I hope you all had a wonderful weekend! Ours was quite the whirlwind and we had a blast. Obviously, by the title, we took a trip to the Georgia Aquarium, but let me back up for a quick minute before I get to our favorite moments and the things to know before you go.

The reason for the trip down to Atlanta was to meet my beautiful new niece, Lacey!

It’s amazing how quickly you forget just how small a newborn is, how sweet their little cries sound and the ability they have to melt your heart into a puddle.

I won’t lie, baby fever is real and I’m trying my best to reign it back in. Reminding myself that my bro and sil were up through the night while I was sleeping soundly helped some, but oh my heart just exploded getting to watch them become a family of four and knowing how much fun lies ahead for them and their sweet girls. Oh yes, it’s all about the girl power on my side of the fam!

True to second-child-syndrome, Kris and Cara were much more up for getting out and about than someone who had just had their first, so our whole family ventured downtown to the Georgia Aquarium.

The aquarium is huge so despite being really well laid out, we couldn’t quite cover it all in the 4 1/2 hours we were there. We certainly hit the highlights though! David, the girls and I easily agreed on our top 5 things to do at the Georgia Aquarium.

 

5 Things To Do At The Georgia Aquarium

#5 Georgia Aquarium Moment:

Chatting with the scuba diver in the appropriately named Tropical Diver section.

We stumbled upon this gem quite early and even the girls all sat quietly, enthralled by the Q&A session being held between the lady and the diver. They went back and forth about the coral and fish and the audience was able to chime in with questions of their own.

#4 Georgia Aquarium Moment:

Climbing through the penguin tunnel.

This one was clearly a kid-favorite because it involved crawling through a tunnel under the exhibit then popping your head up, finding yourself face to face with the penguins!

#3 Georgia Aquarium Moment:

The giant sea tunnel.

My bro is pointing out the giant whale shark, Kyla’s favorite, but we also could see sharks, sea turtles, a plethora of fish and other creatures as we walked through this enormous undersea tunnel. It’s incredibly impressive and if it would have been a little less crowded, I think I would have stayed in there for a while!

#2 Georgia Aquarium Moment:

The Dolphin Celebration Show. (Picture taken before the show- no photography allowed)

I was surprised at how different the experience was from the show we took the girls to 2 years ago. This was more of what you’d expect from a dolphin show and I missed the story-aspect of the previous experience. Still, the trainers and the dolphins are amazing and Hailey gawked the entire time at how high the dolphins could jump and flip, how coordinated they were and she even enjoyed learning facts about them and how they are cared for. Being such a dolphin-lover, this was her favorite highlight.

The #1 Georgia Aquarium Moment:

Seeing the whale sharks and beluga whales from the ballroom.

I’m not sure if this area is usually open to the general public, but with it being quite crowded on a Saturday, it was an option for us to eat our lunch in and we took full advantage.

The whale sharks are breathtaking and there really is no better place to view them than from the ballroom. Same with the beluga whales who playfully came right up to the giant window repeatedly doing flips, twirls and only taking a break to quickly mate (ah, the circle of liiiiiife).

All in all, we had a fantastic time and Hailey was flat out exhausted by the time we got in the car to head home around 2:30.

A few tips to those interested in visiting:

1. Try to choose a day that isn’t a weekend. I’ve been both on a weekday and a weekend and as expected, the weekends are pretty slammed.
2. Go stroller-free if you can. They are allowed, but can be cumbersome to navigate around the stairs and crowds on the busier days. Plus you will have to put them in stroller parking for the dolphin show.
3. Buy tickets online beforehand to save 20%. Kids 2 and under are free.
4. Get in line for the dolphin show 30 minutes before showtime. Seats fill up fast.
5. Arrive early as possible on the weekends. They open at 8am and we were there at 10am. Things didn’t really get too crazy until about lunchtime.
6. You will have to pay to park. We were in a deck super close to the entrance and it was $10.
7. No outside food is allowed, so eat a big meal before you go. They do have a cafeteria with a good selection of food and drinks (including wine and beer), but at about $9 a sandwich, it adds up quickly.

Have you been the the Georgia Aquarium?

What was your favorite part?

Which would you rather go to: zoo or aquarium?

The Georgia Aquarium provided David, Hailey and me (Kaitlyn is 2 so she was free) with complimentary media passes. I was not required to write about it but felt like these would be helpful things to know before planning a visit. All opinions are my own.