Chinese may invest in fairytale theme park

17  January 2013

COPENHAGEN — A Chinese investor could be close to investing in a theme park centered on the life of Danish author Hans Christian Andersen, the Mayor of Denmark’s Odense city said Thursday.

Mayor Anker Boye said a delegation of Chinese investors recently visited Odense, the author’s birthplace, to conduct a “research visit” into the possibility of creating such an amusement park there, he was quoted by Danish newspaper Fyens Stiftstidende as saying.

The delegation, which consisted of representatives from an investment company owned by Chinese billionaire Huang Nubo and China Development Bank, visited Odense during a three-day trip to Denmark earlier this month.

Odense city authorities have long reserved a large plot of land for the construction of a theme park exploring the life and fairytales of the world-famous 19th-century author, whose works are widely known and loved in China.

Huang, who owns a company specializing in real estate and tourism, earlier this year expressed interest in building a Hans Christian Andersen park in Denmark.

The recent visit by the Chinese delegation indicated that Huang remains interested in the park, Boye said.

“They would not come and spend their time in this city, and with me, unless they were seriously considering investing here. They were excited by the authenticity that Odense has to offer,” Boye said.

According to Danish media, several previous attempts to build a Hans Christian Andersen amusement park have failed.

However, Danish Business and Growth Minister Ole Sohn has recently urged private investors to develop the park, saying it could be a multi-million-dollar project with international relevance and could be comparable to world-class amusement parks such as Disney World.

Located on the island of Fyn in central Denmark, Odense is among the country’s oldest cities. Its architecture and culture, including a Hans Christian Andersen museum located in the author’s former house, are a draw for regional and international tourists.