Miami Seaquarium Review

Not worth the ticket price..
Disappointing.

Tanks are dirty, feel sad for the fish with the environment they re kept in. Seems like no attempt is taken to have their habitats resemble their natural environment. Concrete box s, algae everywhere...

Also, most of the concessions where not stocked properly, food not prepped or did not have the proper ingredients, not even napkins available.

Overall, a very poor experience and I hope something is done about the poor conditions of the habitats.

PS - this is the first negative review I ve ever felt compelled to share.

The shows are very entertaining and fun,it was a great experience

Really totally deception. I'm sorry but no satisfaction for my expectations.

50 dollar pricetag for a day there which pays for the shows and admission while the show we watched was fun there didn't seem to be much open or going on and really the place wasn't all that big either for it being Miami I expected tons of tanks full of various pieces of fish and I was taken back. The swimming with dolphins looks like fun and the other interactive experiences look cool.

Extremely disappointed!

I live in FL and have brought guests visiting FL here. This time both I and my guests were diasspointed as the quality of Miami Seaquarium has exceptionally decreased.

It is NOT worth your $45. I repeat, it is NOT worth your $45 plus the $10 parking in cash.

It is very small, you'll can walk across the entire park within like 20 minutes.

Shows used to be really cool years ago, not anymore. Extemely boring, predominantly a feeding session with facts delivered without enthusiasm. Dolphin and Killer Shows were literally nothing amazing or worth your money or time.

If you have literally done everything in Miami, you are bored as heck, want to spend money, and live sea creatures then I guess it could be an option.

The food is very expensive; most food places are also closed as there is no one in the park. By 3 pm, it looked liked everyone had gone home. It felt desseted.

Also, the photos they charge at the entrance, don't charge and arm and a leg. $40 for 3 photos, that you'll throw out if I dont by. Seem like a great marketting strategy.

I do NOT recommend.

This was a great place to go with a great locale. If you're inquisitive about sea life in the inner workings of the ocean this could be a great educational place to take yourself or your family. It could be a homeschool trip or day trip. You could easily spend hours here learning about our friends in the ocean. There are constant shows that go on all day long so even if you miss oneThere is bound to be a repeat later in the day. And when you are not watching the shows they are various exhibits to go to and they have various places to eat.

It's a very interesting place to visit and is always full of surprises. Its a great place to spend time with family . Plus full of amazing creatures.

Highly recommended for family time.
We had great time.

Quite frankly and in my opinion an embarrassment to the city of Miami. No sharks. Extremely limited marine life being shown. Exhibits are extremely dirty and dated. Water to hazy it s hard to see the fish.

Dont let the word seaquarium fool you into thinking these animals live in the sea. They are locked in their cages (pools) and made to perform. I'm sorry i was talked into visiting. It was a very depressing day and keeping animals captive is not something you want to lead your children into believing is ok.

My first time such an amazing experience. Really very nice place.

I would give it zero stars. I will never visit an aquarium again. After we left, we learned that over 100 dolphins and over 200 sea lions had died there due to poor care and stress of being taken out of the ocean and held captive. I also learned that their dolphins are purchased from Taiji Japan, where the dolphin drives and slaughters take place every year (watch The Cove). The tanks and habitats are way too small. The marine animals are simply floating and have no room to swim. There were numerous times I had to hold back tears to not upset my little cousin. Even she commented that the whale looked sad. I am ashamed to have supported this place that clearly only puts profit before the well being of the animals. Their animals need to be released to a sanctuary because they are clearly traumatized and distressed. Afterwards, I explained to my cousin that what we saw was wrong, I showed her videos of how they are supposed to be living, free in the ocean. Those videos were far more educational for her.

Lots of fun for the kids but is lacking in food and is a bit pricy for what it is. Needs to be updated.

Free Lolita! Such an inhumane & selfish way to milk money out of a beautiful animal that belongs in her natural habitat! Don't try to label animal abuse as "educational", and feed lies to the publicly This company should be ashamed.

I went for a 7th grade field trip and ended up crying.
Lolita, the only whale at Miami Seaquarium, is being held in a tank smaller than the minimum government requirement for holding an orca. I never realized how small the tank actually was until I was right in front of it. This is not a suitable home for an animal that swims 100 miles a day in the wild.
After I saw the horrific prison she was being kept in, I decided to do some more research. I discovered that Lolita was kidnapped from her family during a disgusting operation called the Penn Cove Roundups. She was shipped to MSA and put in a tank with another killer whale named Hugo. They performed together for about 10 years until Hugo committed suicide by repeatedly smashing his rostrum into the tank walls.

PLEASE do more research before you think about going to Miami Seaquarium. I sure wish I never visited.
Killer whales are highly-intelligent and emotional apex predators. They belong in the never-ending ocean with their families. Not in a concrete prison where they have to do little tricks for food. It's simply inhumane and unethical.

You don't love the animal when you come here. You just love being close to her.

Ok for a few hours but could use some updates. Food location staff need an upgrade to their attitudes. The other staff were excellent. I wouldn't pay full price.

Great place, specially for families. Went there with my best friend. Would recommend going before 12 pm as most shows start around this time . The only downside is how expensive the tickets are, plus you pay an extra 10 for parking. Best show on the day is the Killer whale show and also the top deck dolphins show. Will definitely come again with my family this time

A shell of it's former self, no pun intended . Aside from the animal rights issues that seem to be a hot topic and issue with this facility, the Seaquarium is just not as great as when most of us visited when we were younger, and its easy to see that not much has changed in terms of the facilities either. On top of a pretty hefty price tag is minimal shade, a few shows (some which may be canceled sometimes), and very dated attractions. The animals they have are cool, but it is difficult to see them in murky water. The entire park is not conducive to the weather, and you'll find yourself wishing for a cool breeze off the key. I also did the shallow water interaction experience, and that itself was a cool experience. However, in order to compete in this city, they're going to need much more. Wouldn't particularly suggest the visit unless it was heavily discounted or free.

Beautiful place with very cool shows and exhibits but there s overpriced food and no straws or lids for drinks. This is good for the animals but a little annoying for anyone visiting

Had a great time, and loved all the shows! Was well worth the visit. The only thing I was disappointed with, was at the gift shop, I was going to buy a cup that was marked $11.99, when she rang it up it came to $17.99! I asked if the extra $6.00 was tax, and she said yes. That's 50% tax! I didn't buy the cup, but it was really disappointing that they'd try to cheat me like that!

The Miami Seaquarium was really good, the animals were talented there is various stuff to do and many animals too see

The animals are in such a bad situation, the orca is in very poor situation, and many of theirs animals look very sick

Fun spot... good show even the even though the places little old.. go on Groupon for 50% off

Show were ok....stingrays petting was probably the best thing....overall it was fun

Great for young kids.dolphin show was good,and the sting rays were cool

Poor Lolita, the killer whale, suffering in that tiny pool ... Low quality and expensive food, I expected so much more

I love it!! Great for the kids.. yea now your older it s different but we have fun.. we got here at 10 am and left by 6pm.. so we had fun..

The killer whale and dolphin show was a great. Nice place to take the kids.

It's sad to see the animals kept in such small areas. It made me really depressed. Besides the animals none of the food stands were open. When one of them finally opened the wait was over 30 minutes. I got my food sat down and turned around to help my son sit down...while I did that 4 large white birds stole the food. After that I had enough.

Really nice day out. Loved the shows. The killer whale show is a must for everyone. The park Could do with a refurb. Some of the attractions were a bit tired looking.

It s a very depressing aquarium. They don t seem like they take good care of their animals. It s really sad. The tanks and pools for the animals are really small. The water looks dirty and not well kept. The manatee tank was dirty and seemed to be affecting the manatees. Some birds were missing almost all of their feathers. Would never again contribute to a place like this. Maybe they claim to take care and rehabilitate these animals, but just seems like they would be better off in the wild. It s really sad seeing animals in that environment.

So sad they can t clean the turtles or their enclosure! Also I cried seeing the manatees so sad and they have the driest skin and covered in filth ! Poop and food everywhere ! Where does the money go to for the park?? Not the animals!

It's better than it used to be, but it's still a smallish, low-key, marine life park. Definitely a great excursion for a family or for a couple.

The place is a little dated as some others have mentioned, but still a nice place to relax and walk around and enjoy some of the local wildlife and exhibits. The shows were all pretty entertaining and not too long, but not too short either. For a larger family, it can be a little pricey.

This was a little disappointing. Everything seems like it needed a coat of paint. I enjoy visiting aquariums, but there were only a few tanks just outside/under the dolphin performance, with one large tank adjacent that you could walk around. There was no place we found to just sit and watch the fish. Children would probably still have fun. It was fun to touch the stingrays.

Loved seeing the animals and I can tell that they are well cared for. The upkeep of the facilities could use a little bit of work though. Slightly overpriced. Overall it was a good experience.

It's a bad quality food.. I spend 54 dollars in just 1 hamburger and 2 hotdogs and I can't be able to refill the Pepsi cup...they charge you for you everything ... the water on the fish tank is very dirty..

I struggled with this place. On one hand, the shows and presentations were great and contained messages about ocean conservation and plastic reduction. On the other hand, the water quality was horrendous. The reef tank was green, algae floating and growing everywhere. I wanted to rescue the fish. Does no one clean these tanks, dive in them to scrub algae or do regular water changes? The small tanks were no different. One or two fish amongst algae filled rocks, or a rusty coral tree or some sad looking nurse sharks amongst stagnant water. It seems the focus of this facility is on marine mammals and the shows they put on, their water was beautiful and blue. The rest of the facility felt forgotten about, living creatures as after thoughts.

Enjoyed the shows and exhibits. Animals are well cared for and the staff is friendly and helpful. Great for children of all ages...very educational and entertaining.

Still recovering from hurricane effects. So don't expect crocodiles and sharks. Overall its a nice place for families

Incredibly small and disappointing, felt like a total tourist trap and a waste of money, we saw everything in an hour

I was ok if you are into that stuff. I felt bad for the animals. Most of the attractions were closed.

We used the groupon app for discounted tickets and had a super fun day. It was a Wednesday and there were not alot of people. Friendly staff.
The only issue we had was the food in the center dome area....cold fried fish (maybe the steam table was not on or to low) awful mac n cheese and bacon burger....on the bright side the chicken sandwich was good and so were the french fries. :) Definitely a place that we will visit again.

Old style florida experience to take the grandkids to.

The attractions I went for wasn't available. Park was closed during regular business hours even though there were others already inside. $60 admittance fee is really high for such a small park - not a lot to do.

Kids had a good time. Too expensive for what it's offered. I won't be coming back.

The exhibits are great though I feel were a bit limited. It seems you go here for all the shows. We went ti see the dolphin show, the killer whale show and the flipper shows but I have to say it was a bit lackluster. Perhaps more entertainment than talk of preaching about the environment and conservation of marine life. Some of the shoes dragged on and were a bit boring. Seeing 3 shows ate up our time since you do a lot of standing in line and waiting for the show to start.

FREE LOLITA!!! Take a tour/cruise and see animals on their home not in a bathtub. What are we teaching our children? How would you like your kids be taken away and slaved?

Great place to spend a couple of hours! All the shows are super fun :)

The picketers (free Killer Whale Lolita) outside the gate certainly set the tone for the day. For the 40 dollar per person rate to enter you would think they could afford a decent water-filtration system, so that visitors didn't have to strain to see fish through very murky brown water. It was too hot. The only place with credible air conditioning is in the family bathroom!

Bad place lolita the orca is suffering please free lolita and don t buy a ticket to this aquarium

This place is run-down and the animals are in small enclosures. It was sad to see the size and lack of cleanliness throughout the Seaquarium.

Very nice. Was a little disappointed that the one section was under construction but it makes way for a bigger better attraction.

I had the absolute pleasure of the perfect day at Miami Seaquarium! I started my day at the dolphin encounter with trainer (and excellent educator) Rana. Spending time with the dolphins up close was such a treasured memory, and Rana made the experience personal for each guest while teaching us so much about the very amazing group of dolphins in front of us. I would gladly repeat this experience as it was one of the most unique and special moments of my life! Big thanks to Rana for being both professional, compassionate, and a great host and ambassador for the Seaquarium s animals.

While at the park, I also was able to catch the Top Deck and Flipper shows. The hosts Ally B and Ashley were so engaging with the crowd, giving everyone a fantastic demonstration of their dolphin s abilities while also teaching us a lot of interesting facts about them! Great interaction with the children in the crowd (and those of us who are just big kids, too!). I cannot wait to see how their show evolves as they continue to work with these amazing dolphins.

In short, after only planning to spend an hour at the Seaquarium, I happily spent the whole day and left with sore cheeks from smiling at all of the activities and animals I was able to experience (the Sea Lion show was also great- pay attention to the splash zone warning if you don t want to get wet!). Can t wait to return, thanks Miami Seaquarium staff for an unforgettable day- especially Rana, Ally, and Ashley!

I had a lovely experience with the dolphins, orca and other wildlife life

They keep the mammals in very small tanks and confines - it is inhumane. And parking is $10 with $41 ticket prices... And the food at the food court is pretty weak.

Good family time, kids swimming with the dolphins was a great experience

How can you keep a whale in a pool for 45 years. That whale looked bored and the tank is so small. I feel bad for this whale and now I see why there are so many protesters out front. After seeing it for myself, I am ashamed that I even went to a place like this. Now we know. I'm sick because of this.
And FLOGGING!?! OMG that whale spends 95% of it's time bobbing up and down in the same place for hours on end day after day, year after year..... 45 YEARS OF THIS IS SICKENING.

Shocked by all the bad reviews!! We read these reviews before we went (we were going for the Dolphin Encounter) so weren't expecting much. We are from the east coast so were so happy to go to an aquarium with dolphins, whale, sea lions. Ours is WAY more boring than that. The shows were great, especially the sea lion. Our boys loved the sting ray petting area and they were able to feed them which they loved. The place may be a little old but not bad at all and everyone working there seemed super nice. We would definitely visit again when in the Miami area.

This place has really got to step it all up. The whales cage is extremely tiny and it also has 5 more dolphins in it, how does that whale survive?? And also when they have those inflatable slides during the summer, the ride operators or the staff are always texting in their phones not even paying attention to what's going on and because of that someone went down when they were not supposed to and hurt a kid, REALLY! To my opinion also the tickets are pretty over priced for such a small park. The foods prices are out of the ball park! 41$ for 3 burgers!!! Unbelievable. I do not recommend this place for people that don't like to spend a fortune for a 4 hour day their and if u want a park to be clean don't go here please!

Greatly overpriced for what it can offer, $40 per person plus tax plus $10 for parking. Look for a $4 coupon. Small place geared for little kids . Closing time is incorrect on google, says till 11 pm but it is never opened after 6 pm. There are different sea animal performances throughout the day, the last one starts at 4:50pm.

SeaTrek Reef encounter is a great experience, fell like an astronaut surrounded by incredible creatures, feeding them and touching them Unforgettable experience !!

The kids loved it! Each show had something special and distinct. It made them realize the importance of protecting ocean wildlife. I had fun too :)

As always, very entertaining and diverse. They have two touch pools and the babies were mesmerized by the tiny sting rays!! They loved the orca and dolphins show. This was their first time ever and at 2 years old, this place was exciting and fresh for them. Thanks!!!