I like Birch Aquarium and always enjoy exploring the exhibits, especially sitting and watching the…read morehuge main tank, it's so relaxing. They've made some nice renovations recently, and we love the outdoor touch pools, penguins, and beautiful ocean views. My biggest complaint is the price. You can easily see everything in about 2 hours MAX, so full price admission feels pretty steep. We go more often because through CalFresh/WIC you get discounted tickets, and they also have great veteran discounts. Parking can be tough, and there aren't many handicap spots close to the entrance. If you're visiting from out of town, it's definitely worth pairing with a day exploring La Jolla, but I wouldn't plan on the aquarium being a full-day activity.

This is a smaller aquarium, but it was a lovely one to visit. We picked the Birch aquarium as one…read moreof the spots to visit using our City Pass & it was quick and easy to get inside. There is a short walk from the parking lot to the aquarium, but the walk itself isn't that bad. There are two sides to the aquarium to explore, an outside area where you can see some adorable as can be small blue penguins and another outside area with touch pools. The area with the touch pools has a gorgeous view of the beach & ocean as the aquarium sits up higher so you'll have a great view for photos. We thought they had a great selection of sea life to view. They had several different types of Jelly fish & several different species of Sea horses. I absolutely loved seeing the Sea Kelp Dragons, they are so cool to see. The bathrooms were clean, the gift shop was nice, and all of the staff we interacted with were friendly. I would say we were here for 45 minutes altogether?

Living Coast Discovery Center is such a hidden gem in Chula Vista! It's tucked away on the bay near…read morethe new Sweetwater Park and Gaylord hotel. There's plenty of parking, and then you take a short shuttle to the entrance. You're greeted by a sea turtle outside, and inside there's a smaller area with local fish, reptiles, and other animals. My favorite part with kids is how interactive everything is. You can pet and touch the friendly rays and sharks, and the indoor touch pools let kids touch starfish and sea anemones. It's really fun, hands-on, and educational. All the volunteers are very helpful educational, good with kids. Outside, you can walk around and see local birds, hawks, and eagles while enjoying beautiful views of the bay. Bring lunch or snacks and you can easily make a whole morning out of it. Another huge plus is the discounted admission for WIC or CalFresh families, and they offer discounted memberships for up to four people. If you live nearby, the membership is definitely worth it for popping in for an hour or two with the kids.

My friend who needs a wheelchair to get around arrived and their shuttle could not accommodate…read moreher!! Nowhere on the website does it say that they do not accommodate nor does it say that we should call before coming to make sure she would be able to enjoy the center. It's so disappointing that at this day in age, Living Coast did not think about individuals like my friend. Thanks you for your reply. Perhaps the information you relayed on my post can be added to the website? Also, what is your on-site address? My friend was dropped off by MTS access and following the adress provided on your website.

Missy did an amazing job moving our 100-gallon discus tank to our new house. It's a glass tank and…read morevery heavy, but she and her helper got it loaded and unloaded without our help. Her process was impeccable and all our precious fish are happy and healthy. She went above and beyond, even bleaching the lid of our tank. I can't recommend her highly enough.

SAVED MY TANK! My poor fish and corals were suffering from…read morethe last guy that serviced my tank- but I won't get into that since they are no longer in business. Missy is so knowledgeable and so patient with all my questions. She was able to bring my tank back to life after a lot of hard work. shes made me excited about it again like when I first got. 1000 stars! Hire her!

Great place to see animals. Parking is paid via an app and you can get an annual membership with…read moredifferent tiers of benefits. It has a ton of different animals, and they were out and about. I really enjoyed seeing the jaguar, red panda, and the panda - but all the animals are cute. They do giraffe feedings but it ends at 1pm so try to go earlier if you really want to feed the giraffes. There is bench seating and the ride across the park was fun, although I wished that the park enforced the line, as there was a particularly rude woman who cut in front of us and brought her family with her with nary an apology or an ounce of shame. I hope she has the day she deserves. Other than that, the food was also pretty good (better than the food at the safari park). I liked the chicken tender spot and I also liked the chicken and waffle plate. The environment is good for families and young children.

So I had no plan to go to the zoo today, but I had a dermatology appointment in Hillcrest and it…read morewas a cloudy cool day finally in this hot summer so I proceeded to the zoo and it was about 10 AM and there was very few people here and it was the most delightful walk And lots of animals were awake and active. I was delighted that I got to see the giant pandas because I have never seen them before this. There's always been a big fat line. Today I just walked straight through and they were both out and active. The hippos were hilarious under the water swallowing the bubbles . The orangutans were funny. The baboon family with a red butt is really hilarious to watch. You could watch that for a long time. The skyFari was closed today, which was somewhat of a bummer but other than that, everything was fantastic. I didn't order any food because the prices are absolutely outrageous. I also really enjoy looking at the plants and reading about them and how they have adapted to the environment that they are from. The African plants are amazing at how they can store water in their trunks. I also got to see the lemurs with their cute little mask, faces and striped tails. I'm looking forward to attending in October, which is free kids at the zoo month so I can bring my grandchildren and enjoy the children's zoo.

Fun per usual. The all day food pass is good for all day dining and it only costs $50 bucks for…read morefood every 90minutes, with caveat that the food isn't the best (fried chicken, barbecue, fries, cupcakes, soda, etc. but it is a killer deal. Favorite ride was Atlantis. Favorite show was the orca show. It can get quite pricey with parking and everything. They have dog kennels for $25 for the whole day which is useful.

I went this past week and had a free ticket. This place is the epitome of mediocrity and I'm…read moresurprised anyone even still goes. The entire facility looks completely run down and outdated. Several of the rides were closed when I went. Also for the rides they do not allow a bag so you have to pay for a locker. Knotts berry farm gives free lockers for 2 hrs nearby. The stingray feeding food is over $11 and I heard someone complain about how it was 5 dollars at one point. I also laughed when I saw there is a stand-up dryer section whee you have to pay $7 to dry off after a water ride. The whole place just came off as a dump that nickel and dimes the customer. I think the gouging on parking is a good strategy though bc there isn't a free option nearby. My suggestion is to jack up the parking bc it is guaranteed money. The electric eel was really fun. I rode it twice and I enjoyed it. The rest of the experience was garbage though and just was a contribution to a jobs program known as SeaWorld located in San Diego. Even free it was still a waste of time when you factor in parking costs. ​​​

First, the venue was incredible. The New Children's Museum is roughly 50,000 square feet spread…read moreacross three levels, with huge open galleries, interactive installations, studios, and some seriously impressive architecture. Even with a massive crowd and vendors everywhere, it never felt overwhelmingly packed. You could grab a drink, wander through an exhibit, find something to eat, take photos, meet other Yelpers, and somehow keep discovering entirely new sections of the event. Yelp's Art After Dark at The New Children's Museum was easily one of the coolest Yelp events I've attended. Taking over an entire museum for a 21+ night of food, drinks, art, music, and local businesses was already a great idea, the execution made it even better. And there was A LOT to try. Bitchin' Sauce, Boochcraft, Chuy's Taco Shop, Rock N' Roost, Balsamico Italian Kitchen, Gaby's Munchies, Jackalope, Origins Tea, Coqueto Café, Antojitos Express Bar, Emerald Spear Tequila, Pali Wine Co., Melograno, 19th Hole Spirits, Old Hillside Bourbon Company and plenty more showed up with food, desserts, coffee, tea, cocktails, wine, and spirits. Going in hungry was definitely the correct tactical decision. What made the night especially fun was that it wasn't just another tasting event. Between the artwork, interactive experiences, entertainment, photo opportunities, and museum itself, there was constantly something happening or somewhere new to explore. Even better, the night supported The New Children's Museum, with suggested donations helping provide programs and opportunities that make the museum more accessible to San Diego families. Yelp San Diego absolutely crushed this one!

Have gone here in the past with my nieces and nephews. They have drawing and other classes…read more Interactive exhibits, slides, bikes you can ride, painting, building and so much other activities. I'll be attending the Yelp Event: Art After Dark tonight. All donations go directly to the Children's museum. Looking forward to this event

Great selection of both aquarium livestock and equipment. While my focus is primarily on freshwater…read moresetups, their saltwater inventory is highly impressive. The pricing here is very competitive, featuring excellent bulk discounts that are especially economical if you are stocking schooling fish. As a best practice, always quarantine any new additions before introducing them to your established community tanks. Transporting livestock introduces significant stress to their immune systems, and retail holding tanks are inherently high-density environments, so a quarantine protocol is a must rather than a reflection on the shop. Additionally, this is a fantastic source for high-quality dry and frozen fish food. Highly recommended.

Totally cool store with every fish you can image. Great staff very helpful and and experienced in…read moreall types of aquatic questions. The last store you'll ever need for saltwater fish.

I go to this store a lot I love all the different fish and love coming here the best service the…read morepeople that run the store a the coolest people ever take great care of their fish unlike other big brands like Petco

The Best Store for planted tanks and critters. We bought from here our Anubias Plants, 3 kuhli…read moreloaches, black mollies, 4 corydoras, 1 Dwarf Gourami and 8 Blonde African Dwarf Frogs. And they all get along. True story. It's really relaxing having our 20 Gallon aquarium and a bit of nature with us. Very cool. Highly recommend.

Great service! He communicates well on scheduling & is always on time & does a great job!read more

Great aquarium. Lots of interesting sea life. Great way to spend 2 hours. I would highly recommend.read more

There are 7 total ships, including the Star of India, and a submarine. You can purchase your ticket…read moreat any of the main booths/boat entrances, then show your receipt to visit the others on the same day. The flexibility of a self-guided tour was great. One ship was away on a sail in the afternoon this past Saturday, but there was more than enough to explore on the various vessels during our visit. Plenty to see and experience on each of the boats. We stepped onto the swift boat where staff educated us about its machine gun. And we walked through and checked out the different sections of the USS Dolphin submarine too. The HMS Surprise was a lovely ship with plenty of references to its use in films. The Star of India was like a museum all on its own, so many areas to explore and a ton of history to learn. The Californian was pretty basic, not very different from many other ships we've visited in the past. Steam Ferry Berkeley was the largest, with displays showcasing scientific instruments, model boats, artwork, the riverboats in Vietnam, the engine room, a torpedo caught by a fisherman, and a special exhibit featuring the "histories of the black pacific". There's a gift shop on site as well. Altogether, the variety of ships at the Maritime Museum made for an interesting adventure, a bit touristy, but worth the cost if you're into history or simply like boats.

Ok so I will split this into two reviews:…read more 1: the ships and actual adventure 2: the reservation process and customer service 1: booked a trip for the Spanish replica ship adventure the San Salvador and really loved it. The ticket also got you access to the other ships to walk around which was cool. But the coolest part was that San Salvador was sailed like they would have sailed it waaay back when. We got to see real rigging masts sails steering all being done by a crew and it was a totally amazing experience and such a perfect day. Bonus: we saw dolphins and it was a perfect day. Drawback: the gentlemen speaking throughout didn't talk into his mic often so missed a lot but oh well - who's really going for history?! such a good time!!. 2. I had a good with my tickets and called and tried to talk to folks in person and could never get someone. The tickets were cancelled but not refunded which was a bummer and staff in the kiosk even said they phone lines were messed up. A bummer. :(