Cool Public Aquariums

[Scott1980]

Hey Folks,

I'm in North Carolina and I've been to pretty much every NC Aquarium. Last month on vacation I visted The Ripleys Aquarium at Myrtle Beach, SC. 2 Thumbs up, I loved it. The 350 ft underwater tunnel with sharks everywhere was the most incredible thing I've seen. Can anybody recommend some other cool aquariums to visit?

Scott

 

[ReefLady]

NEAQ (New England Aquarium) is pretty awesome. Their main tank is fascinating. Not a lot of corals, but overall, the aquarium is excellent, and very well known on a national level.

>>New England Aquarium's web site<<

They also have a cool webcam >>here<<

I remember the Aquarium in Chattanooga, TN being pretty neat.

 

[silverain420]

Well, nowhere near SC, but if you are in California... Underwater world in San Francisco is great (not as large as I would lke though...) Also Monterey Bay Aquarium is pretty nice. There is another in San Francisco (can't think of the name) that is really large and expansive. (I want to call SF bay aquarium - but I could be wrong.)

 

[reefrunner69]

The Florida Aquarium is very nice and if your in Central FL, you really should go to SeaWorld

 

[snapcrackler]

The Shedd Aquarium in Chicago is very cool IMO, lots and lots of very huge, large, medium and small tanks, and also an indoor ocean/indoor stadium with dolphins etc.

This is where I saw garden eels for the first time ever and have since been enamored with them. There is also a very nice restaurant inside where you can have a nice glass of wine and a great lunch to take a break.

 

[ostrichkiller]

the one in buffalo ny is a joke. last time i was there i was not impressed at all. but i have also been in the one in SC you talked about and it is amazing!!! two thumbs and a toe!

 

[Flipper]

The Maritime Aquarium in Norwalk, CT. Excellent place with an IMAX theatre to boot!

 

[Allivymar]

One of my best buds is a volunteer over at the Maritime center Flipper; we go visit fairly often...love the touch tank *grin* and I've helped her build boats in the boat building section.

I always have a soft spot in my heart for the NY Aquarium in Brooklyn; prob cause I grew up there.

The tank at the aquarium in Boston (the big round one) is one of my favs; some day, when I'm rich, I plan on owning a similar one

Btw Flipper, you must be pretty close to me; I saw in your welcome post your in Southern NY? I'm in Westchester

 

[ddcboys]

Monterey Bay Aquarium in Monterey California IS SIMPLY OUTSTANDING. It had a jelly fish exhibit this is simple unbelievable. The kicker is the grand finally it has a 1 million gallon tank that had massive sharks, tuna, turtles, and others. Simply Outstanding.

 

[ReefRaff]

Ripply's also have an aquarium simmilar to NC in Gatlinburg TN. just over the NC TN border.

 

[shawmutt]

Whatever you do, stay away from the aquarium in Key West! You pay $9 per person, and all it's just one big room! You literally walk in the door, stand in the middle of the room, spin in a circle, and you've seen the whole place! Of course Key West also has the coolest "aquarium" I've ever been to--diving on Looe Key .

The Baltimore Aquarium is the best I've been to, but I haven't been to many different ones to judge. I'm going to volunteer there as soon as my wife gets a full time job (she's student teaching). They take certified diver volunteers to feed the sharks and rays! I'll probably just be helping maintain the tanks though.

 

[Allivymar]

They take certified diver volunteers to feed the sharks and rays!

Wouldn't they give the sharks heartburn?

 

[Guest]

The National Aquarium in Baltimore, Very cool.

http://www.aqua.org/

Someday I want to get to the Moterey bay one, hear it's awesome.

Also heard great things about the Tennesee Aquarium. World's largest FW aquarium. http://www.tnaqua.org/

Oddly enough, I also saw a neat one in Minnesota, inside the Mall of America! Not very big, but neat stuff. Biggest snapping turtle I've ever seen!

 

[Scott1980]

Sounds like California has all the cool aquariums. Speaking of small ones though. The Bass Pro Shop at Concord Mills Mall in North Carolina. Has a Good Sized tank that's supposed to be a replica of NC Freshwater Lake. It was cool had ducks on top and Bass and all sorts of stuff in it. Ripley's at Myrtle also has a stingray petting zoo, I didn't even know you could touch those things but it was incredible. Or maybe there's some you can't touch still. Slimy things though

 

[TankGirl]

I too love the Baltimore aquarium. The Ripley's one is really great, too. I visited Atlanta a couple of years ago and was dismayed to learn that they had no aquarium. A big city like that ought to have one! If you go to the keys definitely don't spend money on visiting an aquarium - hop in the water with yer snorkel!