Shedd Aquarium Reviews

The line stretched to outside so getting inside was long. But it makes up for it with the wide variety of exhibits to see.

Great experience if you are ever in Chicago! I'm a nature boy so I go here all the time when I'm around.

Have gone here multiple times and the staff members are always helpful and kind. Always a fun stop while in Chicago, but it is a little pricey.

Shedd Aquarium was very educational and included lots of beautiful sea life. The penguins were so cute! However, the Saturday crowds made it very hard to enjoy for too long. If you do go on a Saturday and bring your kids, do NOT bring a stroller. Or at least not a big one. Use a baby carrier or go when it first opens.

The Shedd Aquarium is a top notch museum with a good variety of species to see in a wide array of tanks, enclosures and displays. Rounding out the experience is a dolphin show, a sting ray tank for viewing and touching medium size sting rays, huge sea otters frolicking and rock hoppers goofing off. This is a big time winner.

It costs $40 per person for those of us who don't live in Chicago, so this is real money, but you get something significant in return.

The line to buy tickets is long and slow moving, so arrive early.

Be sure to get complimentary tickets to the dolphin show at a kiosk near the dolphin stadium as soon as you reasonably can.

The staff is nice, but alot of the exhibits are dark and have small fish in them. The wow factor is the whale/dolphin show

Fish. Turtles. Stingrays. Dolphin. It's fun. The museum campus was well maintained and the staff was helpful.

Shedd is one of the places you should definitely visit while visiting Chicago! It's truly amazing!

Super cool!! The animals here all looked really well taken care of and you can even pet sting rays! I also visited the dolphin show which was really cool as well, one of my favorite things about this place was the statues. They were literally made out of garbage that people have thrown in the ocean but they were really well made and really creative. What a great way to recycle!(:

Place is full of attractions , loved it, specifically like Amazon jungle theme, there was long queue but skipped it with city pass. Food is good but order minimum because quantity is huge. Visited it on labor day weekend, find it easy with city pass. Place is full of children and their parents.

By far one of the best aquariums I have ever been to. Have a huge selections of areas that you can go to. The buluga whales are just incredible same with the dolphins. Had a great time

Good, but a little pricey for non-Chicago residents considering its small size. $40 at the gate!

Shedd is by far my favorite place to visit in Chicago. They've dropped prices significantly to encourage people to see and hopefully be inspired by the marine life. It says a lot that they care more about the animals and especially people caring about the animals, than just collecting tickets like many other places. I've been there dozens of times the past couple decades but no two visits have ever been the same. I love it!

Spent the day at the Shedd for conference. Excellent !!very workshop was great, informative .

The Chicago Shedd Aquarium is a wonderful place to go as a family or on a date,.... Love to go there as a child. I'm a huge animal fan. The particular day that I visited, now 30 in 2018 I guess it was cleaning day... some of the tanks were murky and the experience wasn't the same as to when I was younger. My friend and I bouth paid 38 dollars and some change for entry. I wasn't too concerned about the price assuming a great experience once again... But the experience was different, maybe I've just seen to much in my life... I would like to have seen more corals of various species and colors. The reptile and amphibian part could have been pumped up as well.... None the less still a good place to go hang out with the animals.

Beautiful facility. Wonderful place to take a trip. My children and I really enjoyed ourselves

Don't bring a RV, large truck or a trailer. There is no where to park these vehicles. Even called Shedd Aquarium front desk and the employee said there is no options for these vehicles.

Went to the Shedd with my son, daughter-in-law and two grandsons aged six months and three years. Got there at 9:30 am on Saturday, June 16th. Parking was simple, food in cafeteria was great and kids loved everything. Staff was professional and extremely friendly. Look forward to going again.

A great place to visit with family specially with children as this aquarium shows underwater fishes and other aquatic plants and undersea life from almost all parts of the world. Must visit.

Very nice aquarium. Show up early on weekends (within 30 minutes of opening) if you want to get in quick and avoid crowds. Also, the one star minus was due to the lack of informing us what exibits require tickets or not as well as the obscene number of children running everywhere (come early to avoid that).

So fun. Lots to see and to learn, and not as crowded as I expected. Membership is a great deal if you live in the city. The octopus is my favorite.

Worth a visit on weekdays.
On weekends and holidays it's to crowded.
The 4D cinema isn't worth $4, the image is blurry and there is almost no 3D effect.

Very educational and entertaining place to bring friends and family

Good olace for adults and kids to learn. Fun dolphin show. Food on site. Lots of cool fish and reptiles

World class aquarium with detailed and we'll curated exhibits. Dolphin exhibition is included in the general exhibit with great views of Lake Michigan in the background.

Absolutely great! It had an open concept building plan. Many attractions and 4 different collector penny machines! Only thing is the admission is down stairs compared to where the main entrance is

I love this museum. It never fails to inspire wonder in me no matter how many times I go. The dolphin shows are fantastic, the animals are fascinating, and the Wild Reef exhibit is always super cool!!

The aquarium was amazing and the animal selections were very wide spread. The floor plan was confusing though. I would definitely go back.

Super awesome aquarium. All of the exhibits are amazing and the shows are really cool! We watched the 4d shark film and it was both beautiful and terrifying. This is a great place for kids. Also we had someone in a wheelchair with my group and we were able to do everything the aquarium offered! You have to visit this place!

I can't wait too go back! This place is by far the greater Aquarium I have ever been too! The best time to go, is at night (less kids). I can't wait until the reopen! That will be the first thing on my list to do!

I didnt want to leave. Loved it so much cant wait to go back.

Really cool aquarium, and its free for chicago residents

Tasteful, educational and beautiful. The set up in each exhibit lets you get up close to see each aquatic animal. The 4D show is very good but short. The whole experience is both amazing and intriguing. It's not just for kids.

I got there by CTA bus and left by the same bus (No. 146 but please check for any changes). Buses run till late and after aquarium closes.

Very nice aquarium, needs several hours to see everything

Shedd aquarium is absolutely awesome. I took a small get away from my kids and went for the day along with other sites. I honestly think I enjoyed it more by myself than with my kids. Make sure you have a while I was there almost 5 hours and don't think it was enough. If you are not from the area I highly recommend getting the city pass so you can see the museum's as well.

Who could say no to a fun family trip here. Fu n shows, and an awe inspiring selection of fish

Wow, there is so much to see here. The exhibits are breathtaking and the facility is huge. Combine that with a view of Lake Michigan and it makes for a great trip

Honestly, at $40, I was expecting a little more.

I do like the habitats for the animals' benefit though. They seem well cared for and comfortable.

Decent pricing in the Sound Cafe for the good quality food and friendly service. Both ladies did great! (2/11/18 at around 12pm).

I don't think we will return, but glad to have experienced it once.

My kids loved it. Bit pricey but great family attraction.

This is a great and Interactive place for a Family, Friends, Date outing. I'm visiting from out of town and I appreciate all the necessary measures they are taking due to Covid-19. Just to make sure the aquarium experience was pleasant for guest as well the employees. The day i visited It wasn't pack at all and everyone kept to themselves and social distanced. Almost every corner had a sanitary station which i appreciate because you're gonna need it especially if you're touching the fish tank Glass. I appreciated the employees that consistently reminded the guest to keep their mask on. They weren't rude about it just informed the guests its for their own safety.
One of place i enjoyed was the Caribbean and Shark exhibit.

Had an amazing time. We spent about four hours here. Everyone there is nice, sweet, and know a lot about what they are talking about. I could not have asked for a better time!

Surprised my husband with a beluga encounter. Only complaint is for that price, that they ll only give you ONE photo, even though they re snapping them the whole time.

The aquarium itself is very lovely. Surprising amount of variety, good shows and exhibits!

Pretty cool, some patrons suck though and don't understand why you don't take flash photos and why you don't TAP ON THE GLASS

They aquarium is very nice however the staff was very rude. Someone in my group had pepper spray on her purse they confiscated it and threw it away. They did not give us an option to return it to the car or keep it there to pick it up when we left. We were very upset after we left.

It is an amazing place for visiting! I am definitely coming back again!!!

So much fun. Pricey but fun! So worth it. Dolphin show was the best.

I had such a great time here! The staff was very informative and helpful! Will definitely come back with my grandkids and out of towners for this wonderful experience!

Always a great place to visit when I'm Chicago. They have exhibits from many different habitats, and it is always nice to walk around. I recommend renting a locker to keep coats or personal items, and there are excellent food trucks outside.

So fun the hole place is cool they have good fun things for kids too. The hole place is fun for the family. Also they have supper cool looking fish so cool should visit if able.

I have been to many aquariums this one is nearly the best with the Georgia aquarium.

Very impressed. To bad I dont live in Chicago because I would be a member

Unbelievable world-class museum! The customer service, however, was consistently underwhelming. It was very disappointing to be in one of the best museums of the world and experience some of the world's least impressive staff - from the ticket sales to the restaurant to the 'Starbucks' coffee servers. Lots of room for improvement people. Beyond that I really loved the museum.

Amazing aquarium! Loved every minute of the trip and worth every penny to get tickets. They also offer student and military discounts which was nice to bring down the cost for some members of our party.

Always a destination when we visit Chicago. Enjoyed the dolphin show and beluga whale exhibit. On a side note, food in cafe is pricey, yet very well prepared and tasty.

Oh, I have had a lot of good memories at this place. Mostly on field trips for school/summer camp. I have taken pictures, Seen tons of marine life, and touched stingrays. Good place.

Fantastic!!! Shedd Aquarium is a beautiful place to visit. The location is huge. There is a lot of variety of species you have never seen and enjoy. I love the staff and the animals and the shows. There is a lot of variety of species you have never seen.

Very nice display of various types of fish and aquatic animals

Highly recommend going here. It's a really awesome aquarium. There is so much to do here, honestly was super impressed with my entire experience.

So many species of aquatics from all over the world. Great experience!
Included in my Citypass.

Went on a free day. We enjoyed all the exhibits we had time to see.

The Aquarium is very nicely done. We used our City Pass and had to wait maybe 15 minutes in the will call line. Not bad compared waiting to buy tickets.

It was cool until we got to the whale tank. That part was just depressing, and we weren't really able to enjoy it after that.

A bit messy and there was no organization to the flow of foot traffic. Everyone is in their own little world, not paying attention to others and it made it difficult to appreciate some exhibits because of the groups squeezing in, instead of being polite to wait a turn to see.

Always a great place and the Beluga whales are amazing.

I guess I just expected more. The Mississippi river museum was better for less $. Had to pay extra at shedd to pet the stingrays. Free in dubuque.

Very crowded when we went, but lots to look at. The beluga whales are really cool. Definitely get a CityPass to avoid the lines.

Its so amazing. The dolphin show was alittle boring but seeing the animals was great. Kids really enjoyed it. The turtle nickel was great

Poor experience. All parking lots except Soldier Field are closed, roards also closed. Aquarium does not inform you about it when you buy tickets. Main entrance closed and it is very difficult to find your way into aquarium through the back door in abcence of proper signage. Significant amount of exhibits closed in the area of beluga(s), penguins and dolphins. AC barely functions in the same areas, which is very challenging in summer weather. For this experience Aquarium should not charge the full price admission tickets, instead it should be half price.

The food places were too slow but, the exhibits were awesome

Clean and well aware of social distancing. Great bathroom and safe ways to open doors without touching them. Aquarium is an amazing site to see and is 100% worth the trip. Stingray touching exhibit was open surprisingly and I got splashed by them. Overall a very fun experience for the family and I.

What a lovely collection. Jelly fish, corals, Sea horse, rare species. So much to see at one place.
Kids can have lot of fun.
Watch sharks and dolphins from top and bottom.
Touch and feel... Stingray fish.

Galleries exclusive for Amazon, Oceanarium bigger one ever saw had a huge collection of Sea mammals.

Thousands of species to feast the eyes and mind.

You may miss any other.... But don't miss this unique huge Aquarium. Enjoy a 4D show with a little cost inside the house.

The building has great architecture.

Wonderful experience many setups to touch starfish,stingrays and a host of other animals. My highlight was the Beluga Whale a must visit if your ever in town.

We had a great time. The staff is very friendly and knowledgeable!

Great place to hang out with the kids.we Love all the exhibitions, the quality of them and just the inviroment is so peaceful .

Awesome time here. Got a behind the scenes tour with our guide Ragan and was amazed at all the stuff the do here. Definitely recommend for an outing. Just beware it is a little pricey but well worth it.

Loved this aquarium:) Lots of displays and we really enjoyed the show. It was a little bit crowded but that was fine with us.

Took my son and my granddaughter. They had an awesome time!!

It was super family friendly and I loved that you could touch so many animals. It was a little pricey, but definitely worth it. I love how educational it was. The 4-D experience show was really cool also.

the most amazing aquarium i have ever been to! pay the little bit extra to watch the shows and see the extra exhibit! definitely worth it!

Worth the ticket price in my opinion. Surely one of the best aquariums in the world

Always awesome! The new dolphin aquatic show has been updated to include Beluga whales, barn owls and a sea lion.

Absolutely loved it! The ocean rubbish art installations were awesome. It was amazing.

For the price of parking and tickets and waiting in lines, I spent more time trying to get into the aquarium than I did actually looking inside. It was nice but I've seen better for a cheaper price and less waiting times in other states. But if you're in Chicago I guess it's a must see?