Florida Aquarium vs. Clearwater Aquarium: Which One to Visit?
Trying to decide between the Clearwater Marine Aquarium vs The Florida Aquarium in Tampa? Both are popular family-friendly attractions in the Tampa Bay area, but they offer very different experiences.
Clearwater Aquarium is a working marine rescue center, best known for its rescued dolphins, sea turtles, otters, and other rehabilitated marine animals. It’s more intimate and focused on education and conservation.
On the other hand, The Florida Aquarium in downtown Tampa is a larger, more traditional aquarium experience. It features expansive indoor exhibits with exotic fish, sea turtles, and coral reefs, plus an outdoor play area and interactive exhibits that are great for kids.
As a local in Tampa, I’ve been to both aquariums recently and have written this guide to help you decide which one is best for you to visit!
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Florida Aquarium vs. Clearwater Aquarium: A Quick Comparison
Clearwater Aquarium
- Smaller aquarium
- Located near Clearwater Beach
- Focuses on animal rehabilitation
- Large dolphin area, several rehabilitation areas with rescued otters, sea turtles, and more
- Tickets start at $41 for adults and $32 for kids
- Free for 2 and under
The Florida Aquarium
- Larger, more traditional aquarium
- Located in downtown Tampa
- Variety of panoramic exhibits with Sea turtles, sharks, and a variety of fish
- Outdoor Florida exhibit with gators, birds, otters, and more
- Ticket prices vary by day but start at $35 for adults
- Free for 2 and under
The Florida Aquarium
Located at: 701 Channelside Dr, Tampa, FL 33602
Located in downtown Tampa, the Florida Aquarium is the largest aquarium in Florida.
It features a 500,000-gallon panoramic Coral Reef Gallery where you can see a variety of marine life, including sea turtles, exotic fish, and more.
The Florida Aquarium is very much a traditional type of aquarium, but also has several interactive experiences like a dolphin cruise and penguin encounter.
What is the Florida Aquarium Known For?
In addition to being the largest aquarium in the state, the Florida Aquarium is known for the following:
🐠 Diverse Marine Life – Home to thousands of animals, including sharks, sea turtles, stingrays, and exotic fish.
🌊 Florida Ecosystem Exhibit– Features a partially outdoors exhibit that shows Florida’s wetlands, bays, and coral reefs as well as some of Florida’s wildlife.
🦈 Interactive Experiences – Offers interactive experiences like SEAtrek which is an underwater walking tour, a penguin encounter, and a stingray feeding experience.
🧑🤝🧑 Kid-Friendly Attractions – The variety of exhibits makes it perfect for kids.
🚢 Wild Dolphin Cruise – A 75-minute boat tour to see wild dolphins in Tampa Bay.
💧 Conservation Efforts – Focuses on coral restoration, sea turtle rescue, and marine research.
Ticket Prices, Discounts, & Membership Options
Prices fluctuate based on the date you go. For more info see the Florida Aquarium website here.
Adult Tickets Start at: $35 but again, it varies based on the date you go
Children 2 and under are always FREE
Florida Aquarium Discounts: Admission to the Florida Aquarium is included with a Tampa City Pass
Florida Aquarium Memberships: Yearly memberships are available. Keep in mind that children ages 2 and under are already free and don’t need to be listed on a membership.
- $100 for an individual membership
- $150 for a 2 person membership, $250 for a family (4 person) membership
- $350 for a family (6 person membership)
Reviews of the Florida Aquarium
The Florida Aquarium in Tampa has fantastic reviews with a 4.2/5 star rating on Tripadvisor. Lots of reviews mention that they love how many exhibits are at the Florida Aquarium, including interactive experiences.
People also mention that the animals are very well taken care of – which is SO important when visiting a place like this.
Clearwater Marine Aquarium
Located at: 249 Windward Passage, Clearwater, FL 33767
Located near Clearwater Beach, the Clearwater Marine Aquarium is a non-profit organization that focuses on rescue and rehabilitation of marine animals.
While this aquarium is much smaller in size, it offers incredible educational opportunities and does fantastic work helping animals.
What is the Clearwater Marine Aquarium Known For?
🐬 Dolphin Rescue & Rehabilitation – The Clearwater Marine Aquarium is best known for rescuing and rehabilitating marine animals, especially dolphins. The aquarium gained worldwide attention thanks to the story of Winter, the dolphin with a prosthetic tail, and Hope, another rescued dolphin.
🎥 Dolphin Tale Movie – The aquarium was the real-life setting for the Dolphin Tale movies, which brought global attention to the aquarium and its work.
🦈 Marine Life Education – Focuses on educating visitors about marine conservation, with a strong emphasis on animal rescue and rehabilitation efforts.
🌊 Interactive Exhibits – Offers animal encounters and educational programs for all ages.
🐢 Sea Turtle Rehabilitation – The aquarium also rescues and rehabilitates sea turtles, alongside other marine creatures like manatees, otters, and stingrays.
Ticket Prices, Discounts, & Membership Options
Prices of the Clearwater Aquarium (subject to change: check their website for the most up to date pricing)
| Adults (12+) | $41.95 |
| Kids (ages 3-11) | $32.95 |
| Seniors (ages 65+) | $39.95 |
| Children 2 & Under | Free |
Membership options start at $70 per year, which is a great deal if you live locally and plan to visit more than once.
Reviews of the Clearwater Aquarium
The Clearwater Marine Aquarium currently has a 4/5 star ranking on Tripadvisor. Lots of reviews mention that the dolphin exhibit is large and you can see dolphins swimming underwater.
Many reviews also mention the fact that it is a non-profit rehabilitation center for marine life, which is really cool.
Florida Aquarium vs. Clearwater Marine Aquarium: Which is Better for Kids?
The Florida Aquarium is the best option for younger kids and babies as it has more traditional style exhibits.
We started bringing our daughter here when she was only 3 months old and she loved looking at the fish and sea turtles swim. In fact, I’d say it’s one of the best things to do with a baby in Tampa.
Toddlers and elementary aged kids will also love all the interactive experiences at the Florida Aquarium. This includes activities like a Penguin encounter and Stingray feeding experience.
The Clearwater Marine Aquarium is better for elementary aged kids – teens, as it focuses more on animal rehabilitation and less on traditional aquarium exhibits.
Kids that are interested in animals may enjoy learning about the rehabilitation projects and seeing how the dolphins, sea turtles, and other marine life is cared for before being released back into the wild.
Important Tip: If you are a local to the Tampa Bay area, I’d recommend getting an annual membership to one of the aquarium if you think you’ll visit more than once in a year. The annual membership is a better deal and if you have kids its a fun activity year-round.
FAQs Clearwater Aquarium vs The Florida Aquarium
Absolutely! If you are interested in animals, marine life, and animal rescue than the Clearwater Aquarium is worth visiting. It is also a great way to support a non-profit organization that helps rescue and rehabilitate local marine life.
No, there are not dolphins at the Florida Aquarium. However, you can take a dolphin cruise from the Florida Aquarium to look for dolphins in the wild. If you want a guarantee of seeing dolphins, go to the Clearwater Aquarium which has a large dolphin rescue exhibit on site.
The Florida Aquarium is excellent for kids and even babies. Kids love seeing the panoramic fish exhibits, the outdoor exhibits with otters, alligators, and tropical birds, and the interactive experiences like petting the sting rays.
My Review of the Florida Aquarium vs. Clearwater Aquarium
I have been to both the Florida Aquarium in Tampa and the Clearwater Marine Aquarium in Clearwater.
Personally, I love both of them but if I was visiting Tampa I’d go to the Florida Aquarium as it has more of the traditional aquarium attractions (like a panoramic coral reef gallery).
There are so many animals to see at the Florida Aquarium, and I think it is such a fun place for kiddos. The Florida Aquarium is also the best option for younger kids and babies.
However, if I was traveling with older kids or adults (especially those interested in animal rescue and rehabilitation) then the Clearwater Aquarium would be a good choice.
The main difference is that the Clearwater Aquarium’s main focus is on animal rehabilitation and rescue (which I absolutely love). It’s less of an “exhibit” style aquarium and more of a functioning rescue, which is really educational for older kids and for adults who love animals.
