Visited the aquarium with my wife and we enjoyed our visit. It wasn't very busy when we visited…read more They had a lot of big tanks and big fish, including some sharks and stingrays. You can pet the sting rays. The insectarium was very cool. I saw some insects that I've never heard of before. They had some living individuals that were very large. Our favorite part was the butterfly exhibit. My wife loves butterflies and to be able to walk amongst 1,000 of them was a great experience and another first for us. The staff was very friendly too.

If you like fish, and other aquatic species, and you have some time to kill in NOLA, this may be…read moreyour place to visit. The way this space works is that you buy your ticket and you enter via the Insectarium. That's not really my cup of tea but the butterfly exhibit, within that space, is great. From there, you go into the Aquarium. What you will find there is tons and tons of fish orientated exhibits. If you've every been to an Aquarium, in any large city, this one is very much the same. You know what to expect. If you want to check out a lot of various versions of fish, this is you place to go. They also have a nice penguin exhibit within the Aquarium. They seem to be very friendly and interactive. There is also a large space housing rescued owls and falcons and the like. Just like in the case of the penguins, personally, I always feel kind of sad for large birds housed in a space like this, as they are basically trapped. The good news is, I guess, is due the fact that they were injured in the wild they can live out their years in safety while being well taken care of. Overall, if your NOLA you may want to check this place out.

I purchased a ticket for the Aquarium and Insectarium (Adult - $47.50). After you purchase your…read moreticket, you enter the Insectarium. Yes, you have to walk through the gift shop. So many types of insects exhibited in their environments. I particularly liked the velvet red ants. Ginormous. Can't really say I spent too much time reading any of the information on the insects. The space is dark. There's also a cafe where you can snack on insects. Again, not really my cup of tea. Thanks, but no thanks. My favorite part of the insectarium, where I spent most of my time, was the butterfly atrium. What an absolutely spectacular place. Heavenly. When you walk through one door, it has to close before another door opens. This is to ensure no butterflies escape. As soon as I walked in, there were hundreds of butterflies! Of all shapes and sizes, blue, brown, white, yellow, orange and black. The majority of them were attached to the window where they thought they could fly out. There's different types of plants for them to land on. Fruit and sponges with nectar are set throughout the trail for them to land and suckle on. There's a walkway for visitors, but you have to be careful because butterflies land on the walkways, too. You're not supposed to touch or hold the butterflies, but it's fine if they land on you. The staff member there kept repeating not to touch the butterflies because there was a child who kept grabbing at them. You could tell some of the butterflies were man handled because pieces of their wings were missing. Honestly, it's pretty hard to keep your hands to yourself when there are so many butterflies flying around your head.

If your in NOLA and you want to kill a little bit of time, this is one of the places to go. Yes, it…read moremay have its fair share of tourists, but it can be interesting. The main thing to understand about this establishment is that it is attached to the Aquarium. You really need to buy the combination ticket for both. That way you easily transition from one exhibit to the other. Now, let me state that I'm really not into bugs. The only reason I went here is because it is attached to the aquarium. This being said, what you do get to see in this part of the greater museum is an incredible butterfly exhibit. I mean, it is really a place to see! The way it works is that you go up to the entrance and wait for one of the members of the team to let you in. Then, there is a pathway through the exhibit. The space is just full of butterflies, doing all that stuff that butterflies do. It's really great! Totally Fun and Recommended! But, if you go inside, be really careful that you do not step on the butterflies because they do land on the walkway. And, don't try to grab the butterflies. That's a No-No. When I was last there, a child grabbed one and you could tell when the staff member told him to let it go he had hurt the butterfly Sad! Just keep that in mind. Overall, for the butterflies alone, this is a interesting place to visit.

The Audubon Zoo is one of those institutions that everyone needs to visit when in New Orleans. It's…read morelocated in a beautiful park, just off Magazine Street, and one can ride the St. Charles Street Car to get there. It's an old institution, and is often working to improve their historic exhibits to better serve their animals as well as their visitors. When I recently visited, the sea lion exhibit was being improved. They still had a sea lion show, and I was there at just the right time to see one of their sea lions enjoying an enrichment event. The exhibits are designed to provide a spacious and natural environment for the animals, while allowing the visitors to observe them. In some cases, this allows several species to inhabit the same exhibit, which is a more natural setting. This is definitely a well planned and managed collection, and helps the visitors understand to need to conserve our natural environment. The zoo has a great Louisiana swamp exhibit, which also helps the visitors learn about the cultural history of Louisiana. There are native animals that few might see in nature, but which the visitors can learn about in this setting. These include Alligator Snapping Turtles, and Louisiana Black Bears. There's plenty of places for the visitors to eat, drink, and buy gifts. These are found in convenient locations throughout the park. It's a great experience and especially good for families.

I went to Sip N Dip! Let me just say....... SIP N DIP is a…read morevibe! The Zoo Is still beautiful and clean. My only complaint is, they ended our event early with no percentage of a refund back. Listen. We had more than enough time to have ALL the fun, but it wasn't what was promised. I'd do it again and I definitely plan to visit the zoo zoo soon. Lol.

This was a super cool experience during our trip to Biloxi a few years ago. There was a dolphin and…read moresea lion educational show that was really fun but my highlight was the opportunity to be kissed by a sea lion! For a small fee, you receive a photo as the sea lion is planting a big wet kiss on your cheek! Another highlight was the budgie area where you bought sticks of food and the parakeets (budgies) landed on you and ate from them. It's not for the faint of heart or anyone that's afraid of birds, lol. This is a fun place to visit with kids or anyone who appreciates birds and marine life. Beware: in the summer, there's a lot of walking outdoors and it can get quite hot. Make sure you wear your sunscreen and bring a neck fan!

I'm all about rescue but from a visitor perspective a little more human communication would go a…read morelong way. At time of purchasing tickets it could've been mentioned what is and isn't available; would be very helpful. We were unable to feed and/or pet the stingrays, there was only 5 spots for kissing sea lion that were no longer available, so for a family unable to plan in advance with changing schedules it was a bummer. The bird feeder stick took me by surprise because it looks disappointing, however it was sufficient to get some of the birds to land. The dolphin/sea lion show was pretty good, I would just appreciate maybe a screen with whatever the speaker was saying, it was hard to hear in that room with the echo. All in all my family enjoyed it.

I do escape rooms all across the country, and this is one of the best. This is no surprise since it…read morewas designed by and is run by Escape My Room - one of the best escape room creators I have had the pleasure to experience. The puzzles are challenging, but solvable. But what really sets this escape room company apart is the thought and effort they put in to story and set. The puzzles make sense with the story, and the set decoration is phenomenal. You'll really feel like you're there! Highly recommend.

I bought a parakeet from 50 fathoms four days ago and I've already spent hundreds of dollars on vet…read morebills because she came infected with Chlamidophilosis. From my interactions with the staff, it sounds like they would not have gotten her treated if they found out she was sick at the store. It feels like buying her ended up being kind of a rescue mission, honestly. The staff at 50 fathoms tried to deny that she was even sick, telling me that the vet I went to wasn't good and insisting that I should have gone to a different vet all the way in Baton Rouge. They said the vet was just guessing, but actually the vet did a fecal exam and also sent her blood out to a lab. I know I'm not the ideal pet owner because I'm poor and have an active outdoorsy lifestyle, but I'm doing everything I can to save this bird which is much more than they did. The bird is responding well to treatment and the vet says she has a pretty good chance of survival, but the articles I've read say that the treatment plan involves six weeks of antibiotic injections to prevent the bacterial infection from becoming treatment resistant. That's a lot of vet appointments for an animal I just bought four days ago. Chlamydophilosis is transmittable to humans. While I do recommend buying from a small locally owned business, this one wouldn't be my first choice anymore despite their wonderful selection of exotics, because I don't feel good about their standards for ensuring their animals' health and well being. If you must buy from this store, proceed with caution.

This awesome pet shop was recommended from a coworker. He is all about aquatic pets, and he raved…read moreabout them. There are numerous pets, including birds, turtles, snakes, eels, stingrays, freshwater turtles, and a wonderful variety of fish. I absolutely love the staff, especially sweet Cassie. She was very knowledgeable in helping us setup our aquarium with ALL the things. I even brought my sister in to check out the aquatic pets. Please do yourself a favor in go! You won't be disappointed!

I love going to Blue Zoo, and when I saw they were doing an adults only night for Valentine's Day,…read moreI was quick to buy tickets and figure out my plus one later. My favorite thing to do is feed the parakeets, and I was excited to see how many flocked to us to eat their food. The stingrays are always one of my favorites to feed, and we had fun looking for Tortilla (the sting ray with stinger). The staff is very knowledgeable and were excited to talk about the animals with us. While it's a great place for children, it's still fun for adults too!

In Vegas we had a business called sea quest which this is very similar to but I like the fact that…read morethey had a splash pad and a play area for the kids I thought that was very cool. I just wish we could have got to experience the birds before the bad apples spoiled it for everyone else.

This pet store has only fish and no other pets. The people there are very knowledgeable and very…read moreeasy and nice to deal with. They have freshwater and saltwater fish and are absolute experts in handling all of them.

Gerwin is the best proprietor of any aquarium specialty shop I've ever known. In the early 1990s he…read morewas a great mentor and readily available source of information and advice--I was pleased to see the poop video he made and posted online. Technology has come a long way since that time. If I make it to Biloxi again, I'll look him up. Cheers, - Les Ingram

Gavin is knowledgeable, honest to a fault and there to help you from beginner to advanced! His…read morecollection of corals is unique and spectacular!

Ricks is a great shop. Rick can be a little grouchy at times but very knowledgable. I personally…read morelove this store.