National Aquarium in Langley Park

It was our first time visiting the National Aquarium. Overall, it was a memorable experience. There were plenty of parking garages within walking distance. I parked at once located at 400 Pratt St that cost me $19 (w/validation at the National Aquarium). The cost to get into the museum was a little pricey about $40/ adult and about $30 per child (8 and 7 years old). Once inside, theres plenty to see. It took us almost 2-hours to check out all the free exhibits. It was a warmer Saturday when we went, so there was plenty of people inside and out. My favorite exhibits were the Amazon habitat and Shark Alley. The Tropical Rainforest was going through renovations. My wife and daughters got "stamped" before they left which granted them access back into the aquarium after lunch. Theres plenty of eateries within walking distance; we decided upon eating at the Hard Rock Cafe. Id give the National Aquarium a 9/10!!

Very fun and informative! I always leave happy, although I sometimes wish there was more content. The rainforest area is currently closed for renovations though, so thats probably why. They have touch pools, including one with moon jellies which makes for a super cool and fun experience! They also carved pumpkins into shark shapes to place in the reef tank for Halloween! A great educational trip for people of all ages!

I love the National Aquarium.My wife and I visited and had a great experience. I have been many other times, but am still amazed at what you see here. The facility is modern, clean, and very accessible. And the animals and educational opportunity the provide is really over the top. Im also glad they have made the decision to better care for dolphins versus using them as a show.My only negative is the price, but managing a facility like this is expensive so I understand.

Bought tickets online, staff easily helped me pull up the QR code for the tickets. Staff was friendly and we ran into them several times giving more information about different exhibits. My sole complaint (which for the most part is understandable because of the needs of the animalsis that certain parts of the building are quite dark. My vision is very bad (even w/ glasses), so the darkness was somewhat limiting for someone like me and I was just kind of having to guess at where the steps to get on some of the escalators are. I understand a lot of the animals thrive better in the dimness, but feel some extra lighting at the escalators/ steps would be helpful while not being too disruptive to the environment

I loved it here. Its been years since I have been back and I love the changes made. I enjoyed the jellyfish area as well as the area leading down to the Sharks. Due to the season, the Tropical forest wont be available until after Feb. 2023. They are currently doing renovations in the downstairs Cafe when you first walk in. The only thing that was inconvenient, was having to give up our strollers. I was tired of holding a toddler throughout the whole place. Next time I will plan it when the kids are older or just go with adults. Another thing that could be better is the quality of the picture taken of your group when you first walk in. For the price, it isnt good quality. Take your own photos.Overall, it was a nice experience.

Worth the drive and the cost of admission. Took my daughter here when her school had a day off and we spent 5 hours wondering around.Saw so many different fish and other creatures. Great exhibits throughout. They train dolphins multiple times a day so theres always a chance to watch them exercise and do tricks. The 4D videos are a little short but they are genuinely fun. Prices in the cafe and gift shop are a little high as you would expect, but youre paying for the experience. We had a great one.

This was a fantastic aquarium for a day trip! Everything was well curated with an easy path to follow. I thought that some of the exhibits were a little small compared to other aquariums I have visited, but I loved the variety of fishes and sea creatures. There was plenty to see and so many colorful and huge fish! There were several bathrooms that were clean and places to rest, a little cafe area, a lunch spot, sharks, jellyfish, and almost everything to make for a great tour of the sea. Apparently there are no more dolphin shows, but you are able to watch them train and play and that was a lot of fun. The only part that was a little disappointing was that we did not find a play section for little kids. I don’t know if it was closed or if we just couldn’t find it, but after looking at fish in amazement for a few hours, kids need to blow off some steam. Other aquariums have play areas, which is a huge help for families. Next time we’ll look harder or hopefully they will build a play spot in the future. Overall, we thoroughly enjoyed our visit and look forward to coming back!

This was such a fun way to spend the day! The tickets were quite expensive, but I still feel like we got our moneys worth. There is a wide variety of exhibits, including some amphibians, reptiles, and birds. The 4D experience was short, but it was entertaining and only an extra $5.

We wore our masks but a lot of people didnt and some people were coughing.This aquarium is just beautiful! The staff were incredibly friendly and super knowledgeable able the fishes and penguins. I love the layout of the aquarium with it being a giant cylinder that you walk in with 4 levels including fishes, jellyfish, penguins, corals, and also reptiles. This place is always a must come when you visit Baltimore or Maryland in general.The food market is closed for renovation but they do have a separate food section by the dolphins section.

I stopped in over this past weekend because I absolutely love aquariums. I agree with several other reviewers that this place is a bit overpriced at $40. They have quite of bit of interesting aquatic life, but nothing really earth shattering, with the exception of the bottlenose dolphins and the assortment of different sharks. I also did the little behind the scenes dolphin tour for $25 which was pretty cool and our tour guide was friendly, engaging and informative. I am a New Yorker so I can be a little critical on this aquarium since the one we have in Brooklyn is far superior in comparison. Overall, this aquarium is very clean and well maintained. They have several cafe areas, a 4D theater, touch tanks, a cute gift shop and several tours available. I recommend this place for smaller children as a good start to get them introduced to aquatic species.

We had a great time walking around the aquarium. We miss the dolphin show, you can sit and watch the dolphins swimming around, but they werent doing much when we were there. So, that was kind of a bust. The rain forest was closed for renovations, so we didnt get to see that either, but the rest of the aquarium was very nice.

Very interesting and well put together aquarium. The layout was wonderful, as you kind of followed a pathway to lead up through the floors, and then down again to the entrance. I would say on average many people spend anywhere from 2 to 3 hours or more exploring the aquarium. You could spend more time if you read every information guide and tried to find all of the different aquatic animals. Very family friendly, nicely out, multiple opportunities to sit and watch the animals, and very clean. We took our two school-aged children, one elementary one middle to the aquarium and both enjoyed it very much- along with ourselves! The exhibits seem very clean, and there appeared to be ample space for the animals which was really great. The aquarium had a lot of staff, directing and helping people along the way. There were multiple areas within the aquarium that had restrooms, along with several cafes. Know that there are escalators, some that were escalators made for strollers, but if you have little ones and plan on bringing a stroller, it may be a good idea to plan accordingly. There were options for elevators I believe as well, as we did see several people with wheelchairs enjoying the exhibits.You can purchase tickets ahead of time, however, we went during the weekday and were able to purchase right at the door. I would say the money was worth it, as we spent hours here enjoying the tranquil environment while learning about all the different aquatic animals. There are several places. You can also touch the animals, as long as you listen to their rules about safety- jellyfish and horseshoe crabs.There is a parking structure across the street and in the middle of the block. If you bring your parking ticket to the aquarium, they will stamp it and take the money off for you for the parking.Overall a really cool aquarium and glad that we went.

This is the second time my husband and I have been able to come to this aquarium and this time we got to bring our baby son! We love this aquarium, even with an exhibit being closed for updates, the aquarium was worth seeing. I missed Calypso but understand she was moved for medical screening. It was still a lot of fun. Parents please remember to bring a baby sling or carry your baby, strollers are not allowed. But to check strollers is free!

Love this aquarium! I’ve visited a few times now. Jelly fist exhibit is my favorite! I recommend buying tickets online and skipping the line. You can choose what time you plan to visit

Its worth visiting if you are in Maryland. Value for money, well maintained and have a huge variety of fishes. Had lots of fun. We visited on a Sunday afternoon and it was crowded. They allow entry in batches so the crowd is well managed. The harbor view is also amazing from the aquarium. Fun place to visit.

I love the aquarium. We are members and will probably renew that! The only problem I have is the amount of people in there, any day, but especially Saturdays. Its obnoxious because so many people are just rude. Obviously, rudeness of the public is no fault of the aquarium, but it deters me from going back as often as I would.We love the dolphins, and enjoy when we get to see a training session.Everything is clean, beautiful, and the place is well staffed with such friendly people.If you want to spend a fortune on food and souvenirs, (and the pictures,and lots for admission, its an amazing spot. Ever since I was a small child, its been one of my favorite places!

Worth a visit! The place is maintained well and has very informational exhibits. People of any age group will enjoy it. If youre visiting, ensure you have at least 5 hours in hand. Exhibits close at different times so ensure to review timings. There are certain engagement activities like an activity corner (one exhibit display and an informative session for kidsand 4D movie which run by show times, make sure youve booked tickets ($5 per personand are at the spot in time. Both these are approx 10 min each.Facilities include wheelchair access, cafeteria, restrooms on each floor, lifts and escalators, family room for nursing/pumping. Two things to note are that the parking is a little far and strollers are to be checked-in (dont forget to take a baby carrier).

First time going (from out of state). It was great to see a large aquarium with so many different animals (birds, lizards, fish, mammals, etc.Just wish parking was better & wish crowds were a little more controlled.Location: on the harbor with nearby restaurants. Good spots for plenty of photos. Parked at one of the three garages. Parking in the garage was fairly easy- NOTE: get your parking ticket validated by the aquarium for a discount. Parking is too expensive! One lady paid $19 with the discount (was told $29 without), when I paid they said it was only $11 because we got there so early. So my advice is to get to the garage early. We arrived about 8am for our 9am aquarium tickets. Getting our parking ticket validated was a little of a struggle. The validation machine was down at the aquarium so staff told us to just get it validated at the garage. Walked to the garage and saw several people walking around trying to find the office. I wish there were signs or something to help people.Atmosphere: comfortable, dim lighting in many areas. Moving escalators and some stairs. A few cafes for food. It was SUPER crowded. Be prepared to be right near people, have people in front of your view, and feel a little rushed to move along. Clean and no strong odors.Animals: we saw puffins, dolphins, sharks, gars, several small & huge fish species, several jellyfish, croc, turtles, rays, birds, lizard species, starfish, rock fish, etc. They had touch tanks for jellyfish & rays.Staff: Staff was always friendly and were knowledgeable about the animals.Price: our tickets online were $40 each for adults. Simply showed the QR code from my email to get in.Overall, a fun experience. The sharks, jellyfish, puffins, and dolphins were my favorite. I feel like there could be improvement with perhaps crowd clutters- maybe Staff can help give everyone a chance to view stuff and move long standing viewers on. Itd also be nice if parking was more affordable!

Absolutely love the National Aquarium! Many great exhibits, friendly staff, and tons of stuff to do! There are a couple of spots to get food and snacks. The cafe has a surprisingly nice menu that changes based on the availability of certain fish.

I visited the aquarium with my 2 sisters and mom on our vacation. I was so excited about going, but was not all that good when we got there. The last time I visited was in 2000. Back then it seemed to have more ocean life. This visit didnt have the rain Forrest available. The price was definitely not worth it for the little bit they had. They need to stay open later than what they do. Bathrooms were clean. Popcorn was rotten. Will not be going back. And the traffic is so horrible and the parking is awful.

Made the trip here while on our DC honeymoon. Loved all of the exhibits and seeing all the marine life. They have an area where you can touch horseshoe crabs as well as jellyfish. Took us a few hours to look at the entire place so it makes a nice morning activity.For people looking to watch a show with the dolphins, just know that the aquarium staff are no longer doing shows or trainings at specific times. Instead, they just sprinkle them in throughout the day.

Amazing aquarium! Possibly the best I have ever been to. The range of exhibits and creatures they have here is simply incredible, you have to come see it for yourself!!! The only reason I took off a star is because admission is a little expensive (and parking can be difficult), but well worth the cost. As you can see from the pictures, I was very impressed with the jelly fish exhibit.

Pretty neat place. Great for babies to experience the fish up close. Fyi, the restaurant on top floor does not allow outside food. So you cant feed your kids nutritional snacks. They want you to buy their fish snacks, junk food. Otherwise nice place. I saw they had a parking spot for your strollers. Gift shop VERY expensive. We still had a nice time.

This place wasnt bad but we did drive 2 and a half hours to get there. I have seen better that were cheaper. The main issue I had, being a mom of a rambunctious 2 year old, is that we could not bring strollers. We had to leave the stroller in a checking area which meant I had to chase my 2 year old around for 2 hours. I could not keep track of what area we were in because I had to focus on him. It was so hot outside and not cool enough inside. We also had to wait 2 hours because they were only letting people in every 15 minutes to keep from over crowding. It really wasnt a bad place but it wasnt worth the drive. It would have been great of we knew about the strollers because I would not have gone at all. They should post on the site that you may not get in for a couple of hours after buying the ticket too.

Really enjoyed our visit to this aquarium. This aquarium is one of the best we have visited with regards to the displays and interactive information. There is a ton of information and it is not only a learning experience but also a fun one.The reasons for the four stars as opposed to a five star review are that there is no parking for the aquarium (you have to park in one of the nearby parking structures and walk over, with the aquarium validating your parking ticket, but only for a certain amountand because there were several bottlenecks going through the different exhibits. It was not too busy when we visited and yet we found ourselves waiting in a long line several times. There has to be a better way to engineer the flow of people.Expect to spend at least two hours here. We could have spent easily six hours to see everything in a calm, slow pace. Make sure you get your tickets in advance as you have to choose a time slot.There were no dolphin shows available, but you could sit and watch the dolphins get trained and swim around.If you can, go watch one of the 4-D shows, they are worth it.

Super cool aquarium! Lots to see here over a decently large facility. I paid $20 with discount and spent about an hour and a half, so I really feel like I got value out of my ticketIt was pretty crowded inside, and it was also overly warm. If I could change the aquarium at all, I’d add more sharks and a crustacean exhibit (crabs, lobsters, etc)Overall, though, I quite enjoyed it

There is so much to learn and see at the aquarium. The 4D movies are inexpensive and should be checked out! Every time I have gone this place has been packed, so expect to move slow and be patient with other people trying to see. I was gifted a year membership and absolutely love it 🐠🐙🦈

Had a great time here. Thought it would be bigger due to other reviews, but still got top to bottom in a few hours. Always fun to watch. Food and souvenirs as always, way too expensive but we get them anyway. (Over 20 bucks for 2 pretzels and 3 cans of drinks.Would definitely go back, because I like these types of things.

The Baltimore Aquarium was a great family outing. One of the best features for me was that there was a clear path to follow while walking around. This made what could have been an overwhelming number of things to see seem manageable. As a result we were better able to see everything.Halfway up there is a cafeteria type area that has a clear view of the inner harbor. This was well positioned to allow a quick stop for refreshments prior to making the descent back down the middle of the aquarium.We were lucky enough to get to the dolphins at a time when they were training them. Even without this informal show there are still some impressive views of the dolphins.Another detail that I appreciated were the sensory signs which were posted around in some of the louder areas where one might want to wear headphones.

Fun for all ages, this aquarium gives a full days worth of adventure. This is a beautiful aquarium with plenty of picturesque moments. However, it does tend to get crowded towards the middle of the day. The highlight of my visit was touching the jellyfish. They are just incredible to feel and look at.Just be warned, there are plenty of kids here, so watch your step.

Such a beautiful experience to see life underwater. The best part is dolphin area and jellyfish section. It’s mesmerizing to see hundreds of different species under one roof. There are multiple levels of this aquarium, each with its own greatness. Love the entire experience. Best for kids! it’s great to see your little ones smile.

Amazing place. Well organized, clean, great exposition. A little challenging navigation to some expositions, but we figured it out. Spiral structure of main exposition is amazing and easy with unexpected surprises after each curve. I would definitely go there again.

Be aware, they stopped the dolphins shows, it was for the animals well-being. We went on Friday and coincided with a couple of kids expeditions so you can imagine how hard was to enjoy the exhibition. The place has a good arrangement and variety of specimens. I will return for a night exhibition or when is less crowded.

Nice aquarium to spend a few hours at while in Baltimore. Cost around $40 for an adult. There is a nice large shark exhibit and you can touch moon jellies! There is a separate area with dolphins with no shows, but can watch them catch balls in the water. Would recommend stopping by if in the area.

Love the layout of this aquarium. Though I was somewhat surprised that it wasnt as big as I thought, it was worth the money to check this place out. Go on a Friday night and it will be half off. It definitely wont take more than 2-3 hours to go through all the exhibits.

Great use of space and the set up naturally works for uni directional movement through the aquarium. Best to go during a weekday to avoid large crowds. Best feature is the interactive exhibit where you can safely touch some marine creatures under supervision.

Would have given them five stars but they didnt have an octopus!!! Huge fail. Highly disappointed in that (as it was the one thing I was looking forward to seeing).One section was closed during our visit on Fathers Day. The 4D movie experience was pretty cool first. Definitely worth the extra couple dollars. The staff was polite and friendly. Not what I was expecting considering my past Baltimore experiences. Wish I got the name of the two employees I spoke with so I could commend them. Might have to make that call to find out.

Its been years since Ive been to this aquarium, and I have been to a lot of others over the years since being here, so I was a bit disappointed. For the price, I expected more. The dolphin show is closed until further notice, which is sad because the show would have made the aquarium tickets worth the price. The style of the building and layout inside are pretty impressive, but the attractions are pretty standard. Still nice, just thought it would be better.

The National Aquarium is beautiful, on the Inner Harbor in Baltimore. We were advised to get there early, as they get very crowded towards the afternoon, so we had 9:00 am arrival. We were nearly the only ones there for about 45 minutes, which was amazing. There are multiple levels and you go across a sky bridge to get to the Jellyfish Invasion and Dolphins. They no longer have dolphin shows but you can sit in the arena. We checked in twice and there were never any dolphins to be seen. I dont know if they never have them anymore or just that day. The jellyfish exhibit is beautifully lit, so the jellies are incredible to watch. The information posted was so interesting. There is one area where you can touch a jelly fish (among other thingsand that was new to me.We stayed about 2 hours total at the Aquarium and that allowed us to see everything there. We also watched the 4D movie on Sharks, which I liked. We went on a weekend and there were no crowds. People do tend to enter all through the day and its open until 7.

We had a wonderful time at the Baltimore National Aquarium at Inner Harbor. Definitely worth the trip. Easy parking right across the street with a short walk. The exhibits were just lovely and I was very impressed, everything is so well maintained. So many beautiful fish, jelly fish, sharks, dolphins, corals and so much more to see.

I came here with my boyfriend and I had a blast! We went on a Sunday and it was definitely crowded and cramped with the amount of people that were there but still enjoyable 🙂 I wish they had more availability in sizes for the kids shirts. I was a little bummed that I couldnt find something for my son in his size the weekend that I went but I bought him a few toys and some snacks from the gift shop that he ended up loving!

The National Aquarium is great for all ages but if you have kids 1-5 years old definitely do the annual membership! It’s great in the winter when it’s cold but you need to get out and the heat of the summer too. This round was with teens who didn’t remember it well from early childhood and they still had a great time!

Went for my fourth anniversary with my boyfriend. Absolutely incredible experience. We got thr behind the scenes shark tour and got some really incredible once in a lifetime views or truly rare and endangered animals. Sean, our tour guide, was fantastic and had so much knowledge which really heightened the whole experience. The aquarium itself is beautiful and massive. You can tell they care about all the animals there. Few aquariums have the space or ability to care for the amount and variety of animals that they do. We drove 7 hours to get here and Id do it again!

Beautiful place, and a wide range of fish from marine to tropical to see and learn about.When we visited, it was too busy, far too busy. We couldnt move. Literally had to wait until crowds had moved passed fish tanks so we could see. Apart from that, I think the place is great. They just need to limit the amount of people who come in here at any one time.The photos upon entering though, they are far too over priced.Apart from that though, the displays are fantastic. Just limit the amount of people in at any one time and itll be worthy of more stats in my opinion.

The national was a great place to visit. Fun for all ages. The exhibits were very interesting. Watching the dolphins train was fun as well. It only took about 4hrs to go through it all. I would recommend to anyone looking for something to do.

Very enjoyable aquarium. Great place to take kids and has interactive exhibits. The place is pretty warm, so you might not want to bring a heavy jacket.

We wore our masks. Many people did not.The staff was great. It was a pretty slow day, it seemed. We had a fabulous time.We arrived at 12:45 and left at 4:45. We had a six and seven year old with us. I think we could have used an additional two hours to see *every single* exhibit available. (One of our kids wanted to skip several tanks to get to things she wanted to see.)It was absolutely worth the trip. The staff were really knowledgeable and kind.

They don’t ask for Covid vaccine card anymore, make sure to buy your tickets online, saves a lot of hassle. Great place for kids. They don’t have dolphin show anymore, so you just see the dolphins hanging out in the pool. I like the idea of multiple cafes on such crowded place, they have 3 cafes. One near the jellyfish/dolphin exhibit. One near the main entrance and one on I believe 3rd floor(has a great view). We ordered a cheese pizza and dipn dots.I loved the waterfall! We spent 2 hours and got to see everything. If in the area make sure to check Miss Shirley’s. Amazing breakfast. I do however think the Parking garage charges are insane. We had to pay $30 for only 2hrs.

It is one of the best Aquariums that I have visited. there is much to entertain with the children and a spectacular view. recommended 10 out of 10 and the price is affordable $29.95 for children and $39.95 for adults. I was impressed and my children really enjoyed it. the only thing was that there was no dolphin show 🐬 but everything was very nice.

Fabulous place to enjoy learning about life in all water bodies on Earth with the focus on the oceans of course. The entire building is a three story plus height tank! Our nine year old was glued to different windows enjoying the traffic of creatures often passing just inches from the glass. While single day passes seem high priced, the memberships are great deals!