Thought I would just see fish in a tank. Yes, the first tank had fish, turtles, crab, starfish and other things, and you could pick them up or touch them. The large tank with sharks and other fish was interesting but the best part was the sting ray and shark feeding we got to do. It was a weekday before lunch so there were very few people there. Feeding the sting rays was not something I thought I would ever do. Very eerie putting your hand in a tank for them to eat the shrimp between your fingers. Feeding the little sharks was fun too, with a stick. Those sharks know you have food! What a nice surprise in Tarpon Springs.
...very rough. We have visited this spot several times over the years. While still fun, upkeep has slipped some and the variety of fish has decreased as well. Regardless, I could still spend hours just feeding the rays...it's a unique experience and worth the admission price alone. The staff is energetic and knowledgeable with ready answers for any questions you might have. This place is still worth stopping in if your at the docks.
We love animals so when we saw there was an aquarium...we were there! It is family owned and on the small side, but that is what makes it great. It isn't swarming with ankle bitters like other places. The people who work there are enthusiastic and eager to show you animals and tell you about them. They have shows throughout the day. Get your hand stamped and you can come and go all day. Pet stingrays. Feed and pet stingrays and sharks. $1 for a small cup of food. GREAT value as we paid $5 for less food at Clearwater. Highly recommend this place. It is not an all day thing, so you can shop and eat at the Sponge Docks inbetween the shows.
We went there and they pump in the water from the Gulf. It's a small aquarium, perhaps family run, but the tanks are great and it's worth the visit. My husband was a commercial diver for 20 years, and he usually remarks on the health of the fish in the tanks. At other more expansive places, he has told me the fish look unwell, but here he said the fish looked very healthy. I would recommend it to you.
I had to agree some w/the writer who was saddened that they're not 'helping' the animals as much as putting them on display. it's a small town but very well meaning aquarium, a little bit of a step back in time, w/quite a few young staff who know their stuff. price is pretty nominal and it's a nice cool (literally) place to visit, to see many of the critters from the gulf. Puffy the puffer fish is a delight and all the kids who saw him during the show we saw were delighted by him and his following the diver, spitting water up at her when she was getting her food ready, etc. you can find bigif coupons in Entertainment book. $7.75 for two adults or 1 adult/1 child is well worth it! touch tank right by front door has some neat diamondback terrapins (turtles), horseshoe crabs, many varieties of starfish, etc. staff offer lots of information about everything! big old snapper turtle to right when you come in has the most interesting camouflage eyes!
Is you go with kids ,it is ok and them you can enter in and out anytime you want, also they have a play area near them with bounce house they have fun there even that is an small area, give me the opportunity to go to the stores went they having fun
Great dive show. Better than the show at Ripleys Aquariums I have visited. Also a nice variety of pythons and boas. Easily worth the price of admission.
We didn't know what to expect so we had no pre conceived ideas of what we would see. Lots of big fish in the tank, Grouper, Shark, and a host of other species. It was interesting to watch the diver feed the fish. They also had some very huge snakes in glass cages and even an Alligator.
Went there today. Was a cute little aquarium...UNTIL....I spoke with the lady about the animals..in particular one shark whose nose was eaten up a bit. I asked her what happened..she said she didnt know probably when they caught him. I asked her if they nurse them, she said no. I said so basically you guys catch them just to have, not help, she said yes, but we try to catch them as babies ( OK SEAWORLD!) she said the shark was trying to migrate when they caught him. These animals here are not there to be helped! they are there for sheer amusement. I wanted to walk out right there, but i didnt, I went on back, the poor nursing sharks in just about a foot of water. So horrible. and the snaked! i dont even like snaked but come on..these huge snakes in a small display where they cant even move around..especially the one on the corner. These people are sick and should be put out of business no animal deserves that!
I did not want to spend $25-$30 to go to a big aquarium, especially considering my kids are 9 and 5. I am so glad I found this one! It was only $7 for adults and $5 for children with a coupon I found. We actually spent 3 hours there! They dive with the sharks and feed them, they feed the eels, they let you touch a lot of different sea creature, and we spent a long time feeding the stingrays. It is only $1 to feed the stingrays, and compare that to $5 for stingray food at Lowry Park Zoo! So there is a lot to see there, even if it is small, and we loved it! If you have teenagers, maybe a bigger aquarium would be a better choice, but for us it was perfect. Everyone who works there is really friendly and they let you leave with an hand stamp and come back in later. Free parking behind the aquarium.