New England Aquarium
 

Hi everyone,
We are finalizing our Boston plans. We will be in Boston on a Friday, Saturday and Sunday morning in July. My 11 year old want to visit the aquarium because of the penguin exhibit. (We both have a penguin fascination)
Is the aquarium worth precious time in Boston? I thought maybe we could go on the Sunday morning for a couple of hours.
We are still planning on renting bikes on Saturday ,thanks to all the help I got with my last post.
Thanks in advance

The Aquarium is great, and I don't even like aquariums. It's one of the best I've seen. You will especially love the penguin exhibit.

my 9 and 12 year old nephews both adored the aquarium. They liked the penguins, but also the sea turtles in the giant reef tank, and watching the seals outside. I tink it is especially worth it because it is something your child really wants to do.

Compared to top notch aquariums in other major cities, our aquarium pales by comparison - they have made improvements over the past few years, but last I was there in 2007 there was much that was worn and needed attention - from little things like missing or taped signage to recordings one could barely hear - etc - if you have been to magnificent aquariums in other cities, you will be disappointed - although an 11 yr old may not... hard to say.

they have experienced financial hardships for years, having at one point four or five years ago lost their accreditation, but did regain it back a few years later.

That being said if your 11 yr old loves penguins, then take him to see them if this is his chance and you do not have a great aquarium at home - if this is in the "must see" part of your list, then do it for an hour or so.

otherwise, there are so many other wonderful sites in Boston to fill the time.

Despite the aquarium's financial and administrative shortcomings, the penguins have a big exhibit that is fun to watch. If you're there right at 9 AM when they open, you'll see them having breakfast!

http://www.neaq.org/visit_planning/t...hows/index.php