Seattle Aquarium — Attraction in Seattle

Been to the Seattle aquarium at least a dozen times. Was really excited to see this new addition to the zoo. Was a bit disappointed to see how divorced from the normal Seattle pier aquarium is from the new exhibit location. There's also a significant lack of transparency regarding ticketing and visiting. You MUST purchase tickets online or go to the pierside museum for tickets in order to have access the new features located in front of and north of the pier. In general the main aqarium is still the same it's always been, with some really great tanks, the Tidal pool area in the middle for exploration, the birds and mammalians outside with the super cool dome tank.

The new addition, aforementioned divorced from the main site by about half a block distance, is really cool but feels like a rough draft in a lot of ways. There are temporary barriers to keep people off the glass rather than fixed ones, the interesting projected video features are very pixelated even from a middling distance (10 feet, 3m, or so). Last, the touch screen information screens need some serious updates, as one can see from my photos there's a very impressive supposedly "indo-pacific leopard shark" cruising the main feature of this location, but when you try to find out more info all you get is this screen with no real relevant information, a photo that appears to show a different sub-species and IT'S CROPPED OFF AT THE Head! Sorry I'm a little frustrated at the lack of polish on a very basic feature nearly every guest is going to interact with. It's my hope anyone in management has it in the works to remediate this information screens. The leopard shark was merely the most offensive example, many of the other fish had poorly centered photos and/or an absolute lack of information that one typically expects such as size, life expectancy, range, where they inhabit, niche in the ecosystem, endangered status etc.

Side note, a painted walkway between the main site with a label along one side pointing towards the main site saying "tickets" and on the other side saying "whatever we are calling this other divorced location", with arrows of course. Could also do a lane from the exit of the gift shop to the new location. Of course you wouldn't have needed employees checking tickets at the new site if you'd have created a covered walkway to the new site bridged from the mamalian/bird side of the main building, maintaining ticket security to the exit. As is it's a bit of a Charlie foxtrot, frankly. But the tanks are all...

The Seattle Aquarium is spread across 3 buildings on the waterfront walkway. Our trip was in mid-June, and though we were able to walk up and grab three passes immediately, that is not usually the case. If you have a family or a group I suggest buying your tickets in advance. We started out in the newest building and worked our way over to the other two. It will require going outdoors in order to get to each building as there is no connecting enclosure, but each building is very close to the other. The Seattle Aquarium could definitely be a larger concern, considering they are located right on the waterfront;however, it tended to focus on life in the colder local waters & shorelines in the older buildings. The newest addition ventures out to a wider view of marine life in warmer waters, which makes for a more interesting experience overall. The information is displayed well, and staff is very involved and engaging about the work they're doing there. We enjoyed the visit, which took us about 2 hours to get through, but we didn't have any small children with us. We went on a Tuesday and there were numerous groups of young children with chaperones touring the aquarium that day, which I felt made it a much more interesting trip. If you don't see that situation the same way I suggest you call ahead to find out what's booked as it seemed the aquarium's staff was well prepared for the onslaught. The gift shop was well stocked and modern but there isn't much for food here. Overall, it was a good trip and would absolutely recommend it especially as part of the city pass...

Was really excited to visit the Aquarium now that the new pavilion is finished but i have to be honest, it was a bit of a let down. The mammal exhibits are incredibly cramped and not optimized for viewing at all. The new pavilion was pretty but not anything special or extraordinary. The largest area is just a big empty area with white walls and projectors that show video of sea life and the big tank was so unbelievably crowded, no employees were there ensuring that the flow of traffic was moving at an acceptable rate so people were blocking the walk ways entirely and refused to make way for anyone (like come on people have a little decorum). Not to mention the walkways throughout both buildings are way too narrow for the amount of strollers being used combined with foot traffic, it ultimately felt like a claustrophobic obstacle course. Won’t be returning in the future, as it’s simply not on par with the other more robust aquariums across the country that i’ve been to and it’s way too expensive...