There are two versions of the online reviews regarding the experience of playing at Qingyuan Changlong.

High EQ version with beauty filters: “There are African elephants and giraffes, and you can also take a small train to cross the "African savanna" to watch the animal migration, it's amazing.”

Low EQ version without filters: “Insufficient budget, seems rushed, just a piece of barren grassland with some cattle and horses, and they dare to call it Africa.”

It has to be said that in this Qingyuan Changlong meme creation competition, Guangzhou locals are still the best, after all, they are closer, have more money and free time, and it's normal for them to want a change of taste after playing enough at Guangzhou Changlong.

However, tourists whose palates have been spoiled by Guangzhou Changlong, after a trip to the rushed Qingyuan Changlong, not only did they not have any good things to say, but they also posted a dissuasive review.

Netizens' criticisms mainly focus on the high ticket price, excessive walking, strong smell in the new hotel, barrenness, and resemblance to a farmhouse.

With the attitude of "no investigation, no right to speak", the author got up early on the opening day, January 25th, and came to this Qingyuan "No. 1 project" that had been delayed for ten years, and also interviewed several tourists of different ages.

After an on-site visit and a walk around, the overall feeling is that there is no harm in comparison.

Those who have been to Guangzhou and Zhuhai Changlong and those who haven't have completely opposite opinions on Qingyuan Changlong.

Among the tourists we interviewed, those who haven't been to other Changlong parks gave Qingyuan Changlong a score of 4 (out of 5), which is generally satisfactory.

However, veteran players of Guangzhou and Zhuhai Changlong mostly gave Qingyuan Changlong a score of 2-3, and without hesitation, ranked it below Guangzhou and Zhuhai Changlong.

It's true that it's easy to go from frugality to luxury, but difficult to go from luxury to frugality.

Tourists who have tasted the "fine food" of Guangzhou and Zhuhai Changlong find it difficult to accept the "coarse food" of Qingyuan Changlong for a while.

I have a vivid memory of Ms. A from Guangzhou, who was sitting on a bench under the "sacred tree" during the lunch break, boredly passing the time.

Before starting the conversation, I was actually quite surprised, because at least 90% of the tourists that day came with their families, so the opening remark became, "Are you here alone?"

“Oh, no, my son and husband went to play the roller coaster, I'm not interested.” She answered without hesitation.

“So, what do you think of Qingyuan Changlong?”

She smiled disdainfully, stared at us for a moment, probably thinking we were park staff, so I immediately added, "Just tell us what you think."

She then relaxed her guard, "It's just average, my husband complained that it was boring as soon as he came in. I feel that this place is only suitable for taking children, with only some carousels and bumper cars, which are too childish. Unlike many projects in Zhuhai Changlong, such as the pirate ship, adults can also have fun.”

“What about the animals? There are giraffes, elephants, rhinoceroses, zebras, parrots, peacocks, various birds, and Qingyuan chickens...” I continued to ask.

“If it's just to see animals, I'd rather take my child to Guangzhou Changlong Bird Paradise. There are more animals and performances, over 300 kinds of birds and other animals, and you can also feed and learn about them. The ticket is only about 100 yuan, which is more cost-effective.”

In Ms. A's opinion, Qingyuan Changlong is inferior to Guangzhou Changlong in terms of both entertainment projects and animal richness. It is more suitable for young children under 10 years old, and the ticket price of 260 yuan is not cost-effective.

Many Guangzhou netizens have similar feelings, "There are not as many animal species as the 25 yuan zoo in Guangzhou."

From my perspective, the number of animal species in Qingyuan Changlong is not small, but the area is too large, and it is a free-range way of imitating the grassland ecosystem, so the animals are too scattered, making it look a bit sparse and not compact enough.

In fact, after experiencing it, if you are not a "tourism special soldier", you may not be able to finish visiting a Forest Kingdom in one day.

Because the area is too large and the animals are too scattered, it indirectly leads to netizens' complaints about "not seeing animals" and "walking until their legs are broken".

A small detail is that when taking the flagship project "steam train", it is often difficult to find the animals mentioned by the staff. Sometimes, after a lot of effort to find them, the best shooting position is already lost.

In the interviewed tourists, the problem of unclear signage in the park was also mentioned many times.

Let's talk about the good side. Tourists who gave Qingyuan Changlong a score of 4 basically haven't been to similar parks, and Qingyuan Changlong is their first stop.

Among the tourists who gave high scores, the most representative are children. Children have a lower threshold for happiness, and the various animals in Qingyuan Changlong are enough to satisfy their curiosity.

A funny scene is that in the first half of the park, the staff's lizard attracted a large number of children to watch.

Secondly, all the facilities in the Forest Kingdom are very friendly to children.

From the Twin Baby Theater performances to the jungle climbing in Hero Valley, and the ladybug airplanes and bug hunter water battles in the Little Bug Big World, it's practically tailor-made for children.

It's worth mentioning that whether you encounter a staff member or an NPC in the park, they will all proactively greet tourists without exception. Stroller rentals are also available at the entrance.

It's clear that Qingyuan Chimelong is putting a lot of effort into service, aiming to leave a good impression on customers.

However, the current "basic" version of Qingyuan Chimelong still needs improvement. Attracting affluent tourists from the Pearl River Delta during this Spring Festival will be challenging.

For local tourists, the trial operational ticket price of 260 yuan also lacks sufficient appeal. A simple calculation shows that for a family of two adults and one child, including meals, the cost for a day easily exceeds 1000 yuan.

In 2023, the average annual salary for employees in privately-owned units in Qingyuan was 61,139 yuan, with a monthly average just over 5,000 yuan.

For Qingyuan's middle class who seek experiences, it's highly likely that Qingyuan Chimelong will not only fail to attract these nearby tourists but will also lose them to Chimelong in Guangzhou and Zhuhai, as Qingyuan is only over an hour's drive from Guangzhou.

However, it's worth noting that currently, only areas such as the Forest Kingdom are open in Qingyuan Chimelong. The future direction of Qingyuan Chimelong remains uncertain.

According to the plan, Qingyuan Chimelong has a planned area of 96 square kilometers, equivalent to 9 Guangzhou Chimelongs and 2 Macau, with a projected total investment of 30 billion yuan. It is truly Qingyuan's "number one project".

With the opening of Qingyuan Chimelong, Qingyuan's tourism industry has higher expectations.

• The "Qingyuan City Action Plan for Promoting High-Quality Development of the Tourism Industry and Supporting the "Hundred Million and Ten Thousand" Project (2024-2026)" sets new development goals: By 2026, the city aims to receive 30 million tourists annually and achieve a tourism revenue of 30 billion yuan.

  
  

In comparison, in 2024, Qingyuan received a total of 19,527,000 tourists and achieved a total tourism revenue of 2.074 billion yuan. There is still a gap of 10 million tourists and nearly 10 billion yuan to reach the goal of 30 million tourists and 30 billion yuan in revenue.

The future performance of Qingyuan Chimelong is crucial to achieving the city's overall tourism goals.

It is reported that the first phase of the Qingyuan Chimelong Holiday Resort includes Chimelong Forest Kingdom, Chimelong Forest Self-Driving Tour, Chimelong Giraffe Castle Hotel, and Chimelong Forest Hot Spring Park.

It is predicted that after opening, the peak number of weekend visitors is expected to reach 50,000, with an annual visitor volume of 8 million.

Currently, the Qingyuan Chimelong Forest Kingdom is in operation, and the flagship project, the Forest Self-Driving Tour, is expected to open in the middle of the year. Whether Qingyuan Chimelong can maintain its strong start remains to be seen.

We will continue to monitor the tourism market!