New York Aquarium
602 Surf Avenue
Brooklyn, NY 11224
(718) 265-3474
Open: Sunday & Saturday 10:00am-5:30pm/Monday-Friday 10:00am-5:00pm
Fee: Adults $25.00/Children $20.00/Seniors $27.00 (see their website for more details on pricing and times)
My review on TripAdvisor:
The New York Aquarium at 602 Surf Avenue.
The aquarium entrance at the boardwalk.
The aquarium’s outside tanks with sea lions, otters and penguins.
The penguins were very entertaining that afternoon.
The otter just ignored us. They just played amongst themselves.
I have been to the NY Aquarium many times since it reopened after Hurricane Sandy and there have been many positive improvements in both the facility and the service. The new Ocean Wonders: Shark! exhibition which has opened up giving an interesting look at the underwater world of the many different types of sharks that dominate the deep.
The Shark Exhibit
The Shark exhibition
The sharks and string rays
It is not just a display but also a commentary on the conditions of the deep and the treatment of sharks around the world. There contributions as bottom dwellers cleans our oceans and benefits other fish. It was shocking what the treatment is of these animals in Asia when strip these animals of their fins for soup. I like how professionally the aquarium shows this in their displays and videos and doesn’t preach but offer solutions to the problem.
The entrance to the new shark tanks.
That and walking through the tanks themselves in the darkened rooms with music makes for a fascinating and almost ominous trip into the ocean behind the walls with the sharks and other mammals and fish swim past you. There is also a small tunnel that you can climb under to watch the fish swim on top of you and past you.
The tropical fish exhibition
In the Conservation Hall, you will learn all about the fish that dominate and keep our reefs vibrant and what happens when pollution takes over and kills them. Again the aquarium displays this in a positive way, shows how the animals keep the reefs healthy. I point out that there are a lot of colorful fish on display and it is fun to watch the small children yell out to them.
The coral reef exhibition
The Coral Reef Exhibition
The fish in the Coral tanks
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The Hudson Canyon Edge exhibit
https://nyaquarium.com/things-to-do/events/hudson-canyon
People looking at the tanks
The stingrays in the tanks
The wild life in the canyon
There is a wonderful seal show during the day that you should not miss especially in the warmer months when you can sit in the stands and watch them perform with their trainers. They are more Native New Yorkers than most humans having been born at the aquarium and showing their own pride in their home and abilities.
The Sea lion show at the aquarium is very popular.
The Sea lion show
The Sea lion show
The new “Spineless” exhibition shows all the jelly fish and related species.
The “Spineless” exhibition
The beautiful jelly fish at the aquarium.
The “Spineless” exhibition
The different creatures of the deep.
The Jellyfish tank
The Jellyfish are amazing to look at in the tank
There were all sorts of tanks displaying many different types of tropical fish and corals that are exotic and very much endangered. We are beginning to destroy their habitants.
The fish habitats
As part of the new building there are also several new eating establishments at the aquarium including the new Oceanside Grill that I have not visited yet (it was closed on my last visit) as well as The New York Bite food truck (which was also not opened). The most impressive restaurant is the Oceanview Bites on the second floor of the Ocean Wonders building. This beautiful new restaurant has an interesting but somewhat routine menu with prices usual to an aquarium but offer the most spectacular views of the ocean and of Coney Island. Do not miss just walking up to the restaurant in the circular pathway for the views alone.
The NY Aquarium is a treat in of itself and a great excuse to visit Coney Island. Don’t miss the rest of the island’s amusements and museums while you are there.
The NY Aquarium
History of the New York Aquarium:
(this information is provided by a combination of the NY Aquarium and Wiki and I give them full credit for the information)
The New York Aquarium is the oldest continually operating aquarium in the United States, having opened in Castle Garden in Battery Park in Manhattan in 1896. Since 1957, it has been located on the Reigelmann Boardwalk in Coney Island. The aquarium is operated by the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) as part of its integrated system of four zoos and one aquarium, most notably the Bronx Zoo. It is accredited by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA).
The sea lion tanks
As part of the WCS, the aquarium’s mission is to save wildlife and wild places worldwide through science, conservation action, education and inspiring people to value nature.
The facility occupies 14 acres and boasts 266 species of aquatic wildlife. Its mission is to raise public awareness about issues facing the ocean and its inhabitants with special exhibitions, public events and research. The New York Seascape program, based out of the aquarium, is WCS’s local conservation program designed to restore healthy populations of marine species and protect New York waters, which are vital to the area’s economic and cultural vitality.
The penguin tank
The Penguin exhibition on the outside
On June 6, 1957, the Aquarium opened at its new location in Coney Island. The new site of the New York Aquarium is the home of the WCS New York Seascape program, the society’s research and conservation program focusing on nearby rivers, harbor and ocean from Cape May, NJ to Montauk, Long Island.
The Shark Exhibition
The new “Shark” exhibition tunnel
The New York Aquarium:
The Shark exhibition
https://nyaquarium.com/things-to-do/exhibits/ocean-wonders-sharks
The Shark tanks
The shark tanks
The shark tanks
The shark tanks
The importance of sharks in nature
The Shark Tank
The aquarium kept an orca briefly in 1968 and a narwhal in 1969. Both reportedly died of possible pneumonia. The aquarium’s beluga whales were transferred to the Georgia Aquarium in 2007 as part of a breeding program. In September 2011, the aquarium named its new electric eel Wattson and in March 2012, it launched a sea horse breeding program.
In October 2006, the New York Aquarium announced the finalists to a competition to develop a more inviting and visually prominent exterior for the aquarium. In March 2007, the winning design by firms WRT and Cloud 9 was selected, which featured an enclosure resembling a whale over the aquarium. However, in March 2008 that concept was scrapped due to concerns over a new exhibit based on sharks was announced. The massive 784,000 US gallon exhibition, Ocean Wonders: Sharks! was originally scheduled to break ground in November 2012 and open in 2015.
The Penguin exhibition
The Penguin tank
The penguin tanks
A penguin ready to take a dive.
However, the New York Aquarium was significantly damaged by Hurricane Sandy in October 2012, which severely flooded the facility and shut down power. A small group of WCS staff who remained onsite during the hurricane were able to save 90% of the animals in the collection. As a result, the exhibition opened June 30, 2018, becoming the first major exhibition at the New York Aquarium to open after Hurricane Sandy.
The Shark tank’s fish display
Disclaimer: this history of the NY Aquarium is taken from Wiki and I give them full credit for this information.
The Sculptures in the NY Aquarium in 2024:
These sculptures were at NY Aquarium by Washed Ashore
The sign for Leo the Jellyfish
The Leo the Jellyfish sculpture
The Angus the Longhorn Cowfish sculpture sign
The Angus the Longhorn Cowfish sculpture
The Nora the Salmon sculpture sign
The Nora the Salmon sculpture
The Maggie and Charlotte Adele Penguins
The Maggie and Charlotte Adele Penguins sculpture
The Chompers the Tiger Shark
The Chompers the Tiger Shark sculptures
The Penguin sculpture
The artworks were all made of items that were thrown in the ocean and plastics that are thrown in the ocean. Washed Ashore created these works to show what is thrown in ocean and how it affects the wildlife in the oceans.
The boardwalk outside the aquarium
The beach outside the aquarium
Private Members Night at the NY Aquarium:
Members Night at the NY Aquarium:
The NY Aquarium held a Private Members Night for the members of the Wildlife Conservatory in July of 2026. Because of the wild fires in Canada, the air in New York City was not that good and that’s what probably kept the crowds away. was pretty bad and the crowds were light outside. Still, the aquarium planned a lot of family events and it was fun to walk through the exhibitions without dealing with crowds.
The front of the aquarium the Members Night
The aquarium at the beginning of the night
The crowds were mostly made up of families with small children and a lot of the outdoor activities were geared to them with face painting, chalk art displays and a Mermaid on roller skates who skated the courtyard making colorful bubbles of all sizes. It was fun seeing kids be kids without cellphones.
The Chalk Art that evening was enjoyed by everyone
The creativity of the art
The kids were really creativity
We also had a Mermaid skating around making bubbles that the kids really enjoyed. There were bubbles of all kinds floating around the courtyard. She was having as much fun as the kids who were chasing them around popping them. I thought it was out of the scene of a 1970’s film. It is fun to see those simple things still be so popular.
The Mermaid entertaining the children who attended the event
The Mermaid entertaining the kids
Bubbles were all over the aquarium and it was pretty cool
Then at 6:00pm, we had the Seal Show in the Aquacade but because of the heat and the smoke from the wildfires made the air not so good to stay outside. The breezes were nice and cleared much out but it was still not the best to sit for long periods. The show was fun but was quick.
The Seal Tank that evening
The sealions are actually ‘native New Yorkers’ who were born in captivity in the aquarium and know their stuff
The seals were talented and disciplined and entertained the crowds
After the show was over, I got another chance to walk through the indoor exhibitions to see the Shark exhibition and the Hudson Canyon’s Edge exhibition. Watching the fish, sharks and corals move and sway and it was very interesting to know that it is really down there.
Hudson Canyon’s Edge
https://nyaquarium.com/things-to-do/events/hudson-canyon
The corals of the sea being grown at the aquarium
The view of the sea
The full tank of fish and sharks. Is this was what was really in the canyon?
The end of the evening we could see the blood moon or was that the sun? The air was so bad from the Canadian wild fires you could see it through the whole City. Being by the shore, the breezes really did help.
Still it was a nice evening and it was fun to walk around the exhibits without the crowds. It was fun to watch the families having a good time and it was a nice evening.
This is why being a Member of the NY Wildlife Conservatory is so much fun. You get to visit all the parks with your membership and get to see the exhibitions on your own time. You also learn a few things about Mother Nature and the affects of the climate on it. I always enjoy a trip to the aquarium.
Visiting a Museum: The Unique, Unusual, Obscure and Historical 