Something fishyÂ’s going onÂ…

So look no further than The Georgia Aquarium to find out just what it is...  Atlanta has long needed an aquarium attraction and now, it finally has one.

WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW:

Location:

Georgia Aquarium

225 Baker Street

Atlanta, GA 30313

Contact:

(404)581-4000

Web:

http://www.georgiaaquarium.org

Hours:

Sunday through Saturday:  9:00 a.m. until 6:00 p.m.

Parking:

The Georgia Aquarium has its own parking available.

Check out their web site for more detailed information:

http://www.georgiaaquarium.org/visitUs/directionsAndParking.aspx

Tickets:

Be prepared to open up your wallet!

This attraction is among higher priced ones in our experience.  They accept cash and most major credit cards.  Group rates and senior discounts are available.  Call or go online to better ascertain ticket prices for you and/or your family.

I highly recommend buying your tickets online.  In doing so, you will not have to wait in line with “walk up” purchases and can go straight to the entrance with your advanced ticket identification that is emailed to you after making your online purchase(s).  Should we go again, I will buy our tickets online.

You can obtain ticket pricing and information online here:

http://www.georgiaaquarium.org/visitUs/tickets.aspx

What YouÂ’ll Experience:

The Georgia Aquarium hosts five (5) major exhibits: Tropical Diver (home of the Pacific Reef), Ocean Voyager (home of the highly touted whale sharks), Cold Water Quest (home of the Beluga whales, sea lions, otters and penguins), River Scout (beautiful recreated habitats of river life) and Georgia Explorer.  I recommend that families with young children consider saving Georgia Explorer for last as you will discover a delightful and playful exhibit that embraces GeorgiaÂ’s coastal region complete with touch tanks, a rollicking, frolicking shrimp boat thatÂ’s all about fun, and a huge whale of a slide.  There are also plenty of tubes and chutes for the climbers in your family who may need to burn off a little energy following their visit to this excellent marine collection now home to the Aquarium.  There is also a theater; we did not attend anything related to the AquariumÂ’s 4D/3D theater. The Georgia Aquarium also offers gift shops for visitors to peruse and perhaps take home souvenirs as well as a food court.  To preview the menus and prices for the vendors of the AquariumÂ’s Food Court go no further than here:

http://www.georgiaaquarium.org/exploreTheAquarium/cafeAquariaMenu.aspx#CafeAquariaGrills

Highlights:

The Georgia Aquarium has an exquisite collection of marine life to share with its visitors.  The exhibits and displays are excellent as well.  You really become lost in the sea of fish in various displays – where the glass is ceiling to the floor – itÂ’s as if youÂ’re a diver right in there with them.  The Pacific Reef in the Tropical Diver exhibit is gorgeous with illuminating species of tropical fish.  While the sea otters are my favorite, visitors will also enjoy watching the elegance of the Beluga whales in Cold Water Quest among others.  River Scout weaves its guests through an enticing tour of river species including some pretty huge catfish swimming overhead!  The largest of the exhibits, Ocean Voyager, is the highlight of your visit where youÂ’ll see the ever-so-grand whale sharks while you glide on the moving sidewalk through the tunnel that surrounds visitors with fish, fish and more fish!  Georgia Explorer will leave you smiling having watched its graceful sea turtle swim and glide with his own sweet smile.

REMARKS & THOUGHTS ABOUT OUR EXPERIENCE:

Being an Atlanta native, in my opinion, allows me the option to take greater liberty to expound on our personal experience at the Aquarium.

First, make sure you know where the Aquarium is actually located – physically.  The building is at the corner of Baker and Lucky streets.  Unfortunately, the directions that were provided on the AquariumÂ’s website at the time of our visit were far from accurate.  One of the long time complaints about Atlanta, especially its downtown area, is that is not easy to navigate, at all.  The City seems to change street names and their directions (i.e. one-way traffic) like women follow fashion trends.  For a city that wants to attract visitors and claim international crossroad moments, they need to do a better job of creating a driver/visitor friendly navigating environment.  I can only wonder if the person responsible for writing the directions that were posted on the web site at the time of our visit actually drove them!  I worked downtown in an office on Broad Street near the Five Points Marta Station, consider myself knowledgeable about the downtown area, and yet, I still looped “the loop” nearly four times before finding the Aquarium parking entrance.  I cannot imagine a non-Atlantan trying to find it with the directions provided on the web site.

Next, be prepared to walk.  The AquariumÂ’s parking entrance is on Lucky Street.  The entrance to this attraction is further around the corner on Baker Street.  I was amazed to observe the number of women who were wearing high heeled shoes!  DonÂ’t.  While, it is handicap accessible, there is still a great distance to navigate to get in the entrance.  In comparison, when we visited the Tennessee Aquarium in Chattanooga, it was easy to find, easy to park and easy to get to the front door.  NOTE:  Having said this, I did not explore all of the handicap access options; for all I know, they may have an “express elevator” for those in wheelchairs– I recommend for any individual or family with handicap needs to call the Aquarium in advance and ask the necessary questions about parking and getting inside for easiest access to accommodate your specific needs.

Also, you will have to go through a security check just like at the airport including emptying pockets and pocketbooks, spreading arms and legs for them to roam you with hand-held metal detector paddles and you families with strollers – well, you get to unpack and then repack – completely.  I was not prepared for this; it threw me and it took me a while to [mentally] get past that.  No, I did not have weapons or artificial fish food on meÂ…I just wasnÂ’t expecting that whole post-9/11 issue at a fish bowl.  I was going to see fish – not fly on an airplane.  I can see the need for walk-through metal detectors and having purses conveyor belted through an x-ray box – but the “spread your arms and legs” with a goose in my near privates from the detector paddle, quite frankly, was a bit over-zealous in my opinion.  But then, I chose to leave Atlanta and live in Mayberry – so maybe IÂ’m the one whoÂ’s a bit “over” on this topic.

There were numerous Aquarium staff on hand throughout the exhibits should you need to ask questions or need guidance to enhance your visit.  However, upon asking for a map of the exhibit hall – well, they were out of the English printed versions and I had to use a map that was printed in Spanish.  Fortunately, the illustrations were self-explanatory – but I donÂ’t speak or read Spanish; so in the event there was pertinent information printed in the brochure, I missed it.  If I was really driven to obtain detailed information on the Aquarium, they sell a much greater map and guide book – in English – at the Information Booth for $10.00.

Upon entering the great hall and lobby area that each exhibit wings off from, you will find plenty of comfortable seating – almost like a large living room in passing.  However, the lights were always dim and the hallways were dark, IÂ’m guessing to provide better viewing of the aquatic life behind glass.

The Food Court has its menus posted on their web site.  We did not eat at any of the venues there; however, based upon my observation of the people who were, it looked very appetizing and upon visiting again, I would readily eat there.  The prices listed for the food items on the AquariumÂ’s web site as of this date, appear to be very reasonable compared to other public attractions.  The web site indicates that there are two (2) gift shops; we only saw and ‘spentÂ’ at one: “Beyond the Reef”.  It is brightly decorated and has a wealth of marine themed souvenirs, books, toys, home décor and collectibles to choose from.  Prices are average in comparison with other gift shops at public attractions; the tee shirts we purchased were $14.99 each.  The second in-house gift shop is called: “Sand Dollars”.  I would have loved to have seen and possibly shopped there as well, however, since my Aquarium map was in Spanish, I can only attribute my missing it to that minor detail.

The restrooms were great –large, clean and easy to find.  This is a big, big, biggee for me.

Being “the Mom” in a family that has been blessed with opportunities to field trip over and over, I feel an obligation – especially to families with children – to write it as I see it and have experienced it for those considering going to various attractions in order for them to be able to make the best educated decision on where to visit and how to spend their hard earned money for their family’s extra-curricular and entertainment activities.

While you want to spend wisely on attractions to take your family, I have to say, that the Georgia Aquarium is on the high side for what you get.  I can not readily recommend planning a “group field trip” to this attraction because of the poor access and navigating of this area of downtown Atlanta as well as the confusion at the entrance.  I recommend that you limit your visit to the Aquarium to just your family or perhaps two families going together.  Also, there seems to be some confusion in what is offered for a “homeschool or educational groups” in terms of a limited visit rather than seeing the entire facility.  I recommend that you call and talk to the staff to ensure your group is afforded all that is on exhibit should you so decide to attend as such.  There are obvious “perks” to being season pass holders and certain areas of the Aquarium were reserved for those members.  Since we are not season pass holders, I can not comment on what these added features are except to say that there are discounts at the Food Court and as well as for purchases in the gift shops.  Individuals and families will have to determine if this is a viable option for them and/or their family.  I do not know if there is an exchange with other aquariums as a result of being a seasonal pass holder.  There may be more information on the AquariumÂ’s web site or you can call and speak to staff with any questions.

My sons had an absolutely great time and thoroughly enjoyed their visit; I, too, enjoyed seeing this new attraction in Atlanta.  Would we go again?  Perhaps – in about 5+ years.  I recommend going early in the day and taking as long as you possibly want to stroll through each exhibit and savor the experience.

On a scale of zero to five (five being the highest and best rating), I would give the Georgia Aquarium a rating of 3.5.  In all honesty, the advertising campaign that they have put forth touting themselves as the biggest and the best [“in the world”], I expected much more and more for my money.

Harriette K. Jacobs

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