Kelly Tarltons

The price is $ 39 for an adult, which I think is high for this place. The Auckland Zoo is so much bigger and more impressive and I believe it cost us only $ 28 per person. Not to say that this place is bad; it’s got a lot of cool sealife you won’t see in other aquariums. But keep in mind that there are a LOT of children here. As a woman with no kids, this was not the best place for me. The children don’t behave themselves well and it’s hard to enjoy the peacefulness of the aquarium with screaming children everywhere. The café is not very good, so bring your own food!
I did appreciate the free shuttle bus from Britomart.
Although this place was not spectacular, I would recommend tourists to see it; perhaps spend ½ a day here.

From all that we read in planning our days in Auckland, this seemed a «must do». Now we are not so sure. It seemed crowded: narrow walkways added to the feeling. There were many running and screaming kids and impolite adults. The parking lots were not full and there were not many tour buses so I hate to think what a truly busy day would be like. We felt as if an aquarium ought to skip antarctic exploration even though it was a nice transition to antarctic sea life. Penguins were nice though I would have expected more than 74 from the buildup. Sharks and other fish were nice in the tank but it and they were not that big. Stingray exhibit was sad: I hated to see them come out of water to beg for food and it was a small exhibit. There were lots of other small exhibits which interested me a little but I agree with a reviewer from last year who says that it suddenly ended. I expected more for what we paid. I was also disappointed not to have more food available for purchase. The gift shop was nice and we found maori fish hooks which we wanted for gifts. I admit I am unfair in comparing it to other aquariums with much bigger budgets

My first visit in over two years & they have really done a great job giving the aquarium a makeover.
Currently you can buy an Annual Pass online for $ 70 (usually $ 75) which gives you unlimited access for an entire year.
There are some great interactive educational exhibits for the older kids, the only thing missing for a 5 star rating is a proper café. The automatic coffee machine (one touch button) does not cut it!
If you haven’t visited since the revamp you should definitely pay them a visit.

It’s been a few years since since our last visit, but a lot has changed since then. It’s a pity that penguin tank was misted over and was hard to see them swimming. The new glass compound seems much better for them compared to the previous one with the little train ride. We did enjoy the ray tank too.
The main tunnel tank did seem a little void of fish in places.
The recreation of Scott’s Hut and the relevant information was a welcome insight to the valuable and essential conservation work that NZ is a major contributor too in Antarctica

I find myself agreeing with the general consensus here. Kelly Tarltons was all the rage when you were a small child, when everything just seemed bigger and you’d never seen aquariums in other countries before. In fact I think it was one of the first aquariums to have the whole big pipe/​conveyer belt thing going on. Fast forward twenty years, you’re bigger, uglier, and you’ve seen much bigger aquariums and Kelly T’s is looking a bit tired, a bit rundown, and in need of more stuff to keep you interested for the purchase price. It’s never good when you can remember everything that a place has to offer simply because there isn’t that much there. At the same time, you’ve gotta love the adorable penguins and the endearingly naff snowmobile ride.

I feel like I remember Kelly Tarlton’s being so much cooler when I was a kid. Don’t get me wrong, I still think it’s awesome to see all the sea life as you rotate round the conveyer belt and they’ve upgraded the Antarctic experience so you can get to see the penguins much closer up (which means they also got rid of that really naff way-​too-​fake killer whale that used to pop up at the end of the ride: good choice Kelly Tartlon’s). Seeing the penguins (and their chicks, when I was there) at that range is a pretty neat experience although whether or not I fully agree with the idea is another story. With that in mind I think this is an excellent place for kids but a bit disappointing for adults.
A word of warning, school holidays at Underwater World are pretty hectic and busy so if you’re imagining a nice wander around the facility taking in the experience, do it during the school term. I can say this with confidence as I was there with a holiday programme group (contributing to the madness!) but it did give me the opportunity to experience excellence from at least one staff member who aided us — I believe, beyond their call of duty — with one of our group who had gone awhol.

Some places just seem so much more exciting, impressive and simply bigger when you are a kid, and Kelly Tarlton’s Underwater World is definitely one of these places. Is it just me, or did there used to be a much larger variety of fish? Certainly my last visit there was not the same experience as I so fondly remember as a child, but for sure this place is for kids and the kids that I saw were having a great time.
Nothing much has changed there over the years in terms of layout, and it does look to be somewhat rundown and tired. Some renovations are what this place desperately needs. The penguin enclosure is sadly rather small and could do with better upkeep. Kelly Tarlton’s is pricey and I wouldn’t go there again or take any friends from out of town, unless I knew children who wanted to go.

I went here at the end of last year with some overseas relatives, and enjoyed it far more than I did a few years back. The penguins were adorable and the variety of fish totally jaw dropping. Going around and around on the moving conveyor belt was great fun. However, having been to other underwater worlds, Kelly Tarltons really needs to expand so much more. The price is fair considering it’s a private establishment, but you can’t help but feel there should’ve been more to your ticket.
Nevertheless, a good place to go in all forms of weather to learn more about the sea and enjoy its creatures.

I remember visiting this place when I was a kid — a truly magical, immersive experience, where I pranced around with unadulterated joy, marveling at the wonders of the deep sea. Fast forward a few decades, and I am driving back to Kelly Tarlton’s with a car load full of overseas relatives. They are all quite excited. How could they not be after I had so convincingly explained to them that this would be be a great way to spend one of their precious two days which they had set aside to see Auckland? To say this place was not up to standard would be a kind exaggeration. It was absolutely awful. I could go on and on about the cleanliness or the rude cashier, but these things might have been excused if there were some good fish to see. Maybe we went on a bad day, where they happened to be poorly organized, but the aquarium was almost empty. There were quite a few penguins, but there enclosure was so crappy, that all I could think about was what a horrible existence they had. Nice day of sightseeing Chris!

I’ve been doing the whole tourist circuit thing up in Auckland for a while now, so naturally I couldn’t surpass Kelly Tarltons. This is an easy review, Kelly Tarltons has everything you would expect from an aquarium. Fish of course! Hopping on the moving conveyor belt while having huge sharks float around above you is a pretty awesome 360 degree panoramic experience! these sharks really are too cool for school and don’t pay too much attention to the hordes of raucous schoolchildren tapping on the glass, which is good because I’m happy viewing these guys from behind my perplex shield thank you very much. If you’ve got smaller kids in tow, they will go absolutely gaga over the cutest penguins ever, waddling around in their three piece suits.
The only criticism I have of the place is that that the attractions seem to end rather abruptly, I don’t know if that’s just because the last time I was here I was a little kid myself so everything felt bigger, so I had expected more to come when I had reached the end of it. I would be interested to hear about your guys experiences here anyway!