Great visit!! Better to go during the week to avoid crowds. It's a very easy path to get around…read moreand the staff is knowable when asked questions. I would recommend going through a third party for parking like spot hero. Can save you some money when trying to find parking downtown The exhibits are great but the facility is showing its age. Still worth a visit.

After living in Baltimore for more than five years, my husband and I decided it was finally time to…read morevisit the National Aquarium. We chose a Friday night, because they do a Half-Price Friday Night from 5-9pm every Friday. With admission prices of $50/adult and $40/youth (up to 20 years of age), that half-off is great. So about two weeks ago (a September Friday night), we parked at a garage nearby (booked through SpotHero, the price wasn't too bad) and walked over to the aquarium. We'd purchased our (half-off) tickets online, so we were able to just walk in. Being the national aquarium and admission costing as much as it does, I was expecting a real wow of an aquarium. (Full disclosure: I grew up in Dallas, where the Dallas Aquarium is exceptional and costs $35/adult and $25/child.) I think we saw everything (we didn't have a map and the aquarium is not contained in just one building), and I thought they had a pretty standard collection of marine life for a good aquarium. I did have a hard time finding many of the fish and creatures listed on plaques at the tanks, making me wonder if they weren't there. But at the same time, I found many of the enclosures to be too small or empty for the marine life inside of them (Shark Alley and the octopus, in particular). We found an area of the aquarium called "Dolphin Discovery," but there weren't any dolphins in the pool area. We weren't sure if it's a sort show and they are moved out before the evening hours on a Friday night or what. We don't have kids, so a kid-friendly activity isn't something we seek out. I am sure that kids love an aquarium and this aquarium would be a good activity for families, whether they live in or are visiting Baltimore. But for me? It's a pretty good aquarium but really pricey. For my money, I wouldn't visit again unless someone visits us and they want to go. And - for my money - I'd rather take visitors on the tour of the Aquarium's Animal Care and Rescue Center (a separate facility, but not far away; separate Yelp page for that center), which highlights the amazing conservation work the Aquarium does. They offer tours every Saturday at 1:30 pm and costs $45/person.

The kids loved it, they took so much time explaining everything to the kids and let them feed the…read morefish.

Amazing staff! Very friendly and accommodating. I would 100% recommend for kids!! Disability…read morefriendly as well!

This store reeks of mold and none of the tanks are well maintained. Most of the fish that they have…read moreare in extremely poor health. Not to mention that the floor plan has a lot of the fish in odd corners where they go ages with out being taken care of. It's sad and out right disgusting the quality of life that the fish are in. Most of those fish look like they have been there long term and need to be in much larger tanks. When you walk into the store you are greeted by massive piranhas that are very sickly. Most if not all of the water in the tanks is a cloudy green which is not something that happens quickly that comes from long periods of time with over feeding, lack of water changes, poor filtration and a long list of neglect. You should be ashamed.

Place could be cleaner. Customer service needs work from owner, but shop lead is cool. They could…read morebe Bigger, with Better ventilation and shop would be great. But they have a nice mix of fish and switch it up every few weeks.. I been dealing with these owners since the 90s in Riverdale.. Price is always reasonable. Fish are healthy. They won't work with you much on prices, but they are consistent and always have a few rare fresh water fish. I've had a few fish not make it, but overall, good experience shopping with them regularly.

Their new store is amazing, customer service is always top notch! They have great stock of fish and…read moreplants! Love this store!

They cleaned my tank in November but would never respond to calls so I could pay for service…read more Wanted to set ongoing service but they don't return voice messages.

A great museum for the kids, and it is very well done. There have been several Calvert County…read moremuseums that are much nicer than I expected, and this one is awesome! The Drum Point Lighthouse is so cool and a lot of fun to explore. But honestly, the stars of the show... the otters!!!

I love this place and all it has to offer. I loved digging in the sand pit and looking for shark…read moreteeth!

Quaint aquarium in a basement, but absolutely the best variety of guppies in the DMV area. Friendly…read moreand knowledgeable staff. I love coming here.

First time here, they had everything you need for your aquarium. The people were so friendly and…read morehelp in understanding what I was looking for and "Mary" took her time explaining things to me about the fish that I was interested in. They have a steady customer in me. Thank you.

Completely unresponsive! I am extremely interested in booking Andrew for my son's birthday. After…read morefinally reaching him after two weeks initially, I got the pricing information with him. I called back to book and NEVER HEARD FROM HIM! It has been over a month, I left several voicemail messages and a message through his website and Facebook. Extremely rude and unprofessional to be completely ignored since the theme of the party was going to be based on his show!

We hired Andrew for my daughter's 5th Under the Sea themed birthday party in December 2018. Having…read moreAndrew attend with the live sea animals was such a huge hit with the kids as well as the adults! Andrew was able to capture the children's attention and each child had the opportunity to touch a live sea animal. The room was filled with laughter and excitement from everyone in the room. Many of the parents said it was the best kid's party they have ever attended. Thanks Andrew for an unforgettable birthday party for my little girl!

Stopped in to see some primates but unfortunately there weren't any in the exhibit area, not sure…read morewhy. Moved on and enjoyed watching a pair of gibbons. This zoo is just the right size, not oversized. They hold events throughout the year such as Christmas and Halloween. A tranquil place to walk, enjoy nature, animals, and some fresh air. The best part, it's free.

Couldn't even begin to tell you the last time I visited the zoo but when I got invited this time I…read morecouldn't say no. Especially knowing we'd get a chance to see the zoo's newest star, baby elephant Linh Mai. She was the very first animal we saw that morning happily playing with her mom and aunt and she was absolutely adorable. My friend insisted on getting there right when the zoo opened and while I was dreading an 8:00 a.m. arrival on a Sunday, it ended up being the perfect time to visit. The temperatures were still cool and most of the animals were out, active, and moving around. As the day warmed up it was easy to see why arriving early makes such a difference. For anyone who's never been, admission to the zoo is completely free. However, you'll need to reserve passes online ahead of time which are scanned at the entrance when you arrive. Another big plus is that you're allowed to bring in outside food and drinks which can save you quite a bit of money if you're trying to avoid paying theme park-style food prices. The zoo is also easily accessible by Metro. If you're driving, parking is available for $40 but if you're lucky arriving early might help you score free street parking like I did. Between seeing the adorable baby elephant, enjoying a beautiful morning, and getting to watch so many animals actively roaming around, this ended up being a much better experience than I expected. I definitely won't wait as long before making another trip back.

The store is beautiful and the fish all looked very healthy. That said I bought 4 platys and…read moreacclimated them, put them in with my other platys, and they acted great, until they suddenly went belly up one by one. eventually all 4 died in a span of less than 2 weeks. I called the store and was told it was probably because they add some salt to their freshwater tanks so the salinity was very different, IT WOULD HAVE BEEN NICE IF YOU TOLD ME THAT WHEN I CAME IN!!! I even asked if there was anything I should know before I left. They are offering to replace them at cost but I live over an hour away and since I do not salt my tank wouldn't it be the same problem all over again?? I feel terrible giving such a low star rating but I am just not satisfied, I will be 100x more likely to go over to the Winchester Aquarium & Pet Center for other fish.

I can't recommend this place enough. I love walking in and being greeted by the employees. I enjoy…read morethe banter everyone has (and with me) it's friendly. I have gotten all my fish and plants from here, and again I can't recommend this place enough. It's clean, it's populated, it's what an aquatic store should be (in my opinion).

I still love this place, and despite being significantly further from home than other pet stores, I…read morestill find myself making time for it. The fish selections continue to be amazing, and I have awesome interactions with the staff. Most recently, one had a Majora's Mask tattoo so we just HAD to have a full conversation about fish with a side of Zelda. Video game jokes aside, whenever I have a question about the fish, or even if it's not a question and it's just one I know I want, the staff are always upbeat, enthusiastic, and you can tell that this aquarium life is their thing. They give advice and basically hype your selections haha. For anyone in the state of Maryland who is into aquariums, I recommend stopping by this store. It's well worth the visit. You can either park on the back where the store is, or on the front side which has a lot more stores and the parking lot is bigger, but it stays busy and fills up quickly. Pick your challenge!

It's so nice to go into a store and the employees actually know a lot about what they are selling…read more I had problems with a pond pump. After years of buying pumps that lasted less than a year, they provided me with one that worked for 4 years and were then able to †hen provide me with a new part. They have saved me so much money and so many headaches. They also have an incredible variety of critters to put in aquariums and ponds. The owner is very careful about getting fish, etc., that have gone through the proper channels so they are not carrying diseases.