National Aquarium Review

They have a sloth!

Try one of the 4D movies and make sure to see the dolphins and jellyfish.

One of the best aquariums in the country. Must see if visiting Baltimore. Great for kids.

Best aquarium I've been to. Crowded though (went on a Saturday). Lots of restaurants around there to eat at as well.

Best ever experience. Will return someday. I will recommend 100% if you are near you have to get in.

This aquarium is beautiful and worth the wait. When we arrived the line was long but a 30 min wait was not that bad. Afterwards we walked the pier, grabbed a bite to eat, shopped and grabbed a couple of free scooters to sight see!! Loved the visit and we will be back!

Visited this place in 2011 with my mother and teachers and classmates and the first stop we made was the Uno's pizzeria and had excellent food and we each had groups of 2 or 3 and the second place we stopped at was the aquarium in Baltimore and then the third place was the park along the Baltimore river

I live in Maryland and consider the aquarium a treasure for our state. Having said that, I would not recommend going on weekends during Covid-19. We thought with timed entry and operating at 25% capacity (hard to believe) that it would be safe enough to keep separation from other groups. This was not the case. Timed entry means that up to 100 people are let in every 15 minutes. Once inside it's a free-for-all as far as moving about which was scary since most people acted like it was just a normal day at the aquarium. Most of the time was spent with my head on a swivel and moving away from groups that would just come right next to you while looking at each display.

This place is anazing// take the early open tour// i thought it was expensive until i actually got in and saw// their is a reason its expensive,// to all the tour guides thank you for the 7 hours today // the 4d cinema is awesome so worth the $5.00 per tickets/// it spits water air shakes your seat/= it is so worth it.

It was a little pricey for what was available. The animals all seemed well cared for and there were a few shows that let you know a little more about the animals. I went during the middle of the day on a Wednesday so it wasn't crowded at all. I imagine that the weekends are crazy and would make it harder to linger like I did at each of the exhibits.

Awesome place with great exhibits. Went on a sunny Saturday and the place was packed, so kind of hard to walk around leisurely. I'm sure going during non-peak hours is a wonderful experience.

The National Aquarium is a well structured experience. The exhibits are very well done and the general experience is very positive. The dolphin show was exceptional in its quality.

Beautiful indoor sceneries! Nice for kids to learn and explore!

Put this on your bucket list. Very cool place to take the kiddos.

Children absolutely love going there. They love seeing the dolphins.

Plenty to see and do. Much more than just an aquarium.

The National Aquarium in Baltimore is brilliantly laid out, and contains a nice variety of beautifully designed exhibits, everything from a shark section to a rainforest area at the top of the building. Traffic flow and acoustics are good, despite the large number of schoolchildren who were in the building the day I visited. Some of the areas can be a little dark, but, by and large, the exhibits are easy to view and quite accessible no matter how large the crowds. Baltimore is fortunate to host such a national treasure as the National Aquarium.

Unbelievable. It is outstanding. All the infrastructure and exhibits are perfect and the information given is fantastic. Second time there and probably will be a third in the future

Great place - just try to go during an off time. Going while extremely crowded or when there are school groups there can make a long visit too long.

Great family experience on the Chesapeake Bay in Baltimore! A little soft on value with tickets being more expensive than some other aquariums and museums. Most attractions are we'll presented and facility is well attended to and clean. Dolphin training are free to watch! Touch/feel exhibits with crabs, rays, and jelly fish. And, outside attractions and restaurants are close by. It's overall worth multiple visits!

Enjoyed touch screens with more information at fish. 3D wall displays were fun for kids and adults alike.

Disappointment after having been to Georgia Aquarium first for the price paid

Absolutely an incredible Aquarium. The exhibits are upstanding, and the staff is quite friendly. Given the ticket price, you might not expect to miss about a third of the exhibits would you finally get too frustrated to battle the crowds, or when other guests are using flash photography or pounding on tanks scaring the Aquatic Life Away.
Even though you really get to experience some cool stuff here, none of it was Wildlife you could not experience at a place like SeaWorld for a much more extravagant experience for not much greater cost.
Would have been a better experience if the staff spent a little bit more time keeping the place clean, organized, instead of having romantic cuddle sessions amongst one another in random dark corners, or barking at guests to throw water bottles away like drill sergeants.

Fun for everyone! We recommend the behind the senes tour. Amazing experience for the family

Quite expensive, but a wonderful day out if you can find reasonable parking. The aquarium partners with a couple of near by parking places and gives you a discount on parking (around $8 on the day we went). Lots to see and it took us around 4 hours to slowly visit everything

Aquariums cost a lot to run, and I don't mind patronizing them to increase awareness and share the experience for future generations. A wonderful experience!

Had a great time with my girls, we always do at the Aquarium!

We used to love going here. Their Covid response has been abysmal. We called ahead to plan our trip and were told they were not busy despite running at reduced capacity. Deapite arriving at our ticket time we had to wait outside in 95 degree heat in a packed not socially distantanced line for over 45 minutes. Inside was a zoo and their wasn't any clear sanitation happening through our visit. Super disappointing.

Over priced in my opinion. The experience was ok. Too many children unattended darting in and out, running around like little savages. Even the adults were shoving each other around. It would be a decent place if it had order.

A very interesting place. Really great exhibits. The experience would have been better if people could control their screaming, yelling, and running children.

It was a really good experience, dispite going as a field trip. The dolphins, turtles, sharks, tortoise, stingrays, horseshoe crabs, and other animals that I may have missed were really cute.

So many great exhibits! I will say I felt bad for the dolphins because all the other animals had spaces that were great representations of their natural habitatswhile the dolphins just had a pool. I'm hoping they have better digs behind the scenes. But the place really is cool and the staff was very friendly.

I would truly recommend this aquarium, there is a ton of sea life to enjoy for all ages.

Disappointed. They used to have a multi story tank that you could walk around and view sharks and other aquatic life. Not there now. Too expensive for what they have there . Too crowded. Calvert marine museum, although small, is much nicer especially for children. Not crowded, less expensive. Won't go back to Baltimore aquarium.

Very good nice info and really good displays lots of fish and don't miss the jelly fish

Nice place to visit. Way too many screaming kids though.

I CANT BELIEVE HOW BIG AND BRIGHT THIS PLACE WAS!! AWESOME! WILL BE GOING BACK AGAIN!!

Great place tons of fish and handicap accessible Made Easy including a map free to get around in your wheelchair.

The immersion tour is well deserved.just $25 more, but you get an unforgettable experience!

Amazing, all the different sea creatures are so beautiful

Our group had a blast! Thank you for having handicap access!

Way too crowded. There is no time of the day when the place is not mobbed. Timed entry has not helped. Still a great aquarium, but the massive crowds diminish the experience.

Great exhibits a little pricey but the dolphins show worthwhile.

Great exhibits. There were some interactive exhibits where you can touch the sea life. There are some employees present who can answer questions and give some in depth knowledge about some of the exhibits. Visited in July and while the lower level was nice and cool the temperature rose significantly as you made your way to the upper levels. Fix the disparity in temperature and it's a worthwhile visit, especially for small kids

The sea life is beautiful and the staff made us feel safe.

Best place in the area for sure! Love it! Please watch your kids, this isn t a play ground!

The membership pays for itself within a couple of visits. It's absolutely worth it. Especially if you have kids

Such a beautiful aquarium! I was a little put-off by the price (~$40per person) but once I got inside I can see it was very well worth it. This is a multilevel aquarium and has a great variety of creatures. I ended my visit with a dolphin show that reminded me of SeaWorld's Shamu show. I would definitely recommend!

I haven't been in years and the remodel is simply beautiful! My group saw the Shark 4D which, while a great show, disturbed our children with Autism and sensory concerns. Prices are still very high and I miss "Prices take a dive, Fridays after five." Otherwise, GREAT!

Amazing place for all ages and the 4D theater is awesome!

This is a fabulous place. It is awe inspiring and educational. For an extra fee you can see a movie in the IMAX theater which is an extraordinary experience. Don t forget the dolphin show...it's a must see. The staff is knowledgeable and friendly. Above all enormous amount of animals to see and admire. This is a wonderful experience for the entire family.

It makes me feel like a kid again its always clean and fun staff is awesome

I wish we would have went before COVID otherwise 5 stars for sure! So much to see and so many exhibits for the entire family to enjoy! Unfortunately most people were NOT following social distancing guidelines and made it very hard to enjoy. I think going on a Saturday was a bad idea despite having made reservations. It seemed they were a little under staffed as well. We planned for weeks to and despite reviews social distancing measures were not the best so I think if you wait until after the pandemic save your money so you can enjoy the full experience. I sure wish we did.

Definitely Better Then I Thought It Would Be. The Line To Get In Was A Long Wait But Once We Got In We Weren't Let Down. Lots of great fish to see and tons of sharks. The Huge Glass tank that you could stand in front of was amazing. Shark Alley and the big tank with the rays and small sharks when you first walk in was cool. The Dolphin show was pretty good too. Me, my wife and son loved it!

A very good aquarium which probably lives up to its 'national' name. Good variety of exhibits which made it very easy to spend quite a while wandering.

Terrible place to go during the weekend. Good attraction if it wasn't so busy. Dont do it if you can't take crowds of rude people.

Amazing collection of aquatic species, well organized and an outstanding staff, from the lady checking coats to the guides.

Fantastic place. Maybe one of the best aquariums in the United States. Not only do they have a semi-terrestrial exhibit but also sport a very eerie shark tank. The shark tank, and it's adjacent tank (an extremely large community reef) easily make up the price of admission.

The building itself too is gorgeous, completely state of the art. Everything looks brand new. The actual design/layout of the building can be staggering also, utilizing that giant glass wall to light the jungle/rain forest exhibit. This is a place that feel like it's a lot bigger on the inside than it originally lets on.

Lastly the dolphin's exhibit. I have been twice and never seen it. Partly because I believe it is immoral, but also because there is so much more to do I have never really wanted to. You could easily spend 3 hours in the main building of the aquarium, and never even realize there are dolphin shows. One thing I think worth checking out in this addition is the jellyfish exhibit.

Fabulous place to visit, especially if you are with your loved ones. Too many things to watch and check if you plan to just check it out. Fish. Dolphins. Birds. Plants. It deserves several visits.

My students and I thoroughly enjoyed the experience. The height for them was the dolphin show. They also particularly fancied the Australian exhibit.

Absolutely amazing. We took my 2 year old and he was so fascinated by everything. It's such a great family day trip

Very well designed to allow people to see exhibits yet move them through. They could have posted show times better and the dolphin sessions were very brief.
I understand they do not want to stress the animals but the people could do more Q&A and education.

There's lot to check out here for all age groups. The environments are very well done. Admission is a bit on the pricey side, though, and if you don't order tickets ahead of time there can be a lengthy wait before you can get in.

Baltimore's National Aquarium is one of the best in the world, with countless stunning exhibits, from a massive sting ray pool, to a spiral ramp that descends into a shark tank, to a glass rain forest room on the top level. It's worth the weekend crowds and the hefty price of admission to peruse this aquarium's extensive collection.

The National Aquarium is truly the highlight of downtown Baltimore. Their concentration is on conservation, but still deliver a wonderful experience. As of the time of writing this, the dolphins are still at the Baltimore location and you can see a feeding or enrichment session in their open exhibit. Multiple climates are displayed through the building all surrounding the main tank with coral sharks, reef fish, a Calypso, the three-leged turtle. Carry one through the aquarium to see the deep, dark shark tank.
Don't miss this downtown attraction.

Phenomenal aquarium with lots of exhibits to see! From colorful cute fish to sharks to even sloths, this place is wonderful. It could have been better if they had cuttlefish but it seems that exhibit was closed for the day. Lots of people but not overwhelmingly so as the aquarium and spaces are large enough to accommodate. Highly recommend!

The price is not worth it. We have been visited a lot of aquariums, this one is the most expensive one, but the exhibitions are not that much as we expected...and parking cost is also very high $25. The ticket is not including everything, you have to pay additional $10 for 4D theater... Actually, this place is not bad, but I think it's only worth half of the current price

The aquarium itself is pretty good, lots of exhibits and interesting creatures to see, though at some of the exhibits I didn't see information about the animals that were there. However, what made this place three stars for me was the pricing. Since when is a child over 11 years old an adult?!? And $40 for an adult ticket? Way to guarantee visitors come once and never return. Their pricing scheme is absurd.

Expensive! The tickets are $40 for adults AND children over 12. My husband, 3 kids and I spent about $170 just to get in! Of course as soon as you enter they snap pictures of you which is more $$ because of course you're going to want that great shot of your family trip! As for the aquarium itself, the layout is pretty good. There are signs which tell you if which way to go to follow the Main Exhibit Route. This makes sure you see everything.
The aquarium was clean, the staff was friendly and helpful. I love the open tank, I think that was THE best feautuew of the aquarium. It is large and you can go up several stories to look at it. The museum has several moving sidewalks, escalators, stairs, elevators and a few revolving doors. I also liked the different levels which led to the sharks.
For Dolphin Discovery, I was expecting them to do a little more. I thought we were sitting down for an actual show where dolphins would be jumping in the air doing tricks and their would be coordinated acts. It was more so an educational lesson about the dolphins and how they train them. They did a couple tricks so not a complete blow out. A few exhibits were a little lacking like the Australian exhibit.
I would've loved to have walked through an immersion tunnel but to my disappointment there wasn't one. For the most part, plan to spend at least 2 hours checking out the exhibits. Bring your own bottled water, they have refill stations or expect to pay $7 for their container. We didn't try any of the restaurants inside so can't really comment on those. All in all, it was a cool trip for the kids and I recommend seeing it.

We had a fun time with our one year old. We were lucky enough to see the sharks being fed at various times thoughtout our visit. We really enjoyed seeing the different colored poison dart frogs in the Amazon rain forest exhibit. Parking was easy and discounted if you use a partnering parking venue. We are looking forward to spending more time there this year. It took about two and a half hours to get through everything. It was a very nice way to spend a Monday afternoon.

The Baltimore Aquarium is very engaging and interesting no matter how old you are. It is a must for anyone visiting Inner Harbor, and especially for families.

I love coming here it is so peaceful and calm, I could spend all day in here!! Cannot wait to go back soon!!

The displays are informative and well arranged. We have been several times and always find a new reason to return. This time we enjoyed the dolphin shows and look forward to seeing what the o..utside environment develops into.

Very wonderful experience every time we go. We love the sea lions! this is a great place to visit with out of town guests or for locals a few times per year!

Loved it. Just very expensive gift shops. Need to bring prices down. Families come there with more than one child. Need to make prices more friendly for bigger families.