Dive into fun filled activities celebrating World Oceans Day at Atlantis, The Palm

Children Can Learn About Ocean Animals in an Octonauts Themed Family Fun Day at The Lost Chambers Aquarium

Dubai, United Arab Emirates, 1st June 2015 – Atlantis, The Palm celebrates World Oceans Day on Friday, 5th June with an Octonauts themed Family Fun Day at The Lost Chambers Aquarium. Taking place from 10am-10pm, children will receive free admission with every paid adult. World Oceans Day Activities will include Aquatheatre, Creature Feature Talks, a Mermaid Appearance, Selfies for the Sea, Trashformation and a special episode of The Octonauts.  World Oceans Day, held every June, is the UN-recognized day of ocean celebration and action. Atlantis invites guests from around the worldto support action to protect the ocean. 

For the first time Atlantis is following the Octonauts theme, a team of eight adventurers who live in an undersea base and go on undersea adventures to explore, rescue and protect ocean animals. Children are invited to watch a special episode of Octonauts in the Blue Sage Chamber from 11-6pm to understand more about how they can help the environment and get involved too.

Additional activities include Edutalks by the aquarium experts on the various species of fish in The Lost Chambers and Creature Feature talks where experts share advice on how to conserve species native to The Arabian Gulf.The artistic little ones can get their face painted or create origami.The highlight of the day for kids is a real life Mermaid who will be making 2 appearances at 1pm and 4pm. All activities are for all ages offered between 10am-8pm. 

“Each year for World Oceans DayAtlantisaims to engage children to get involved and learn how they can make a difference from a young age. We created a number of unique activities that allow education and fun to come together,” stated Natasha Christie, Director,The Lost Chambers Aquarium.

Committed to the UN’s “healthy oceans, healthy planet” motto, Atlantis is making a special effort to stop plastic pollution. The Lost Chambers Aquarium has organized aTrashformation Activity where kids can take plastic bottles and create fun fish and sea creatures out of them. The creations will be displayed on a pledge wall in the aquarium.As part of an ongoing priority to endorse marine education, Atlantis in partnership with the Alliance of Marine Mammal Parks and Aquariums is part of a comprehensive campaign for the month of June entitled "Our World Oceans Month."  Centered around the global issue of marine debris and its tremendous negative impact on animals, this campaign is being promoted by accredited marine animal parks, zoos and aquariums around the world to drive attention to the plight of the world’s ocean environment and the countless species of marine life that call the oceans home – and what individuals can and should do to help.  

Previous initiatives by Atlantis include a nativefish release conducted by the marine experts at The Lost Chambers Aquarium where 3000 fingerlings were bred by the Marine Resource Research Centre of the Ministry of the Environment and Water (MOEW) and released at into the sea at Nasimi Beach. An additional initiative was the“wear blue, tell two” activity in which all staff wore blue ribbons and when asked by guests what it was for, they would share two facts about the importance of the oceans. They then gave the guest a ribbon, tasking them to also share two facts when asked. 

“Our focus is on preserving the local marine species of the UAE which can be found thriving at The Lost Chambers Aquarium including sharks, hammour, lobster, seahorse, moray eels and a variety of coral species”, continues Christie. “I am proud to be part of a team of more than 165 full-time Marine Animal Specialists; the veterinarians, biologists, aquarists, divers, laboratory managers, food technicians, mechanics and directors who tend to this delicate eco-system on a 24-hour basis making it truly a home to more than 65,000 animals”.

Special Offers for Family Fun Day – 10am-10pm, Friday, 5 June 2015:

Adult admission AED 100 per person
Children receive free admission with each full paid adult admission 
Valet parking is complimentary for visitors to The Lost Chambers Aquarium 

Schedule of Activities –Activities Offered from 10:00am – 8:00pm
10:30am    Aquatheatre, Location: Seven Sages Chamber
11:30 am    Creature Feature Talk – Sharks, Location: Seven Sages Chamber
1:00 pm    Creature Feature Talk – Jellyfish, Location: Knowledge Chamber
2:00 pm    Creature Feature Talk- Groupers, Location: Emergency Exit Chamber
2:30 pm    Meet the Divers, Location: Seven Sages Chamber
3:00 pm    Creature Feature Talk-Coral Reproduction, Location: Generator Chamber
3:30 pm    Aquatheatre, Location: Seven Sages Chamber
4:00 pm    Save the Ocean – Conservation Talk, Location: Seven Sages Chamber
5:00 pm    Aquatheatre, Location: Seven Sages Chamber 

Ongoing
11:00-6:00    Selfies for the Sea – Save the Ocean Pledge, Location: Generator Chamber 
11:00-6:00    Octonauts Episode, Location: Entrance of Blue Sage Chamber 
10:00-8:00    Hourly Lost Chambers Myth Tours, Location: Entrance of Lost Chambers
10:00-8:00    Trashformation Activity – Jelly bottles, Location: Generator Chambers
10:00-8:00    Face Painting, Origami & Bookmark Arts, Color a Fish Mural, Location: Blue Sage Corner