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Aquarium of the Bay

The Embarcadero at Beach St., Pier 39, San Francisco, CA 94133 (Fisherman's Wharf)
415 623 5300
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Ranked #114 of 327 attractions in San Francisco
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Type: Aquariums
Activities: Group tours/walking tour, Walking
Description: Visitors view two large saltwater tanks that are filled with the many types of marine wildlife found in San Francisco Bay.
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360 reviews from our community

Visitor rating
    70
    114
    120
    44
    12
Date Rating
Danville, California
Senior Reviewer
10 reviews 10 reviews
6 attraction reviews
Reviews in 2 cities Reviews in 2 cities
3 of 5 stars Reviewed 21 May 2013 NEW

I was disappointed when I went to this. IF you are going to an aquarium save your money and go to the Monterey Bay Aquarium. If you can't do that and you have to see an aquarium, then go ahead.

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See 4 more reviews by Malcolm S for San Francisco
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
Contributor
12 reviews 12 reviews
5 attraction reviews
Reviews in 7 cities Reviews in 7 cities
9 helpful votes 9 helpful votes
2 of 5 stars Reviewed 21 May 2013 NEW

$18 & nothing much to see. What is nice: a few tanks of jelly fish, which was very very pretty What is not nice: nothing else to see. Boring! Please spend your money at California Academy of Science $29.95 which is super awesome

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See 2 more reviews by Shirniong for San Francisco
Ipswich, United Kingdom
Senior Reviewer
10 reviews 10 reviews
6 attraction reviews
Reviews in 3 cities Reviews in 3 cities
1 helpful vote 1 helpful vote
3 of 5 stars Reviewed 17 May 2013 NEW

The aquarium was a great experience, lots of marine animals to see. The tunnel was a good experience. The only down side was the price to get in!

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See 6 more reviews by Amy K for San Francisco
Biggleswade, United Kingdom
Senior Contributor
22 reviews 22 reviews
9 attraction reviews
Reviews in 7 cities Reviews in 7 cities
5 helpful votes 5 helpful votes
4 of 5 stars Reviewed 15 May 2013 NEW

Great little aquarium right on Pier 39. Its definately smaller than the aquarium at the acadamy of sciences, but its worth a visit (its part of the citipass scheme). The jellyfish are cool!

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See 9 more reviews by splodge1987 for San Francisco
Moscow, Russia
Contributor
11 reviews 11 reviews
Reviews in 4 cities Reviews in 4 cities
5 of 5 stars Reviewed 13 May 2013

I liked the aquarium as it offered wide variety of species - different fish, sharks, jelly-fish, etc. Great tunnel with all the sharks and stingrays swimming around. I especially liked the part where you can touch the starfish, baby-stingrays and sharks. The staff was very attentive, and caring about the fish. Also liked the fact that there is some important... More

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See 5 more reviews by Aprill21 for San Francisco
Victoria, Canada
Senior Reviewer
7 reviews 7 reviews
3 attraction reviews
Reviews in 2 cities Reviews in 2 cities
3 of 5 stars Reviewed 11 May 2013

The tunnel on the lower level was very impressive - you could see lots of species up close. The staff were friendly and knowledgeable. A little pricey for the experience.

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See 5 more reviews by PaulOD89 for San Francisco
Kenilworth, England, United Kingdom
Top Contributor
73 reviews 73 reviews
25 attraction reviews
Reviews in 25 cities Reviews in 25 cities
22 helpful votes 22 helpful votes
4 of 5 stars Reviewed 11 May 2013

Our tickets were included in our San Francisco City Pass. Having lived by the UK Coast and having visited aquariums in the past, overall we were impressed. The Aquarium is geared up for families but suited for adults if you like the sea. The Bay area is vulnerable to pollution and there are good learning stations for locals. If you... More

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See 23 more reviews by Robin P for San Francisco
Rotorua, New Zealand
Contributor
17 reviews 17 reviews
12 attraction reviews
Reviews in 4 cities Reviews in 4 cities
4 helpful votes 4 helpful votes
4 of 5 stars Reviewed 8 May 2013

A really great under water marine experience. The jelly fish inparticular were spectacular as was the underwater tunnel. Also an interactive area at the end which would be particularly interesting for children. A worthwhile attraction.

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See 7 more reviews by JohnandJennie for San Francisco
Medicine Hat, Canada
Senior Contributor
24 reviews 24 reviews
10 attraction reviews
Reviews in 10 cities Reviews in 10 cities
4 helpful votes 4 helpful votes
3 of 5 stars Reviewed 7 May 2013

Quite a small aquarium, we were surrounded by children who were all having a great time. We enjoyed the visit but only went because it was part of the 'city pass' we'd purchased.

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See 9 more reviews by Edith677 for San Francisco
Sydney, Australia
Reviewer
4 reviews 4 reviews
3 attraction reviews
Reviews in 3 cities Reviews in 3 cities
5 of 5 stars Reviewed 6 May 2013

I enjoyed my visit to the Aquarium. My entry was included in my City Pass. It's not very big, but beautifully set out. The highlight was the touch pool where I got to touch a baby shark, and a baby stingray! That was amazing. The stingray was surprisingly slimy, but seemed to enjoy a scratch on his wing (the only... More

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