Shedd Aquarium Reviews

Great aquarium. Went with some friends and my fiance for his birthday.

So aquariums get a bad rep these days, but most of them have make great efforts to assure the public that all their "residents" are unfit to return to their natural habit and have a much larger quality of life and probability of survival under their care. The Shedd Aquarium in Chicago is no exception and have a great team in charge of thw little fellows. In regards of the exhibitions, the main hall has a large variety of specimens for all across the globe, so if you have a favorite go look around and most likely you will find it. The penguins are always a hit and here you get to see plenty of them play around and go about their lives. And finally the mammals, the beluga whales are awesome and very playful, you should have plenty of opportunities for the perfect photo with them in the background once you go up to the top of their home. Dolphins and sea lions are also not shy and you might get a chance to pet them. The main show is beautiful but it could get crowded, so make sure to redeem your tickets in advance (at least 1hr) and to arrive at the "theather" a good 20 min ahead of the show.
Parking options are limited, while many people leave their cars in the museum grounds (that includes the Field Museum, Soldier Field, Shedd Aquarium and Adler Planetarium) you can get tow easily, there are also private parking lots nearby but the tariffs are not that attractive.
Finally, similar to its sister attractions the Planetarium and the Museum, their food court is a little expensive (I.e. A slice of pizza and a soda for $10) but it has a lot of options to choose from (like a Mexican Grill or a soup station) and refill in their beverages; and most importantly, it taste good. If you get the City Pass you are stuck with this attraction but it is worth the time, otherwise if you happen to only have a few days in the city, i'll recommend to choose to go here only if you absolutely enjoy that type of experiences. Best of luck.

We went on Thanksgiving day. Staff was friendly. Food was great, a little pricey but delicious. My family had fun learning and exploring. Parking wasn't too bad either, considering it was a holiday.

This place is awsome , great people , beautiful exhibits, if in town take the family to the shedd and enjoy the experience.

My family and I have the family membership! It was a great decision! We have so much fun everytime we go. We went today and in the wild reef area downstairs, we met a fish that we named Finley! He became our buddy and we cannot wait to visit him again!

Very busy and difficult to see all exhibits. Go during the week. Pricey also. We did not stay long.

Awesome!!! The sea monster 4d was great. It could be a little longer though

Loved this place! Definitely needed more time! The show's were good. Lots of aquatic life!

One of Chicago's coolest museums and probably one of the best aquariums in the country. This place continues to stand out for an undersea adventure.

Awesome place to go with family or friends. Huge aquarium plan for at least half a day to explore. There's lots of exhibits and shows that you can watch. It's by the lake so you get a view of it while watching dolphins.

I love this place it's fun to see all the animals and the staff is great

Love this place. As a teacher I find many new and exciting things to share with my students!

Grossly overpriced for a "free" day after paying for $25 for parking, $35 for a less than 13 min. 4D movie for 4 adults and 3 kids, and $75 for a very small nasty lunch, with water. Very rude food worker named Karen at the line yelling at everyone who got a table without their food in their hand. Last time!

A bit crowded, but really fun. Confusing layout, but I guess it made every turn a pleasant surprise. Awesome that they let me, my girlfriend, and parents in for free because I am active duty military. Really kind of them!

This place is amazing. I never thought I would spend over 5 hours in an aquarium. Part of that is the spectacle, but the majority of that time is due to the fact it's HUGE. It's divided into sections of the world, and there are hundreds if not thousands of species to see. If you can see one of the 4d experience shows, I highly recommend "Coastal Predators".

Don't expect to walk right in, especially if you are visiting on a weekend. Average wait is probably an hour. You can buy an Express pass for about 15 dollars more, which gets you right in the door, which you can do online. I did it, and didn't look back. This place is a can't miss.

The stingray touches an amazing opportunity to see and touch stingrays of close. In addition to the thousands of species of animals that you can see up close, there's also artwork made from plastic that have been found in the ocean in an effort to stop ocean pollution.

Sheds aquarium is badass, no question. Make sure to allow for a few hours (3 minimum) to see everything and ask the staff questions. They are very knowledgeable and informative.

A classic Chicago attraction. Buy tickets ahead of time and make sure they are on your phone-waiting in line for tickets is brutal. Check out the 4d movie experience-very fun. The beluga whales are unique-haven't seen these at other aquariums and they are fun to watch. The cafeteria is vegetarian friendly.

I apent three hours visiting and found the aquarium to be very pleasant with a lot of attractions, not just for kids. The staff was friendly and all of the animals appeared to be properly cared for. The beluga show was amazing and I preferred it to a standard dolphin show. Would definitely recommend to others.

The Aquarium can be as cheap or as expensive as you want it to be, we did a basic entry and really enjoyed it. The exhibits were full of life and great to see, we accessed the museum using the blue city bikes although there isn't that many parking spots for them when we visited.

Great place to take the kids! Lots of interactive things for them to do! Top 3 favorite places in Chicago!

Well run, well organized...lots of education and a friendly staff willing to answer any and every question.

The aquarium is great once you get inside, but getting inside is the most ridiculous process ever. We arrived right as they opened, and had already purchased tickets online, and it was still 30 minutes before we were able to start viewing the aquarium. We had purchased the penguin encounter online and had to do several things for that upon arrival, even though we already had tickets in hand. When we left, there was a line half a mile long. They really need to streamline their processes to get people in faster.

So much fun! Loved the beluga whale show! My 4 year old was thoroughly entertained.

Always good fun. Generally the same thing to see Everytime but still enjoy it. I suggest buying tickets online because the line is always huge

The dolphin show with the lake as the backdrop is the best. Also just a good aquarium in general for such an urban area.

It is fun and has a lot of variety of animals and species, pretty big and busy though. Beautiful location

A must see, if you are in town! Be prepared to spend a lot of time here

It's been fun there's a lot of great things that they have here I been enjoying a lot all my friends but now we are going to go see our parents it's also great thank you God because I had a blessing with all my friends counselor

Clean, beautiful aquarium. They do a great job of integrating their fish with environments.

Very interesting place and very crowded. I especially liked the beluga whales and turtles.

Loved our visit here. It is a bit overwhelming at first and very crowded, but the shows make it worth it. Definitely worth checking out especially if you have kids.

A beautiful aquarium with a range of animals and sealife. Loved the whales and otters.

One of the best tourist attractions in Chicago. Amazing variety of sea life and extremely educational!

Good place to spend some time. 40 dollar admission was kinda steep. Geared toward families with children. Clean. I'd recommend the Shedd aquarium for adults as a "rain day" attraction. Along with the natural museum.

The museum has an assortment of exotic and interesting animals. They have a lot of hands on exhibits for the kids. With all the different kinds of fishes shown the children will obviously enjoy themselves. What is even better is that they dedicated an exhibit just for the kids. It is even great for the adults, the fishes are calming and if you want to broaden your knowledge there are always specialist to answer all your burning questions.

Pools so small seeing the whales in them was heart breaking...

Fun family trip to the Shedd Acquarium! All the safety measures in place. Totally worth it to see the Beluga whales, dolphins, sea otters, penguins, Caribbean reef, sting ray touch, and all the beautiful fish! The Shedd architecture is absolutely beautiful! Unfortunately no shows with the sea animals currently offered; that was a disappointment as it was always a family favorite. All the kid play areas and experiences closed down, also a disappointment (penguin play place and touch a star fish). Otherwise a fun visit. I highly recommend a visit!

What a great great place. I don't believe there's anything that's in the water that's not there to see. Very educational

It's the best Chicago has to offer. If you goto Chicago more than twice a year, get a membership. It's worth it.

This is a great aquarium. Chicago has a lot to offer. We have such amazing sites to show you. Every time you go to the shedd aquarium you will see something different. You will also learn something new. No matter how old you are.

Shedd is a truly world-class aquarium; every exhibit has something exciting to see.

Shedd has a great variety of aquatic habitats that showcase many of the world's fish as well as a great dolphin show. Despite that, it's a bit pricey in my opinion. Still, I wouldn't discourage anyone from going. There's plenty of cheap parking by the shore.

My family and I recently visited Shed Aquarium and I have to say I was greatly dissapointed. First of all, the ticket prices for non residents are appalling. How can you justify charging a three year old $30? The shows included in the ticket prices were sold out . So being forced to buy an entry ticket that includes many of the attractions does not guarantee you can actually enjoy those attractions. The staff was rude, always chitchatting with other staff and gave the impression of being disturbed if we asked a question. Less than half of the interactive installations for kids were actually working. Had to constantly explain to my child that the button was not working and the persscope was out of commission. In the end...a waste of money.

I highly recommend that they put a bathroom in each Level... During our visit it was too crowded which made it difficult to get to the bathroom quick enough... On the other end we loved the Dolphin Show

Great shedd aquarium in city I recommend this to everyone to check it out .

Great place to bring your kids and the whole family.

It's a great aquarium. They have plenty of free days throughout the year and I would definitely recommend it. Lots of variety and the dolphin show was fun to watch.

Wonderful place to visit! Always something new to notice or see. Recommended to go on IL resident free days. Otherwise the tix of admission is steep.

Awesome attraction and beautiful location!! I highly recommend!!

It was so busy that day that we had a hard time seeing the aquariums. Call a head and ask them when their slower times are. What we did see was pretty cool. We will go back and try again

First time . Loved it. Need to plan for over 3 hrs next time

Beautiful property and so nice to see all the different fish/ mammals. It's sad they still hold shows to make the animals do tricks for food (and more sad that most tourists don't see what's wrong with this).

We took my 2 year old and 10 year old. I found everything more fascinating then they did. I think this place is awesome and you could easily spend most the day here. My kids did not feel the same way

Love this place early birds get parking .otherwise there is no free parking some free shows 4d shows are there nice and clean tanks variety of aquatic animals. Main attraction is beluga whales and dolphin show that is for free with your ticket. Food courts was not good for vegetarians.food was

Great experience, but too much people in the Aquarium, too much, impossible to walk and watch.

Very large and really cool animals to see. Staff was friendly and helpful.

First time visiting the aquarium since I've lived in Chicago. I was blown away, so many terrific exhibits! I love visiting the zoo but visiting the aquarium was such an amazing experience. Definitely check it out if you haven't already!

Go early and go often; this place is magical for toddlers and young children. Parents will enjoy the more technical side of the exhibits.

I recommend the Amazon exhibit currently running (as of August 2018).

good: very nice place tons of cool things to see.
bad: way to many people

While it was really cool it's not cheap, if your on a budget don't even think about walking into there gift shops. Wish they had workers to walk with the school's/camps to make it more fun for everyone. But the show was completely work the money and even tho we seen a couple of stingrays were injured as soon as we pointed out they called somebody to look at them we also noticed in one of the tanks that there had been two fish that I died we let someone know that too and they were calling someone immediately to come take care of it which to me means they do care about their creatures and their well-being

Such a fun and beautiful experience! Went with a friend and our kids during an Illinois residents free day!
The place is kept clean and it was not as busy as I expected. Definitely less crowded on weekdays!
Very fun and educational adventure for the kids. We watched the aquatic show (which was also free). The show included dolphins, penguins, and eagle and more. & We got to pet starfish! Highly recommend going and giving yourself as much time as possible because there is SO MUCH to see and do!

Lovely staff, beautiful and diverse array of species...well organized, beautiful souvenirs.
A great way to learn about sea creatures.
Great fun for all ages!!

The aquatic show is super nice. The staff are so caring for the animals and it s nice to see. The aquarium is pretty big. There are some alligators and the beluga whales are cool. The dolphins jump during the show. My brother loved the sea lion.

besides the fact i dont like aquariums it's a good time. pretty much looks the same as it did in 2nd grade

With their museums for all partnership we were able to go to this amazing attraction. Lots for fish. Well planned layout. Lots of hands on areas for kids.

Absolutely amazing!!! I wasn't expecting the dolphin show at all! I'll go back with my grandkids one day!

Price was high even with a discount. But a good place to visit every now and then.

Amazing place . A lots of varieties of aquatic creatures. But feeling sad for these animals. They are deprived from freedom.

Buy your tickets online and come early so it's not as crowded! Fantastic experience that entertained us for 3 hours! Highlights include an Amazon exhibit with giant turtles and fish , a polar exhibit with penguins and beluga whales , and a dolphin show. There are exhibits where you can reach your hand in to touch sturgeons, sting rays, and star fish! You have to wash your hands like a surgeon (up to the elbows!), to touch the sturgeon!

It's a wonderful place, you need more than two hours to visit the place. You sure will want to spend time with the dolphins and there is a beautiful view of the lake there.

Spent a good solid 3 hours in here. Watched the dolphin show, touched the sting rays, caught the 4D shark movie experience, relished a beautiful part of an awesome day amidst so many water animals and I thoroughly enjoyed myself. Would definitely visit again!!

I'm a big fan of aquariums and this was part of the Chicago City Pass so was eager to go.
It isn't a huge place but still had a large array of creatures. The main feature is the reef they have built underground. I also really liked the 360 Caribbean exhibit, especially as there were two men inside cleaning it.
the Beluga whales were a hit as i'd recently seen Finding Dory!

Ahmazing!! Definitely worth spending a few hours here, and make sure you attend the dolphin show! The place has enough room that it didn't feel crowded, and the variety of animals in each room was wonderful! Great for family trips, girls trips, any kind of trip!

Expect to spend several hours touring the exhibits. This is the perfect place for people who enjoy and learning about aquatic life from various environments. Very child-friendly, and not to mention a great place to go on dates! Make sure to see the dolphin sanctuary, where you can sit down and enjoy watching the dolphins while cooling off.

If you like fish....you will love the Shedd Aquarium! It is a real neat place to visit. The Dolphins are fun to watch along with the seal that does tricks.

They had such a large array of aquatic life, from fish to lizards to penguins! Make sure to head to the exhibits to see the beluga whale and most importantly, the dolphin show (it's a must see). This will be a very good educational experience for kids.. lots of opportunities to learn about the different fish and sea creatures.

Excellent Aquarium, everything you would hope for animal-wise with a healthy looking penguin habitat, some baby belugas, a stingray touch tank and incredible attention to detail put into the lighting and fixtures. I had a great time with my mom and my girlfriend, we only spent about 3.5 hours there but when the shows are running I'm sure we could have spent the whole day!

Overrated and overpriced. Felt no different than what you might see at zoo except without all the other animals. My favorite part was the view of the skyline from outside the Shedd.... which happens to be free.

This museum is definitely a great experience. Come ready to spend several hours there. No outside food or drink so if you get hungry you're going to be paying a pretty penny. Amazing creatures that they have on display, but even on a slow day it's going to be crowded. The 4D movie experience was fun. MOST IMPORTANT: find out what discounts you can get before you go such as Student Discounts.

Hadn't visited in years! What a great time with my grown children. Got to pet a sturgeon which was amazing!

It is not worth to go there there is nothing special and the ticket price it is expensive

The variety of fish here is nice. However the experience was terrible. You have to park over half of a mile away. We walked in 100 degree weather to get to the aquarium with our kid. The stairs to get in makes you feel as if you re training like Rocky. The line to get in extended all the way down the stairs outside. Everyone was a sweaty mess and then we all had to squeeze on elevators to get up to the museum.

The bathrooms were disgusting they really should clean them! Toilet paper and fluids all over the floor. Dirt and water all over the changing table. Food was ridiculously overpriced.

Lastly this place was WAAAAAY too crowded to enjoy anything we had to push past people to be even able to view anything. Will not be returning here.

A nice aquarium with a wide variety of exhibits demonstrating various aquatic habitats. I really enjoyed the Beluga whales and sea otters. Some of the exhibits could use more educational background. Most of the staff were very nice, but there were a few that were rude and/or disinterested. About a half day will allow you to see everything.

Great family experience for the first time very interesting