Monterey Bay Aquarium Reviews

Lovely place to visit while in Monterey or during a slow day if you're a local. Bring snacks or lunch and find a spot outside.

Very expensive for families. Aquarium is not as large as it might seem, seeing all exhibits is perfectly doable in two hours. Place gets unbelievably crowded most days with hundreds of people standing in front of tanks for feedings. Lots and lots of kids, if you're not a family this might get overwhelming. A+ for the conservation efforts, but only a C for the experience at that price.

Expensive, but a high quality experience. Food is good. Really love the ocean side patio, it's refreshing to step outside when spending hours inside. Exhibits are top notch.

Visiting aquariums around the country is one of my favorite things to do. The Monterey Bay aquarium is the best I've ever been to. Be sure to give yourself a full day to explore the entire facility.

This aquarium ruins every other aquarium in the country. Amazing experience!

Absolutely loved it here. I'm a big fan of Otters and I was really happy to get so close to them. We also booked a tour and our guide that looked a bit like Clint Eastwood was really friendly and knew a lot about Otters as well. Looking forward to my next visit.

Great family place. There are family restrooms, they allow snacks and water, and there are lots of activities for the kids. Also, there is always something new to look at when we go.

This aquarium is quite nice, their are many exhibits that are well maintain and contain animals that most wouldn't see normally. If you don't take your time it might seem small.

This is the aquarium that was used for inspiration for Finding Dory but no Sigourney Weaver voice.... The kids had a ball here. We watched them feed the otters, saw the scuba divers scrubbing the tank and doing fish feeding and explored for hours.

The price to get in at $50 each may give you a bit of sticker shock, but as you will see as you go through, maintaining something of this magnitude is incredibly expensive but well worth the price of admission. The facility is 322,000 square feet, has 35,000 animals and over 550 species.

Their various tanks hold 2,300,000 gallons of water that are pumped in direct from the ocean through 2 enormous tubes to ensure that the fish are able to get all the nutrients they would normally get naturally from the water and they have to employ over 500 people plus an army of 1,200 active volunteers to keep it all going.

This place must be a monster to manage but still manages to maintain its magnificence.

After we watched the feeding show, they invited anyone who wanted to see up on the roof from where the diver enters the tank. They got to see the diver climb out, and he came over and talked to them and even let them in the gate for pictures and to push the button which turned the tank agitator back on.

We really appreciated all the conservation theme they followed throughout the exhibits and gave us the chance to talk about why it is so important.

Really, this is a special place. Plus, the food at the cafeteria is actually pretty good! The experiences kids had here will be remembered for a life time!

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There's a lot to sea here so don't flounder around and get to exploring!

The staff is great, facilities are clean, exhibits are educational, and the family experience is uneatable.

So much fun, and the conservationist approach to aquariums is so much more refreshing.

Really surprised at how well kept the entire place is. Very clean tanks and exhibits, and awesome fish. Was expecting to see more of the larger species though.

It was my 1st time here I've been wanting to come visit this aquarium for years finally got the chance to go sense it was about 4 and a 1/2 hours away from me it was well worth it they closed at 8:00 p.m. the day I visited they had live music and they were also serving alcohol with food inside as well aquarium was awesome they had all types of fish some I have never seen before the cool thing about it was also that the actual Bay or ocean is actually part of the aquarium itself that's pretty neat they had animals there that they released back into the Bay after they are of age I highly recommend that you come and visit the aquarium and bring her children they will absolutely love it they have a floor that's especially for the children to play and see fish can wait to come back and visit again

Food court is OUTRAGEOUSLY expensive! Aquarium is very nice though

One of the finest collections of fish, crustaceans, sharks, penguins, puffins, all kinds of beautiful sea life. And w their efforts towards conservation, that's a 5 star rating 2 me!

marvelous place! entertaining clean funtional
kid friendly eats and drinks and views of both above and below the pacific ocean

Always a fun day for kids and adults. Food inside has improved.

If you've never been to this place I highly recommend it. It's one of the world's best aquariums that just happens to be in the birthplace of marine biology. Dr Edward Ricketts, lovingly referred to as doc by Steinbeck in the book Cannery Row. This aquarium sits inside the old cannery itself, right along the water, making use of the natural tidal cycles, enabling them to keep animals that generally aren't able to be kept in captivity because of the unique natural quality of the habitat itself. This is a must visit on your next trip to Monterey.

World class facility, amazing exhibits, knowledgeable staff.

Breathtaking views amazing place to visit 5 stars hands down!

Nice aquarium. Too many people during the weekends.

Love this place! The open Sea exhibit. It's so great!

Jelly fishes are in thousands. Otters, Octopus, etc., Very well maintained. Informed volunteers and staff.

It's brilliant. Lots to see and do. Lots to learn and you'll have great fun

This place is incredible. Definitely worth a visit!

Awesome place for the full family. Good for all ages and specially for animal lovers. The best part is there are lot of interactive activities to keep young kids engaged and busy.

Best place to visit in the area. Being a member here has it's perks, you get invited to special events. Definitely get the membership if you are from the bay area. Worth it. Fun for the kids and whole family.

This is hands down one of the best museums I have ever been to. Each turn will take your breath away. Clean and interactive. It's pricey but worth it.

Overcrowded with inconsiderate people! People blocking the Walkway with strollers and running into your heels all day! It's unfortunate that it's gotten like this! Used to be a California treat but now it seems like everywhere else and is only interested in how many people they can get through the doors to make money! We have annual passes and should have a time slot for just annual pass holders!

Best aquarium we have ever visited. Our 5-year old spent two days exploring and was still talking about his visit a month later. Be sure to visit the Baja exhibit and look for the "paint a fish" experience. It's his favorite and normally not as busy as many other areas of the aquarium.

This is one of the best marine attractions I've ever visited. Truly impressive aquariums with lights to enhance the life within. Ample explanations and guidance. The otters attract huge crowds. Great experience for all ages.

The staff and volunteers were wonderful, quick with answers and very helpful with suggestions.
The exhibits are educational as well as entertaining. And you can tell the animals are well cared for.
Sustainability is the lesson to be learned by all.

Great time at the Aquarium, super friendly staff and great exhibits as well! Go for fish, stay for the Otters. Awesome view of the bay as well

Great aquarium. Take the backstage otter tour of you can, it's worth every penny.

Been here many times over my lifetime. This is my number one aquarium by far. Place is always getting better.

After 20 years my second time - still liked the mix of theorie and living creatures of our Pacific.

Great experience being able to observe ocean critters. It was awesome!

If you love see life . Then this a place to visit . They gave

One of the best aquariums I've been to. All of the feeding shows are amazing so be sure to get there early to get a good spot. Friendly staff here that are more than willing to share their knowledge.

Nice aquarium with great visuals and views of the ocean. Lots of neat exhibits to entertain kids but make sure you arrive first thing in the morning or later in the day. Can get crowded. Buy tickets in advance a must.

This place was super haven't been here for 20 years was awesome then it's awesome now thank you for the greatest time!

Fantastic aquarium. Wish we could have caught more shows. Would recommend buying tickets online and skipping the long lines.

Amazing place to visit. Must go there!!! Worth every effort and every penny. One of the nicest places to be, especially with kids. Took us 4-5 hours. So much worth it. Displays are amazing. I don't think there is a better aquarium out there. Will definitely be coming back to visit!!!

Really enjoyed all of its exhibits, perfect size to do a couple of hours tour. Great job artistically bring awareness to the horrible effects of plastic garbage. I am doing much more to reduce plastic waste after the visit.

This is the aquarium they based Finding Dory off of..... Well Finding Dory lied. This was not worth the $50 they charge. The best part was the sea otters. The worst was the round about way to get around with a stroller.

Great place to explore. Good place to take kids for learning and viewing. Very expensive. Seek out discounts through work, credit unions, etc.

Fun place for the whole family. So many beautiful animals!

I loved it but wish there was more for the kids to do. Overall great experience!

Awesome, but slightly disappointed, thought it would be a little more dazzling, and super expensive.

Fun day walking around and seeing all the exhibits at the aquarium

Always amazing. Always new exhibits.. a treat at any age.

Great place for the family it's teaches the little ones and adults about all types of marine life and even some lizard. To me it was a great fun experience I know my kids and wife enjoyed it a bunch

Phenomenal aquarium. It felt a lot bigger when I was a child, but it is a terrific place to spend two to four hours. There is a focus on conservation, some really well produced educational film presentations, and knowledgeable staff. And if you want to spend (more) money, there are a ton of gift shops and a restaurant inside.

AMAZING PLACE! This is a must see. God's creations for us. It's breath taking.

Absolutely amazing!! Loved the sea otters the most!

Has 2 wonderful levels, knowledgeable staff, vibrant environment.

The exhibits were cool and the penguins were very fluffy and awesome

Our favorite place in town! Exhibits are always top notch. Very family friendly. Our boys love it more every year!

Amazing. A must see in Monterey. Fantastic exhibits and friendly staff.

We take an annual trip up the coast and visit the aquarium. It never disappoints. Our kids love it too

I simply love this place. They have special exhibits that change on a regular basis.

An excellent place to take the family. Just be aware, it can get very crowded. We went on a weekday and the place was packed, we were a group of 8 and had no chance of eating at the Aquarium's restaurant. The exhibits we're good, as always, especially the jellyfish.

Amazing, spare at least 2 hours to see everything here

The best experience of my life!! I love Monterey and aquarium was so neat and clean and animals looked happy!

I love the aquarium. It is so cool to be so close. When the fish swim by the glass you can almost touch them. Great place for anyone to see these fish up close.

Amazing aquarium! It's worth it to pay the ticket to visit this place. You can see quite lots of species that are hard to see anywhere else. The jellyfish exhibition is gorgeous!

Great place for fun and learning for our toddler. Good mix of displays and interactive activities.

As usual too expensive for poor folks, but a wonderful day.

An acclaimed aquarium....one of the best in the world

Good place to see various sea creatures, especially jelly fish. But Otter show is not so fun as expected. I expected that otter use stone for eating but they just eat clam without shell.

great aquarium with tons of different exhibits and stuff to see

I had a great time here with my children. They enjoyed exploring many types of sea animals.

While the aquarium is geared toward experiences for children, adults will also enjoy the amazing tanks and displays. Many of which can be seen from across the room so you don't have to smoosh in with the crowds to see inside the glass. Be sure to get a map from the information desk and check the event times to see things like feeding of the otters.

Over priced entry, so congested with people, small views. The aquarium of the Pacific coast in long beach small but way better then aquarium of Monterey. Would not go again. Maybe if they specials maybe.

The best place to experience adorable sea otters up close. One can watch them playing on their backs and grasping onto their rocks. It literally feels like they are smiling at you. A joy to watch.

If you are in the area the Monterey Bay Aquarium is a must see! It is about $50 per person so it is on the pricey side, however, it is worth it! Give yourself a few hours of time to explore all the exhibits. It is a whole another world inside, absolutely stunning. They have interactive exhibits where you can touch the reef and little critters. There is an entire floor dedicated for kids and our son loved it there. They have an outdoors section where you can see the coast. It is beautiful and worth your time.