Review: Georgia Aquarium

Review: Georgia Aquarium

The Georgia Aquarium in downtown Atlanta is supposed to be the largest aquarium in the world. It is big, and it is impressive. It's divided into several areas, including a polar area, a freshwater area, a tropical area and an ocean area, with several activities and exhibits in each. There is also a large cafe area where hungry patrons can get food. We did not spend any time there, except we did have to go through and around it to get to some exhibits. The place smelled...well like cooked fish.

But the place has issues. First of all, it is quite a ways from public transportation and this involved lots of walking by young feet before we even got there.

The place is next to Centennial Olympic Park. It would be nice if they could at least put a crosswalk from the park to the aquarium. Instead, we had to walk up a block in order to walk back down a block to get to the entrance.

On a Saturday afternoon, the place was absolutely packed. And every single person had a season pass as the place is sold out. As season pass holders, we had to make our reservations almost a month in advance. Their reservation system allows about 400 people every half hour, but they were not checking these closely.

We went through the security point, where we had to empty our pockets and they checked bags and purses and put the wand over all of us. Then to the entrance where they scanned our tickets. Then in we walked.

Right away, at the entrance there were two large viewing areas to look at schools of fish, I think were some sort of tuna. Then into the real aquarium building which opened into a large open area. Hallways and passage ways led to the different areas. We chose the polar area first.

The polar area of the aquarium is where there are seals, sea lions and penguins as well as smaller displays of various cold water fish. The giant crabs were pretty cool. But, by far, the most popular exhibit in this section is the beluga whales. Swimming up and diving down with a sort of carefree laziness, these were simply charming. And big. There was a guy there talking about the whales. Throughout the aquarium they had large movie screens where they gave various facts about what you were looking at as well as numerous signs.

Next we visited the Georgia fish are. Here, they had a large tank to pet stingrays and small sharks as well as a sort of play area for kids. They had a small tank with shrimp where the boys splashed the water. There was also a tank with otters and other fish native to Georgia's rivers and coast line.

There was also another exhibit where they had fish native to the Amazon River. Several places where you could look up and see fish swimming above as well as tunnels where kids could crawl through to see fish from the backside of the tank. I didn't go through, simply because I didn't feel like crawling. And if I have mentioned it, the place was crowded and packed. The boys were small enough to squirm and wiggle their way to whatever they wanted to see. But is was stressful all 'round. Some exhibits were so small, they were impossible to get to with the huge crowds. Every exhibit was packed to the gills and it was difficult to get around. The boys were perpetually restless throughout. While the place is handicap accessible, maneuvering a wheelchair in such a throng would be an exercise in frustration. There were lines everywhere.

The highlight was definitely the ocean exhibit. Walking through a tunnel with fish swarming above and on both sides almost made me dizzy. They had some whale sharks as well as other assorted fish, rays and sharks. This terminated into a huge viewing area which was the supposedly the largest in the world. I could have spent a lot more time in there. If it weren't for the crowds and the fatigue of my own kids, we might have stayed there longer. But the 2 1/2 hours we spent there seemed like forever. People were generally friendly, but it was just so much more than I like to be around. It was hard to manage the boys and get around plus see anything.

The final insult was the fact that the exit is through the gift shop. This is typical of most tourist traps, but there was so much congestion it was hard to imagine trying to take time to shop. It was simply nightmarish trying to get out with half the crowd intent on simply perusing their over priced stuff.

Overall, the place is impressive. They do need more and bigger points of interest as there were too many spaces that were vacant did not used. The crowd was overwhelming. Where going to try again in a few weeks, earlier in the day so maybe it won't be so late and we can actually enjoy the place. Do I consider the season passes a good buy?

Not really. However, since they sold so many of them, there is no other way to get in as of yet. There are only 1600 parking spaces in their parking deck, meaning there is probably walking involved for all but the earliest arrivals. We took the rapid transit, and this was not as far as it was inconvenient. The security, although regrettably necessary, was another hassle. The long lines and congestion make the place a nightmare. Stupid people trying to take pictures, both pros and armatures were annoying. People are strategically poised to take your picture and sell it to you. BTW, and pictures taken by their staff can be used in anyway they see fit. The place is not finished, yet, so it will likely improve. The layout is okay but needs to have more space for the people they are cramming together. People with disabilities will be miserable. While there are accommodations, such as ramps and elevators, a body needs to be up higher and right up front to see most things. There are staff members about who are willing to help.

We have season passes to the zoo and gave up season passes to Stone Mountain for this place. Stone Mountain and the zoo both are larger, and have enough points of interest to keep our boys engaged. Parking is more convenient and is included in their price packages. Things will settle down and not be as crowded later. Unfortunately that's probably after our passes expire.

D.