Day Trippin Oregon Coast Aquarium.
Oregon Coast Aquarium
The Oregon Coast Aquarium is only 91 miles away from downtown Portland and it makes for an easy day trip. The aquarium itself sits in the charming city of Newport, along the Yaquina Bay that feeds into the Pacific Ocean. The doors to the aquarium opened in 1992 as a way to bring in revenue for the local economy as well as to inspire ocean conservation.
The Oregon Coast Aquarium is most famously known for housing Keiko, the whale from the Free Willy movie. Keiko lived at the aquarium from early 1996 until late 1998. The huge tank that housed Keiko has been converted into the Passages of the Deep exhibit area. This is the largest exhibit here at the aquarium with 1.32 million gallons of water with three ocean habitats connected by tunnels. Within each of the three sections here you walk into see-through tunnels that allow you almost a 360⁰ view of over 3,000 sea animals like Rockfish, Rays, and Sharks just to name a few.
My favorite part of the aquarium is the Jellyfish exhibit. I can watch them all day. I feel so at ease watching them float so gracefully through the water and I try not to think of the fact that they are some of earth’s deadliest creatures. I just know they are pretty.
This aquarium also houses a sea bird aviary, starfish exhibit, and a tide pool area with many different sea anemones. To see the entire aquarium you’ll need approximately 1.5-2.5 hours to see all exhibits inside and out.
The big question, was it worth the cost and your time? I say that at a cost of $14.95-$24.95 for each ticket and the alluring way they have displayed the exhibits it is totally worth it.
