Florida Vacations: Tarpon Springs Aquarium

I've enjoyed many, many Florida vacations. Until recently, however, I'd never had the chance to visit Tarpon Springs. Our recent family vacation to Port Richey put us within just a few miles of Tarpon Springs, however. I had read a lot about Tarpon Springs and had always wanted to visit there, so I had the perfect opportunity. Johnny and I decided we needed some peace and quiet from the grands, so we went alone.

Neat the end of the sponge docks, we saw the Tarpon Springs Aquarium and decided to check it out. I’ll admit, the main reason we went in was because it was cool and dark inside – the temperature that day in Tarpon Springs was close to a blistering 100 degrees. It was only $7.50 to get into the place.

The Tarpon Springs Aquarium is small, but it’s definitely worth the admission price. Once we saw what was inside, we figured the kids would love it, so we called them, and they came. In just a few minutes, we were joined by the rest of the family.

When you first enter the building, there’s a huge tank with many fish species, including sharks, tarpon, snook, damsel fish, pork fish, cobia, a giant stingray, and the star of the show, Gilligan.

Gilligan is a goliath grouper that was caught off the shore of Tarpon Springs a couple of years ago. At the time, he weighed in at 250 pounds. I’m pretty sure he’s packed on a few pounds since then. In fact, one aquarium worker told me the old boy is probably close to 300 pounds now.

Gilligan is huge! He was nice enough to come right up to the glass and visit with us for a while, so we were able to get some good photos of him.

I’ve often heard stories of goliath grouper swallowing divers, and after seeing Gilligan and knowing that goliath grouper get even larger, I started to see how this might be possible. Gilligan’s mouth was enormous.

We were lucky enough to be at the aquarium for feeding time. A scuba diver got into the large tank – the one with fairly large sharks – and fed the fish. It was neat to be able to see the fish eating their dinner. I took a couple of photos, but they didn’t turn out well.

The kids really enjoyed the touch tanks. They got to “pet” turtles, stingrays, horseshoe crabs, and sharks. They also got to feed the stingrays, which they really enjoyed. Later, they even got to touch an alligator!

I found a nice place at the end of a hall, with a bench in front of a saltwater tank that contained living coral and reef fish, including a moray eel. The grandkids were thrilled at seeing Nemo – a clown fish. There were also other colorful tropical fish in the tank.

This turned out to be my favorite spot. It was extremely relaxing to observe the gently swaying tentacles and the small fish as they darted in and out of crevices.

The Tarpon Springs Aquarium also has several snakes, including a couple of really large ones. If you go at certain times of the day, you can pet the snakes.

One of the most interesting snakes at the aquarium, in my opinion, is an albino specimen.

On display along the walls of the aquarium were various displays of seashells and fossilized sharks’ teeth. Some of the sharks' teeth were among the largest I had ever seen. Ancient fossils like trilobites were also on display. Each shell was labeled, so I found this part of the self-guided tour to be educational, and since I enjoy shelling, I also found it interesting.

Next door to the Tarpon Springs Aquarium is an indoor playground for kids. It’s free with paid admission to the aquarium. In the play area are bridges, tunnels, slides, a ball pit, and a bouncy house. There’s also a snack bar and seating, so parents can relax while the little ones play.

This provides a wonderful break for the kids amid your visit to the sponge docks and your shopping spree in the stores and shops.

The Tarpon Springs Aquarium, as I said, is small. If you’re accustomed to large, fancy aquariums, you’ll be disappointed. But for the admission fee, it’s a great deal. When you pay, your hand will be stamped, so you return as many times as you wish during the day. It’s a wonderful place for taking a break from touring the sidewalks and shops of Tarpon Springs. Heck, it’s worth the ticket price just to have a cool place to sit down! And there’s a restroom inside, which makes it even more convenient.

The aquarium is within walking distance to the rest of the sponge docks area, so we used it as our meeting place. If you plan to spend a day or an afternoon at the Tarpon Springs sponge docks, the aquarium is a great place to start. Behind the Aquarium is free parking, too, so don't pay to park while you're in the Tarpon Springs sponge docks area.