I was really struggling to figure out what to do with my kids for April Vacation. We did nothing in February so I wanted to take them somewhere. Google wanted me to take them to the Bahamas, but that wasn't happening, so I asked my mom what to do. She is the one that thought of the Mystic Aquarium. So, we packed up my kids, my brother, sister-in-law and my nephews, and my mom and step-dad and we all headed down to Mystic for a three generation trip.
On Tuesday, we all went to the Mystic Aquarium. I had never been before and it did not disappoint, it is beautiful! Many of the exhibits were outside, and on a sunny, albeit a little chilly at times, being outdoors was a wonderful way to spend the day. We started at the Beluga Whales, which were a real treat to see. They were very active and there were so many places to see them around that tank we saw them from multiple angles.
From the Beluga Whales, we kept going through the outdoor exhibits and saw some very funny harbor seals, and the sea lions! Both exhibits were huge and it was easy to see the animals. The Sea Lion Show is one of the highlights of the Aquarium, and with good reason. The Sea Lions were active and hilarious; they were quite the show-men (or show-sea lions I suppose).
Up until now, my daughter had asked non-stop to see the penguins, so we headed there next. They were a little underwhelming, but then again, the penguins are really the best part of the New England Aquarium in Boston, so I may be a little spoiled. The view of the penguins at the Mystic Aquarium was much better below the exhibit. Maybe it was just an off day, there were a lot of them swimming around underwater, so we couldn’t see many from above. They did have some penguin eggs in an incubator that you could look at which was pretty cool.
After 2 hours, it was time for lunch. The Penguin Café, which was surprisingly far away from the penguin exhibit was our next stop but on the way we looked for frogs, turtles and tadpoles before driving some boats. The food was typical of what you would expect at a place like an aquarium or an amusement park. There were plenty of tables outdoors to sit and eat at and the area was clean.
After lunch we headed inside for the Expedition Wild exhibit. The kids sat in a jeep (a highlight for the boys), we saw an alligator, dug up dinosaur bones and met Alice in Wonderland! There were also these cool tanks where the kids could go under and stick their head up in the middle of them!
Then, we went to the main exhibit. We saw everything you would expect to see at an aquarium. All kinds of fish, a huge tank of Sting Rays and another huge take of sharks! You can also see the Sea Lions from inside as well, they were just as awesome from that view as well.
