Review of Birch Aquarium at Scripps

4 years ago

Quick facts:

Quick facts:
Size: Medium
Est. Time in Aquarium: 2 - 2.5 hours
Price: $19.50 (Adults) $15 (children +3)
Best Feature(s): Seahorse/Seadragon exhibit.
Recommended for: Families

The Birch has 6 main exhibits.(1) The Hall of Fish is the largest and contains approx. 40 displays, large and small, containing exotic fish, squid, starfish, crabs, manta rays, eels, turtles, etc. The hallway you walk through is dark and is illuminated by the blue light shining from the aquariums, so it adds to the underwater ambience. It can be a bit cramped in there on Saturdays, since the hallway is not very wide and can be noisy as well because of the kids running around.

(2) The Oddities exhibit primarily has dead specimens in glass of unusual underwater creatures. Some are very weird and creepy looking but is probably the most interesting exhibit.

(3) Expedition at Sea is an exhibit that takes you into the world of an ocean research vessel that gives a peek into their job and mission. There aren't any fish displayed in this exhibit, so I spent the least amount of time here.

(4) Seadragons and Seahorses contains about a dozen aquariums of these creatures. Who doesn't LOVE seahorses?!? They're so freakin' cute!

(5) Shark Shores is the smallest 'exhibit' and is primarily a medium sized water tank containing a small shark species.

(6) The Tide Pool plaza is an outdoor exhibit that gives you an up close view of other sea creatures such as sea stars, lobsters, crabs, etc. Although sometimes it can be somewhat empty.

Other than the exhibits there are some great views of the ocean at the Tide pool plaza and a small water-themed play area near the shark exhibit.

The Birch is a good way to spend an afternoon with the family. Although I would suggest not going on a Saturday as it can be quite busy and noisy. There are alot of interactive aspects and things kids can touch and play with within each exhibit so kids can definitely keep themselves busy here.

The main reasons I am not giving the Birch five stars is #1 the price; its a nice aquarium but its not very big and I feel that $20 per adult is alot. A family of four would spend nearly $70 for 2-3 hours. #2 While they do have a variety of species here, I wish they had a few larger species of creatures, outside of some large fish and the sharks, there isn't much else that has that WOW factor.

Recommended for San Diego locals but if you're visiting San Diego as a tourist I think its ok to leave it off your itinerary as there are other similar attractions (e.g. SeaWorld) that I think are better use of your time.