(Yicai) July 6 -- Legoland Shanghai Resort, the biggest theme park dedicated to the world-famous plastic toy bricks, celebrated its first anniversary yesterday. Visitor numbers have far exceeded expectations, with attendance surpassing two million, giving the park the fastest debut-year guest growth of any Legoland globally.

The anniversary celebrations included on-site events held throughout the park, where visitors participated in themed activities. Visitors were seen enjoying major attractions, including the high-thrill roller coaster ride known as The Big Lego Coaster.

Opened on July 5 last year, Legoland Shanghai Resort is part of the global Legoland theme park brand operated by the UK’s Merlin Entertainments, which runs multiple Legoland parks worldwide, including in Denmark, the United Kingdom, Germany, the United States, Japan, and South Korea.

Shanghai is the latest and largest, covering about 318,000 square meters and costing about CNY3.6 billion (USD530 million) to develop.

Legoland Shanghai Resort’s first-year revenue was evenly split between ticket sales and in-park spending, according to its management office. The site’s main retail store has become the top-selling Lego retail outlet in China, with cumulative sales exceeding 230,000 Lego mini figures.

Speaking about future developments, John Jakobsen, Merlin’s chief strategic development officer, said that more global creative experiences will be introduced into the Chinese market. There will also be localized innovations, he said, adding that the resort is the London-based company’s largest project to date.

Lego is made by The Lego Group, a family owned Danish business founded in 1932.

A 2.7-meter-tall birthday cake made of Lego bricks is unveiled in Lego Square.

Dancers perform for an audience.

Visitors ride The Big Lego Coaster.

Children play with Lego bricks in the park.

Visitors admire the miniature cityscape in the park’s Miniland.

Editor: Tom Litting