Monterey Bay Aquarium Photos & Information


FAMILIES VOTE MONTEREY BAY AQUARIUM AS #1 AQUARIUM IN U.S. AND #3 TOP RATED OVERALL FAMILY ATTRACTION. In California, Monterey Bay Aquarium consistently ranks in the Top 10 list of amusement and theme park attractions for attendance.

Aquariums and Zoos

America’s families say the Monterey Bay Aquarium is the best aquarium in the United States and the third top rated overall family attraction in the country, according to the first-ever Zagat Survey U.S. Family Travel Guide. See other California Family Vacation ideas.


“One would have to be a very cold fish not to love the best aquarium in our Survey. Beautifully set on California’s rocky, gorgeous coast within 30 miles of Big Sur and Carmel (and near historic locale Cannery Row), it’s a favorite for a fantastic family outing thanks to stunning exhibits ranging from touch pools for toddlers to big shark tanks. With so much to enjoy, your biggest challenge may be getting the children away from the sea otters to see the rest of the fabulous displays. Just outside, you can watch sea lions, whales and other ocean dwellers in their natural habitat.”

mbay1.jpg (7813 bytes)Among U.S. aquariums, the Monterey Bay Aquarium ranked ahead of the National Aquarium in Baltimore, the Audubon Aquarium of the Americas in New Orleans, the Newport Aquarium in Cincinnati, the John G. Shedd Aquarium in Chicago and SeaWorld in Orlando.

Among the overall 10 top-rated attractions, the aquarium rated just behind the Magic Kingdom (Walt Disney World Resort) and SeaWorld’s Discovery Cove, both in Florida, and ahead of the St. Louis Zoo, Disneyland, Cedar Point amusement park in Sandusky, Ohio, Grant’s Farm in St. Louis, the San Diego Zoo, the National Air and Space Museum in Washington, D.C. and Disney’s Typhoon Lagoon, also in Florida.

The Monterey Bay Aquarium celebrated its 20th anniversary in 2005. The award-winning aquarium offers families an enriching, educational and entertaining visitor experience in its nearly 200 galleries and exhibits devoted to the diverse habitats of Monterey Bay. The aquarium is home to more than 35,000 animals and plants representing 650 species of fishes, invertebrates, mammals, reptiles, birds and plants found in Monterey Bay and other regions of the world. It also offers touch pools, auditorium programs, feeding shows, and the Splash Zone family gallery.

About Monterey Bay Aquariumm:  One of Monterey's early canneries, Hovden, is home to the Monterey Bay Aquarium. More than 6,500 live creatures, a hundred galleries and exhibits recreate the Monterey Bay's many habitats, from shallow tide pools to the vast open ocean.  A million-gallon indoor depiction of the ocean located in at the Outer Bay Wing, a towering three-story kelp forest and touch pools highlight this coastal facility. 

 

Always on the cutting edge, look for Splash Zone to create some huge waves through 2005. Described as "like a children's museum inside an aquarium," it will provide a colorful hands-on gallery with special play areas to engage the imaginations of young visitors, inspiring them to appreciate the ocean. A colony of South African blackfooted penguins, leafy sea dragons, colorful coral and tropical sharks are a few of the 50 species featured.   

 

The world's  largest  jellyfish gallery includes a one million gallon depiction of the sea. A unique bubble window puts families inside the exhibit to observe the birds up close while hands-on displays explore penguin communication. For the under 3-year olds, there is a crawl-on waterbed and soft-foam baby pond. Nearby, granite rocks with crashing waves create a backdrop for older children to create their own waves and learn how different animals swim, hang on rocks and ride the waves.

 

Based on years of examination and surveys of how children and families learn from exhibits at the Aquarium, the new Splash Zone supports the mission to inspire conservation of the oceans. 

 

Open daily from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., closed December 25.  Holidays and summer hours are 9:30 a.m. to 6 p.m.  For parking, use the 1,000 car parking garage on Cannery Row. From May 24 to September 1, Waterfront Area Visitor Express (WAVE) shuttles link the aquarium with waterfront attractions, hotels and motels in Monterey and Pacific Grove.

 

Located on Monterey Bay's historic Cannery Row, the Aquarium is 110 miles south of San Francisco and 330 miles north of Los Angeles. 

 


Aquarium - Page 2 /  Website- www.montereybayaquarium.org   

 

Monterey Bay Aquarium Photos & Info
886 Cannery Row, Monterey 24 Hr. Info Line  (831) 648-4888  Main Number (831) 648-4800

 


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