Cairns Aquarium

We visited Cairns Aquarium and had a great time! Everything was clean, the staff was friendly and the education talks were great. We really enjoyed listening to them and learning about the different species that live here, as we are not from Australia. It is one of my favorite aquariums. I would recommend anyone to go and sit in for the education talks as well, especially if you’re not from Australia.

AMAZING 🤩 The Cairns Aquarium is a great place for all ages it has lots of fish, lizards and snakes. The tickets are a bit pricey ($58 for adult pass) but they are the money's worth. Make some time for a good hour in the aquarium and exit through the gift shop afterwards. If you get in at opening times there is not much of a wait but after that you can be waiting for a half hour.

Excellent display and presentation. Check the map for special feeding times etc. Take your own water for drinks. It's close inside, if that sort of thing affects you. Lots of photo opportunities. Good restaurant nearby.

We did the Twilight tour and if you want to see the aquarium with a guide and be the only people in the aquarium, this is the way to go. We had 9 people plus our guide, Marine Biologist Neve, and she showed us everything! We learned a ton and got to ask as many questions as we wanted. There are plenty of fish and of course the sharks and rays, but also so many reptiles. And everyone has a great name. My fave being chopsticks the enormous 4 meter snake.

We had such a great experience at the aquarium. It is not only a place to see sea lives but also a venue to learn about the natural history of the surrounding area. A lot of animals and detailed information on them are available. Highly recommended for all ages.

I visited the Cairns Aquarium and honestly had such a beautiful time. Everything is really well laid out, and you get to see so many incredible species from the reef and the rainforest up close. Some of them I had never seen before, even living in FNQ! The whole place feels calm and thoughtful — you can walk at your own pace, stop to read, or just watch the animals for a while. The big ocean tunnel and the freshwater displays were my favourite parts, and the presentations were super interesting without feeling too long. It’s also very clean and well maintained, which makes the whole visit even more enjoyable. If you’re in Cairns, I definitely recommend stopping by. It’s a really lovely way to learn more about the ecosystems around us and to spend a peaceful, meaningful couple of hours.

Fantastic set up, loads of different creatures. Staff very friendly and helpful. Beautiful aquarium and worth every cent. Before we entered we thought it was a bit pricy but once we were inside we definitely got more than our moneys worth.

One of my favorite aquariums in Australia! My highlight was the Predators of the Reef tunnel with sharks and rays swimming overhead — amazing to see them up close. The aquarium takes you on a journey from rainforest rivers to the Great Barrier Reef and Coral Sea, with over 15,000 animals across different ecosystems. I loved the shark talk and all the different presentations, which make it both fun and educational.

Definitely recommend you not skip this when visiting Cairns. There are a lot of interactive exhibits and beautiful, big aquariums. I loved everything about it. They had huge manta rays that were mesmerizing. It's the best aquarium I've been to so far, really well maintained and has a full restaurant at the bottom.

Even though this aquarium isn't large in size, it is definitely filled with lots of interesting animals to see! Take advantage of the scheduled times and talks. Even though these sea creatures are fun to take selfies with, they're even more interesting once you learn more about them. Not to mention it's pretty cool to see how these animals are fed! To see the entire aquarium, plan on spending 2 to 3 hours. But definitely don't miss this aquarium!

What I like about this aquarium is that it really is a "Cairns Aquarium". By that, I mean that it is a museum that aims to depict and educate about the aquatic environment around Cairns itself. It reminds me of the Monterey Bay Aquarium in California. This aquarium is rather new, and has an excellent and logical floor plan. There is a natural flow through the different habitats which follows the flow of water from the streams and rivers, through the rainforest and mangroves, then out to the sea. Along the way you'll see a variety of fish and reptiles native to each environment, and then end at the massive oceanarium that is full of creatures. There are regularly scheduled presentations throughout the morning and afternoon. If you schedule your visit according - arriving shortly after opening in the morning or shortly after noon - you can catch each presentation as you make your way slowly through the aquarium. These occur ever 30 minutes and each last about 10-15 minutes, allowing plenty of time to browse through the exhibits and still have time to list to the naturalists talk. Overall, we found the exhibits to be of very high quality. Some might find this place to be a little small and thus not a very good deal since the entry prices might seem a bit steep (though still considerably less expensive than Monterey). However, if you take your time to look casually at many of the displays and take in the presentations, you would enjoy a relaxing 3 hours here, just as we did.

We always try to make it to the local aquarium wherever we go. We had just done a dive out on the Great Barrier Reef and decided to take it easy a bit and see what the city had to offer. We were delighted to see that there was an aquarium and of course they are the only place in the world that features/specializes in North Queensland marine life. Just a few blocks away from the Reef Fleet Terminal, the Cairns Aquarium is actually a decently sized building. They have a couple of floors of exhibits starting with freshwater moving then to brackish water and then ended with saltwater. Your ticket will get you into the aquarium all day and if you plan to return, just bring your ticket and scan yourself in. My favorite part was seeing the freshwater fish (especially the freshwater saw fish and the fresh water moray eel). The reef exhibits were also stunning with several large tanks with huge fish and sharks as well. It's great that this place primarily focuses on local marine life so for those who don't get to go out into the water, this is a wonderful place to experience what the GBR has to offer. Highly suggest stopping by if you're looking for something to do! Easy walk from the touristy part of town. Don't forget to see the bats in the trees on your way over! Last entry is 4pm but they open at 9AM every day!

This was lots of fun. It's a nice aquarium with lots to look at. This area where we took photos made us feel like we were in the tank with the fish. I would definitely go back here again everyone enjoyed the experience.

Very nice and informative, the staff was friendly and I loved the different exhibits with speakers. The food at Dundee's was delicious, I highly recommend going there!