"Wonderful aquatic life: interesting & informative & pretty good value for money too."
"Wonderful experience loads to see and lots of fish and animals."
"Lots of species to get up close to and they even had some penguins in the upstairs area."
"All fish, sharks and animals are well cared for and each Aquarist knew their animals."
"Wonderful tunnel with Sharks, Rays, Turtles and many other fish."
"There's a great range of creatures and various fun ways to admire them."
Cons:
"Very busy though felt we were having to rush through."
"Some areas looking tired."
"Not half as good as it used to be, with most of the habitats empty."
"The whole place could be done in less than half an hour."
"I felt some of the areas seemed small for the fish tbh."
"Some of the tanks were bland."
"The amount of fish they have now is very low in comparison to my last visit."
Accessibility and Facilities
Pros:
"Being in an electric wheelchair, I visited the Oceanarium without any problems, a big plus."
"There is a small lift if you can't use the stairs."
"Toilets, disabled access and baby change. Clean and wonderful to walk around."
"Wheelchair accessible owing to lifts."
"Very accessible and well spaced for wheelchairs and pushchairs."
"There's even a lift if you have a pram or a wheel chair which was great as we had a pram."
"Wheelchair accessible and kid friendly."
Cons:
"Would be worse for disabled guests."
"Really poor access for prams, forever trying to open doors."
"Some areas needed serious cleaning especially the penguin area as it was filthy and smelly."
"The penguin enclosure was closed which wasn't told about."
"Often gets very busy and doesn’t have the capacity for big crowds."
"There were a number of elements to the oceanarium which appeared to be out of order or not accessible, and covid was being used as an excuse."
"No onsite parking."
Value for Money
Pros:
"Tickets were reasonably priced."
"A fantastic way to spend a few hours and for the whole experience of seeing such majestic creatures from far away places in a town near you, I think it is remarkable value for money."
"Useful entrance fee offer which we used."
"Half price entry for locals during March!"
"The price is very reasonable and at the time (June) they were doing a good deal to enter."
"2 adults and son was free as only 2. All for under £20. Well worth it."
"Great price for what you get to experience. Especially compared to other oceanium around."
Cons:
"Tickets were a little pricey."
"It's decent but overpriced for what it is."
"However very expensive if you’re buying a day ticket for one day."
"To me it’s a little pricey for how long you can realistically spend here."
"For the cost of entry (£15.99) this place was very small without much to see."
"Seemed quite expensive for a very crowded Saturday morning with queuing almost longer than the time inside."
"For that reason I felt it was quite a pricey visit."
Staff and Service
Pros:
"The staff were very knowledgeable and friendly and willing to answer any/all questions."
"The animals looked so happy an healthy and the same for the staff, so knowledgeable and enthusiastic in what they do."
"The young girl at the main desk was possibly one of the politest people I've ever met."
"Staff are friendly and you can tell they're passionate about there job."
"The staff are enigmatic and care about the work they do, remaining enthusiastic when telling you about each species."
"Staff were friendly and informative."
"The staff were very friendly and helpful."
Cons:
"Staff also very flat on arrival."
"There was no workers walking around to make sure people and the animals are okay once the feeding was done they were off being unsociable."
"Reception staff not very friendly or welcoming."
"Staff were rude, making and having inappropriate gestures and comments in front of children."
"I found with the talks they didn't interact with anyone so it wasn't very interesting nor did they ask if there's any questions."
"The only shame was the rude lady at the entry desk I guess she just didn't possess any people skills 🤷."
"One member of staff who is part of the shark feeding session was sat down texting on her phone."