The Best Aquariums in the UK

Published on: 21/05/19

It used to be you’d visit a zoo and they’d have an aquarium section with a few tanks of sad looking fish – these days Aquariums are an attraction all by themselves, with huge tanks and amazing creatures to be seen.

A while back we gave you our top picks of Zoos around the UK, and the different species of animals to be found on dry land. For this blog we’re going underwater to tell you which of the UK’s aquariums are worth a visit.

So without further ado, let’s dive in!​

The Deep, Hull

One of the biggest aquariums in the UK, the aptly named The Deep is home to over 3,000 finned and fishy friends. One of their most spectacular displays is the ‘Endless Ocean’, which took an incredible 2.5 million litres of water and 87 tonnes of salt to construct!

Here you’ll find the UK’s only pair of Green sawfish, Zebra sharks, Honeycomb whiptail rays and rescued Loggerhead sea turtles.

If you want to beat the crowds, you can even book one-to-one experiences or learn how to be a keeper for the day.

National Sea Life Centre, Birmingham

Being one of the furthest cities away from the sea hasn’t stopped the National Sea Life Centre in Birmingham playing host to one of the best aquariums.

They have recently fostered a pair of seals who wouldn’t be able to survive in the wild and have built a brand new multi-million-pound Mammal Rescue Facility, which emulates their natural environment as closely as possible. You can also get up close to lots of other sea creatures like Pablo the penguin and his pals, Ozzy the eel, Bev the octopus and Mo the giant sea turtle to name a few!

National Marine Aquarium, Plymouth

The National Marine Aquarium holds the title of being the largest aquarium in the UK and is also a registered charity dedicated to education and research, with their own marine conservation projects. Their Atlantic Ocean tank is the deepest in the UK and houses large nurse sharks, sand tiger sharks and their new lemon sharks as well as three species of ray.

They have a packed calendar of events, including ‘sleeping with sharks’, ‘yoga at the aquarium’ and special events for autistic children. People love the aquarium so much that they even get married there!

Deep Sea World, Kingdom of Fife

Deep Sea World in Scotland, beneath the Forth Rail Bridge you’ll find Scotland’s national aquarium. Their exhibits mimic watery habitats from around the world, including the Amazon river, rocky shores and lakes. As well as sharks, seals and piranhas there’s a collection of frogs and mudskippers too.

The Underwater Safari is a chance to get up close to their amazing sharks from safety of the underwater tunnel. A clever touch is using seawater from the Firth of Forth, which not only saves resources but also has the benefit of providing naturally occurring minerals to the animals, Plus you can also Dive with the Sharks

Blue Planet, Chester

If you’re someone who watches Jaws with fascination rather than fear, then you have to visit the Blue Planet Aquarium in Chester. They have one of the largest collections of large sharks in any aquarium in Europe, including a zebra shark, reef sharks and six tiger sand sharks.

You can stare at these amazing creatures while walking through one of the longest underwater tunnels in the world – a spectacular 70 metres long!, or if you are a PADI diver, then you can also Dive with Sharks

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