Review by Lauren Strait
The Downtown Aquarium is the perfect place to enjoy a cool day in this summer heat with the kids. We recently had the pleasure of visiting and the kids had a blast.
By the way, The Downtown Aquarium is offering TWO for Tuesdays adventure passes every Tuesday in June. It was great for us because not only were we able to tour the entire aquarium, all of the rides outdoors were included, which allowed us to enjoy some more time together as a family without spending any more money.
Inside we were greeted with some of the animals that we would find in the area where we live. We walked through the “swamp” where we watched some American alligators swim, got to peek in on the catfish that chilled at the bottom of the pond, and listen to the sounds of what the swamp animals sound like.
The next room began the adventure into the ocean, and my kids immediately ran over to the largest fish I had ever seen, explaining to me that it was a “goliath grouper” and that they had seen this fish on the “Monster Fish” TV show. I love that each exhibit had a digital run down of the animal, scientific name and some fun facts.
I was impressed as my kids were able to tell me more about the fish and identify so many more fish than I could have imagined.
I personally loved seeing the octopus, the seahorses and the gigantic tank that felt like you were walking through the bottom of the ocean.
To my surprise, the headliners of the tour included a family of white tigers. We got there just in time to learn more about their unique color, habitat and some of the additional programs like over night camps that they offer.
We stopped and had lunch upstairs and OMG, it was the perfect place. They have one of the largest saltwater tanks in the middle of the entire restaurant to ensure that no matter where you sat, you could get a view of the animals who lived there! We pointed out guitar stingrays, southern stingrays, moray eels, and too many tropical fish to count. I have to say, the food was incredible too!
We finished up our day with a ride on the ferris wheel that looks over all of downtown Houston, of course the ocean-inspired carousel and a little running around in the splash pad before calling it a day. It was definitely worth the trip.
* I received complimentary tickets in exchange for this review. The thoughts and opinions are my own.
