A new Happy Valley park in southwestern China may see Chongqing becoming a center for many such attractions

Dancing cartoon characters, screaming visitors on roller coasters and hospitable service personnel marked the opening day of a new Happy Valley park in Chongqing in southwestern China on July 8.

Covering an area of 500,000 square meters, the new facility is expected to give a shot in the arm to tourism in the municipality, says He Yousheng, a senior official with the local government.

It fills a void. Until now, there was no large-scale international theme park in Chongqing.

The park is expected to draw 3 million visitors annually.

Many came from outside Chongqing to visit the park on opening day.

A visitor surnamed Wu drove two hours from Guang'an in Sichuan province with her family.

"Although Chengdu also has a Happy Valley park, we're closer to Chongqing," says Wu.

She says her son had been pestering her to go since hearing of the park.

The Overseas China Town Group built its first Happy Valley park in Shenzhen, Guangdong province, in 1998.

Over the years, the group has built parks in Beijing, Shanghai and Tianjin as well as Chengdu in Sichuan province and Wuhan in Hubei province.

Chongqing's rapid economic growth and high speed rail and air connection are part of the reason that the Happy Valley park was set up here.

Last year, the municipality received more than 450 million visits from home and abroad, up by 15.1 percent over the previous year.

Tourism income was 265 billion yuan ($39 billion; 33.5 billion euros; ￡30 billion), up by 17.5 percent.

Meanwhile, other theme park chains are making plans to set up shop in Chongqing.

The Six Flags theme park chain from the United States is expected to start operations in 2019 and later this year, a cartoon park, a European-style resort, a polar region ocean park and a flower park are scheduled to open.

A water park next to Happy Valley opened on July 8.

It was also built by the Overseas China Town Group and covers an area of 180,000 square meters.

The park features one of the world's biggest wave-making pools.

Happy Valley, which is able to withstand increasing competition thanks to innovation, got the "Chinese Famous Brand" tag from the trademark review and adjudication board of the State Administration for Industry Commerce last year.

Speaking about the new park, Wang Xiaowen, president of the Overseas China Town Group, says: "It's the first time we have tried to build an innovative theme park using a complex landscape featuring a river, a valley and cliff.

"We are hoping that the park can contribute to tourism development in Chongqing.

There are nearly 50 facilities at the park, and they stand at various heights, creating a three-dimensional impact, says Wang.

The sky wheel Eye of Chongqing is 40 stories high and is believed to be the sixth-tallest in the world.

The flying roller coaster, which resembles a moving dragon, moves 360 degrees on green rails.

The Twin-Tower Heroes are two iron towers that can spring you from the ground to the top in less than two seconds. And before you know where you are, it sends you into free fall.

Also, there are programs that cater to visitors who seek less-exciting experiences.

A water feature runs through a primitive rainforest-like area and allows participants to go through twists and turns featuring a whirlpool, giant stones and a waterfall. High-pressure water jets ambush you to dial up the thrill.

A flying cinema offers a giant sphere screen and flying seats that change angles to merge you with the film.

Local elements featuring gourmet food and culture have also been integrated into the park to distinguish it from its counterparts.

Performances will also be staged to spice up the visitor experience. They include magic shows, dinosaur and pirate-themed float parades, light shows and a Halloween carnival.

To help visitors explore the park, a mobile app has been developed for ticket purchases and reservations.

Transportation is easy, too. The park is roughly a 30-minute drive from the city's downtown. And the city rail service can also carry visitors to the park.

With several theme parks coming down the pike, it seems Chongqing will ultimately become the place for those wanting to play.

[email protected]

(China Daily European Weekly 07/28/2017 page22)