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Ripley's Aquarium
Rating Details »
- Price Range:
-
$$$
- Accepts Credit Cards:
- Yes
- Good for Groups:
- Yes
- Good for Kids:
- Yes
- Takes Reservations:
- No
- Waiter Service:
- No
- Wheelchair Accessible:
- Yes
- Outdoor Seating:
- Yes
- Alcohol:
- None
11 reviews for Ripley's Aquarium
I really enjoyed this place! We were worried it was going to be really touristy and cheesy because of the Ripley name (Gatlinburg's attractions are pretty much owned ALL by Ripley alone). But, this place was great.
There were lots of great fish and some fish I had never even seen in person before. The walk through shark tank was the shining part of this attraction, for sure! There were TONS of sharks in there. HOW they get them to Gatlinburg, I don't know, but it was great. I also really loved the jellyfish tank. I had never seen jellyfish like that before. There is also a great "touch" the animal station, but I am too big of a chicken to do that. But, I did get amused by the girls trying to touch the sharks when the guy on the microphone kept saying "touch anything BUT the sharks...they are not social animals!" Entertainment at it's best.
I really liked this aquarium and it is relatively cheap to get in vs. other aquariums I have visited in the past. Definitely worth it. A nice little day trip activity.
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Ripley's Aquarium is the least-cheesy thing you can find to do in downtown Gatlinburg....in fact, it's not cheesy at all despite the fact that the Ripley's name is attached to it! Before visiting this aquarium, we thought the Georgia Aquarium in Atlanta was easily the best one we'd ever visited - this one is just as good. Lots of well-done exhibits, I highly recommend spending some time here!
My husband and I went here during our anniversary trip in the summer. We did enjoy it. There were so many things to check out and watch. Our only complaints were the crazy tours of children running through the place with no one keeping track of them (we were being pushed through and had to listen to them yell and take pictures all over the place). No one said anything (workers or their "tour guides" who sat in the middle while everyone ran everywhere). For the price paid, something should have been done. We also didn't get to pet the stingrays because of the sharks (which was one of the things we were looking forward to).
I was pleasantly suprised by this place! It was not what I expected in a very good way. The exhibits were well done and some obvious care was taken to make the enclosures natural for the animals. They had a cool shark tank and I think a ray tank that was impressive.
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If you are looking for something atypical to do in Gatlinburg, consider the Ripley's Aquarium. At first, I was skeptical because of the Ripley's name attached to the place, but there is nothing cheesy about this aquarium.
Like the Newport Aquarium, there is a giant tank with fish, sharks and sea turtles that you walk through in a transparent tunnel, making it appear you are "in" the tank with the creatures. Ripley's makes the experience more immersive, though, by putting a conveyor in the tunnel. You can just stand while the sea passes you by. While cool, this may contribute to the obesity epidemic.
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GREAT! My nieces and nephews love it, interactive, and great for the whole family. They have an area you can touch the sting rays and if you get lucky you can feed them too! Awesome photo ops here and you can always learn something new. They stay open suprisingly late as well.
I had a great time at Ripley's Aquarium. I'm a fan of the aquatics and have been to aquariums in California and Las Vegas. So far, Ripley's in Gatlinburg is the best. They have the most sharks I've seen. Unless, you want to pay more and go to Atlanta for the largest aquarium in the world.
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What a great aquarium. I live in Chicago, and this place blows away Shedd.
Ripley's is a nice size aquarium with a very up-to-date design. I was worried that it would be touristy and cheesy with the Ripley name, but this place was great. The only negative was the price.
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1 Previous Review: Show all »
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6/4/2008
The only negative was the price. The aquarium is very well laid out, and has a great variety of… Read more »
A very nice aquarium, but it seemed a bit expensive. They did have quite a few things that you don't normally see though, and the glass tunnel was really neat.
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i just love going here its great for the whole family and its very interesting
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One of the best attractions in Gatlinburg. Our whole family had a great time - great for kids. You can touch the sting rays, they have a glass tunnel where you walk under the big tank - lots of different fish and sharks!
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