Boston’s New England Aquarium

The New England Aquarium opened at its present locale in 1969 after a series of prior locations/failures (four in all). It originated as the Boston Aquarial Gardens in 1859 over on Bromfield Street near the Old South Meeting House.  When it opened visitors were welcome with a 25 cent admission fee. In 1912 it relocated to South Boston into a structure said to resemble a church or a museum where admission was dropped to the low, low price of free.

However, this proved a financial disaster and the site began a slow descent into hardship. Not only was the museum empty, but so were ½ of the existing tanks! In September of 1954 officials decided to close the South Boston Aquarium… and build a tennis court. Finally, in 1969 as part of a revitalization effort of which the city reportedly poured tens of billions of dollars into sprucing up this former parking lot, the latest incarnation of the New England Aquarium opened.

This current building blend a mixture of concrete, glass and metal and houses a 4-story (23 foot deep) 200,000 gallon glass tank. The entire aquarium is built around this tank of which a spiral staircase leads visitors up and around the tank to observe the 7000+ varieties of aquatic species. At the top of the open tank, visitors are entertained with educational sessions as employees of the aquarium dive right in to share their wealth of knowledge.

New England Aquarium

Outside of the front entrance (just to the left actually) is perhaps one of the best bargains in all of Boston… the free harbor seal attraction. Harbor seals are native to the Atlantic Ocean and may be found within Boston Harbor. Outside of these tanks, children and adults alike can enjoy the playful innocence of these creatures as they entertain all who pass by.  If your children begin to worry about the seals sitting under water for extended periods of time, tell them not to worry as the seals can hold their breath for up to 20 minutes.

A few years back, actually around the time of the release of the movie, “March of the Penguins,” tales began to be spread about the theft of a penguin from the New England Aquarium. This penguin was reportedly stolen by a little boy who managed to smuggle the creature out of the aquarium via his backpack. Rest assured, however, all creatures are accounted and the story proved to be just a wide-spread hoax. Per officials from the Aquarium, these tales tend to blossom every so often (ironically in a very similar format) and tend to occur most commonly around the occurrence of high profile events around popular sea creatures.

• Website: http://www.neaq.org
• Address: 1 Central Wharf, Boston, MA
• Cost: Adults $22.95; Seniors (60+) $20.95; Children (Ages 3-11) $15.95