Oregon Coast Aquarium

Take a deep dive into marine science at one of the nation’s top aquariums.

An icon of Newport, the Oregon Coast Aquarium is a public aquatic and marine science exhibition facility offering educational programs. Exhibits showcase seabirds, marine mammals, fishes, invertebrates and plants primarily native to the Oregon Coast.

Sandy Shores showcases the narrow ecosystem where land meets water along the Oregon Coast. Highlights include replicas, interactive programs from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, feathery sea pens and color-morphing flatfishes.

Rocky Shores features habitats for the fearsome-looking but gentle wolf eel, rockfish and a wide range of sea stars, limpets and other invertebrates. The centerpiece of this gallery, the Touch Pool, lets visitors gently interact with tide pool residents like sea stars, anemones, abalones and crabs.

Coastal Waters is home to moon jellies and Pacific sea nettles and a California kelp forest. Close-up exhibits harbor bizarre off-shore animals including the Pacific hagfish. The “At the Jetty” exhibit spotlights survival issues of coho and chinook salmon. Extending into the courtyard with a large wall-to-wall viewing window, it is one of the aquarium’s larger indoor displays.

Passages of the Deep is a 1.32-million-gallon exhibit featuring three expansive ocean habitats connected by a series of tunnels stretching under water, creating a sense of walking beneath the sea. Visitors experience nearly 360-degree views of the 3,500 sea creatures. The exhibit is designed for guests to view the changing underwater landscape, from Oregon’s rocky coastlines to the open sea environment far off shore.

TripAdvisor Traveler Rating: 4.5/5 TripAdvisor Traveler Rating based on 3110 reviews

TripAdvisor

  • TripAdvisor Rating
    March 27, 2024
    elizabethmarieporter

    Pricy and overcrowded

    We felt that it was too crowded for viewing. People want to take their time and watch the fish swim around the tanks. Instead you spend the entire time dodging people. Especially for the steep price in tickets. I am an Oregon Zoo member and I would give them a five star because you have plenty of time and opportunity to see the animals. I think you desperately need to expand and open new exhibits and or limit compacitie. The ticket price wouldn’t be my issue if it wasn’t so crowded. We arrived at 10:30.

  • TripAdvisor Rating
    March 21, 2024
    peggygreen1974

    OREGON COAST AQUARIUM

    I enjoyed the aquarium because it is very different from other aquariums I have been to. If I had a suggestion to make it would be that the website let consumers know that this is mostly outside. We brought our 5 year old granddaughter with us expecting to be indoors. We were not prepared for an outdoor adventure and it was pouring rain that day and cold. Our visit was cut very short due to the weather, and my granddaughter was VERY disappointed that she could not stay longer but we had to leave as the rain gear we bought in the gift shop was nothing more than a biodegradable trash bag. It was flimsy and ripped while putting it on so we did not have much protection from the rain. Overall i think the visit would have been amazing had we had the opportunity to be prepared for the day.

  • TripAdvisor Rating
    March 13, 2024
    530caligrown

    Pricing during construction

    I was not aware that the main attraction of the aquarium was closed down. The website did mention some spots were under construction but wasn't made clear which areas. I feel there should have been a lesser charge for what we were able to view. We took our son for his 2nd birthday, really excited for his reaction in the tunnel and the hands on exhibits which were not available. Thankfully he's only 2 and won't care, but as a parent I feel the pricing shouldn't have been so expensive. We will try to visit again later in the year, after all construction is complete ☺️

  • TripAdvisor Rating
    March 13, 2024
    robynhackoregon

    Close encounters with sealife

    Loved the new playground which had fun activities for all children. Much of the aquarium had outside exhibits, so it felt very spacious. We caught part of the bird lecture and the feeding of the seals. Loved that there was underwater viewing for the seals and otters too. Inside the 3 fish tunnels, it felt like walking through parts of the ocean. Schools of fish, sharks, halibut and more. Well worth the drive.

  • TripAdvisor Rating
    March 13, 2024
    mariawiniecke

    Oregon coast aquarium

    Let's just make it soft and sweet. Not worth $25 to go in. Point blank there's shark exhibit had two sharks. They don't have a lot of different fish. It was just boring. They did do an otter feeding but they only have two otters so they should most definitely go down on their prices because they don't have that much there. I for one will not go back

Hide Ratings & Reviews Read all reviews on TripAdvisor