Dive into Adventure: Explore the National Aquarium in Baltimore!
The National Aquarium, or The National Aquarium in Baltimore, is a nonprofit public aquarium containing over 17,000 animals. The aquarium was founded in 1981 after the then mayor of Baltimore, William Donald Schaefer, was inspired by the New England Aquarium during a trip to Boston, Massachusetts. The mayor took the idea of a vibrant waterfront from Boston and applied it to his own city of Baltimore, the aquarium having been included in Baltimore’s Inner Harbor redevelopment scheme. Though no federal funds were used in the aquarium’s construction, the United States Congress designated the aquarium as the “National Aquarium” in 1979 shortly before its grand opening in 1981.
The aquarium features five amazing “levels” containing their exhibits.
The first level, the “Blacktip Reef”, features a large indo-pacific reef landscape that can be viewed from crossing platforms above the tanks. This large several story room contains multiple walkways above the reef, allowing you to look down upon the pools from above at the higher floors. The room is architecturally brutalist and filled with immersive lighting effects, creating a beautiful contrast and focus on the reef landscape. Additionally, mirrors on the bottom side of the higher walkways reflect the ocean scene below, creating an immersive experience from anywhere within the exhibit.
The second level is “Maryland: Mountains to the Sea”. Here you can walk through the wild landscape of Maryland’s native plants and animals, experiencing an immersive trip, traveling from the Allegheny Mountains to Maryland’s tidal marshes. Level three of the aquarium focuses on adaptations and evolution. In “Surviving Through Adaptation, Living Seashore”, you can find exhibits featuring electric eels, mantis shrimp, and many other specially evolved sea life. Here you can also find the National Aquarium’s touch tanks, giving you the opportunity to pet horseshoe crabs and jellyfish.
Level four and five both feature a lot more than just aquarium sea life. At level four, “North Atlantic to the Pacific, Amazon River Forest”, you can take a walk through the lower levels of the amazon, seeing many fish and animals along the way. Here you can find not just fish but snakes, turtles, frogs, and other amphibians and reptiles. After passing through the lower amazon, you can make your way up an escalator that opens up into the hot and humid level five, “Upland Tropical Rain Forest, Hidden Life”. Here you will find yourself in a large and open recreated rainforest, where you yourself are within the exhibit. As you walk you can find yourself up and close with many birds and animals such as parrots, sloths, frogs, and tortoises.
After finishing the five levels of the National Aquarium, you will travel down a long spiraling ramp surrounded by a massive fish tank. Once you reach the bottom, you will arrive at the aquarium’s shark exhibit, “Shark Alley”. Here you can view several species of shark, rays, and large predatory fish. Once you complete the main portion of the aquarium, be sure to check out some of the additional exhibits such as the Dolphin Discovery, Jellies Invasion, and Australia: Wild Extremes.
Anthony Gentile Apr 06, 2026 Baltimore MD Animals Nature Places to Visit
Apr 06, 2026
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