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Profile of Coral World International |
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 A
brief history
Coral World International
and the Coral World Marine Parks were conceived in the mid-1970s as the
brainchild of entrepreneur Morris Kahn and world renowned reef biologist
David Fridman. Their vision was based on the concept of a revolutionary
kind of aquarium, an underwater observatory where visitors can enjoy
close-up encounters with coral reefs and other aquatic forms of life in
the Red Sea, without getting wet.
The company developed the
Red Sea Underwater Observatory, also known as Coral World Eilat, an
innovative marine park which opened to the public in 1975. As the first
land-based, undersea tourist attraction, Coral World enjoyed immediate
success.
Bolstered by the
popularity of this new concept in marine life observation, Coral World
International expanded its operation with additional marine parks: Coral
World St. Thomas opened in the U.S. Virgin Islands in 1978. Coral Island
Bahamas, located on the private island of Silver Cay, off Nassau, opened
to the public in 1987 and incorporated a marine park and a luxury villa
hotel. AQWA in Perth, Western Australia and Oceanworld in Manly,
Australia joined the expanding Coral World International family in 1991
and 1992 respectively. The Maui Ocean Center in Hawaii, was opened in
1998 and the latest addition to the family – The Palma Aquarium, opened
its doors in 2007. Coral World marine parks are visited by millions of
visitors year after year.
The concept
There are two types of
Coral World Marine Parks. The first can be built only at coral reef
sites where the water is pure and clear. The second can be built at
practically any seafront location. Each type presents its own
distinctive and extraordinary undersea experience. Eilat, St. Thomas and
Nassau are home to the first type of Coral World. At these sites,
visitors cross a bridge over the reef to enter the underwater
observatory. At their leisure, they can observe fish and other reef
dwellers from this location in the depths of the sea. This undersea
experience, previously available only to divers and scientists, has a
profound and lasting impact on all visitors. The underwater observatory
is complemented by a marine park on land which maintains a unique, open
water circulation system, enabling live corals to be displayed together
with many exotic fish and invertebrates. The second type of Coral World
is found in the marine parks at Perth and Manly in Australia and in
Palma de Mallorca in Spain. The heart of this attraction is an acrylic
tunnel, in which visitors take a journey under the sea. Here they view,
as divers would, the excitement of underwater sea life.
The corporate structure
Coral World International
Ltd. (CWI), a corporation registered in the Isle of Guernsey, was formed
in 1988 as the parent company of its operating subsidiaries. Coral World
International is owned by the Kahn Group which is active in diversified
international business, including Aurec Ltd., a major holding company.
Aurec maintains subsidiary companies in the fields of software,
advertising, and cable television. Each of CWI's subsidiaries is a
chartered or incorporated company in the country in which it operates.
Source: official site of
Coral World
International (2014)
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