Behind the Scenes at Aquarium of the Pacific

Last month my family was fortunate to get a behind-the-scenes tour of Aquarium of the Pacific in Long Beach. We went during the weekend of Scarium of the Pacific & had a blast! There were kids dressed up in Halloween costumes & even the aquarium workers got in on the act! The lobby was full of painted pumpkins on display.

One of the things our behind the scenes tour guide explained to us is how after really big whales die, they will then sink to the ocean floor & get “picked at” by scavengers of the sea. The exhibit sign explains it pretty well but my daughter got to ask our tour guide questions like “which whales usually sink” & “what are these things that are eating it?”

Our tour guide also took us to a backstage jellyfish tank holding area. In the upper left-hand corner of the photo, you’ll see that those are “baby” jellyfish that are floating in a small tank. Once they get large enough, then they will transfer them to another tank.

We then got to go behind the touch tank area where a young boy who was volunteering at the Aquarium explained some of the jellyfish facts to my daughter. One side of the tank is where the visitors can touch the jellyfish & the side that my daughter is standing on is where workers & volunteers stand when they are cleaning the tank or doing other tasks. Speaking of jelly fish, I could stare at this tank all day when I need to feel relaxed. It’s like nature’s equivalent of that lava lamp from the 70’s.

After our tour was over, we explored the many exhibits at the aquarium. Isn’t it cute how they decorated the area with pumpkins?

Shark Lagoon was my kiddo’s favorite area because of the shark touch tanks. She also LOVED Lorikeet Forest because she got to feed the birds!

There are a number of activities planned all year long at the Aquarium of the Pacific. I know that most school districts have Thanksgiving week off or a 4-day holiday. This is a great fun, family activity to do during the holiday season. Check out their calendar of events for more info!

Thanks Aquarium of the Pacific for hosting such a fun day for my family!

Disclosure: No monetary compensation was received for this post. We were given complimentary passes which helped facilitate this review. All images & opinions are 100% my own.