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Aquarium La Rochelle, unsurprisingly is in La Rochelle on the West Coast of France. It's located in the centre of the town, a few minutes from the station, and within 5 minutes walk of the main shopping area. It boasts 12,000 marine animals, 20 species of shark, 70 aquariums and 3 million litres of water.
Opening Times and Prices ********************* Adults are 13 Euro, children aged 3 to 17 years (and students with student card) are 10 Euro and children under 3 years are free If you want a narrated visit (with audio guide), you need to add 3,50Euro to the individual prices. We decided against the narrated visit and it didn't spoil the enjoyment at all, because all the notices and information about the different species is written in English as well as French.
The aquarium is open every day of the year, from October to March it's open from 10:00 am to 8:00 pm, during April to June and September it's open 9:00 am to 8:00 pm and during July and August it opens from 9:00 am to 11:00 pm.
There is parking just beside the aquarium, but it's not free, you collect a ticket on the way in and pay as you leave. We were there for just over 4 hours and it cost 1,50Euro.
Access and other info ******************
The entire aquarium is accessible to wheelchair users as there are ramps and lifts throughout. No dogs are allowed,
you can photograph the fish, but there is no flash photography allowed. The building is air conditioned, apart from the Rainforest section.
The Fish ********
After buying your tickets, you set off through the doors to the Aquarium. You enter a small room decorated to look like the inside of a submarine, and are asked to wait until the doors are opened. We assumed this was to ensure that there was a couple of minutes grace between parties, and the different sections didn't become overcrowded. We were wrong though, it was actually a lift down to the first section, which was a lovely little detail that was a good example of the thought that has been put into the whole aquarium.
Once the lift has stopped and the doors have opened, you walk straight into a tube which runs straight through a tank of jelly fish. This pleased my niece because she was excited about seeing the jellyfish before we went in and being able to view them in a 360° tunnel was just wonderful. There were also various other species of jelly fish later on, I was surprised at how many there were, and how different they all are.
After the tunnel you move onto the fish of the Atlantic Ocean, the variety of species is vast and includes sardines, soles, rays and sturgeon, and the tanks are all nicely designed, and most have the magnified glass normally associated with aquariums.
Next you move onto the Mediterranean Cave, and again there is an amazing amount of fish, my favourite here is the octopus. Just after the Mediterranean section you can take a bit of a rest and sit and watch the Oceanic Tank, which has schools of barracudas and jacks. The adults in our group found it quite relaxing to just sit and watch, unfortunately the kids wanted to move onwards to see the sharks.
So onward and up towards the shark tank. The sharks are actually in a tank in the centre of the building, and it runs through the different floors, so you get to see the sharks from all different angles. I have to say I've never seen such big sharks in an aquarium and never so close up, the sight of this huge shark, with its teeth clear to see is quite astounding.
On the up ramp to the next floor my kids were highly amused by a projection on the floor. It was a projection of a tank of fish, which went you went close they swam away, so needless to say they spent a fair few minutes trying to catch the fish with their feet.
The Caribbean Room is the start of the really colourful fish; there are parrot fish, trigger fish, moray eels, angel fish, and a whole host more. The tanks actually have artificial tides to make them more realistic for the fish. Around the corner is another seating area, where your find the huge Napoleon fish, and again (as long as you don't have impatient kids) you can while away the time watching a very tranquil scene.
Onto the Indo Pacific Room, which is where you'll find all the ultra colourful fish, the ones made popular by Finding Nemo. So there are lion fish, clownfish, blue devils a plenty, but there's also a vast amount of corals and sea urchins.
Next is the dark room, this gives you the opportunity to see the fish under ultra violet light, and see the bioluminescent properties of the fish.
As you move round, you get back to the shark tank, but this time you can see it from yet another angle. There is also a sawfish in this tank, which seems to prefer the higher levels. I've never seen a sawfish in real life before, and I was amazed by its size and the lethalness of its snout. At this part of the shark tank there is a seating area, which also has information boards so you can spot the various species in comfort.
Finally you move on and outside to the tropical greenhouse, which has a lovely waterfall, and a large variety of plants and trees. It also has a family of snapping turtles wandering around and across the paths. There are plenty of signs up though instructing people not to touch or attempt to pick up the turtles.
Also in the aquarium you'll find little side attractions that teach you about the eco system and how the moon affects the tides etc. There's also an amphitheatre close to the turtle tank, which has a film about the work of the aquarium with giant turtles. The film was all French, so we didn't stop to watch it. You can see the turtle on your way to the amphitheatre, unfortunately it wasn't being very photogenic when we went and wouldn't turn round.
Other Attractions *************** Once out of the rainforest section you find yourself back at the entry lobby, to you left you'll see the souvenir shop. They has a good selection of souvenirs, but they were quite expensive, and as with most trinkets they were the sort of items that look good when they're altogether in the shop, but would look a little naff when put on a shelf by itself when brought home.
The cafe is located at the top of the aquarium and offers a great view across La Rochelle whilst you're supping your coffee (or should that read café au lait). As with most French cafes there is an outdoor terrace, so you can sun yourself as well. You don't have to visit the aquarium to use the cafe as the entrance is outside of the aquarium area.
As I mentioned in the introduction there is no flash photography in the aquarium, which isn't a problem for anyone with a decent DSLR, but an average point and shoot will struggle to get fast enough shutter speeds for any good photos. I resorted to using my point and shoot as a video camera and took a few minutes of each tank, which I can blend together at a later date.
There are plenty of toilets throughout, and for the ladies they are proper toilets, which is a nice change. The toilets seemed to be kept nice and clean, so there were no complaints there.
I would definitely recommend a visit if you go to this area of France, because it's far and away the best aquarium I've ever visited, it puts the Sealife Centre to shame.
10.06.2009 00:39
great review. Thanks for the info
09.06.2009 21:03
great review x
09.06.2009 17:20
Very good review!