Thailand’s first urban aquarium, which boasts 400 aquatic species, opens to the public today. So I went to take a look - 450 Baht!!! - 280 Baht for kids - So you rich guys out there, please send me a detailed report of your visit. As for me I am saving up

Bangkok’s first aquarium is worth a tour, even if it does lack some depth

Upon entering Siam Ocean World Bangkok, the enormous aquarium in the Siam Paragon mega-mall, which opens today, you are struck by the unreality of the lighting. The experience is more like watching a film being shot under studio lights than seeing the rays of the sun filtered through the watery deep.

And despite its huge volume, the 360-degree fishbowl fails to create the illusion of a vast ocean because the blue wall behind it was built too close to the viewing glass.

There are more such deficiencies, perhaps temporary. Thanks to the bird flu scare, the penguin has for now been replaced by a pair of spotted seals from Japan.

So it’s not perfect. But the aquarium is still worth a visit.

Run by Siam Ocean World, a subsidiary of the Oceanis Australia Group, the “edutainment” venue is touted as both Southeast Asia’s biggest aquarium and the country’s first urban aquarium. The total area is 10,000-square meters (about the size of two football fields) and the tanks contain more than 30,000 aquatic creatures from 400 species.

After a tour, some visitors said that the slightly more realistic Pattaya aquarium would be the better of the two if only it was as big as the Bangkok aquarium.

Through interactive features, Siam Ocean World tries to set itself apart from others in Thailand, which usually limit their explanations of sea life to a list of their scientific and common names. Here, audio guides are available in Thai and English; Mandarin and Japanese will come soon.

But marine expert and travel writer Thon Thamrongnawasawat, who has visited numerous aquariums around the world, says the information provided is too brief and irrelevant to a Thai audience.

He would’ve liked to have seen the curators include more local content that visitors can relate to, such as where the creatures inside the tank can be found in Thailand. “But it’s understandable [that they didn’t], because they made it a Disney-like aquarium mainly for tourists, not Thais.”

Still, the place is impressive enough that it should meet its goal of 1.55 million visitors during its first year, even if the ticket prices are on the high side. Overall, the Oceanis Australia Group has built the thing to an international standard. But it appears that the venue is not 100-percent ready for tours yet; Thon says it opened to the public ahead of schedule.

The aquarium is divided into seven zones: Weird and Wonderful, Deep Reef, Living Ocean, Rain Forest, Rocky Shore, Open Ocean and Sea Jelly. Among the highlights are the 14 ragged-tooth sharks from South Africa, which have never before been exhibited in Thailand. The stingrays are too young and small to boast about.