Shedd Aquarium Reviews

We decided to visit The Shedd Aquarium during a long weekend in Chicago. This is a very nice aquarium with lots of space around tanks so it doesn't seem overly crowded and crammed. We arrived when the aquarium opened and that is definitely recommended. By lunch time, it was getting super crowded. The beluga whales were definitely a favorite. We've only ever seen them at one other aquarium, it's a rare treat!

If you're in Chicago, and you have not gone to the shed aquarium you must go. We took our six-year-old child and did all the cool extra attractions. We had a great time and got to get close to aquatic life from all over the world. I would recommend, highly recommend, before going to the shed to get your tickets online and save money. You also save time in line. And while a lot of people enter through the main door, as you're going into the shed if there's a line go down into the right and there's another side entrance that you can quickly walk into, especially if you pre-purchased your tickets.

I went on a Wednesday morning when they opened with little or no line to get in. I had a go pass and got in quickly. I explored the world waterways aquarium galleries looking at all the different types of fish and animals that live in rivers and oceans habitats on each continent. Next was the Wild Reef that was huge that had several small sharks, rays and marine life swimming all together. I sat down to watch the dolphin show which was great by the way. Then off to the bottom level to see the penguins and the beluga whale. And lastly up to the top where I got reach into the water an pet a sting ray as it glided gracefully through the water. By far one of my greatest stops on my vacation to Chicago. A must see for all ages!!!

Seemed very chaotic and not much order to the flow of traffic. But the children enjoyed themselves and that's all that matters.

The Shedd Aquarium always has something to see. New baby beluga whale was incredible to see swimming slwith his mother. Such a graceful and friendly whale. They always seem like they are smiling at you!

Visiting from the uk we thought we would experience some of the tourist attractions so went to the shed. We were very happy when they accepted my husbands British army id so we could have discounted entry. Nice to know they support our troops. The aquarium was one of the biggest I've been to with lots of different exhibitions. The...

Not as interesting as I remember from being a kid. Needs more activities or interactions. Once you go there's nothing new to come back for.

I always love visiting the Shedd, although they currently have some things closed due to covid the number of closed exhibits is minimal and is really just the touch experiences. Although they still offer the ray touch outside.

Endless options and some pretty amazing exhibits. Options can addup quickly

Educational and good time

As far as aquariums go, this one is really good. My son loves the penguin exhibit!

Great aquarium, but expensive if you're from out of town. Was crowded on a Sunday. Rude maintenance staff in the cafeteria.

The aquarium was beautiful! The ocean show is absolutely a MUST SEE if you decide to go! The reptile area was my absolute favorite!

Definitely wasn't as great as other visits in the past. Many exhibits had non working technology to go along with them. Too focused on the "add on" exhibits that cost more instead of updating current exhibits. Over priced for what I expected.

The place is very clean and well-kept. Although this does come at a price, You pay lots to get in, then end up selling yourself to the devil just to get a pack of Lay's. Will not be back!!

I liked this place. Maybe because visited in May, i got to touch sting rays, star fish.. Other than that everything else were just like any other normal aquariums. But i felt ticket price is bit pricey.. Wait times were crazy.. Had to wait almost 1.5hrs regardless of having city pass. 4D shows are not so good not worth the money.

One of my favorite museums in chicago. Always enjoy my time here.

Great Aquarium with real care on exhibits, would have been 5 stars if there had not been whales and dolphins held in baron tanks. Really not needed or enjoyable to see in this day and age.

It is so important to have amazing places like this to connect to animals that would otherwise only be on tv

one of the best aquariums ive been to. my only complaints, 1. it closed relatively early when we went (6pm) seems early. 2. the girl who was doing the commentary during the dolphin show was extremely difficult to understand in the auditorium as her voice echoed and her manner of speech was too fast and overly excited. the initial female commentator that did the pre show trivia spoke more slowly and her manner of speech was more understandable. OVERALL the entire aquarium experience was worth the price and is a must see when visiting chicago.

The attraction was not as expected but a decent experience if you don't mind waiting for everyone who bought tickets online to stop showing up. The time we arrived likely impacted our wait, though there could've been some communication. Several parties left from ahead and behind as the wait continued growing longer.

Might be a little pricey, but the Shedd has a great variety of animals to see. Definitely make sure you have time to see everything.

The Shedd is always great! Their Underwater Beauty exhibit is fantastic. And I need to thank the man working in the gift shop, who allowed me to buy a 91 cent peppermint stick so that I could get the exact change I needed for the bus. Very knowledgeable, kind staff.

My family really enjoyed our time here. With wic or link its only $3 a person

Should take time out to view the performance of the dolphins. Definitely worth it.

The place was SO crowded and we didn't even go on a weekend! The place was filled with screaming and crying children and it's impossible to get to 1 animal without having to wait 5 minutes. Food court is absolutely disgusting as fore they don't clean the tables so I definitely did not trust the food. Very unpleasant visit and a total waste of money. They should really try something where a certain amount of people could be in the aquarium at the time.

Delightful time!! Excellent dolphin show! Enjoyed chatting with the trainer. Fun stingray exhibit.

Loved it. Haven't been at the aquarium for about 20 years but had family visiting and bought the City Pass. Spent about 3 hours here which was too short, could definitely spend the whole day looking.
Too bad you can't scuba dive in the big tank like you can at the Atlanta aquarium... would love to do that here.

. We went and saw the Dolphin Show it was really fun Hands-On some Alaska picked to join the show and it was really cool I like it

Kids will be always blown away from the wonders in here. Plan a full day stay and take lota of pictures!

Incredible exhibits, very busy so a little hard to see and move through very family friendly

Crowd not to bad. Able to see everything and not fight crowds. Best museum in the city.

The best aquarium we've been to! We particularly enjoyed the otter exhibit. All the the animals seemed well cared for, and the environments beautiful and well maintained. I thoroughly enjoyed the visit and may get a membership.

This place is so amazing to go with family.
We really have fun great for children

I love the Beluga whales, and at the same time I felt so bad for them. They were in a very small aquarium and they didn't look happy. I'm not a big animal rights activist but that one made me check my morals for a minute. I was a little disappointed because I felt like it was going to put on animal shows like the Texas State Aquarium. Maybe it was the time of year, not sure.

The show was really cool and looked pretty good from the back

This place was awsome!!! But just go with someone u get along with...

Fantastic aquarium. It is is very best place. A aquarium is very big. It is many big and small fish. Aquarium fish is very beautiful.I am visiting in America is before pendemic with my family and friends. America is a beautiful place and very enjoy my family.

Lots of people but once you get inside everything is well laid out so it doesn't seem too crowded. The building's architecture is classically beautiful and nautical themed. Once inside everything is laid out in big rooms in a star pattern so you can move about easily from one room to another exploring the theme of the room, whether it's lakes, rivers, ocean or Amazon basin. There is a dolphin show, beluga whale feedings, a close up of a penguin and several petting tanks. The dolphin tank also has a beautiful view of Lake Michigan. Located nearby is the Field Museum, Adler Planetarium and Grant Park. You can purchase a package ticket to see several museums or look online for discount days or free days for students or Illinois residents.

I LOVE coming here and it really brings out my inner child. I could spend a whole day here, and the staff make he experience great as well

Nice visit but was very crowded. Recommend getting tickets online before getting there to avoid the ticket line.

All the animals are well taken care of. I feel at home here!

Love this place. I d buy your tickets online to skip the line wait

I always love the Shedd but the admissions price has reduced my visits.

This Aquarium is absolutely beautiful! I had the best time. I got to touch a Sting Ray. We saw sharks, whales, tortoises, penguins and so much more. We got to do a 4D experience. Just not a bad word about this wonderful place

The aquarium is a wonderful place with with lots of species for us to observe.

It can be a little confusing trying to find the belugas because the arena area is usually roped off.

Be careful bringing children here because there are a lot of shops with toys in them right alongside the exhibits and so the kids might start associating the aquarium with materialism and excess. I wish the shopping aspect of the experience was better isolated from the learning aspect.

The place is very well organized during the covid-19 times. The employees make sure the masks are put on at all times for all visitors. The restrooms are super clean and sanitized. They have hand sanitizer all over the building with a no touch foot pedal. Employees keep sanitizing the high touch points. Only one family at a time in the elevators. Go during the week days, very less crowd. We loved watching the baby, mommy dolphin and the sting ray touch. The only dissatisfaction is that the aquatic shows are cancelled. But overall had a great time.

Amazing place for a day trip...great shows and nice location. The staff in the aquarium zones are just doing the job for the sake of it. I found a Wolf eel that did not seem well and was lying on the floor of the aquarium but still breathing. It took me 10 minutes to find a staff and even after informing 3 of them, nobody took any initiative to take that poor soul out and help out. The dolphin show is amazing but could have played a little more to justify the waiting time. Overall a great experience but has a lot of opportunities to improve.

Beautiful place for the whole family. Keep an eye out online for free days for Illinois residents.

What an amazing experience at this aquarium. I could spend a week there enjoying and learning about the exhibits and conservation efforts at Shedd. I love the Beluga Whales, Otters, live coral tanks and rare fish. Can't wait to go back soon!

It was fast getting in with the city pass. We seen everything. The show for the dolphins we had to scan our tickets that we got with our city pass at check-in at the kiosk the dolphins show was boring. Now the beluga was the best thing there big and cute and funny. The 4D movie that came with the city pass we weren't sure if we would like it but5 it was awesome. This time I have a lot of pictures.

Enjoy

Still one of the best places to take the kids just to get out and have a good time! I love how there are lots of places to sit and relax when you get tired of walking, or want to have a bite to eat! That s the best part, u get to bring your own lunch! Prices are high for food there if you re taking a group of kids. Been having a great time here since I was a kid!

I left it in his place because it was a awesome place to go with my kids by the way I gave her a four-star and a half

First stop we made once we got to Chicago, it did not disappoint. Bring your walking shoes, there's a lot to experience there.

Was a ok aquarium, for price could be much better!!

We were members here a year or so back, and never renewed our membership as we visited so often we have memorized the layout. We still come here occasionally but usually it's the same animals on exhibit (Nickel, Ty, all the dolphins/belugas). On our last visit, however, the green moray eel in the Caribbean exhibit was gone-- hopefully nothing has happened to him. All the staff and animals here are super friendly and can be easily found, if you know where to look! Each trip is rather expensive and you need to pay to see the special exhibits. They do change exhibits once in a while-- I think the current temporary one is Amphibians. You do tend to get quite knowledgeable about the place after a few visits, and the excitement wears off, plus you get tired of needing to spend so much. The Polar Play Zone is great for kids, and they take great precautions to make sure the touchable animals aren't hurt (if you have seen Finding Dory yet...) It has a lively, professional atmosphere and there are plenty of things to see, if you're interested in studying the fish. Too bad they took down the whole "campsite" setup for kids in the general exhibit and replaced it with a sturgeon touch-- the sturgeons do tend to shy away from you. It's a good place, but not one to continually spend time in.

This is an interesting place for kids and adults alike. If you reach early, you can find parking space close to the aquarium and it is paid parking. We liked the Dolphin show very much, the presentation and the ambience was good. Lots to walk. It would be better to take map with you in order to avoid confusion.

Very nice facility spent 5 hours are. Really like the beluga whale exhibit.could use more places to sit down when your legs get tired.

Such a good experience in a beautiful setting! Well done!

Awesome place to spend the day for all ages. Love this Aquarium! Grab a bite, a souvenir, watch the dolphin show, & spend hours walking around all the amazing tanks with all the amazing aquatic creatures! Sharks, dolphins, eels, jellyfish, squid, & everything in between! If you have any interest at all in animals or find aquatic creatures remotely interesting, you will love this place!

It s expensive consisting you can see it all in just a couple of hours and the parking is way the heck away which matters most if you happen to go on a day when it s raining (as we did). But the kids loved it and they do a great job of engaging and educating while you re there. Definitely worth a visit.

We loved it! What a great experience! First time here, hopefully next time we visit Chicago we can come again. My son really loved the beluga whales, dolphins and of course, the sharks.

This aquarium is beautiful inside and out, and the enclosures are all unique. I would have given 5 stars, however don't plan on going on any busy day. I had to wait in line for 5 minutes for a space to open just too see inside any tank. Any small space was overcrowded and you bumped into people all the time.

One of the best aquarium to visit in the US. It is better than all aquariums in socal. It is definitely worth visiting any time of the year.

I love all museums you'll learn something new every time you go.

Great aquarium! Lots of good information, not only about the animals, but also about conservation. Dolphin show, a few touch pools, lots to see. Budget at least 4 hours. I only had two, and it was not enough.

Long queue to get in but nice place to visit. Dolphin show was pretty cool.

Incredible experience for children. Well maintained exhibits. Plan ahead, can be quite busy at various times.

The shows there were great, along with safe and well-maintained exhibits that showed off an amazingly wide range of great sea creatures. The bathrooms were decent along with the toilet paper there, as to be expected in such a public attraction. The food in the cafeteria wasn't bad, but it wasn't anything to write home about. Overall, the experience was really enjoyable and I would definitely recommend the aquarium.

This place was really great! So many things to see. My only complaint is that they didn't have more types of jelly fish.

Really great place for family's. A lot if interactive things for kids to stay engaged.

We have a yearly pass and go there all the time specially in winter. Always a good experience.

We went on their behind the scenes tour and it wa awesome! First it allowed us priority entry to aquarium which was extremely beneficial as there was a high turn out for spring break. Second we got to see parts of the aquarium that most have never scene. Did you know they are caring for a porcupine off exhibit there? To not spoil the rest of the tour for anyone interested in doing it, I will say that it was totally worth it. I'd post pictures but we weren't allowed to take pictures because of animal safety. Great tour.

Amazing place, really liked Belugas! Pricy for non Chicago residents, however it`s worth it

Sharks, sturgeon, neon tetras - there's something for every fish lover here!

Except the girl who spent 20 minutes posing for selfies in front of the shark tank on June 28, 2019 without actually ever looking in the tank. Do you know that one of the divers cleaning the tank went and encouraged the sawfish to come out of hiding and he swam RIGHT BEHIND YOU and you didn't even notice. There is no hope for you, selfie girl.

Beautiful place to visit. My son and I loved it. We went on a free day so it was crowded, but we didn't mind and we still got to see everything we wanted. Maybe pay for a day in the middle of the week if you don't want to deal with the crowds.

Visited in 2015. Fantastic aquarium but TOO pricy especially considering it's heavily staffed with volunteers (who do a great job, BTW). $30+ to see the basic aquarium features. You'll want to buy the $40 tickets too see the best and most features. That includes a 4D movie, the live aquatic show (beluga whales on our visit), amphibians section, and to see the sea otters. To really appreciate the aquarium and the activities included in the $40 pass, plan on about 4 hours; but certainly you can rush through faster or meander as long as you wish. They have a cafe there as well, but we didn't eat there during our visit; it looked nice though. If you go, take time to walk the paths along the lake.

It's always been a great place but prices are getting so high.

Was a cool experience and was alot to learn an see.

Shedd Aquarium is an indoor public aquarium in Chicago, US. The aquarium contains thousands of different species.
The aquarium holds millions of visitors per annum. The difference animals includes fishes, marine mammals, birds, snakes, amphibians, etc.
The aquarium also held many exhibits such as Waters of the World, Caribbean Reef, Amazon Rising, etc.

The place was very nice my little one really enjoyed her self