Want to ride a 14-foot fiberglass fish, while surrounded by 29 other giant, shimmery fish, and immersed in a music and light show? Yeah, you do.
The Battery’s long-anticipated undersea-themed ride, the SeaGlass Carousel, will be ready to whirl next week — and The New York Times was given a preview of all that beautiful, fishy, twirling.
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The domed silver structure houses 30 of the custom-made fish seats. The concept was dreamed up by WXY Architecture + Urban Design, with George Tsypin, the designer of Broadway’s “The Little Mermaid” and "Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark," working to translate the aquatic vision.
The idea is to give visitors the sense of freely gliding through the ocean, rather than just rotating on a typical carousel. Projections of fish swimming in New York Harbor will surround riders, and music will echo throughout the three-and-a-half-minute ride.
A $5 ticket to the carousel will give you a ride on one of the huge fish, but you'll also get to watch a show where other visitors are gliding around, so you can get a full experience of the unique space.
The $16 million project, initially meant to open more than two years ago, had been slowed down by rough winters, lingering effects of Hurricane Sandy and, more recently, a delay with needed city permits.
The project, which was most recently slated to open this spring, is funded by both government and privately raised money.
The aquatic theme has more than a connection to the New York Harbor — its also meant to evoke the original New York Aquarium that opened in Battery Park's Castle Clinton in 1896 and drew millions of visitors before closing in 1941.
The carousel is slated to open to the public on Aug. 20. Rides will run 1 p.m. to midnight on the opening day, but regular hours are 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. — for now, your chance to glide is first-come-first-serve.
