Georgia Aquarium 225 Baker Street NW Atlanta, GA 30313 404.581.4000
- September Hours
Monday – Friday: 10am – 9pm
Saturday – Sunday: 9am – 9pm
Animal Encounters
Now you can go behind the scenes and enjoy an exclusive personal experience with one of energetic aquatic animals.Guests ages 7 and up have the option to participate in our Penguin Encounter or Sea Otter Encounter. All Animal Encounter participants ages 16 and under must be accompanied by a paying adult, and there is a maximum of 3 children (ages 16 and under) per paying adult. Guests under the age of 18 must have the program liability waiver and Animal Encounter program guidelines signed and dated by their parent or court appointed legal guardian.
Get to know Georgia Aquarium’s beluga whales! In Beluga Interactive Program, you’ll come face to face with these engaging arctic mammals under the guidance of one animal caretakers.
Beluga Interactive Program has a very limited program schedule and capacity for reservations. For questions concerning availability, please contact the Call Center at 404-581-4000.
Pricing:
Members: $162.95 plus tax
Nonmembers: $180.95 plus tax
Swim with Whale Sharks
Swim with Whale Sharks Program Description:
Georgia Aquarium’s Ocean Voyager exhibit built by The Home Depot. Guests will swim at the surface with a flotation device and air supplied by either a small compressed air cylinder or a snorkel. The following equipment is provided: mask and snorkel, gloves, booties, wetsuit, flotation device and compressed air cylinder. Personal masks are permitted.
Cost:
Members: $212.95 plus tax
Nonmembers: $235.95 plus tax
Price includes admission to the Aquarium, all shows & galleries, all equipment, the swim, certificate of participation, t-shirt and souvenir photo.
When:
Daily at 4:30 p.m. This is a 2.5 hour experience. The swim portion will last approximately 30 minutes, and participants will also view some behind-the-scenes areas of the Georgia Aquarium. You may need to arrive earlier if you wish to experience the AT&T Dolphin Celebration presentation.
Who:
All participants must be age 12 and older. Guests under the age of 18 must be accompanied by a participating adult in the water. No diving/snorkeling experience required. All participants must have the program liability waiver and animal interactive program guidelines signed and dated prior to participating in the program. Guests under the age of 18 must have the program liability waiver and animal interactive program guidelines signed and dated by their parent or court appointed legal guardian.
Date Change Policy:
A date may be changed free of charge if the change is made more than 14 days in advance of the original date of your visit. If the change is made less than 14 days prior to the original date of your visit, a $50 change fee per ticket will be charged. No changes can be made less than 48 hours prior to the date of your original visit, and the guest will be charged the full program cost.
Cancellations/No-Show Policy:
Cancellations and no-shows will not be refunded or rescheduled. Guests arriving late (after the required program check-in time) will not be permitted to participate in the program and will not be refunded or rescheduled.
To change your reservation, please contact the Georgia Aquarium Call Center at 404.581.4000.
http://www.georgiaaquarium.org/experience/explore/connect/webcams
By 2050 there will be so few beluga whales in North American zoological facilities that the only way millions of children will be able to see them is in picture books or on a digital screen.
Unless additional whales are introduced to the existing breeding population, beluga whales will eventually fade to extinction in aquariums forever extinguishing any opportunity for people to develop a real connection with this unique and incredible species.
Most people will never visit the Arctic, or see a beluga whale in the ocean. Observing beluga whales in accredited aquariums is the only opportunity many people will ever get to see a live whale and learn about this magnificent species. When people make an authentic connection with an animal it conjures feelings of care which inspires action to preserve the species and the aquatic habitats they call home. This is the goal of aquariums, and our mission to achieve.
Aquariums will no longer be able to provide these transformative experiences unless they increase the number of beluga whales in North America to maintain a genetically healthy population.
This requires infusing the current North American aquarium population with unrelated, genetically diverse beluga whales from other parts of the world.
We are deeply committed to providing future generations with these important learning opportunities that inspire a culture of caring about beluga whales and the environments they share with other marine animals.
This commitment to our mission took us on a journey around the globe in search of beluga whales to bring to North America.
Georgia Aquarium worked for twelve years to relocate beluga whales from Russia to North America
Georgia Aquarium invested approximately $6.5 million dollars providing for their care not including legal fees. This investment included building larger pools, food, animal care staff, veterinary medicine and supplies and our zoological experts and veterinarians visiting the station at least twice per year to monitor their care, and provide feedback to the Russian team. We maintained regular contact with the Russian team throughout the process.
http://www.belugaimportproject.org/
