Sea Life London Aquarium

See marine life at The Sea Life London Aquarium

The Sea Life London Aquarium offers visitors the chance to meet around 500 different species of fish and other aquatic animals, including sharks and rays.

Highlights

  • Step onto the glass floor of Shark Walk and get up close and personal with the predators who are swimming just below your feet
  • Visit the aquarium’s colony of 19 new Gentoo penguins and take a selfie with them at Sea Life’s Penguin Point
  • Watch one of the many feeding sessions at the Rainforest Adventure, Penguin Point and Ray Lagoon

What to see and do

See the UK’s only living coral reef

Sea Life’s Coral Kingdom will transport you into an amazing underwater world that’s full of colour. There’s the mangrove display as well as the reef and you’ll be able to see clownfish, tangs and many more vibrant fish species swimming and darting about.

Find out all about jellyfish at Ocean Invaders

Ocean Invaders takes you through three fascinating and educational zones. You’ll learn all about the evolution and biology of these strange creatures, as well as find out about how and why they swarm the seas. You’ll also get to meet the flame jellyfish, the Japanese sea nettle and the moon jellyfish, to name but a few.

Come face to face with a tarantula

Sea Life’s Rainforest Adventure lets you get close to some impressive creepy-crawlies, as well as meet and find out more about the red-bellied piranha, the African dwarf crocodile and Bowsa the snapping turtle.

Do the Shark Walk

The Pacific-themed Shark Walk is the first display you’ll come to during your visit and it’s unforgettable. You’ll walk on a reinforced glass floor and gaze down upon the sand tiger shark, the nurse shark and the blacktip reef shark as they glide through the water below you.

Did you know? (3 Interesting Facts)

  1. The total volume of the tanks at Sea Life is more than 2,000,000 litres and this huge volume of water is home to around 500 different species of fish and other aquatic animals.
  2. When you’re walking over the sharks, just remember that these amazing fish are responsible for just 20 human deaths each year, which is five times smaller than the number of people killed by wasps.
  3. Elsa, the first Gentoo penguin chick hatched at Sea Life, weighed just 90 grams when she hatched in May 2014. The fact that her parents, Luna and Arnie, managed to breed and raise a chick is encouraging because it means they were very happy with their environment.

History

  • 1997: The London Aquarium was built in the ground floor of the former County Hall along the River Thames’ South Bank. It opened to the public in March of this year.
  • 2005: Three robotic fish, designed by the University of Essex’s computer science department, was put on display at the aquarium. The fish were built to be able to swim around their specially-designed tank independently and to avoid obstacles by using sensors. The aim of the project was to bring robots more into the public’s mind.
  • 2008: Merlin Entertainment bought the aquarium in April of this year for an undisclosed sum of money. The company closed the aquarium for a year to undertake a £5,000,000 refurbishment which included Shark Walk, a new Pacific Ocean tank and a rerouting of the exhibits.
  • 2009: The aquarium reopened in April of this year as a Sea Life Centre.
  • 2011: Sea Life’s penguin exhibit opened in May of this year when 10 Gentoo penguins arrived from Edinburgh Zoo. The Gentoo population now stands at 19 birds.

Facilities and accessibility

Sea Life London is fully wheelchair-accessible throughout, with a ramp at the entrance, as well as lifts to all levels of the aquarium. Up to 10 wheelchair users can visit Sea Life at any one time; this number is due to regulations around fire evacuations.

Mobility scooters are welcome in the aquarium, as are guide and assistance dogs.

The aquarium offers hearing loops at all its retail points for people with hearing impairments.

Sea Life doesn’t offer reduced-price entry to disabled visitors, but carers can receive free entry on arrival as long as you have the right documentation. Acceptable documents include your DLA/PIP/DWP award letter, your Blue Badge and your International Proof of Disability.

Prams and pushchairs are welcome throughout the aquarium, but they must be kept with you at all times, or the security team may remove them.

Accessible toilets with baby changing facilities are available on all floors. Find them after Shark Walk, Rainforest Adventure and just before you get to Ocean Invaders.

There are no cafes or restaurants within Sea Life, but there are some vending machines, as well as Polar Point Refreshments where you can buy drinks and snacks. There is a gift shop at the end of the venue.