg will certainly ALSO stand for Ocean Berlin in the future. (By the way: Coming from the Tierpark, it is going to be only a couple of miles west to Ocean Berlin which lies in a more central position at the western border of the district right near the regionally important train station Ostkreuz). Personally, I'm still very curious about the project. Unlike with Sea Life, I will probably go in at least once, even though it will certainly not be cheap, especially for families. From a pragmatic point of view, however, it could simply be seen as a congenial addition to the Tierpark: One presents fascinating land habitats (The elephant complex and the combined Savannah area also should open by 2026), as well as some water zones (and, unfortunately, so far with hardly any underwater visibility). The other one dives (and you can literally dive into the water) very, very deep into some of the most fascinating marine biotopes as well as the nearby North Sea. If you want to get even closer water habitats, there is also Sea Life, which follows the path from the Spree to the Atlantic - and the zoo, despite some landscape pools, complements the more zoological-systematic perspective. If you want, you can find out more about past and lost ocean species at the Natural History Museum or even take fossilised shark teeth and the like home with you... All in all, Berlin is becoming even more of a zoo capital. You just have to have the time and the money for it...
While I definitely do not oppose the idea of a new zoological facility in Berlin, I do feel hesitant about this project. It reminds me of the Istanbul Aquarium, which the aquarium could be described as decent for a private facility Turkey. But I have my gripes with that facility because the company that owns the aquarium basically built the aquarium as an attraction for a shopping mall. For reference most shopping malls build their aquariums after opening the mall but not Istanbul aquarium. I thought the aquarium would have expanded to become a more impressive facility but oh well, in Turkey malls come above everyting. I don’t suppose the fixation to shopping malls among companies is as big in Germany compared to Turkey (or at least I hadn’t observed it so far), but it would be really crummy if Ozeane Berlin was the first step to shoehorn in a more unsustainable business model.
Well, they have been planning the project for a really long time. So you could assume, the start of construction means things really pick up now and that's also the impression I get from the construction site. But I also read their plans keep "developing" (i.e. changing) virtually every week. So I guess we are to find out what that means...
This looks like an ambitious project, although it's bizarre that groundbreaking has occurred and yet there is no official final design for the new aquarium. Thanks very much for all the updates!
@PossumRoach In this case, the investor is a multi-billion dollar rich marine biologist. I think the aquarium is mainly geared towards divers and marine life enthusiasts. The hotel could cater for tourists from that group that like to stay for a bit longer. This group has large aquariums at popular diving resorts (Red Sea, Hawaii, Australia and Mallorca/Spain). It does seem like there are going to be some shops, but there won't be a mall.
This aquarium was planned for enormously long time, I think at least 20 years, and there were protests and many political discussions in the Berlin city. Who knows why the city of Berlin did not like another tourist attraction? Was it because the investor was not a German?
The respective governments on district and city level always supported this project. Of course, there is always a bureaucratic process, but In fact the Investor could have been much quicker. By the way: It has been 10 years since they first announced their plans. But the delay and all the media twists indeed make it feel like decades.
