Clearwater Marine Aquarium Reviews

Very cool experience. So nice to see the expansion. A must see.

Everything about the experience was amazing! Will definitely be taking family when they come into town as well

It's a small place but the atmosphere here is awesome great great place for family visits

They do amazing things to help Florida's aquatic wildlife. You can see the passion in the people that work and volunteer here.

Very hot day not many places had air. Disappointed were weren't told the story of Winter. We had smaller children with was and they were interested.

Our family really enjoyed our visit, we definitely will be back!

All money goes to help rehab sick and injured animals. That's about as good as it gets.

Got to do the otter interaction... Highly recommend. You get to feed and pet the otters. The tanks are clean, you can easily see the fish and animals. Opportunity to feed the stingrays and several other animals.

This isnt a really great aquarium. The money goes to help wildlife in and around the oceans near them, which is a great thing, but there's not a lot for you to actually see.
They only have maybe three dolphins (the one with the movie) and two other rescued ones.
They have maybe 4 turtles, 2 otters, 25-30 fish (which aren't exotic really) one nurse shark and four or five rescued pelicans, one eel, two puffer fish and some hermit crabs.
Later in the day,(around 2 pm) all of the animals were asleep, so it was like watching paint dry. They only have two or three shows with dolphins, the rest was them talking about the movie.

I commend them for their work, but I wouldnt really classify this as an aquarium. When I went, (May 3rd, 2018) they were constructing more buildings. Maybe next year there will be more. But for now, just donate, don't waste your time.

Not a typical day at the beach; this is a very cool working aquarium and rescue facility. They have sea otters, turtles, dolphins and more! We took the research vessel tour added to our ticket and were not disappointed. The onboard marine biologist was great and gave a very educational presentation about Clearwater Bay. The sea life demonstrations were enlightening. Must see Winter!

Paid extra for Sea Safari boat tour and Behind the Scenes Tour. Sea Safari worth it. Although our guide was very good, avoid the Behind the Scenes. Boring! You stand in hallways and look at pictures. Plus the aquarium itself is dingy and small. Super crowded for a Monday.

MSo cute and quaint. The shows were really nice. It great to see animals that have been injured get such great care. Don't go support large aquariums that most thier marine life...go here and support LOCAL marine life that needs us!

Disappointed at the high price for what was available at the time of my visit.

Worth a trip as they do alot to help sea life in the area. Kinda pricey & not that much to see.

My daughter enjoyed meeting winter. They added a second location in town that is included with ticket and adds some value to the visit. Also includes free transport by boat and trolley. Overall feels reasonable for the price with second location and boat ride. Worth checking out, especially if you have children that like dolphin tales movie.

If you watched the Dolphin Tail movie, and like seeing where movies were made, this is the place for you. If your looking to view and actually learn about many different types of wildlife in a comftable, climate controlled enviroment, visit the Florida Aquarium in Tampa Fla. Clearwater marine aquarium is a small, unairconditioned aquarium with vary few specimines. It is difficult to justify adminission costs being as high as they are when the entire place can be viewed and read in less than an hour, and that is while fighting the crowds of other disgrunted, sweaty, and disappointed patrons. With that said, thier empahsis on wildlife rescue, rehabilitation and release is admirable, but does not come close to justifying the lack of features or the blatant milking of the Dolphin Tail movies box office sucess.

Too pricy....super small...
Barely no fish to see...not worth it ...

Had a great time here, the family really enjoyed it. The staff was very knowledgeable and was great when it came to answering questions.

We brought our girls to see Winter and get a photo taken. Unfortunately my little one fell on the shrimp trap exhibit and broke her elbow on the concrete. They said there are normally mats under it, but they must have been getting cleaned. They need a second set of mats to put down and switch out for cleaning. This way kids are always safe.

Expensive for very little to actually see.
Two adults at a cost of $68(with parking) and we were there approximately 30 minutes.

There were less than 10 viewing tanks.

I can't even say I was disappointed because I'm way past that....more like ticked off.

We love what CMA does and stands for, and have a great experience each time we visit...

Hi, I'm Spanish, Canary Islands. I've seen both movies and the movie 2 was not very closed to me. When are you going to make a third movie? I am looking forward to it so a long time. I love winter and hope.

Hello, I am Spanish, Canary Islands, I have seen both films and the second film was not very closed, when are you going to do the third? I have been waiting for you for a long time. I love winter and Hope.

Had great experience at Clearwater Marine center! Got see Hope & friends in the pools! Demonstrators were great very informed!

Don't get me wrong winter is cool but there's not a lot going for it

Great work they are doing here. Love the rescued animals.

WOW!!! Incredible place to visit. The story behind this place is awesome. Getting to see Winter and Hope was as great as their story!

If I could rate this place negative stars I would! It s crazy how bad they rip people off here, and we came on a half off deal day! I m so glad we did not pay full price because it s not worth what they charge! You don t get to see any animals and they have half the place blocked off to where you can t even get close enough to see the animals! The only reason they get so much business here is because of the movies that were made and we didn t even get to see the dolphins from that anyways! I would say do not waste your money or your time there are much better things that you could do for the same price!

In awww of the work they do. Staff was very knowledgeable and friendly. However I did take the dolphin boat ride because the walkway to the boat was a little scary for me as it didn't have any side railing but the staff was understanding and supportive and refunded my money. The work they do is selflessness and so important to kuddos CMA.

I m from India but many times i wish that I want to visit this aquarium many time and I want become a friend of all marine animal

Good to see at least once. We've been twice, wish there was more to do or see but appreciate that it's a rehabilitation facility.

I have been wanting to go here for about 4.5 years to see Winter and Dolphin. The experience was excellent and it was a blast!

Nice little place to visit. Boat ride was fun, but limited wildlife.

Small, but adequate considering it's primarily a rehab facility. Don't go there expecting the fancy facilities you find at the big aquariums. It is wonderful for rehab and you learn a lot about rehab.

While the mission of Clearwater is admirable the advertising is not. It is a rehab facility only. It should not be classified as an aquarium. If you intended on seeing sea life spend your admission for a true aquarium. Our children loved the dolphin movies but were truly disappointed with the exhibit.

I really enjoyed the work they do there in rescueing the animals.

The aquarium is small but well maintained. It's unlike other aquariums in the sense it's a working hospital aimed at rehabilitating injured marine animals. The aquarium has after hours admissions which is half the cost of general admissions (post 4 pm). We took the behind the scenes tour. The tour was 45 minutes long and very educational. Our guide was awesome. She showed us how injured marine animals are rescued, nursed back to health and released back into the ocean. The aquarium also houses 2 resident dolphins winter and hope; the stars of the movie "A dolphin's tale".

Very nice place. Its amazing how so many people volunteer to this place. I recommend the private tour as they explain everything. The aquarium itself isn't big (takes 2hr max to tour. 3hr with the private guide). But they are building a new aquarium right next that will open summer next year.

Just don't do it. We came here after a week at Disney World around Christmas time and this was the place that made us uneasy about the exploitation of animals and crowds being packed into tight places. Also not stroller friendly as there are many staircases that need to be climbed and they are not wide enough for people to comfortably pass on both sides, so you end up having people waiting on both ends to move. This place simply is not designed for the crowds it is bringing in and they have very little worthy of seeing beyond what you see in the movie. We only paid for the general admission though - your experience can be enhanced if you're willing to shell out more money. For instance, their website says it costs $140 per individual for a picture with Winter. They have limited spots throughout the day and they literally bring a person out in front of the entire crowd and advertise that you too can sign up for this experience if you plan to come back another day. That was when we knew it was time to hightail it out of there. Once we climbed down some stairs and waited 5 minutes to walk through one room because of the crowd.

Having been to several aquariums this is by far the most disappointing place that we have been too. First this is an animal rescue facility and not a typical Aquarium venue. It is very small and very crowded with very little room to see what's going on in any of the tanks or presentations. We did try to watch a presentation given about otters. The speaker was totally disconnected with the audience, the microphone was terrible, and we really couldn't even understand what she was saying. We did not elect to participate in any of the additional activities you can spend more money on such as feeding animals or going on a dolphin tour, because the base ticket price was already very expensive. For the price we paid we expected a whole lot more. We would strongly recommend the Mote Aquarium in Sarasota if you're willing to do the drive. It has way more to look at and way more of everything in general. Probably the thing that tips this one is the fact you're forced through a gift shop on the way in, into extremely narrow hallways to get anywhere and then you are forced back out through the gift shop on your way out. I think they have plans to remodel at some point or build a new facility. It's just my two cents but I would honestly skip this one until that is complete.

Love that they support rescued sea life. The expansion looks like it will be amazing!

Full disclosure: since my girlfriend and I are teachers, we were admitted for free.

They are currently expanding and upgrading the entire facility. Due to this there are a few pros and cons. The cons are that the space is compacted and exhibits are small. They have also stopped doing many of the shows.

A bright side of this is that guests are scheduled in 3 hour blocks. Do not arrive early. Our arrival time was 1:30PM and we arrived at 1. Everyone seemed to arrive early. All of the exhibits were crowded and there was no room to observe or learn about the animals there. By 2PM all of the first exhibits were empty and animals were easy to view. Another pro is that all of the staff and volunteers were exceedingly helpful and wanted everyone to get the most out of their visit. We especially enjoyed learning about the rehab part of the facility.

I would also suggest, if you're bringing kids, to watch A Dolphin's Tail as the movie is based on the true story of one of their dolphins.

Again, I received free entry so the admission price could make a difference. I did enjoy my time there and do plan on returning once everything is updated

What a great local rescue center for marine life. We enjoyed seeing all that Clearwater Marine Aquarium had to offer. Many may not know that this is where A Dolphin Tale was based!

Though this was my second visit here, nice to see Winter the dolphin again but winter is not looking too healthy these days. The aquarium has a huge section that is still under construction, probably best to wait until construction ends and get the full experience.

The first time I went they had a separate building with all the artifacts from the Dolphin Tale movie, that no longer exists and artifacts are no longer a part of the admission. Kind of mind blowing, but if you are in the area please check it out while Winter is still around!

This is an unique place. It's an actual working animal rescue hospital. You do get up close to the animals. I didn't care for all the movie pictures. I'm not sure why a picture of an actor in a speedo belongs at an aquarium.

Really friendly staff, They are working hard to help injured animals. Good luck with your renovations.

Extremely small facility. Staff very knowledgeable.

We had a n enjoyable day. Behind the scenes was informative, but had higher expectations.

Great mission. Took kids from 7yo-15yo. Over all just ok.

Fantastic marine rescue animal hospital made famous by A Dolphin Tale movies. Their incredible work is funded in part by the excellent educational exhibits which include a few dolphins (including the actual Winter), otters, sea turtles, sharks and fish. They do a fantastic job being personal. Please do not expect a big entertainment venue or full blown commercial aquarium. This is a teaching hospital with a personal touch. Love their staff and their mission.

I wish I could give this place no stars! Extremely disappointing. The amount of people they let in was obviously FAR past capacity. God forbid there was an emergency, people and children would have been trampled trying to get out. I mean, shoulder to shoulder. Adults were even bumping into my TWO YEAR OLD son, somewhat pushing him to the side to see the exhibits. There needs to be a cap on sales once a certain amount of tickets has been sold so everyone can enjoy the aquarium. The staff we encountered were most helpful and apologetic....especially a young lady named Jennifer. We were there 15 minutes and gave up and demanded a refund. Safety and customer experience should exceed the greed for money from this aquarium...and that is definitely not the case here. We will NEVER return and I will NEVER recommend this place to anyone!

Loved this place... As long as we have lived here we have never been. Thoroughly enjoyed.. Definitely will be back

The parking & trying to get in isn't worth it. Staff couldn't care less for a person's handicaps it's like not their problem.

Awesome place! Staff was very knowledgeable and friendly.

Education and recreation all rolled into one. Take the grandkids!

Great place for the family! You can tell all the employees here really care about what they do from the animal care team to the food stand to the parking attendants. It was such a pleasure to have visited here can not wait to go back after the construction is finished on their expansion.

I absolutely love this place- what an amazing experience. I just want the visitors to keep in mind that this is a rescue, rehab and release facility so some items can be a little expensive but keep in mind that the money also goes to feed and house the animals who can not be released back to their home and the ones that are rehab-it helps with their medical care. Please keep up the wonderful work that you do and I am looking forward to my next visit. Now that I live in Florida I plan to visit at least once a year.

Small not a normal size aquarium. Great staff who are very friendly and knowledgeable. Great place to go for a short field trip. Kids loved it and we would definitely go again. Clearwater aquarium is closer to being a large marine hospital then an aquarium but it was surprisingly informative and a great quick trip.

Amazing place. Awesome tour. Loved seeing winter and hope. And the photo op was fantastic. Wonderful place to visit

Loved it more in 2010 before the movie, was more personal then, but they are doing wonderful things for marine wildlife.

Very disappointed. One of the worst aquariums I've ever been to. The only thing they have going for them is "Winter" and "Hope".

Its cute , very small inside not worth the money , you can see all the attractions in about 1hour ! They plan on adding on to the aquarium hopefully they finish soon.

I am going to give them a 5 star, just because of their great effort to save the Marine life, and the great volunteers who were very attentive. But the ticket prices are too high for the short tour. Also I know that they are in the middle of a renovations project, but still 26.00 dollar for something that you can tour in a half hour, no. Hope that after renovations things will get better. I love Marine life.

Very educational. Lot's of available staff to answer questions. Does great things for the community helping aquatic wildlife. Great place to go in the afternoon on your way back home from the beach.

What a treat and what amazing employees, we did a sea Safari on the boat and it was educational and delightful! Great guides and a lively experience. Would definitely go back.

With limited site seeing they explained well. But not worth for the entry fee. Considering as donation for the aquarium rated with 3 stars

i want to go there i recently watched dolphin tale 1 and 2 and the movie was good but i also wanna know was the part where winter and the new dolphin real where the other dolphin freaked out because she didnt have a tail so did that actuallly happen

We got to see Winter, that was cool but we thought there would be more to do. We took our 2 three year old grandbabies and we were in and out in an hour(it was a 2 hour car ride there). We got kicked out of the sting ray exhibit, which was the only interactive one, because someone paid to feed them. Wished we had fine to the Florida Aquarium instead.

Always love seeing the aquatic life and the great staff.

The kids loved seeing the movie stars Winter and Hope and all their friend's! The entire family enjoyed themselves.

My son has been attending the summer camps for 7 years and loves it!!

Great learning experience about animal rescue and my daughter loved seeing the dolphins in the movie

Nice. Good place to see the good deeds people do for wildlife.

I was disappointed with the size and amount of displays the day we were there. The entire facility is being remodeled and a huge tank for the dolphins is being built so it was more of a construction site. I love what they do but the price is high for the hour it takes to walk through.