Aquarium Of The Bay

2 The Embarcadero & Beach St, San Francisco, CA 94133, USA

Address:	2 The Embarcadero & Beach St, San Francisco, CA 94133, USA
Phone:	+1 415-623-5300
Site:	aquariumofthebay.org
Rating:	4.1
Working:	10AM–7PM 10AM–7PM 10AM–7PM 10AM–7PM 10AM–7PM 10AM–7PM 10AM–7PM

Location

Photos 100

Reviews 5

Bruce

I never try and go by what others say about a business and keep an open mind until after we have visited the place. Besides, if we went "solely by reviews ("great to absolutely terrible"), we probably wouldnt be visiting a lot of these places. I read a lot of these reviews for the entertainment value and believe me, some of them are hilarious! On our most recent trip to Pier 39, which we never get tired of seeing, was in July 2013. Of course, the kids wanted to see the aquarium, which would be our 5th journey into this place. And once again, "dad" emptied his pockets for the price of admissions! "Heck, I think Ive made more deposits here than to our own bank!" The exterior of this place is small for its size, especially when compared to the "California Academy of Sciences in Golden Gate Park," which is a lot nicer and colossal in size. But then again, this place was built on a "Pier!" The "Aquarium of the Bay," concentrates its attention on the indigenous "aquatic animals from the San Francisco Bay and neighboring waters." The aquarium itself covers 64,990 ft. and opened in 1996. The displays here include the "Discover the Bay, Touch the Bay, and Under the Bay." By comparison during our last visit to Hawaii (April 2013), we visited the "Waikiki Aquarium" which was also small but the big difference is that the "Aquarium of the Bay" has two floors and a viewing tunnel that the one in Hawaii didnt have. Also, they both have completely different species of fish with one being more "tropical" and the other more what you would find out in the open Pacific. "But the one in Waikiki is in the Land Of Paradise!" Ive always liked aquariums and that was enough to draw us in for another visit. On this visit, it was pretty congested which you couldnt tell from the outside, but once you paid and was committed, then you realized that "maybe we wouldve waited until the crowds died down!" Of course, "youre probably thinking that after five visits, I would know better!" The price of admission in my opinion was steep for a small place but Im sure when it was built, they had tourists, as well as "me" in mind. While inside, I heard a German couple talking about the atmosphere inside and how well the places was organized. Youre probably speculating, "How the hell do you know what they were talking about?" "I spoke German while I was stationed in Frankfurt for three years!" It always amazes me at how many people from all over the world come here, but San Francisco is a top destination and people pay big bucks to come here. On the bottom floor, is the sardines and jellyfish but Im always attracted to the sardines and "how well they tasted on my pizza!" Sorry, anyway, I always marveled at how they stayed in a tight school, and went in one direction. Like us, there are a few who were going in the opposite direction and bumping into other sardines. Onto the "touching ponds" where you could actually touch the rays, sharks, and star fishes along with other creatures, which I declined to do because "Ive touched enough wet things in my life." Ive caught plenty of sharks (catch and release for animal lovers out there) to know that their skin feels like sand paper and rays have a smooth touch. Besides, on this day, it was crowded and a lot of people had their hands in the pool or touching creatures and you couldnt really tell what they were, which was kind of annoying. The moving walkway was quite slow but when its crowded, at least it offered you a chance to be able to see everything. Without it moving, you always have some who stay in one place and dont move. It was actually pretty neat to have the fish swimming over you and gave that sensation of being under water, but then again, I guess thats the whole point, "Duuuuh...!" The entire trip or walk-through for us took about an hour or so and if you wanted to make another pass you were able to. The mood inside gave you that aquarium feeling which just added to what you were seeing. "We ate fish sandwiches afterwards!"

Neeral Bhalgat

Id probably rate this place at 4.5 stars, because the animals here are amazing. The jellyfish lighting up in the water is so addictive. The leopard sharks and bat rays are also very interesting to watch, and while there are many types of fish and starfish, the main event of this place would be probably the tide pool. Touching the sting ray, skate, and shark is sure to be an amazing feeling for you. The water is quite cold, but once you touch one animal, your mind will be focused on touching the other animals instead of the chilly water coming onto your hands. Overall the animals her are definitely 5 stars. The only complaint I have about this aquarium is the small tiny size it is. It should be for sure bigger. Staff is very good though. They know every fish in the tanks you are looking at, and can answer any of your question with all of their knowledge. Overall, this place will probably be a blast for you. I recommend this place to anyone deciding to visit here, or has been to few aquariums. It sure to be an adventure of a lifetime.

Really compacted Aquarium, for what little space they have its not too shabby. A little pricey for how much they offer but it helps to think that it goes to a great cause. You enter on the 3 floor; as you make your way through the first exhibits (small aquatic animals) you get to an elevator where a knowledgeable person is operating the elevator. After the elevator reaches the first floor, you exit and enter the jellyfish exhibits which leads to the ocean tunnels where you will see the larger fish (sharks, sting-rays, etc.). This all wraps around back to the elevator. Taking a step back into the elevator, you will be taken to the second floor where you will be able to touch the aquatic life. At the end of these exhibits is the otter exhibit tucked away in a corner by the gift shop entrance. All in all it was a fairly average experience; it was a hot, sunny day when we visited the aquarium.. It was pretty humid and slightly unpleasant with the size of the crowd that was there that day.

Katie D

This is a great location to see animals most will never be able to see anywhere else or in many other aquariums! The tunnels are a must see as how often can you have a shark swim over your head and come eye to eye with fishes longer than your arm and bigger than your head. Tons of informational cards to learn about the fishes you see then you can search to find them in the massive tunnels and tanks! This is a multi-leveled attendant operated tour guided elevator attraction accessible to all that manages groups by keeping it free from being bound up with a lot of people by moving them fluidly throughout different sections without having to back track through the crowds to get out.

Sean Lee

The jellyfish section really impressed me. Difficult to photograph jellyfishes in other aquariums because the lighting is poor and it does not help that they are constantly moving. This aquarium managed to provide a solid dark background but yet light up the jellyfishes beautifully. Excellent for viewing with your naked eye as well as your camera lens/handphone camera lens. The river otters were cute and active. Shark tunnel was pretty cool too. Whole aquarium is rather small though compared to aquariums from other cities. Children would enjoy it more than parents. Probably not worth USD25 per adult entry. But I had the SF City Pass, so I had to go in.