Welcome to the National Marine Aquarium, located in Britain's Ocean City - Plymouth. Not only are we the largest Aquarium in the UK, but we are proud to also be the home of the Ocean Conservation Trust, a charity dedicated to connecting people with the Ocean. With over 5,000 Ocean animals and awe-inspiring exhibits, the National Marine Aquarium for an experience you'll never forget. Our aquarium provides an opportunity to connect first-hand with the Ocean and take you on a journey around the different zones of the world's Ocean, from the local waters of Plymouth Sound, all the way to the tropical seas of the Great Barrier Reef and everywhere in between!
I thought it was a bit too expensive for what it's worth, however, you get a free pass to visit again when you buy your ticket. The aquarium has a lot of different type of sea animals, seagrass, anemones. It has a lot of useful information displayed about the fish (however I wish they were more detailed). It does tell you their habitat and diet. I liked the big room where you can see the ray and sharks just swimming about. There are also two other rooms with huge fish tanks on one side of the wall. I would definitely recommend a visit here.
surprised my partner with a diving experience for their birthday, something neither of us had ever done, as well as our first time visit to Plymouth. It was so surreal being in the water with all the different animals, especially Friday the turtle. it's amazing what the staff of this aquarium are doing not only for their creatures, but for the area of Plymouth and the world. We would like to thank all the staff of NMA, more noticeably Chris, our host, who made our experience 10/10. He was such a character, and knew so much about each of the different animals, especially the rays which are our personal favourites. he took many photos which added to being able to reflect on our experience, giving us both great memories. We enjoyed many laps around the aquarium seeing everything it had to offer. I would recommend this experience to anyone, was definitely worth the 5+ hour drive.
Excellent aquarium! Both my 3.5 year old and 3 month old enjoyed the sights. We probably spent about 1.5 hours including a cafe break. Cafe had a good selection of savoury food and cakes etc. and was reasonably priced. Ticket prices include a pass to come back as many times as you like over the next year.
Worth a visit. Loads of information were displayed and my son enjoyed learning more about ocean life. Count on a minimum 2 hour stay. We definitely will use a free return ticket this summer.
After watching the BBC TV program about the aquarium, we booked a holiday to Cornwall so we could visit and see the stars of the show. Was quite goo once inside. Lots of information about the creatures. Not many staff about to answer questions though. Would have been nice to have more technical information about the building/tanks etc too. Plenty of toilets and also a picnic area. The shop slid lots of generic stuff, lots that wasn't anything related to the aquarium either.
First visit having seen the documentary. Great use of space and exhibits. Good that there is more than one viewing area as we visited on a weekend and with families it was very busy. Very good information and signage, best take your time viewing as not able to backtrack easily to re-see things you may have missed.
On-site services
Wheelchair-accessible car park
Wheelchair-accessible entrance
Wheelchair-accessible toilet
Getting tickets in advance recommended
Good for kids
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I thought it was a bit too expensive for what it's worth, however, you get a free pass to visit again when you buy your ticket. The aquarium has a lot of different type of sea animals, seagrass, anemones. It has a lot of useful information displayed about the fish (however I wish they were more detailed). It does tell you their habitat and diet. I liked the big room where you can see the ray and sharks just swimming about. There are also two other rooms with huge fish tanks on one side of the wall. I would definitely recommend a visit here.
surprised my partner with a diving experience for their birthday, something neither of us had ever done, as well as our first time visit to Plymouth. It was so surreal being in the water with all the different animals, especially Friday the turtle. it's amazing what the staff of this aquarium are doing not only for their creatures, but for the area of Plymouth and the world. We would like to thank all the staff of NMA, more noticeably Chris, our host, who made our experience 10/10. He was such a character, and knew so much about each of the different animals, especially the rays which are our personal favourites. he took many photos which added to being able to reflect on our experience, giving us both great memories. We enjoyed many laps around the aquarium seeing everything it had to offer. I would recommend this experience to anyone, was definitely worth the 5+ hour drive.
Excellent aquarium! Both my 3.5 year old and 3 month old enjoyed the sights. We probably spent about 1.5 hours including a cafe break. Cafe had a good selection of savoury food and cakes etc. and was reasonably priced. Ticket prices include a pass to come back as many times as you like over the next year.
Worth a visit. Loads of information were displayed and my son enjoyed learning more about ocean life. Count on a minimum 2 hour stay. We definitely will use a free return ticket this summer.
After watching the BBC TV program about the aquarium, we booked a holiday to Cornwall so we could visit and see the stars of the show. Was quite goo once inside. Lots of information about the creatures. Not many staff about to answer questions though. Would have been nice to have more technical information about the building/tanks etc too. Plenty of toilets and also a picnic area. The shop slid lots of generic stuff, lots that wasn't anything related to the aquarium either.
First visit having seen the documentary. Great use of space and exhibits. Good that there is more than one viewing area as we visited on a weekend and with families it was very busy. Very good information and signage, best take your time viewing as not able to backtrack easily to re-see things you may have missed.
