Our family was provided tickets to tour the Tennessee Aquarium. All opinions are our own.
There's always so much to do right in your own backyard. We live about 30 miles south of Chattanooga and in all the years of living here, my husband had never been to the Tennessee Aquarium. There are only two aquariums in Tennessee and we had already been to the Aquarium of the Smokies in Pigeon Forge but not the one right in our own neighborhood!
The Tennessee Aquarium is located right at on the Riverfront in Chattanooga. What makes it so unique and special is that it is separated into two different buildings. The freshwater animals and the saltwater animals. The buildings themselves are called River Journey and Ocean Journey. For our tour, we started at River Journey because we had to get a wheelchair for Mary.
In River Journey, you will see many different types of river animals including otters! These guys were so playful and really wanted to get their pictures took! It was beautiful to watch them dive in and out of the water. Plus they swim so fast it was hard to get a good shot of them!
You'll also get to see some gorgeous alligators in River Journey as well. I love alligators so I was fascinated with them through the whole exhibit.
River Journey also has some amazing fish too! We really enjoyed the River Giants exhibit with all the gigantic fish! Some of them even looked prehistoric.
After River Journey, you'll continue into Ocean Journey. At the top of the building, you start in the lemur forest and then the butterfly garden. Mary was so excited to see the butterflies and was thrilled when one landed on her hand.
Ok, I was happy that one landed on me too! I had been chasing them down forever when I finally got one!
There's also touch stations in the aquarium including the stingray station. This little guy was so cute and we touched him a lot!
Inside Ocean Journey, you'll get to see sharks too! This one was our family's favorite. We named him "Grumpy Britches' because he really didn't look too thrilled to see anyone!
Mary fell in love with the Cuttlefish and sat at that tank for a long time. This little guy we named "Captain Cuttlefish".
And who could pass by the coral reef without a picture? The colors are all so memorizing!
Overall the Tennessee Aquarium is our favorite aquarium in Tennessee now. But what really made the whole trip wonderful was that everyone was so friendly and hospitable. Even when we needed a wheelchair for Mary, everyone was so polite and kind. It really made the difference in the entire experience.
The Tennessee Aquarium currently costs $29.95 for anyone 13+ and $18.95 for children 3-12. They also had the Imax theater or the River Gorge boat ride that you can add on to your package as well.
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