Visiting the New York Aquarium

As far as aquariums go, I will admit that the New York Aquarium isn’t the most awesome one I’ve ever been too, but I do support the Wildlife Conservation Society‘s efforts to educate our community about preservation of wildlife and in their efforts to build support to continue to do so. Plus, if you find yourself in Coney Island, and want to do something with the little ones aside from Luna Park or the beach, then a trip to the NY Aquarium makes for a nice visit.

This is how we came about our visit to the aquarium. The nice thing about the aquarium is the it is small enough that if you have little ones especially, it’s easy to navigate and it’s not too overwhelming. The bad thing about the aquarium though, is also that it is small enough that if enough sea life exhibit areas are closed, or there are a lot of people there (say, mid-day on a weekend) it seems like there wasn’t enough to see, and the staff don’t do well with a huge crowds.

But, should neither of the above apply, you and the kiddos should have a nice time overall. What I enjoyed the most about the aquarium, aside from the jelly fish, the walrus and the coral reef displays, is the educational aspects about New York’s shores and seeing the wildlife that inhabit the rivers and lakes in and around our island and state. I also really like the interactive portions of some of their areas.

The outdoor exhibit area isn’t at all very big, but it is nice to have and with the incorporation of the Planet Earth: Shallow Seas attraction, the aquarium has been able to bring a new level of entertainment to its visitors.

I have hopes that despite the massive budget cuts the Wildlife Conservation Society has been experiencing, the Mayor and others will continue to make efforts to bring the aquarium up to par. It seems a shame that they haven’t figured out ways to better bring in the surrounding beach into the site. Even though the Bronx Zoo is larger and deals with a much larger crowd, I find the staff there a lot friendlier  and wonder why that is.

The trip to this location is far for even most New Yorkers let alone tourists, but I still think it is worth the visit. Even though it is small, there is much more to do in the area afterwards or beforehand, and it remains a great place to learn a bit about our shorelines and aquatic wildlife as well.

Admission into the NY Aquarium is $13.00 per adult, $9.00 for children (3-12). For more information on their rates, hours, and directions to the aquarium, please visit their website here.

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Tags: family activities
Posted in Aquariums/Parks/Zoos | 2 Comments »