Sea Life London Aquarium is home to one of Europe’s largest collections of global marine life which includes rare and enigmatic creatures, some of which are on the endangered species list. Many of the creatures have been rescued and cannot be released into the wild, or have been born and bred as part of a conservation project. Sea Life is heavily involved in conservation and has programs including ray breeding, coral propagation and a big fish campaign. Inside Sea Life Aquarium there are around 500 species of fish and various marine life including Penguins. The Sea Life London Aquarium is located on the ground floor of County Hall in Southbank right beside the London Eye.
How to Get There
The nearest London Underground stations are Waterloo Underground station (about 5 minutes walking distance serviced by the Bakerloo, Northern, Jubilee and Waterloo and city lines), Embankment (10-15 minutes walking distance serviced by both the Circle, District, Bakerloo and Northern lines), and Westminster (10 minutes walking distance serviced by both the Circle, District and Jubilee lines). Nearest National Rail station is Waterloo which is served by Southwestern line and Charing Cross Station served by Southeastern line.
Inside Sea Life London Aquarium
Inside aquarium its self-guided tour through 14 aquatic zones, set over 3 floors. As we enter, we started out by walking on a glass panel over the shark tank below to get into the aquarium. This was great fun to be walking above sharks. The aquarium was a bit dark with music playing in the background.
After the Shark Walk, we saw an octopus in the Atlantic Coast and rays and sharks at Ray Lagoon. The next area was interactive and interesting for the kids Rockpools. Rockpools was an open tank allowing you to touch the Starfish, though I did not allow my kids to do that.
After the Shark Walk, we saw an octopus in the Atlantic Coast and rays and sharks at Ray Lagoon. The next area was interactive and interesting for the kids Rockpools. Rockpools was an open tank allowing you to touch the Starfish, though I did not allow my kids to do that.
After the tunnel there was a huge skeleton of a whale inside the tank in Pacific Wreck area.
The next attraction was something which all kids recognize, Nemo’s Coral Reef. There was a huge tank full of orange fish with white stripe and orange with white and black stripe, clown fish (Nemo).
The next zone was the Rainforests of the World. Here we saw some of the creatures which are native to the rainforest and found only there like snakes and poisonous frog, fish, piranha with vicious looking teeth and a crocodile.
Next was the Thames Walk where you can learn about the various types of fish and other marine life that live in the urban waterway.
And then came the most interesting place in the aquarium, the Penguin Point. We got an opportunity to see the Gentoo penguins from close up, playing on the ice and in the chilled water pool. The aquarium closely matches the temperature and light condition of Antarctica where Gentoo Penguins are found.
When we were there all the penguins were active and playing. We all enjoyed watching them running and jumping in and out of the water. This is the area inside aquarium where we spend the maximum time & kids don’t want to leave the playful penguins.
After Penguin point, we next moved to the Ocean Invaders. In this area there were tanks of jellyfish of various shapes and sizes. Due to the changing light colors, the jellyfish color inside tank was also changing. With continuous changing colors of jellyfish, it was a wonderful experience.
It was a valuable educational experience and a fun way to introduce your kids to the marine species. I would recommend to visit the aquarium as a great family attraction whilst in London.
At the end of the aquarium there is a souvenir shop and a photo shop where you get an option to get your family picture clicked.
Opening times and admission prices
Standard opening time
Sea Life London opening times vary throughout the year, typically the attraction opens at 09:30 in summer and 10:00 in rest of the year. Closes between 16:00 to 18:00 depending on the time of the year. Confirm their website for opening and closing time before visiting.
Ticket office prices:
Adult: Standard ticket £29.00 / Fast track ticket £40.00
Child (3 – 15 Years): Standard ticket £23.00 / Fast track ticket £34.00
There may be a queue for ticket and entry depending on the time of the year. There are many ticket options you can choose. Buying the ticket from the site ticket office is also costly (20%) than advance purchase from their website.
Advance Purchase Standard Tickets from Sea Life London website
You can purchase your tickets in advance directly from the Sea Life London website. While purchasing you have to select the date and time when you want to visit. You will get a 15-minute time window to gain entrance. These tickets are cheaper than the tickets purchased at the site. Standard ticket for Adult cost £23.00 and for Child (3 – 15 Years): £18.50
Advance Purchase Fast Track Tickets from Sea Life London website
You can purchase a fast track ticket for a premium, that can be almost 50% more than the price of the standard ticket. Ticket holders enter via a dedicated Fast Track entrance. While purchasing you have to select the date and time when you want to visit. You will get a 15-minute time window to gain entrance. Fast track ticket for Adult cost £34.00 and for Child (3 – 15 Years) £29.00.
There is another Fast track ticket which include Behind the Scenes Tour which cost for Adult cost £40.50 for Adult and £33.50 for Child (3 – 15 Years).
Advance Purchase Family Saver Ticket from Sea Life London website
You can purchase a family ticket in which minimum of 1 adult and 1 child is required. The ticket price is same for adult and children at £20.00. Same day family ticket cost £23.00 for each member.
Combination tickets combining Sea Life London with 4 other Major attractions in London
Sea Life London is owned by a company called Merlin who own and operate 5 major London attractions: Madame Tussaud’s, London Eye, London Dungeon, Shrek’s Adventure and Sea Life Aquarium.
Merlin’s website offers a very flexible combination tickets where you can combine from just two attractions to all five of them into one money saving pass valid for 90 days from the first visit. While purchasing this combination attraction pass you have to decide which attraction you want to visit first and the time slot. Remaining attractions can be visited in the next 90 days. You may find it cheaper or better value to buy tickets to two or three attractions in one go. These can be purchase at Merlin’s website.
