Hands-On Fun at Newport Aquarium

I received complimentary tickets in exchange for my honest opinion.

Living where we do, we are lucky enough to be surrounded by a ton of fun (and educational) places to visit. One of my kids favorite spots to go is the Newport Aquarium located in Newport Kentucky, just across the river from Cincinnati.  Newport has a lot to offer as a whole (tons of restaurants, stores, and entertainment) but the aquarium  definitely takes center stage.

My favorite part about the aquarium (besides the shark bridge of course) is all the hands-on fun that everyone can have! They’ve always had starfish and some small sharks that you could reach in and touch (which is actually really hilarious to watch other people sometimes – ones who have never had experience with aquatic wildlife – they totally freak and its quite entertaining!) My kids always pull their sleeves up and dive right in. They love the water (we love the ocean) , so this is like a remembrance of a boat trip on vacation.

Recently however, they’ve added the Stingray Hideaway which I could hardly get my kids to leave! It was actually a really amazing area to hang out in, with a 17,000 gallon pool to home all the friendly stingrays!

  I think we spent the majority of our time just playing with the stingrays – they are super friendly, and everyone had such a good time touching them (though they are a little slimy!)

I think right now this is probably the most popular area at the aquarium – for good reason! It’s also nice and tropical, plenty of sunshine, and just a lot of fun to hang out in.

They also have some new creatures to watch – like the Ring of Fire: World of the Octopus – (which was by the way, totally awesome as well)

The Newport Aquarium 9 a.m. to 6 p.m most days – with special shows and presentations throughout the day (check the schedule here so you don’t miss anything!)

Purchase tickets – or even look into buying a season pass – online to avoid the lines (so you can spend more time exploring!)