Mystic Aquarium & Institute for Exploration's indoor exhibit area is 12,500 sq. feet!

Sunlit Seas

The sea is everything. It covers seven tenths of the terrestrial globe. Its breath is pure and healthy. It is an immense desert, where man is never lonely, for he feels life stirring on all sides.
~Jules Verne, 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea

In our main building you'll encounter the amazing richness and variety of our planet's habitats and life forms as so eloquently referred to by the author, Jules Verne.

The ocean is a wondrous place, full of creatures so varied that we have yet to fully comprehend their impact on our own world. Some of these creatures are beautiful, many appear only in our darkest dreams, but all play a role in how the world evolved and now, how it survives.

For instance, our new Venomous Fishes exhibit in the Sunlit Seas features the Lionfish, a creature that is beautiful and deadly. Come see why.

Other special exhibits in the Sunlit Seas include:

• Hidden Amazon and the Bat Cave
• A spectacular underwater viewing area of our graceful sea lions
• An exhibit on rays that will have you mesmerized by their graceful movements
• The Coral Reef, an exhibit filled with fish so beautiful you’ll want to use up an entire roll of film as they swim by, just inches from your face.
• Also, check out the Discovery Lab and get up-close with some of your ocean neighbors who live off-shore among our coastal communities.