The entrance to Dream City－an indoor amusement park that houses the Smurf Theme Park as well as a theme park of the Chinese cartoon, Kimbaland Guardians, in Shanghai's Songjiang district. [Photo provided to China Daily]

"The construction took around 400 days, and we're glad that the coronavirus has been controlled in Shanghai, so that we can open the park right before International Children's Day," he says, adding that the park received an average of 2,000 visitors a day in the past month.

The current operating area covers 20,000 square meters and features around 40 recreational facilities.

Lou says the park will develop its 10,000-square-meter outdoor area next year to add more nature elements.

Tickets are 160 yuan ($23) for adults, 80 yuan for children between 1.1 and 1.4 meters tall, and free for children shorter than 1.1 meters.

Shanghai-based photographer Ji Nan posted a photo of her daughter visiting the park on the Sina Weibo micro blog on June 13.

"My girl loves the movie Smurfs very much. So, I brought her to the theme park when I heard about it," the 30-year-old says during their second visit.

Other attractions adjacent to the park include the InterContinental Shanghai Wonderland hotel, built in a deserted quarry pit with 16 of its 18 floors underground and two floors underwater, and the Wonderland Area, another theme park developed by the Shimao Group featuring a glass plank road along the cliff of the quarry and a zipline.

Also nearby are the Shanghai Chenshan Botanical Garden and the Guangfulin Relic Park, an archaeological site hosting artifacts from over 4,000 years ago.