Birch Aquarium at Scripps Review

Some very unique exhibits. Incredible view of the beach and ocean. Very cool that it is both in-door and out-doors.

Really cool aquarium. Not that I know any others but this one is really awsome I live pretty far from this one but it's worth the hr drive.kids love it

This place is cool. We went on a Saturday and there was a ton of kids. Maybe not the best for a nerdy 21-26 crowd to go at that time.
The view was dope. Walk out to that back porch. It's got a b e a u t i f u l view of La jolla.
Wish it was bigger / cheaper whatever
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Great little aquarium! A couple of the employees were kind of rude though.

Best bargain in town! Spectacular ocean views of our beautiful coast plus some of the best oceanography exhibits and fish specimens in our state. Don't overlook this local gem, a public attraction of the highest quality.

Great small aquarium overlooking the jewel of San Diego.

It is a very nice start of a day at this aquarium, volunteers are both nice and informative. I like tide pool a lot, not only for the view from the balcony, but also for the touch experience :)

This place was very cool not a massive park like Sea World. The tanks are setup very well making it easy to see everything. However you will not find a massive tank (a tunnel tank) with sharks the size of a human swimming above you. All in all though we enjoyed our time and I would definitely recommend it to those with smaller kids.

A short experience, but some great views and lots of fun for the kids

Wonderful aquarium for the price. The seahorse and sea dragon exhibit is worth going for. The shark exhibit needs some work which they are working on.

Well done with good explanations and courteous staff

Great displays. There isn't a lot to see but what they have is well though out and enjoyable.

This place is magical! I could spend hours....no, days here! Fun to go alone, with a friend, or the whole family! Bring a camera too.

Always great for the kids. Stay away from weekends can get really busy but still worth the visit.

It's ok. Not much to see. Kind of boring. The view of the beach is beautiful!!! Staff is very friendly.

Small but well done, and some great toddler activities for the younger set

Great way to spend an hour or so. Seahorses are a highlight. Turtle feeding Tuesday at 3pm

Was way smaller than I expected, the whole experience can be done in about an hour pretty easily. But it was a fun hour and the kids all seemed to really enjoy the exhibits and the touch pool areas. The Halloween decorations were nice but really more of a gimmick than an actual experience. Overall a fun little trip, just don't go in with high expectations and you'll be fine.

An incredible aquarium. God parking. Close to the beach. Plenty of marine exhibits and interactive features for kids. Extras include whale watching and diving off-site depending on time of year.

Birch Aquarium is one of my favorite spots in San Diego. They have amazing exhibits and a great view from the outdoors area. You can see clear across to La Jolla Cove and beyond.

Nice View to watch the sunset. Best place to go surfing!!!

I have been here twice and I am not really impressed. I am a former saltwater tank owner. The aquariums themselves are mostly boring and don't see all that well maintained. There is only one really nice salt water reef tank at the aquarium. It's probably a better idea to drive up to Long Beach to visit the Aquarium of the Pacific. One positive is that there is a rather large turtle living in one of the smallish tanks. Not sure how much space turtles need but I'm wondering why it isn't in their largest display.

Awesome displays and scientific information. I especially enjoyed the awe of the children at each display.

Very clean. Very nice staff, great sea animals so many different fish species it was an amazing experience

This was an amazing aquarium experience. The animals were all healthy looking and most areas had an employee there to explain things about the organisms. There were also a lot of interactive options for all ages; a 20 year old and 5 year old were able to explore wind power.

A great introduction to sea life, in a beautiful setting overlooking the Pacific

One of the best aquariums in California if not the whole West Coast. It has many many different varieties of ocean life as well as a nice tide pool area in the back. It also overlooks the ocean which is extremely gorgeous with a full 180 degree look out to the ocean 4 miles on end. It is a great place to take younger kids as well as older folks and anywhere in between. The tickets aren't very expensive and it is well worth the money. There are usually many people there so expect some crowds but during the weekdays there are not many at all

Beautiful aquarium with lovely exhibits! The staff were friendly knowledgeable and interactive!

Was cooler last time. Is awsome that they have the live tide pools.

Friendly people. Great variety of aquarium set ups. 30 minutes to view everything if you are not doing the hands on activities which are great. The outside section is high up with a great view of the ocean, great for pictures and to relax. There are some great tide pools they set up for hands on learning. The gift shop has beautiful and unique items. You will have to take a souvenir for sure!

It's a great aquarium. There's not as many people as other aquariums I've been to, which is very nice. The price to get in is good and parking is free for a few hours.

Lots of knowledgeable and friendly volunteers ready to help you out on your research assignment :)

Short and sweet visit by anyone, particularly for kids it will be enjoyable indeed.

The Birch Aquarium at Scripps is one of the finest educational and science outreach facilities in the world. Various and mysterious species of marine vertebrates and invertebrates await curious minds to find them swimming along the realistically constructed marine habitats the experts have deviced for their enclosed existence. From the wonderfully colored Flamboyant Cuttlefish to the enormous Sea Bass or Giant Grouper, they are all there to be experienced and enjoyed by the hungry for knowledge and by those who may just want a small bite.

A great stop when traveling up the coast near La Jolla. The Birch Aquarium does a fantastic job making you feel comfortable and knowledgeable with the ecosystem of Southern California and what makes it unique. The fish and displays are beautiful and the plaques and exhibits are informative. They are currently installing a new exhibit which should open in Spring 2019.

We had a great experience on our field trip with fourth and fifth grade students from Gilbert cellars point elementary School. Very informative educational and most of all an excellent experience thank you!

Very pleasant experience, beautiful displays, welcoming atmosphere! Recommend & will return with the family

The aquarium is quite nice. But it's a little small for its price.

Great place to take the family. Affordable place to take the family. Great learning place!

Just as good if not better than the Monterey Bay aquarium.

Another decent visit. Family oriented and educational for all ages.

This is a very nice aquarium with many modern displays. They are continually expanding and changing. They have naturalists working to educate visitors. My favorite thing was sitting in the kelp forest area watching the huge eels. There was also a giant sea bass in there that was appropriately named, because it probably weighed several hundred pounds! Don t miss the outside exhibits, like the touch tank and the sharks.

Live the sealife! The Aquariums were setup like the natural habitat the sea creatures live in.

Great place to bring little ones, I would recommend getting a membership it pays for it's self in 1st visit if you use guest passes.

We enjoyed the aquarium. There was so much more than I expected. Love the interactive areas.

It's a nice smaller interactive Aquarium. The Experience cube on Bioluminescence is interesting. How does light respond to Sound or Vibrations?? They could have a Theater to be more instructive.
Last night author of Baja's Wild side Daniel Cartels gave an interesting presentation on his research on Baja California.
Yet...
Personally I prefer Aquarium of the Pacific as it's a lot more to see.

Amazing! A good place to get an in-depth knowledge of Pacific Northwest Ocean

Great for the Elementary age child and Marine Life enthusiast. Also, fun tank talk and fantastic views of Pacific.

This is a really nice small aquarium. We purchased the annual membership because it paid for itself with only a couple visits. The kids always enjoy coming here. Parking is free, which is a big plus too.

Relaxed aquarium with plenty of larger areas making it ideal for toddlers.to enjoy with low attention spans

Birch is the best!!! Wonderfully curated and specializing in local fauna - the best kind of aquarium! Also a fabulous education department - highly recommend

While on the smaller side, the exhibits are well presented and educational. There are plenty of options for children such as touch pools and interactive exhibits about green energy. The sun deck also offers great views of La Jolla shores and the area.

Nice place. Friendly staff. Nice displays. Great for kids.

So Amazing!! I saw beautiful creatures I never even knew existed. This aquarium has a lot to do if you have children and it s so well done. I am so happy I had the chance to go, this is a wonderful awesome place!

Was here on vacation from Seattle lived in San Diego for many years but never made it to the aquarium great exhibits not as extravagant as Seattle's Aquarium but awesome just the same

Great visit and nice view on La Jolla. The whole tour can be done in less than two hour.

Wonderful variety of animals on display and caring staff that answered our questions.

Simple, but fun activity for the weekend. Takes two to three hours to enjoy everything.

They are doing wonderful things for the future of seahorses and dragonhorses

Fantastic and family friendly aquarium. Free parking for up to 3 hours. Nice views on a clear day.

Supports a great cause. Great learning experience. Volunteers were knowledgeable and interactive with guests. Good place to spend a couple of hours.

I was disappointed in the aquarium. There weren't many exhibits.

I always learn something and see something new just for the price of a movie!

Excellent and funny place to learn about fishes and the importance of taking care of our planet earth.

Nice aquarium with lots of fun fish and other aquatic life to see. My only complaint is that it's a touch small for the price ($20). I did the entire aquarium in under two hours -- and really enjoyed it -- but the price didn't quite correlate with what I got as far as number of animals, exhibits, activities, etc. Still worth a visit though!

Staff is very knowledgeable, answered my hundreds of questions about marine life. My little nieces and nephew loved the hands-on experience. The place is very small though, and was packed with people the day we went.

Great for kids and adults. Touch tanks, a wide variety of dishes and invertebrates, and an outdoor playground.

Wonderful place to take your family and learn about the local sea life.

Nice spot to bring kids. The entrance fee is the same as the much more impressive New England Aquarium though. The outdoor interactive area was nice. The tide pools were a bit lacking.

Small but cute. Nice to learn about local fish but not only that. Beautiful view on La Jolla as well!

Very interesting place for all ages. A lot of interesting facts can be discovered about Ocean and the life in it. Other than exhibits there are water playground where kids and adults can have fun. Outside there is a tide pools. It is open daily from 9am to 5pm. Tickets are expensive from $15 to $20, depends on age.
Parking is free and in walking distance from the entrance.

I feel like they take very good care of their sea life here at the aquarium. Beautifully clean tanks. Informative information on the sea life. Amazing variety. You can tell they really care. We love this aquarium.