Mote Marine Laboratory & Aquarium

1600 Ken Thompson Pkwy, Sarasota, FL 34236, USA

Address:	1600 Ken Thompson Pkwy, Sarasota, FL 34236, USA
Phone:	+1 941-388-4441
Site:	mote.org
Rating:	4.6
Working:	10AM–5PM 10AM–5PM 10AM–5PM 10AM–5PM 10AM–5PM 10AM–5PM 10AM–5PM

Location

Photos 100

Reviews 7

Sonja Muenchen

Der Ausflug hat sich wirklich gelohnt! Neben typischen Aquarien gibt es hier auch viel Informatives. Außerdem eine Aufzuchtstationen für Seepferdchen und Quallen etc. Gleichzeitig ist das hier auch ein Krankenhaus für Delphine und Wale und auch verletzte Schildkröten werden aufgenommen, aufgepäppelt und dann wieder zurück in die Natur gebracht. Alles ist sehr sauber und in einem super Zustand.Überall seht man Mitarbeiter, die einem sehr gerne etwas genauer erklären. Draußen gibt es noch ein großes Becken mit Haien usw. Und besonders faszinierend für Kinder das Becken, wo man Rochen streicheln kann. Allerdings bin ich der Meinung, dass so was nicht unbedingt sein muss, schon aus hygienischen Gründen und um die Rochen nicht zu gefährden. Für das leibliche Wohl gibt es ein kleines Bistro, das haben wir aber nicht getestet. Zeitmässig sollte man 3-4 Stunden einplanen.

Didi Paul

This place is great, and I love love love it. What not to expect: Shedd Aquarium, the Chattanooga Aquarium, some of the big aquariums on the east coast, etc. If youve visited the "big dog" aquariums you may be disappointed with the size of this facility. Its rinky dink by comparison. However, its a research facility first and foremost. Mote rehabilitates and releases sea turtles, dolphins, and other injured aquatic critters. The work that they have been doing with sea turtles for decades is worth chipping in twenty bucks for, in my opinion. My favorite thing here? I am crazy about cuttlefish, so I spend a great deal of time ogling these mini Cthulhu esque creatures in their tanks, and wondering what it might be like to have wiggling tentacles coming out of my face. I also wonder when the great and mighty Cthulhu will rise from his sea throne to reclaim the entire state of Florida, and return it to his watery domain. I digress. The staff is more knowledgeable than staff at, say, Shedd or Tampa too. The smaller size of the place makes it have a more personal feel, so ask the staff questions. They can actually answer them, and seem happy to do so. If you visit during sea turtle nesting season (right now and through October!!!) you can see the rescued baby sea turtles that are being rehabilitated. Green O happens to be our favorite. The little darling is missing a front flipper, but has a lot of gumption anyway. Go get em, little turtle. Mote should jump on the bandwagon (ahem, ahem Clearwater...) and make a movie about their turtle sans flipper. Imagine the money they could rake in.

Dana Bennett

Mote Marine is a really great place for all ages. We have the annual pass because the kids love it and we go there a lot when friends and family come into town. My 4-year old boy LOVES it. Even my 17- year old likes it- and shes too cool for most things these days. The indoor part with all the fish is great- its air-conditioned- and has everything from Nemo to seahorses. The shark tank, the manatees and the dolphins are also great, but the best parts are the touch tank (starfish, sea anemones, conchs & hermit crabs), the stingray touch tank, and panning for sharks teeth (worth the extra $5 for the panning). THE STAFF. The staff is nothing short of spectacular. Mostly volunteers- you know... people who actually WANT to be there. And theyre fountains of information. The best part, though? Your moneys going to help study and save the stuff youre looking at. Thats very cool. Yes, there are a few minor detractors (Im not a Pollyanna). The stingrays can be a little elusive- but patience is a virtue here. Mote is a tad small- but so is Sarasota. They make up for it in charm, cleanliness, and excellent exhibits. Some of the aquarium is air-conditioned, and a lot is under shade, but the walk from the main building to the Manatee building... in the summer... darn hot. Still worth it. This place is a MUST-SEE when you come to Sarasota- well worth every penny!

Kathleen Walker

Best place on earth, like seriously... TAKE THE BOAT TOUR you will thank me later it was so incredible. We saw Dolphins in the bay, went to an ISLAND and hiked around, saw tons of birds and even scooped stuff out of the bay that we got to touch, see live animals, and learn about from a real on board BIOLOGIST!!! Best experience ever, and I am so glad we went... We touched starfish, sea slugs, mermaids purses, live fish, seahorses and so much more. It was off the CHARTS AMAZZZZIIIINGGG... Words cannot describe how awesome it was, really anyone who loves nature or science would find this to be completely off the charts epic awesomeness!!! The Aquarium is amazing too, with so many awesome displays and wonderful staff, you will have the experience of a lifetime. No trip to FLORIDA is complete without MOTE MARINE!!! I promise you will LOVE this, they have everything, seahorses, sea urchins, giant squid, otters, lion fish, sea turtles, manatees, star fish, stingrays, SHARKS. So many SHARKS... Touch tanks and well marked exhibits that you can read about and learn stuff as you go thru the aquarium. Beautiful displays and well cared for tanks, and happy fish. Kids will never be bored here and will be bounding from EXHIBIT to EXHIBIT, I cannot wait to go back!!!

Petr Bouchner

Moc pěkné ale nevelké akvárium nabízející zejména téma místní fauny -žraloků, rejnoků, vodních želv a kapustňáků. Expozice o vývinu ryb zejména pro děti. Bazénky, kde si děti mohou bezpečně osahat rejnoky a jiné vodní živočichy. Show s tak trochu cvičenými želvami. Pozor - kapustňáci a želvy jsou spolu s vydrami v odděleném pavilonu, který je asi 500m přes parkoviště. Lístek platí i do nějaké expozice ptactva, což je na půl cesty mezi pavilony. Určitě si najděte v nějaké turistické brožuře nebo reklamním letáku slevový kupon, vstup je, jako asi na všechny atrakce tady, docela vysoký.

A Private User

The aquarium is on the small side, but the exhibits are interesting. When you walk in you start in a large indoor area with several small exhibits of different species of fish. The layout is pretty nice. The rest of the aquarium is outside. So if you want to beat the heat dont come here. They have a large squid specimen, sharks, etc. For $5 you can buy a bucket and pan for shark teeth. My 6 year old liked it. The ray touch tank is pointless. The rays like to spend their time in the center, out of childrens reach. There is another touch tank that is quite large that has several different species in that you can pick up as long as they stay under water. They had sea urchins, horseshoe crabs, hermit crab, starfish, silverdollars, etc. The diner is not that bad. Its reasonable. Its a full soda shop. Not a lot of food to choose from but its not really necessary. You can see into part of the laboratory area from the diner. It would neat if you could see a little more of it since that is what makes them so interesting/different than say the Florida Aquarium. Across the street is the area where they keep the loggerheads, dolphins, and manatees.

Raquel Canther

We are from out of town and come to Sarasota every year so this was our first visit to MOTE. Our son loved seeing all the fish and animals. We did have a bad experience with the lady at the ticket counter. We first asked if they had a student discount which she informed us no, ok no problem. We went ahead and paid for our groups tickets. I looked down on the counter top when she was finishing up the transaction and saw they had a discount if you had a zoo pass (which we had!). I mentioned something to her and she responds to us saying, " Oh yeah you would get a 50% off discount but im finishing up the transaction and the sign clearly says we can not refund anything". You would think if she had good customer service skills (and common sense) she would have asked us if we had any of these other passes that would allow us to get a discount if we had just asked her about a student discount. Needless to say we visited this place once and i think that will be good enough for us.