Cairns Aquarium Admission Ticket
4.5

Cairns Aquarium Admission Ticket

By Cairns Aquarium
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Pre-book your admission to Cairns Aquarium without the fuss of purchasing a ticket on arrival. This all-weather attraction is ideal for visitors of all ages. The interactive exhibits feature some 16,000 animals from two World Heritage areas: the Great Barrier Reef and the Wet Tropics Rainforest of Queensland.
Lowest price guaranteeReserve now & pay laterFree cancellation

Ages 0-99, max of 60 per group
Duration: 2–3 hours
Start time: Check availability
Mobile ticket
Meets animal welfare guidelines
Live guide: English
More

Highlights
  • General admission to Cairns Aquarium
  • Home to 70 different exhibits on Tropical North Queensland marine life
  • Discover the Wet Tropics Rainforest and Great Barrier Reef
  • Located in the heart of Cairns and open daily

  • Elusive Rainforest and Reef Creatures
  • Live Ray and Shark Feeding Show
  • Oceanarium with Underwater Tunnel
  • Australia’s only Deep Reef Tank
  • Marine Touch Tank
  • Conservation Talks and Presentations
  • Entry/Admission - Cairns Aquarium
What's not included
  • Food and drinks (unless specified)
  • Transportation to/from the aquarium


  • Wheelchair accessible
  • Pushchair accessible
  • Service animals allowed
  • Near public transportation
  • Transportation is wheelchair accessible
  • Surfaces are wheelchair accessible
If you have questions about accessibility, we’d be happy to help. Just call the number below and reference the product code: 58087P1

  • Confirmation will be received at time of booking
  • Children must be accompanied by an adult
  • Most travellers can participate
  • Customers may arrive anytime between 10am-3pm. Last entry 2pm.
  • Cairns Aquarium open 365 days of the year (incl. Public Holidays)
  • This tour/activity will have a maximum of 60 travellers

  • For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours in advance of the start date of the experience.

If you have questions about this tour or need help making your booking, we’d be happy to help. Just call the number below and reference the product code: 58087P1

From
AU$58.00
per adult
Select date and travellers
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About the operator
Don’t take it from us – here’s what people have to say about this operator:
  • Cairns Aquarium
    2,196
    Australia
    Joined in October 2016
  • 163ronaldl
    0 contributions
    4.0 of 5 bubbles
    Must see if you are in Cairns.
    This is a fairly new aquarium that just opened in 2017. This is more than just a fantastic aquarium as it offers information on about the ecosystem of northern Australia including information on plants, animals, birds and fish. The main aquarium is huge with lots of interesting fish shown in their native habitat.
    Written 25 January 2025
  • Destination112390
    0 contributions
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    Great day out
    Loved the whole experience. The exhibits were amazing, all the animals looked so well cared for and the staff were lovely. All so passionate about the animals in their care and very knowledgeable. Would definitely recommend for a day in Cairns that is out of the heat
    Written 12 January 2025
  • FarAway47123038862
    0 contributions
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    Night at the Aquarium - thoroughly recommended!
    This experience way exceeded expectations. Jordan, the Marine Biologist who ran the tour was brilliant - the additional knowledge imparted massively contributed to the experience. Booking through the Aquarium meant that our table for dinner was right next to the aquarium
    Written 9 January 2025
  • Curious45769750035
    0 contributions
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    Great experience
    I took my teen granddaughter to the aquarium waiting for our flight on our last day. We absolutely loved the experience. The facilities are very good. Information was all there and the displays were amazing. The turtle hospital was inspiring. We loved every minute of it. We spent four hours there and had lunch in the cafe where we sat and watched the fabulous fish swim by.
    Written 7 January 2025
  • sharripicard
    0 contributions
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    Definitely Do the Twilight Event!
    We visited the aquarium for the Aquarium By Twilight event - this was a must do when in the area! The aquarium itself is just fabulous, but getting to see it without the crowds and the guided tour was fantastic!! And the dinner included had plenty of options (even for my vegetarian daughter), and was one of the best meals we had on our holiday! The whole event is worth every penny of the ticket! Laura was a fantastic and super friendly guide!
    Written 6 January 2025
  • FiftyFifty5050
    0 contributions
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    Under the Sea - there's a Disney song in there somewhere
    Hands up, I am not particularly keen on fish, eating them or looking at them, which means that I have to pass through any rooms containing eels or sea snakes rather quickly but even a reluctant visitor such as myself can appreciate the layout and variety of sealife on display at the Cairns Aquarium. The building is stunning, the exhibitions well laid out and masses of information, easily accessible by all ages. Of course, Cairns has the advantage of being adjacent to the Great Barrier Reef, providing a multitude of opportunities to talk about sealife and conservation, and they do this very well. We visited at what was the beginning of the summer holidays for school children in Australia and plenty of parents were taking their families to this site. Well worth a visit.
    Written 28 December 2024
  • beckahc
    0 contributions
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    Amazing combo deal!
    Absolutely amazing combo deal! The tour and our tour guide, Makayla or Kayla I think her name was, had an amazing vibe and explained everything really well. This is one of the best aquariums I have visited, so much to see. The dinner at Dundees Restaurant was amazing too, the meals were small but I don’t eat much so that’s okay, but they tasted amazing! We will be back!
    Written 13 December 2024
  • Pauldial
    0 contributions
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    A Night at the Aquarium. Where all of the exhibitions are already alive.
    It was great to have the whole place for such a small group. Our guide was fantastic and very knowledgabe (sorry forgot her name. Tour was 2/12/24) Then to have such a stunning meal afterwards capped off a great night
    Written 3 December 2024
  • GullwingFlyer
    0 contributions
    4.0 of 5 bubbles
    Personalized learning experience
    Really enjoyed the guided evening tour of the aquarium. Learned more than a self guided tour. Personalized experience was hard to beat.
    Written 27 November 2024
  • joanned262
    0 contributions
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    Interesting and worth visiting.
    Very informative guide. Saw amazing sea life. The layout of the aquarium is very good. Educational. There were a few younger children in our group and they seemed fascinated by the experience.
    Written 23 November 2024
  • lynnecure
    0 contributions
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    Absolutely fantastic!
    Absolutely fantastic. Our guide Mikayla was very knowledgeable and knew her stuff. All area of the tour were brilliant. We were able to get up close to most creatures which was breathtaking in its self. Would thoroughly recommend this tour to people of all ages and abilities as there are lifts and escalators for people to gain access between floors.
    Written 21 November 2024
  • DHarrop
    0 contributions
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    A great and different experience.
    The Aquarium tour with Michala was awesome. She was very, very knowledgeable , professional and polite. She ensured that we were all happy and was able to answer all of our questions. The 3 course dinner in the restaurant was AMAZING!!!!! definitely a must do when next in Cairns. Thanks for an enjoyable experience.
    Written 21 November 2024
  • magdagD384UT
    0 contributions
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    fantastis experience
    wonderful experience, knowledgeable staff. Exhibits well displayed information imformative and current. Turtle hospital tour fantastic.
    Written 19 November 2024
  • melissamS7939KS
    0 contributions
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    A must visit for all ages
    A must visit experience. Small group and the most experienced, personal tour guide Bradley. He was so knowledgeable and funny and made everyone on the tour feel included.
    Written 15 November 2024
  • Sochi12
    0 contributions
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    Not to be missed
    Wonderful place. The tanks were clean, and the animals looked healthy. There was a good amount of seating for the larger tanks. Good signage and information panels. We paid to do the turtle hospital and it was 100% better than the fitzroy island. It looked cleaner, the people were knowledgeable, and the whole experience was pleasant.
    Written 2 November 2024
See all 2,196 reviews
These reviews are the subjective opinions of Tripadvisor members and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Most Recent: Reviews ordered by most recent publish date in descending order.

Detailed Reviews: Reviews ordered by recency and descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as waiting time, length of visit, general tips, and location information.

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4.5
4.5 of 5 bubbles407 reviews
Excellent
277
Very good
88
Average
33
Poor
6
Terrible
3

Kylie B
9 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Oct 2024 • Family
This would be the best aquarium I have been to. Well laid out and great shows, with a wonderfully informative talk given about the coral reef by one of the marine biologists. The shark feeding show in the main tank was great and highly recommend watching.
We did the Aquarium prior to a reef cruise and snorkeling trip and highly recommend doing it this was as you gain a greater appreciation and knowledge of the importance of the Great Barrier Reef and the marine life that depends on it. We could also identify so many of the fish we saw whilst snorkeling.
A visit to Dundee’s restaurant attached to the Aquarium post visit is also recommended-try the croc sliders and spring rolls!
Written 26 October 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Thank you Kyle for this lovely review! We are very pleased to hear that you had an awesome time exploring the Cairns Aquarium and we can not wait to welcome you back again soon!
Written 28 October 2024
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.

OzAlexis
Sefton Park, Australia82 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
A new and exciting venue that the family will love. Many areas and windows to look through that will keep you looking for what’s on the board beside it.
The negative we found however is, though recognising it was a public holiday we pre bought the tickets to avoid an expected long line.
Unfortunately pre buying tickets makes no difference. You still have to line up and wait to get to the window to print out the bar code that you scan to be let through the turnstiles
Having these barcodes included in the email receipt would make pre purchasing tickets worthwhile.
Written 2 October 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Thank you for your review. 🐟
Written 7 October 2022
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.

Redearthlad
Alice Springs, Australia4 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
Jan 2022
As is wont to happen during the monsoon season, rain descended on Cairns on the third morning of my stay in the city. After a hearty breakfast overlooking the water on the Esplanade, I headed over to the Cairns Aquarium for an activity out of the weather. Many others also had the same idea, and the line for entry spilled out onto the street. Nevertheless I reached the ticket window within around 10 minutes and was soon able to enjoy the exhibits.

The Cairns Aquarium is an excellent facility, especially admirable for being a regional attraction. Taking guests through freshwater river and lake systems through to the reef, The interpretation is accessible (despite the odd spelling mistake), with interesting explanations for most species. There was also a good variety of guide presentations available on the day. Shout out to Cameron in particular for his entertaining and listenable style. Well worth visiting.
Written 10 January 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Thank you for this lovely review! We’ll be sure to pass your amazing feedback to our incredible wildlife educator Cameron. Thank you for visiting and we’re so happy that you’ve enjoyed your experience! 🐠😁🐢
Written 10 January 2022
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.

Murray W
Toowoomba, Australia120 contributions
3.0 of 5 bubbles
Sept 2023 • Family
I have visited many aquariums and I must say even though this is a new one I found it to be quite boring but my kids found it informative so someone benefited from the ticket price.

I understand you guys are probably scratching your heads wondering why I found it boring well it looks like any aquarium nothing more nothing less,

Unfortunately you don't have the room but a Crocodile habitat would be beneficial I'm talking about something like darwins Crocoseum.

The ladies doing the speeches blew out the ear drums and look no one wants to hear about shark deaths or people get killed by coconuts that's boring. Yeah yeah you will say it's a education the school kids were even saying boring behind us.

I wanted to leave half way though anyway like I said the kids liked the display but said I don't wanna go back.

For people who have never been to an Aquarium by all means go you will benefit and have fun.
Written 13 September 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Hi there! Thank you for providing your feedback. We’re sorry to hear about your experience and are quite surprised you found our facility boring. We believe and the vast majority of feedback from our visitors shows; that the Cairns Aquarium experience is a positive, fun, interesting and informative one 😄🐠. We’re pleased to hear that part of your visiting party enjoyed their experience and found their visit informative while they were here, that’s awesome to hear 😁. As per the educational presentations; a huge purpose that this facility holds is education for conservation. And although you didn’t find the information valuable, the information provided is important and we’re happy to see that a vast majority of our visitors often express they thoroughly enjoy these talks. We will be passing on your feedback, particularly regarding volume levels, thank you 😄. We appreciate your feedback, but will definitely continue to provide these educational presentations throughout the day as they offer such an incredible insight into the wildlife this region has to offer and how we can conserve each species for the future health of our planet. 😄🐠🦈 Here at the Cairns Aquarium we have over 16000 animals that are native to this region in Australia. We are home to the largest freshwater billabong tank in Australia, the tallest deep reef tank in the Southern Hemisphere and home to a 1.6 million litre oceanarium. We also house over 72 exhibits across 10 ecosystems. And have 2 beautiful immersive tunnel experiences throughout the aquarium. We believe our facility is an incredible place to visit to learn all about our native wildlife and ecosystems here in Cairns. Definitely a stop off point to learn, before heading into the wild. We provide an educational and immersive experience for all guests; providing much needed awareness for how important our wildlife and these parts of the world are and how we can all work together to conserve them. 🐠⭐️ Our ticket price reflects the amazing close wildlife encounters and educational experience here at the aquarium; and is in line with other zoo and aquarium experiences through Australia. Your ticket price also helps us care for our wildlife and their habitats so thank you! 😊🐠
Written 15 September 2023
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.

Victoriaros
13 contributions
3.0 of 5 bubbles
Aug 2024 • Family
Disappointed this time round :(
We had really talked up the experience to our three generation family group as three of us had been in previous years and really enjoyed it those times. The biggest disappointment was with the large walk through viewing tunnel and viewing platforms prior and after - previously there were many types of sharks swimming around, this time there appeared to be much fewer stingrays and no large sharks at all.
For our family who hadn't been there before, their response after the hour walk through was 'it that it?!'. Suggest if you have limited funds and need to chose between Cairns Aquarium and Hartley's Crocodile Farm, the Crocodile Farm is the far better value for money.
Written 4 August 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
We have all of our initial sharks in our 1.8 million litre oceanarium which consist of Grey Reef Sharks, Leopard Sharks, White Tipped Reef sharks and Black tip reef sharks. They have all grown considerably since they were introduced in 2017 but we have also added 2 Shovel nosed sharks and a Tawny Nurse shark since then, so there are actually more sharks in this display now than a few years ago. Sometimes the sharks are in another part of the exhibit especially during the feeding sessions at 11:00 am every day, but they are constantly moving around. We look forward to welcoming you back another time so you can see all the amazing predatory sharks up close on your next visit. Thank you for visiting the Cairns Aquarium.
Written 5 August 2024
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.

gillianlf
Melbourne, Australia347 contributions
3.0 of 5 bubbles
Aug 2022
Firstly I have to say the Aquarium is great. Really well maintained, clean and the display tanks are stunning. Such a variety of colourful and interesting exhibits. The thing that made our visit less than great is that a small number of parents just let their little ones run riot. Now we don't expect littlies to be perfectly behaved all the time, but screaming and squealing children banging their hands on the glass of the tanks isn't what we expected. One 2-3 year old was licking the glass on one tank as his dad looked on, saying to another parent, "he's doing that to everything at the moment." Another toddler happily screaming her head off while mum tells her friend, "she's really finding her voice." This sort of thing really reduced our enjoyment. There didn't seem to be any staff anywhere except giving talks at scheduled times. Should have been a five star review for the actual aquarium but we were in and out in less than an hour which made it very poor value for money. I'd love to go again on another visit to Cairns but I'd check out the after hours deal hoping for a better experience.
Written 28 August 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Hi thank you for your review! Yes unfortunately, we are unable to staff individuals to roam through the aquarium throughout the day at the moment; as we are still recovering from the last two years during COVID. We are slowly getting our team built up again but we hope you can understand this! Our team do our best to make announcements over the speakers and if they see this type of behaviour we will often say something. However, you can understand our staff are not the parental carers for children coming through the aquarium and so these children are the responsibility of their parents. There is only so much we can do. Thankfully these types of situations are very rare 😊 We would definitely recommend the after hours aquarium by twilight experience if you’re looking to avoid the crowds and visit again for a quieter experience here at the Cairns Aquarium. 😄🐠
Written 9 September 2022
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.

Mark E
Whitianga, New Zealand803 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
The aquarium is set right in the heart of the city.

Very well set up, it will take you on a journey following the water course from the Savannah up north down the Billabongs to the Rivers and on through the Mangroves to the Coral Sea and Great Barrier Reef.

They have lectures along the way, so we sat in on River Monsters in particular Barramundi and fresh water Stingrays. We also sat in on the lecture on Sharks and Ray's.

This was well worth the admission fee which we thought was a little high but we could see the worth of it.

We were here during school holidays but it was neat hearing the children's oohs and aahs seeing creatures they have not or wouldn't normally seen.

There is also a nice cafe situated just outside the entrance.

Clean and tidy.
Written 15 April 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Wow thank you so much for this lovely review! We’re so happy you enjoyed these aspects of your visit. And super happy that you were able to catch some of the incredible daily presentations along the way! Thank you for visiting 😄🐠🦈
Written 15 April 2024
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.

Michelle M
1 contribution
3.0 of 5 bubbles
June 2022 • Family
For the family admission price of $140, I do not recommend the Cairns aquarium. We came from Melbourne, missed out in snorkelling due to rough conditions, and this was our plan B so the kids could see some marine life they might have experienced on the reef. This aquarium was lame and overpriced. Compared to the Melbourne aquarium, it was disappointing. Do not waste your money.
Written 2 July 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Hi Michelle, We’re surprised to hear about your experience at the Cairns Aquarium; given majority of visitors enjoy their journey. Here at the Cairns Aquarium we have over 16000 animals that are native to this region in Far North QLD Australia. We are home to the largest freshwater billabong tank in Australia, the tallest deep reef tank in the Southern Hemisphere and home to a 1.6 million litre oceanarium. We also house over 72 exhibits across 11 ecosystems. And have 2 beautiful immersive tunnel experiences throughout the aquarium. We usually recommend at least 1.5 to 2 hours to go through the aquarium, and stopping off at our daily presentations throughout the day to learn more and catch feedings too😁 We believe our facility is an incredible place to visit to learn all about our native wildlife and ecosystems here in Cairns. Definitely a stop off point to learn, before heading into the wild. We provide an educational and immersive experience for all guests; providing much needed awareness for how important our wildlife and these parts of the world are and how we can all work together to conserve them. 🐠⭐️ Our ticket price reflects the amazing close wildlife encounters and educational experience here at the aquarium; and is in line with other zoo and aquarium experiences through Australia. Your ticket price also helps us care for our wildlife and their habitats so thank you for visiting! 😊🐠
Written 4 July 2022
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.

Liz
Melbourne, Australia5 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
Very well laid out aquarium, the highlight was the Shark and Stingray talk. In comparison to Melbourne and Sydney aquariums, Cairns glass for the tanks is clearer and feels more intimate. It does however have less wildlife on display compared to the other two. Would highly recommend joining the aquarium talks as they’re informative and entertaining. All staff we encounter were friendly and seemed happy to help. We spent around 2 hours here would recommend.
Written 17 November 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Thank you for your review. We’re happy you enjoyed your visit to Cairns Aquarium. 🐠🦈 So good to hear you enjoyed our presentations and all staff you encountered were friendly and helpful. We will forward this to our Back of House team who maintain our exhibits, and our Front of House team including Wildlife Educators, Till and Retail staff 🙏🏼 😊
Written 18 November 2022
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.

Christine c
Melbourne, Australia195 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
May 2021
A must do if you are in or around Cairns. This stunning aquarium offers so much, so please plan ahead to get the most out of your visit. As well as general admission, there are many other combination offers, including lunch at the adjoining and wonderful Dundees restaurant, other FNQ experiences such as Hartleys crocodile farm (another great experience!) diving with sharks, and entry and information given in the turtle rehab hospital. There are also twilight combos. Check the website for all the details including the times guides provide talks and information on some of the amazing displays. Would highly recommend seeing all if possible. Entry allows you to exit and reenter on a given day, but again, check the times. Having a love of turtles we purchased admission to the turtle hospital which we found incredibly interesting. The work of the dedicated volunteers who give their time to assist with the rehab and educate us about the turtles, their behaviours and the the terrible threat of sea pollutants..was an eye opener. We also saw a green turtle who will be returned to the open sea soon. We loved it so much, we will go again next time we are in FNQ.
Written 31 May 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

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*Likely to sell out: Based on Viator’s booking data and information from the provider from the past 30 days, it seems likely this experience will sell out through Viator, a Tripadvisor company.

Cairns Aquarium Admission Ticket provided by Cairns Aquarium

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