Visit: Aquarium of the Bay, Embarcadero & Beach St Pier 39, San Francisco, CA 94133
When you arrive at Aquarium of the Bay, located on San Francisco’s bustling Embarcadero (also home to other attractions like Fisherman’s Wharf, the Pier 39 sea lions, Boudin Bakery and the ferries to Alcatraz Island), head inside with your general admission ticket and begin your self-guided exploration of the aquarium.
Your admission allows you to visit the aquarium’s main exhibit areas. With a focus on the marine life of San Francisco Bay and its surrounding bodies of water, the Aquarium of the Bay is home to 20,000-plus animals that live in 700,000 gallons (2.6 million liters) of carefully maintained bay water. Stay at the aquarium as long as you like to learn about sea creatures like jellyfish, octopus, and sharks.
Discover the Bay exhibit:
See orange garibaldi, green moray eels, colorful rockfish, and other wildlife native to the San Francisco Bay. Learn about how anchovies stick together and avoid predators, and find out how the bay acts as a breeding ground for perch and many other fish.
Under the Bay exhibit:
Walk through a 300-foot (90-meter) tunnel system of clear glass for a look at the fascinating fish and other sea life in the bay and nearby Pacific waters. See mesmerizing jellyfish, a giant Pacific octopus, graceful rays, sturgeon, and multiple local shark species like sevengill sharks, leopard sharks, soupfin sharks, and spiny dogfish.
See Availability.
11:00 AM
2 hours(approx.)
Wheelchair accessible
Stroller accessible
Service animals allowed
Near public transportation
Surfaces are wheelchair accessible
Most travelers can participate
Free admission for children ages 3 and under
Wheelchair and stroller accessible
The aquarium is open every day except Christmas Day
Current operating hours are 11am-6pm
Confirmation will be received at time of booking
Posted By : Shalome_T
I rate it a 3/5 it was cool but the tickets are overpriced, it was a quick & fast experience. Not too many sea animals to see.
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Posted On : 2024-04-07
Posted By : Manuel_O
I liked being able to touch the stingray! It was nice walking through the water tunnel
Learning about the different kinds of fish and sharks was pretty cool
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Posted On : 2024-04-07
Posted By : Julie_G
Not as good as we expected. Only small - we’d done it all in 45 minutes. Augmented reality section shut. Not many different species. I heard one mum ask if they had an octopus as her son loved them and they’d come to see one but they didn’t have any despite having a large painting mural of an octopus outside! Have other things like a squirrel, snakes, tortoises which have nothing to do with aquariums. We paid £106 for a family of 4. Waste of money and would not recommend.
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Posted On : 2024-04-03
Posted By : 609brandir
A small attraction but enjoyable, it felt like a break from the crowds at Pier 39. The otters were amazing and a family favorite.
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Posted On : 2024-04-02
Posted By : Cynthia G
A fun, clever, informative experience that we would gladly do again. The walk through tunnel was an incredible immersive adventure!
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Posted On : 2024-03-17
Posted By : jane_nbmn
The building looks big. But the whole aquarium is essentially 2 rooms. It took us about 20 minutes to look at it all.
Purchased tickets outside and then when we got in we found out the otters weren’t even available for the rest of the day.
Very underwhelming and disappointing.
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Posted On : 2024-03-15
Posted By : ZoeG275
A nice little aquarium at pier 39. It is quite small as they go and we only took an hour. Exhibits are very good with a great jelly fish exhibit and a fish tunnel.
Personally I think it was a little expensive for what it was but the atmosphere was very good and it is in pier 39. may be quite expensive for a family but there were only two of us. If you are strapped for time or cash I would recommend the aquarium at the California Academy of Sciences.
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Posted On : 2024-01-06
Posted By : Luz_R
Very small but worth the experience very nice and clean and some employees are very attentive. Would do it again if we had more time
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Posted On : 2023-11-24
Posted By : bradziker1
I really enjoyed my experience and loved the hands-on touching exhibits. I got to touch a sting-ray and it was so velvety. You do have to stick your arm deep so roll up your sleeves. The tunnel was excellent as well. There are 2 floors and you have to use the elevators - they are a bit slow. The otters were very cute. There are exhibits of about 12 different kinds of jellyfish and fascinating. The price at $33 was quite steep for only about an hour experience, but everything in the area is overpriced.
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Posted On : 2023-11-22
Posted By : 423rutas
It is a small aquarium but well done. Highly recommend especially if you are with children. I loved the robotic guide!
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Posted On : 2023-11-11
