Short answer: the Florida Aquarium in Tampa is the one to beat.
It’s big, it’s in the middle of downtown, and its coral reef tank alone holds 500,000 gallons.
If you’re on the Gulf Coast, Clearwater Marine Aquarium is the one with the story, and Mote’s new aquarium in Sarasota is the newest.
Before you plan anything, though, know that two names you’ll still see on older lists, Gulf World in Panama City Beach and the Miami Seaquarium, have closed.
I rewrote this guide in October 2026 for exactly that reason.
The old version still sent people to both.
Every place below was checked against its own website, and the closures against local news.
The 9 worth your time, by region
| Aquarium | City | Best for |
|---|---|---|
| The Florida Aquarium | Tampa | The biggest all-round visit |
| Clearwater Marine Aquarium | Clearwater Beach | Rescued dolphins, and Winter’s story |
| Mote SEA | Sarasota | The newest, with real research on show |
| SEA LIFE Orlando | Orlando (ICON Park) | A short visit between theme parks |
| Gulfarium Marine Adventure Park | Fort Walton Beach | The Panhandle’s aquarium now that Gulf World is gone |
| Frost Science aquarium | Miami | A huge Gulf Stream tank inside a science museum |
| Key West Aquarium | Key West | History, and a touch tank |
| Florida Keys Aquarium Encounters | Marathon | Snorkeling with the animals instead of just looking |
| Marine Science Center | Ponce Inlet | Sea turtle and bird hospitals |
Tampa Bay and the Gulf Coast
The Florida Aquarium, Tampa
If you only go to one, go here.
It’s a nonprofit, accredited by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums, and it sits in the Channel District of downtown Tampa.
It opened in March 1995 (so it’s been around for 31 years) and covers 250,000 square feet, with more than 7,000 aquatic plants and animals.
The layout follows a drop of water from one of Florida’s freshwater springs out to the open Gulf, so you start in a wetlands gallery under a tall glass atrium and end at the Coral Reef.
That’s the 500,000-gallon tank with the sand tiger sharks.
It’s the part people remember.
Clearwater Marine Aquarium, Clearwater Beach
This is where Winter lived, the dolphin with the prosthetic tail from Dolphin Tale.
Winter died on November 11, 2021, so if you’re going for her, know that going in.
Hope, the dolphin from Dolphin Tale 2, is still there.
She was found as a calf in the Indian River Lagoon in December 2010, very close to where Winter was rescued.
The aquarium has been on Clearwater Beach since 1972, in what used to be a water treatment plant, and it’s built around rescuing animals and getting them back out to sea.
The animals that live there for good all have injuries that keep them from going back to the wild.
Honestly?
That’s the reason I’d go.
It’s a hospital you can visit, not a show.
Mote SEA, Sarasota
Mote Marine Laboratory has run an aquarium in Sarasota since 1980, on City Island.
In October 2025 it opened a new 110,000-square-foot building, the Mote Science Education Aquarium (Mote SEA), at 225 University Town Center Drive by Nathan Benderson Park.
Mote is a research lab first; it was founded in 1955 by the shark scientist Eugenie Clark.
So expect working science on display, not just tanks.
Mote says tickets are selling quickly, so get them booked before you drive down.
Orlando
SEA LIFE Orlando
SEA LIFE is at ICON Park in Orlando, and its big feature is a 360° ocean tunnel you walk through.
There’s also a jellyfish wall.
It’s a smaller, shorter visit than Tampa, maybe 1 or 2 hours.
I’d treat it as an indoor break between theme parks.
It’s also a solid backup when an afternoon storm rolls in.
Just expect a longer line on a rainy day, since everyone else had the same idea.
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The Panhandle
Gulfarium Marine Adventure Park, Fort Walton Beach
Gulfarium opened in August 1955 on Okaloosa Island, and admission back then was $1 for adults.
Since Gulf World closed, it’s the Panhandle’s main marine park.
You’ll see dolphins and sea lions, plus harbor seals, penguins and sea turtles.
If you’re staying in Destin, it’s a short drive.
Miami and the Keys
Frost Science aquarium, Miami
This one hides inside the Phillip and Patricia Frost Museum of Science in downtown Miami, next to the Pérez Art Museum.
Its centerpiece is the Gulf Stream Aquarium: three stories, 500,000 gallons, where hammerhead sharks swim past mahi-mahi.
At the bottom there’s a 31-foot oculus lens you look up through.
The aquarium is part of the science museum, which also has a planetarium, so it’s my rainy-day pick in Miami.
Key West Aquarium, Key West
Built between 1932 and 1934 as the island’s first attraction, it opened in 1935 as the first open-air aquarium in the United States.
It’s at 1 Whitehead Street, the only public aquarium in Key West, and it has a touch tank.
It’s small.
Go for 1 hour, not a day — I’d pair it with a walk around the old town while you’re down there.
Florida Keys Aquarium Encounters, Marathon
This is the one where you get in the water.
Instead of only walking past tanks, you can book snorkel sessions in a coral reef habitat or a stingray area, and there are touch tanks and feedings too.
It’s open daily, 9 am to 5 pm.
If snorkeling is the reason you’re going, book it ahead.
Atlantic coast
Marine Science Center, Ponce Inlet
South of Daytona Beach, this Volusia County center runs a sea turtle hospital and a bird hospital, and it takes injured turtles and birds that people bring in.
It isn’t a big-tank aquarium.
It’s closer to Clearwater’s rescue side.
Good stop if you have kids who’d rather see a turtle getting better than a show.
The two that closed
Gulf World Marine Park, Panama City Beach had its last guests in late May 2025.
It posted that it would reopen on June 3, and it never did.
Five dolphins died there in 8 months and its owner went into bankruptcy.
By the end of that summer every animal had been moved.
A local hospitality company, By The Sea Resorts, has since bought the property.
The Miami Seaquarium closed on October 12, 2025, after 70 years, once its company had filed for bankruptcy.
Its lease was sold to a developer in a $22.5 million deal, with plans for an aquarium without marine mammals.
So if a “Miami aquarium” ad turns up, check what it actually is before you book.
Which one should you pick?
For a full day, I’d pick the Florida Aquarium.
For a story your kids will remember, Clearwater.
Mote SEA if you want the new one, and Marathon if you want to get wet.
And if you’re traveling in summer, keep in mind that’s peak season for families, not the off-season.
If you can, go on a weekday morning.
If you’re also into wild animals, our guide to Florida Keys wildlife covers what you can see outside the glass.
More trip ideas for the whole state are in our Florida travel and itineraries hub.
