Clearwater Marine Aquarium Reviews

Nice little aquarium. Will be nice when they expand. They do good work.

One should must visit the place. All marine animals are well taken care.

Wonderful mission! The animals aren't only there for entertainment, they are rehabilitated and released, if possible!

Loved seeing winter and hope, followed winters story since the beginning

I imagine the work they do for rescue is good. I'll give them that. However:
1. The workers are not that friendly - Numerous young workers standing guard at the stingray section, the sea urchin tank, etc. seem quite bothered to have to interact or answer questions.
2. The tanks for the dolphins are horrid. I'm sure the dolphins are better off than being thrown back into the wild, but wow these poor things have to swim in such tiny enclosures. A hotel swimming pool is bigger. I thought this was supposed to be some ultimate example of a great place. It's not.
3. If this is a dolphin rescue and wonderful habitat, why do you make them do tricks? That's creepy and unnatural.
4. The tanks for the sea otters are tragic. I think it's a travesty to keep these poor animals in that concrete mess. Why are they there?

Don't come to this - it's not entertaining by any stretch - it's depressing. It is truly some kind of third-world looking place once you're inside. Sad, very sad.

My daughters raved about Winter and Hope for way too long!! We decided to take a family trip and surprised them. Although its a small marine hospital, they are making a huge impact in the world. We are a military family and absolutely love what they are doing. I love that my daughter has been so intrigued by this place that she now whats to be a marine biologist and we are all for it! If you have not checked them out, please do so, they are a non profit hospital only working to save our wildlife!! <3

The staff is very willing to answer any questions and tell you more information if prompted. It is important to keep in mind that this place is for rehabilitation and not purely entertainment. Visiting here is a good time to learn about what work they are doing not necessarily to see a bunch of wildlife. They have many options if you want to do extra things to get closer to the animals. They also have shows going on with staff often so there are always new things to learn and watch.

over priced not really much to see yet..lots of construction going on,but for a good cause of animal rescue.

Fun must see get there early to avoid crowds and the drive tword the beach as it gets busy

Such a unique aquarium! We loved seeing Winter and Hope. Nicholas the dolphin was also super amazing! Love all the rescue, rehabilitation, and release work they do for Florida's marine life!

Amazing, highly recommended going here if you are on vacation in Clearwater beach. Everyone is super nice and feels like home.

It was so much fun. I got to see Nicholas,sea Turtles sea otters , pelicans, Winter and hope

You have to come a visit this place, it's amazing how they take care of the sea animals. The sea safari great. Support this great group.

It was crowded, however, the staff was very nice and informal !

Soo much FUN..We ALL loved it (6) Took the tour in rescue & treatment center. Our tour GAL was AWESOME & VERY FRIENDLY & INFORMATIVE. Gift shop awesome selection !

Great place to see how they helped injured animal. Winter and hope the dolphins are really there. Great things to learn. Money well spent, you can spend the day or just a few hours. The volunteer are very proud and make your experience wonderful.

A lot of fun. Great information. Watch the movie Dolphin Tale 1st!

I liked it, but nothing has really changed in 10 years. Kinda boring. Definitely NOT worth the like 30$ to get in.

Fun little park for a day trip. It was cool to see the dolphins from the movies "Dolphin Tales." The one trainer we talked to was very nice and passionate about his work.

This place is so small and it makes it so hard to see anything there because of the lightning and how small it is. Also, I don't consider this an Aquarium, I consider this as a Winter and Hope Museum. Defiantly not worth the money

SO BEAUTIFUL. WE HAD A GOOD TIME HWRE. EXPENSIVE AND OVERPRICED BUT WORTH IT.

Lot of fun. Very informative love how they treat the animals there

Grate time very amazing staff would recommend thia place its small but fun the we will be going back when the new place is open

Very informative it's not your typical aquarium but fun all the same and they are a non profit so your ticket price and donations go to a great cause the new building will be cool once they finish construction

Love the Clearwater Marine Aquarium. Would recommend going fun and people there are very knowledgeable and friendly.

Nice place. Three stars is average. It was average. They are doing some massive construction. So, it will be better once they are done. Of course, the attraction is Winter the Dolphin. The people are super nice. We enjoyed the boat ride event which was the best part and pulled up the score.

Save $26 per person admission and go out for lunch instead. I m willing to bet that this aquarium is the dirtiest and dingiest in the United States. You can't see anything because the windows are small and they don't clean them. I actually felt bad for the animals. One dolphin has no tail and another dolphin has bad scarring due to third degree sunburn and these idiots make them perform all day everyday. There s not a lot to see here as we covered all the exhibits in 15 minutes or less. NOT YOUR TYPICAL AQUARIUM.

Wonderful experience! We got to learn the real stories behind Winter, Hope and Nicholas! He's a cutie! AND our son made friends with Ollie the Otter! Lol!

Did a behind the scenes tour and spent longer there than expected....great job folks!

The very home of Winter and Hope is amazing, and I'd be obliged to recommend to someone to visit that aquarium!!!:)

Nice but not nearly as nice as tbe Norwalk Aquarium! It needs sprucing up and modernizing. Tbey are in process of construction as I type.

This place seems to really care about it's animals and works toward getting most back into the wild. Although smaller than I expected I really appreciated the staff's hard work and efforts.

This aquarium is absolutely not worth the money. You can barely see any of the animals from above the fenced in areas. Only one of the four dolphins is visible unless you watch the dolphin show but there was not any seating available to even watch the show. Other than the four dolphins there s only three other exhibits to see and again you can barely see the one of two aquatic animals in the exhibit. This aquarium is not worth the money whatsoever. Worst aquarium my family has been to. Our aquarium in our zoo in Toledo Ohio is better than this one and for cheaper too!

Huge disappointment. Very expensive for very little entertainment so you need to be satisfied that your money may be going to help rehab marine life.

This is a true non-profit organization. Its primary mission is for the animals. Tourists are there to help keep the place running. They're currently building an upgraded facility to better care for the animals. It's well worth a visit.

Fun time with my family, very interesting and we learned a lot! Absolutely loved seeing the all the different types of sea animals.

Fascinating and very informative establishment. The staff were friendly and upbeat.

Great place to learn about all the great things they do for the ill animals that they rescue and rehabilitate. Seeing where the movie Dolphin tale was filmed and seeing winter the dolphin was truly amazing. They have great things for the kids to enjoy!!

Wonderful place to visit, a marine hospital! Exhibits are fascinating.

Emphasis on rehabilitation, volunteers and staff were so enthusiastic. Animal lovers of any age will learn something new.

We did the normal tour, the sea life Safari cruise, and the behind the scenes tour.

All were good. The facility is smaller and was pretty full when we were there. All of the staff were friendly and seemed to be very interested in the mission. Will be nice to see what the expansion does for them.
Displays are pretty informative about their history, and the efforts to aid wildlife.
Was neat to see Winter getting suited up.

Very cool place !!! Fun to see the stars from the movie.

Not enough to see ,but this is a good rescue operation, go see it help, sea life out

Loved this place. Everyone supper friendly. The animals were taken good care of and the place was very clean. It's a cool experience for all ages not just for kids. You can take animated pictures with Winter the dolphin. You also get to see where Winter is kept and trained.

My three year old had fun but we were pretty much done with everything in 45 mins. I think it is better for older kids. Definitely a place to learn, it is more a rescue than an aquarium.

Cabellas has more fish than this place. Total tourist trap, not an aquarium. Read the reviews, 22 bucks to (possibly) see a dolphin that was in a movie

I didn't think it was a good value. The place is doing good work however lacks sufficient areas for public viewing if there is more than a crowd. It was also difficult to hear the staff over the intercom. It was overcrowded the day we went perhaps that is the reason for my decent. Despite that I remain quite dissapointed. The Tampa aquarium was a much better deal in my opinion. As far as the Clearwater aquarium goes I would suggest you give a blind donation you would perhaps feel much better about the orginization and the mission overall.

It's a nice place to be and enjoy nice staff every where

Wonderful animal shows. Very informed and friendly trainers and volunteers. A must see. Very educational.

Very nice experience, pretty cool thing they have to help conservate sea creatures... no so big, easy to navigate.

A beautiful experience to see the dolphins up close, I know that this is a beautiful memory for my children.
The area is very clean.

Loved this place! We did the behind the scenes tour!

I loved dolphins all my life and this movie inspired me.thank you!

We loved the concept of visiting an actaul marine rehab center. It was hard to figure out when talks were going to be. The staff was knowledgeable and caring. We love Winter!

A lot of people - a great experience for movie and dolphin fans!

Take the tours to get the most out of this place. They do amazing work:

This is not your traditional aquarium. It is a rehab type of aquarium. Still a nice place to see wild ocean sea life. Great for families! Home of Winter, the dolphin from the movie Dolphin Tail.

Best for families. Extremely crowded & overpriced, even on a weds. Wish I could have gotten a refund. Not enjoyable.

We just love making the trip from MN to see Winter and all the animals. It has really changed since we were here a few years ago.

One of the best aquariums we've seen. Staff was super friendly and knowledgeable. Especially happy that all of the showmanship of the exhibits are broken down and explained in terms of how each behavior benefits the animal's rehabilitation or quality of life.

It is a great facility the staff was super nice. I just wish there was more to do for the price. However I do understand it is not cheap maintain and rehab the beautiful animals that they help.

Great place for kids, i think its a little over priced thow. Its a small aquarium with cool animals thats about it

If you are a fan of Dolphin Tale, enjoy animals, and shows , you will love this.

This experience was one of the best ever ! It's to much to write but it's well worth the trip for adults and kids of all ages.

Its a mediocre aquarium
Dont get me wrong
Staff is accomodating and professional

The Dolphins
The only attraction as far as im concerned

Are great and if you are going for a 100+ Dolphin experience go for it

They dont even have any show times
The trainers just come out and randomly work with them

How's that sound for money's worth on $60 for 2 people and $6 parking?

Was literally like 2 other tanks besides main dolphin tank

A tiny sting ray tank a tiny hermit crab tank

Oh but tons and tons and tons and tons of newly added gift shop space and places to buy overpriced items and food

They quote 3 levels
Lol
Most of the tanks take up multiple floors

Disappointing all the way through unless you are paying the extra $100/hr for the real show

The admission is just so youll be disappointed and they are hoping spend 400%? 600%?
Of ticket price to get an animal experience

Excellent grouper. Best meal I've had in Clearwater so far.

Went on Winter tour at night of Christmas lights around the harbor. Tour was nice. Personally, we did not leave enough time for us to enjoy the aquarium.

It was wonderful to see all of the animals that are being rehabilitated here! I had no idea that Winter the dolphin with the prosthetic tail was rehabilitated here and lives here. It was fun to watch Winter& companion Hope play and show off for those of us watching. So much to see,including watching the trainer get in the water to feed a blind sea turtle. I would highly recommend visiting here and plan to go back next year!

If you visit here be sure to hear Winter's true story!
All of the staff here are super friendly. Thank you guys for all of your hard work taking care of the animals at the Clearwater Marine Aquarium! Keep up the hard work!

Can't wait to see what the expansion brings. Loved seeing Winter and petting the stingrays!