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June 25, 2015

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Tonight鈥檚 not the night for ticketless naturalists

TICKETS for a new program of night tours at the city’s botanical gardens and zoo sold out in a matter of hours recently, much to the chagrin of those who missed out.

Local woman Michelle Chen said she was looking forward to taking her child on one of the nocturnal nature trips arranged by Shanghai Zoo, Chenshan Botanical Garden and Shanghai Botanical Garden this summer.

“It would have been fun for my 4-year-old, but by the time I applied for a ticket online, they’d all gone,” she told Shanghai Daily yesterday.

“I feel disappointed and just hope the parks arrange some more tours in the future,” she said.

In the comments box of the Shanghai Botanical Garden’s ticket sales website, a person complained that for the past three years he had tried without success to buy a ticket for a night tour.

Officials from the three attractions said the number of people allowed to go on the night tours and their frequency were restricted due to various safety concerns and a lack of skilled staff.

Zhang Zhe, an official with the Chenshan Botanical Garden, claimed that it takes “up to two months” to prepare for such an event, and that they can be held only on Fridays or at the weekend.

Pan Xiuwen, who works at Shanghai Zoo, said that her first priority was the animals in her care.

“We can’t let too many people come in as it would disturb the peace and well-being of the animals. We also have to consider the safety of our visitors,” she said.

One person who knows just how much fun the tours can be is Wang Hongmei, the mother of a 5-year-old boy.

She took her son on a night tour at Shanghai Botanical Garden last year.

“He loved it. The tours can inspire children’s love of nature,” she said.


 

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