Melbourne Aquarium

When you are thinking about why the Melbourne Aquarium might be special remember that it is in Australia and that Australia is an island. Of course it is a continent too but it is surrounded on all sides by oceans.

It is in fact surrounded by no less than three oceans, all of which are full of fish and other marine life. Australia is so surrounded by water that it is practically like being in an inside-out fish bowl.

  The people who created the Melbourne Aquarium understand about being inside looking out at fish and have taken the concept and run with it. In fact the aquarium offers visitors opportunities to view ocean life from many different points of view. You can see fish swimming above you or beside you or all around you as if you were inside the aquarium and the fish were looking at you.

The aquarium is divided up into four "worlds". These are areas with exhibits focusing on different aspects of aquatic life.

The Antarctic world has penguins. The penguins are very popular with humans. Visitors can see them playing on the snowy ice and swimming in their pool. There's an underwater viewing area where you can watch them swim from below the surface.

The aquarium emphasizes the various sea dwellers in context. None of them live in a vacuum. All are interdependent with other animals including humans. Instead of showing sea life as a world apart from that of humans Melbourne Aquarium encourages visitors to ask the question, "Where do I fit into all this?"

In the Antarctic World there are interactive displays that teach what it is like to be an Antarctic explorer and how modern day scientists live in the cold, dry environment. You can even explore a replica of an Antarctic icebreaker.

In River to Reef World you explore the connections between land and water and salt water and fresh water. You see fish and animals that live in and on the shores of a jungle river. You see waterfalls and caves. Eventually you wind up discovering the creatures that dwell on and around a tropical atoll.

Weird and Wonderful World shows you fish and other denizens of the deep who aren't what you might expect. Here are animals that look like plants and creatures who have formed peculiar relationships with other species and all manner of creatures who have adapted to their environment in ways you might find surprising.

Sharks Alive is the world many people find most exciting. Housed inside a huge 2.2 million liter tank, the Oceanarium can be viewed in 360 degrees. Daring visitors can don scuba gear and dive among the sharks. Even visitors who have no diving experience can join the adventure. You can take a beginner lesson and rent your equipment right there in the aquarium and then in the company of an experienced teacher take a walk among the wild things.

There is a gift shop that visitors can enter without paying admission to the Aquarium. After a morning of exploring the other side of life in a fishbowl you might want to stop for lunch at the pleasant little museum cafe overlooking the river.