Visited Shedd Aquarium. Underimpressed

chefjamesscott said:
From what I have heard about shedd it is a nice set up. I mean how often can you get this close to a dolphin!!!

http://www.sheddaquarium.org/explore_by_exhibit.html

Just my 2 cents
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LOL, go to Mexico. You can jump in the water with a dolphin and ride it around :dance2:

Unfortunately, that part of the Shedd was closed when I went, so no dolphins or whales for me. That's okay; I've seen them other places. Sea World is so commercialized though :) I didn't remember it that way as a kid.

I'd like to go to the Atlanta aquarium. Hmm, might have to plan a trip to OK since everyone seems to like it. The only other aquariums I've been to have been in Japan (where I saw belugas and whale sharks).
 
Where ever you plan to go, do yourself a favor and call ahead to find out when feeding time is. A lot of fish stay hidden until food brings them out.
 
The Texas aquarium is pretty small, but had some really cool stuff and most of it was gulf coast native, they even have a tank with several giant grouper almost 8 ft long, and Moody Gardens in Galveston is cool too, they even had a very large Arapaima the last time I was there along with a silver arowana biotope.
 
The Tulsa aquarium is very cool, but it is pretty small. I guess you can't expect much from an aquarium in a landlocked state. For it's size though, it's exhibits are very high quality IMO. I've been twice and it's about a 3 hour drive from here. I would definitely go again. I've gone to Monterrey Bay twice as well and would go again in a heartbeat as well. I've gone to the aquarium at EPCOT and remember really enjoying it, but it was nearly 20 years ago now and I'm sure it has changed since then and that my memories are not as accurate as they once were. I would visit Shedd again if I was in Chicago and had some extra time on my hands that I didn't know what to do with. I wouldn't make it a point to visit like I would the others. I'm dying to visit the Georgia Aquarium and am somewhat considering making a day trip (catch a flight in the am and in the PM) and see the aquarium. Somewhat expensive obviously.
 
Not disappointed at all

We took our two kids down there for the youngest child's 5th birthday a couple weeks ago. With the exception of being there on a Monday and unexpectedly waiting 45 min to get in, it was worth it.

Taking pictures was hard, as there was no flash requirements in most of the building. We had purchased a new 10 MP camera and wanted to compare it to the old 4 MP for quality. A little hard to do.

I liked the open layout, as it was rather busy yet didn't feel 'crowded'. Many different species of fish (mostly freshwater, as has been discussed) but plenty of my favorites...the rays! I've been researching them ever since, and even upgraded my tank this week (though still not big enough, I'm afraid, for one). Well lit, didn't feel humid or stuffy as it usually does in LFS, etc.

I wasn't a big fan of the show(s) in the auditorium though. Seeing the dolphins were cool, but with the nice view of the Lake out the windows, it created shadows and made it tough to see/photograph at times. They did more 'tricks' with the red tailed hawks than the marine life, and one only wants/needs to see a hawk fly from one end of the room to the other so many times.....I know they were training and all, but 3 or 4 different birds compared to 3 dolphins (and no other marine life) all going at the same time was disappointing.

Probably a bit expensive for the product, but a fun day was had by all.
 
Dobber said:
We took our two kids down there for the youngest child's 5th birthday a couple weeks ago. With the exception of being there on a Monday and unexpectedly waiting 45 min to get in, it was worth it.

Taking pictures was hard, as there was no flash requirements in most of the building. We had purchased a new 10 MP camera and wanted to compare it to the old 4 MP for quality. A little hard to do.

I liked the open layout, as it was rather busy yet didn't feel 'crowded'. Many different species of fish (mostly freshwater, as has been discussed) but plenty of my favorites...the rays! I've been researching them ever since, and even upgraded my tank this week (though still not big enough, I'm afraid, for one). Well lit, didn't feel humid or stuffy as it usually does in LFS, etc.

I wasn't a big fan of the show(s) in the auditorium though. Seeing the dolphins were cool, but with the nice view of the Lake out the windows, it created shadows and made it tough to see/photograph at times. They did more 'tricks' with the red tailed hawks than the marine life, and one only wants/needs to see a hawk fly from one end of the room to the other so many times.....I know they were training and all, but 3 or 4 different birds compared to 3 dolphins (and no other marine life) all going at the same time was disappointing.

Probably a bit expensive for the product, but a fun day was had by all.
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Went I went, they were doing a dress rehearsal for their FantaSea show. The hawk wouldn't fly no matter what they did. I just found the whole aquarium very disappointing for what I paid and what I expected. It's basically hailed as a world-class aquarium and you get there and find only two large saltwater displays, one of which you have to pay extra to see. Then you find displays with tanks of fish that can be seen in the LFS for free. I just was not impressed with it at all. If I was in Chicago and pressed for time, I wouldn't go to Shedd at all.
 
i've only ever been to the aquarium du quebec, in quebec city, canada. yeah, i am canadian. anyways, they have a really cool seal show and exibits with bigger animals like walrus and polar bears. there's a nature area outside with a bog type thing and stuff for kids and a large building with all kinds of fish and aligators, ect. i had lots of fun there. they have underwater pathways so you can see the view from the pov of the animals/fish. if anyone is ever in the area it's worth checking out. it's not that big i guess but it has lots of diversity. i may have missed some of the stuff because i only had a few hours and the seal show took a while. i got to touch one though and throw a ball to it (: i'd go there all the time if i lived closer
 
I went to the Shedd just last week and I really liked it. Granted it is the only aquarium I have been to besides sea world. I am also very much into large central and south american cichlids, so the amazon section was great for me. Seeing some of the fish I have in a large tank like that was cool. I agree you shouldn't have to pay extra for the reef and such, but what can you do.

I am going to Tulsa in October and will be right by the Tulsa Aquarium. It sounds like I need to make the time to visit.
 
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