A Complete Guide to Bristol Aquarium

We know that 71% part of the earth is covered with the sea. Can you imagine the diversity of aquatic flora and fauna with this fact? How can you see them closely? Either dive into the water or drop by an aquarium. However, diving is only an option for some. But anyone can go to the aquarium. If you ever want to visit the larger-than-life aquarium, plan your trip to the Bristol Aquarium. It is the most famous aquarium in Bristol, the city in the UK.

Oceans and seas are the habitat of the tiniest marine creatures, like krill, to giant animals, like blue whales.

Nonetheless, water bodies like rivers, lakes, ponds, streams, etc., are also home to numerous aquatic lives.

Doesn’t it sound fascinating to experience all these fantastic aquatic creatures under one roof in the Bristol Aquarium? Let’s take you on this fascinating journey.

1. Bristol Aquarium

Bristol Aquarium has been one of the major attractions in Bristol and the UK. As one of the top fifteen aquariums, it is also a famous one in the UK.

Bristol’s colorful aquarium provides naturally themed habitats to thousands of amazing marine life. Also, it is the only aquarium in the UK with a giant botanical house.

1.1. Inside the Bristol Aquarium

Bristol Aquarium has over 40 naturally themed displays. As a result, one hour to one and a half hours is a must, as you need to spend a minimum of ninety seconds at each display.

However, these displays are spread over different sections named Sunken Shipwreck, Bay Of Rays, Ocean Floor, Learning Lab, Edge of the Rainforest, Amazing Amazon, Coral Seas, and Urban Jungle. Let’s walk through each of them one by one.

1.2. Only Aquarium with a Giant Botanical House – Urban Jungle

The Bristol Aquarium maintains a vast tropical Urban jungle as a botanical house. Therefore, you will see numerous trees and exotic plants from different parts of the world.

They have designed it very thoughtfully, so when you enter this, you forget you are in the UK.

You feel like you have entered the Amazon rainforest on a rainy day. Indeed, a tropical and warm environment and lush green scenery will fill your freshness.

1.3. Sunken Shipwreck

The Sunken Shipwreck is an underwater ship-themed aquarium tank.

Therefore, this big tank contains 25 marine creatures like crayfish, catfish, smooth-hound sharks, jellyfish, carbs, and many more.

1.4. Bay of Rays

The Bay of Rays water body is located in the botanical house with a rocky setup. There are a total of 8 marine water species in this section.

Therefore, the name itself is mainly dedicated to ray fishes like the common stingray, blonde ray, painted ray, undulate ray, and thornback ray. Also, it has other species like wrasse, Malawi cichlids, and thick-lipped grey mullet.

1.5. Ocean Floor

This section is dedicated to deep marine water creatures. Therefore, the ocean floor refers to them as wonders of the deep.

It maintains a relatively cooler water temperature than in previous sections.

A total of 13 species are there. Some are smooth-hound sharks, Bloody Henry starfish, sea bass, bull Huss shark, cuckoo wrasse, Atlantic wreckfish, lesser spotted cat sharks, and gilthead sea bream.

1.6. Edge of the Rainforest

This is the coral house of the tropical edge of the rainforest freshwater creatures. A total of 15 species are there. It has archerfish, deadly piranhas, deadly poison dart frogs, and blind cavefish.

However, this section has a relatively higher water temperature than in previous quarters.

1.7. Amazing Amazon

This is an open-top tank setup inside the Urban Jungle section with a capacity of over 60,000 liters of freshwater. 

It also contains freshwater species that maintain the tropical temperature range from the previous quarter and provide a home to tropical fish.

In addition, the aquarium’s Amazing Amazon is surrounded by various plant and tree species.

It has five species: giant pacu, red pacu, black pacu, yellow-bellied turtles, and Mississippi map turtle. Freshwater catfish and stingrays are also there.

1.8. Coral Seas

Here, the vast Coral Sea underwater tunnel display gives you the feel of a spectacular undersea safari.

Walking through it while watching the tropical coral reefs and other marine creatures is fun. It is a massive display with a capacity of over 250,000 litres of marine water.

It contains more than 50 species. Indeed, it is vast and diverse in every aspect of the abovementioned sections.

It has puffer fish, lionfish, wrasse, eels, rays, soldier fish, oriental sweetlips, tropical sharks, regal tang, honeycomb moray eel, clown fish, giant groupers, and whatnot.

1.9. Learning Lab

It is Bristol Aquarium’s baby-friendly initiative. Learning Lab is a nursery display aiming to teach babies about fascinating marine life.

This section has seahorses, glass fish, pipefish, and rock pool inhabitants like lobsters, crabs, and starfish.

1.10. Other Attractions

On the other hand, inside the aquarium, there is the C-Shed café and gift shop. There are exclusive offers, obviously, for annual members.

In the café, you can enjoy coffee, snacks, pizzas, paninis, and much more. Moreover, they also have a vegan, gluten-free Red Thai Vegetable Curry.

The gift shop is also open to non-aquarium visitors. Here, they sell different gift articles. Their Eco-Buddiez Plush Toys are recycled from waste plastic bottles.

2. Location and Additional Information

Bristol Aquarium is located at the center of the city at the harborside. The address is Bristol Aquarium, Anchor Road, Bristol, BS1 5TT.

You can get there by public transport, car, bicycle or taxi. You can also take a walk from the Bristol Temple Meads station and reach there in approx. 20 minutes as well.

They don’t have parking, but you can park at the transport parking. Millennium Square is the nearest public car park, followed by Prince St (NCP) and Wapping Wharf.

However, visit their official site here for detailed instructions and public transport directions.

2.1 Opening Hours and Days

The aquarium remains open for all days of the week throughout the year. However, during Christmas Day, the aquarium remains closed.

Opening hours are 10 am to 6 pm, but the last entry is up to 5 pm. However, visitors are advised to remain updated with their official site, as seasonal opening hours might differ.

2.2 Tickets

Ticket rates are different for different age groups. However, there is an option for the whole family and group tickets, too.

You can buy the ticket offline as well as online. Finally, you are advised to check their official site before purchasing your tickets to ensure everything runs smoothly.

Despite that, they also offer an annual membership to unlimited entry throughout the year.  Bristol Aquarium also encourages school and adult groups to visit through different packages.

2.3 Accessibility

As a result, without a doubt, the aquarium is designed to keep the maximum possible accessibility.

For example, they offer an accessible wheelchair to disabled visitors. In fact, they also provide free caretaker tickets, too.

Furthermore, C-Shed café and gift shop accessibility are also there for disabled visitors. There are two accessible toilets, one with a dedicated area for baby changing facilities.

2.4 Other Activities

Besides this, Bristol Aquarium organizes different activities throughout the year. Undoubtedly, some of them are exclusive annual members.

You can join them for seasonal events as well as for daily talks. Here, educational groups can have a fish-feeding experience and learn about the conservation of the natural world. Furthermore, academic groups are guided by the aquarium’s tour guides.

The aquarium also offers venues for birthday celebrations, receptions, meetings, workshops, and filming. Their Turing room can cater to conference facilities. Besides, they have a 300-seater auditorium cum theatre.

Despite all these, they also run conversation charities for threatened and endangered marine life. You can check out these activities here.

Conclusion

Therefore, in brief, you can experience everything from the marine creature sections like Sunken Shipwreck, Bay Of Rays, Coral Seas, and Ocean Floor to the tropical flora and fauna of freshwater sections.

Take your kids, elders, and friends without worrying about accessibility issues. Have a chill pill at the café and gift something to your loved ones for the lifetime memory of this massive aquarium.