Birch Aquarium at Scripps Reviews

Outdoor tide pools looked like poorly maintained backyard koi ponds. Several of the outdoor interactive displays are non functional- including a stationary bike with "caution" tape flapping in the breeze. The indoor tanks are nice - but this place is pretty much EXACTLY how I remember on my last visit over 20 years ago.
Where are the $18.50 fees going?

Good place to investigate fish in tanks and look at the beautiful Pacific. Younger kids will especially enjoy it but it can be fun for all ages. Seahorses, sand and outdoor exhibits are terrific!

Based on the reviews I expected to have a great experience with my family, including girls age 4 & nearly 8. However, there is not a lot to see at the aquarium itself. It s small and was very crowded in the main viewing loop. I thought the price was high for what was there. I live in the Kansas City suburbs and our own aquarium (Sea Life) is much better in my opinion - though I do understand it is a conglomerate and not run based on donations like Birch. The only thing I don t get to see in KC is a nice view of the ocean.

There were some science experiments and other fun science things for kids to look at that made it more enjoyable. Without that it would have been a total bust.

Nice beautiful aquarium! Plenty of jellyfish and sea horse varieties... Can spend 1 to 2 hours here. A kids play area is there as well.

I like it. It can be walked through fast, but, it's nice to have a local aquarium. My kiddo enjoys it. I wish it was a little bigger and more exhibits. We'll still keep going.

The Aquarium was a bit small for its price, it has its unique style and the fish are still pretty to look at.

Not a whole lot to see and the place was very dirty

Very extensive collection of Sea Horses and a great view of La Jolla Cove and La Jolla beach.

Wonderful small Aquarium. Very knowledgeable and friendly staff

Save your money if you have kids. Cost was $70 for a family of four and we stayed 1 1/2 hrs. The footprint of the building was small and half the exhibit was dead fish and posters. Monterey Bay aquarium is $8 more and 4 times the size.

Great place for contained fun for kids and educational for all ages. And my 4yo took this picture...

I had not been here since a kid and took my daughter recently. Very disappointing. Small and dirty

I love this Aquarium. Been a few times. It's not too large, smaller children can walk through and not tire too fast. Lots of learning exhibits for all ages. Some of the names of the marine life are silly to smaller children and its so funny to hear my 5 year old pretend to be a tour guide. Dont skip the massive tank with a live show! Also there is a sea turtle with an amasing back story and he put on quite the show for my family. The putside has very interactive science tables and equipment for kids to create waves, electricity, etc. There is a snack shop located outside but im not familiar with pricing. The gift shop has a variety of souvenirs. Ranging in prices.

A very lovely aquarium. Free parking and bring your student ID for a discount!

A bit overpriced for what you get. Fun aquarium and nice to go to when there are no kids.

Smaller than I thought it was going to be, but it was interesting. We had a good time.

$61 for a family of four, very small, stood in line for 20 minutes.

It's a nice place for kids, but it could be a lot better as it's near the ocean

It's a small aquarium but very interactive for kids. Its worth the trip just for the stunning views.

Beautiful aquarium, tide pools with staff to help the kids. Wonderful views of the ocean.

This is a cool place to bring the kids. The staff are very knowledgeable and teach you fun stuff.

It's not worth your money and it was a waste of time they don't have a lot of anything

Great experience for kids and adults. All exhibits appeared very clean and healthy.

This is a very nice little aquarium. It is not huge, but it have most of the stuff that, say, Monterrey has, but on a smaller scale. We took our tima and wandered through the uncrowded exhibits and did the whole thing in 2 to 3 hours. It was nice to not have to dedicate a full day to it and still feel like you did it justice. We went on a Tuesday afternoon in late June, so take that into consideration when comparing seasonal travel times.

Love this place full of science and wonder about life in the sea!
Came back for the new sea dragon exhibit. It doesn't disappoint!

What a wonderful place to go with family, friends or even by yourself
I learned so much and found the new exhibit of seahorses and seadragons fascinating. Their staff is very knowledgeable, nice and professional.
Can't wait to go back.

My students do a field trip to Birch Aquarium every year, and I can't praise the staff enough for how good of a job they do.

Amazing ocean views while you learn about sea life. They do a great job making it a fun, welcoming environment to learn. Outdoor and indoor exhibits and some are hands on. Membership is great as you can do about a 60 to 90 minute visit and come back all year long. No real reason to stay much longer unless you are waiting for some of their interactive demonstrations.

We loved and enjoyed this place. A variety of sea animals specially when scubadivers fed the fish inside room sized tanks.

Small venue with beautiful views. Great kid friendly exhibits and don't miss the tide pool.

Cute and fun. There were no Sea Lions or seals which I had seen in real life in La Jolla.

This is my kids' favorite place. We bought an annual pass and come here almost even weekend. One of my posted photos was viewing sunset from Aquarium.

Love this aquarium, it's a little small but they redid the science section which was cool, the baby shark egg sacks were the coolest part.

So much fun, though it was a little crowded, it was worth it all to get to see a bunch of amazing sea life

This aquarium isn't just nice looking its awesome! Its not to big but its surprisingly not even to small. Not to mention there is a rock great view of the ocean. It shows bottom feeders to baby sharks and not to mention admission is not as costly like others. I came here as a tourist and I do not regret coming it also gives tourists good places to visit. Much recommended.

Nice, very clean and COVID-19 safety measures in place to keep everyone safe.

My little daughter is big fan of marine life. Took her to Birch Aquarium today and she had a blast. It's a small size aquarium but fish collection is nice. I've been to many aquariums including Monterey and Chicago's but the sea horse collection at this small aquarium is unmatched. Highly recommended if you're in town and want to spend two hours with fish and sealife.