By Grace Huang
(CNN) — A Chinese company plans to build a full-scale replica of RMS Titanic, complete with a simulation of an iceberg collision, at a theme park in Daying County, Sichuan Province.
The RMB 1 billion ($165 million) model will be one of the key attractions at the Romandisea Seven Star International Cultural Tourism Resort, which will also feature a museum dedicated to the 1912 maritime tragedy, a man-made beach, Turkish baths and what is being called a “6D cinema.”
The park is slated to open in 2016.
The ship’s design will be based on the blueprint of Titanic’s sister ship, RMS Olympic, and produced in a shipyard in Hubei Province, developer Seven Star Energy Investment Group said in an interview with Xinhua news.
The sinking of the Titanic, on its maiden journey from Southampton to New York, resulted in more than 1,500 deaths and inspired James Cameron’s hit film.
The South China Morning Post said the replica will be permanently docked on the Qi River, some 930 miles from the nearest coast. But visitors will get to safely experience an iceberg “collision” thanks to a high-tech simulation involving light and sound effects.
“There are museums dedicated to Titanic in the U.S. and Europe,” said Su Shaojun, chairman of Seven Star. “It’s time for China to honor the spirit of human responsibility — how passengers tried to save one another as the ship sank.”
Last year Australian billionaire Clive Palmer announced he would be funding a working replica of the Titanic — the Titanic II cruise. That ship is also being made by a Chinese shipyard and plans to set sail in the same year the theme park opens.
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