Virginia Aquarium & Marine Science Center

717 General Booth Blvd, Virginia Beach, VA 23451, USA

Address:	717 General Booth Blvd, Virginia Beach, VA 23451, USA
Phone:	+1 757-385-3474
Site:	virginiaaquarium.com
Rating:	4.3
Working:	9AM–5PM 9AM–5PM 9AM–5PM 9AM–5PM 9AM–5PM 9AM–5PM 9AM–5PM

Location

Photos 100

Reviews 4

Stephanie

Our experience was okay.   We did we love seeing the animals, especially the ones the kids have never seen before. There were some neat and intriguing exhibits to see. The seals out front were one of our favorites… they are so fun to watch and they like to show off too! (but that part is free!) Overall we felt though that the experience was lacking for what we paid. We felt like the experience equaled the quality of 5-10 dollars a person (and we paid 30) We try to look at it as we are donating to the animals, but it is hard to pay so much for an experience you felt was ‘okay’. There were a few things that dampened the experience for us (which most are things that can be changed quite easily!)... Before you go in, they make you go take a picture in front of a green screen and they print it all out for you before you even get a chance to see the pic and say you dont like it or don’t want it. We were not forced to buy, but they keep your picture for two years in case you want it later. I really didn’t want any of that. Air circulation was pretty poor throughout the exhibits and with so many people going through it felt hard to breathe at times! There were a few interesting things in the purely informational exhibits, but overall they felt unnecessary. If were honest, most people just come to see the animals. We are interested in some of that info, but I think it would actually be better to have more in-person interaction with ‘experts’ who can happily and passionately explain some of the information in those exhibits and demonstrate. There was also a lack of cohesiveness with the staff... when we tried to ask questions to workers at times, they acted unsure and didnt take much initiative to help or guide us. There just didnt seem to be a collective understanding, goal and purpose behind it all. The energy just felt low. We wish we could say different, but the price was just too high for what you get. I’ve been to other aquariums and zoos that were half the price of this aquarium and much more of an enjoyable experience because they had a clear focus and let the positive passion they had for the animals shine through.   If they lowered the admission price and then just set booths around the aquarium with information and workers who are passionate, but not overbearing, who could talk to people about what the aquarium does, how they help the animals, and what they need for these animals, I bet many would willingly donate to the cause! Paying too much money just for admission sets expectations high and is almost a guarantee for visitor disappointment. I think a positive re-focus could really change the atmosphere and experience.

Rebecca P.

As I live in the area, its nice to have a membership just for something extra to do once in a while, but its definitely not the best aquarium Ive ever visited. Some times its a 5 star experience, sometimes its a 1-2 star experience. The walking trail between the two buildings is wonderful. If its too hot or humid, you can always drive, but walking is nice. I love the adventure park (rated separately, thats 5 stars). There are a LOT of play areas within the museum, which is nice for kids. The one thing I cannot stand is that theres not enough room for people in the buildings. When youre walking around you feel constantly rushed by others or blocked by people who are looking at the animals. Which, obviously, is what theyre there to do, but the area should be wide enough to get around them, as that would help with not feeling rushed, as well. Its just crowded and most of the families have strollers and its hard to navigate, especially when you have one yourself. Its insane during the summer and when there are field trip groups during the school year. The volunteers are a hit or miss, as well. Sometimes theyre amazing, friendly, and answer your questions well. Other times they kind of get in your face to inform you about things/tell you how to do things in more of an uptight manner. Edit: On my more recent visits, Ive quite enjoyed it here and I bumped up my star rating. I hope they keep their wonderful volunteers and employees and look a bit closer at the ones who seem to make the experience more negative for the families.

Harrison Williams

What a fantastic thing, an aquarium of this magnitude, it almost leaves one wondering how could they have gathered such a bountiful selection of animals. Well many of the animals certainly were healthy, and this one Komodo dragon was practically...wild, as it lurched towards a spectating child and then ran around the enclosure. However, the Komodo in the cage next to him appeared drained of all life, not moving a claw for 20 or so minutes, but to each their own. Anyways, I was marveling at the Virginia bird habitat as I am a birder, when I asked one of the keepers "where do you get more birds when they die, do you guys have a hatchery for research?" she replied "Oh, we dont actually know where, they are just sent to us". These are birds who are flying all around, in perfect condition, quite something to take in! I carried on my day, and continued enjoying the sights I was beholding; sharks, jelly fish, sting ray, turtles! Oh .. the freaking sea turtles were extremely social, but man oh man if there wasnt one dead in the corner of the aquarium, what a buzzkill! I always heard they lived to be 100 years old. His buddy had pressed against the glass for so long trying to swim out, that his hard shelled nose was worn away,. All of this had me pondering, are these all really rescue animals? Something certainly did seem a bit fishy there, but its hard to look past the marvelous sights and see what, I assume, was actually going on there.

Danny Aaron

I brought my wife and two kids to check out this aquarium on our vacation. After you go through the main building you can walk through the adventure park to another building. As we were walking through the adventure park it started to rain extremely hard. We quickly took cover under a platform in the adventure park. The platform was not being used and there was no one there other than my family and a couple other families that took cover. One of the employees who was dressed in full rain gear came over to us and told us we could not stand there. I had my 11 month old daughter asleep in a stroller with me and it was a torrential downpour. He made us get out from under the platform and my daughter got immediately drenched and woke up crying hysterically. We got so soaked that we had to leave the aquarium so that my daughter would not get sick. I understand that there are certain rules that employees follow but where is the basic human compassion? There was no one on or around the platform and no risk involved with us being there. If the employee did that on his own that is despicable. If he was following procedure then there should be an adjustment to the procedure that gives employees the ability to use their own discretion in situations like this. Aside from this incident the aquarium is over priced and nothing special. This was a disappointing experience to say the least.