I've been coming to the Fort Fisher aquarium since I was a little kid. The fee to enter is…read moredefinitely affordable, it's conveniently placed near the fort and the historic area, aka the Fort Fisher State Recreation Area. There's an outdoor section and an indoor section, and even a play area for kids. The aquarium will be going through some renovations and closed for a few years, so definitely stop by with your timed entry ticket, purchased in advance through the website, while you can!!

This Aquarium is smaller than I anticipated and didn't have many exhibits. The viewing starts on…read morethe elevated level and takes you through the space where you will finish on the lower level! I think we completed the walk thru in less than 45 minutes and that was with multiple breaks for my 80 year old mother to rest! If you are in the area..check it out...especially if you have young kiddos! Adults...beware...if you have to drive longer than 30 mins..not a good deal!

We visited the North Carolina Aquarium at Pine Knoll Shores (PKS) on July 4, 2025. Having visited…read morethe New York Aquarium (in Brooklyn, NY) a week earlier, it was an opportunity to compare the two. Parking is free (unlikely to change in the last 12 months). At the entrance of the Aquarium PKS was a man-made pond. There wasn't a wait line at the ticket counter. Purchasing of ticket was quick and easy. Judging by the price - half of New York Aquarium's - I expected a modest-sized aquarium. In the Entrance Lobby, the sign next to the animal sculpture stated that it was an alligator. The sculpture itself had the color of a crocodile. The Orientation Lobby was past the Information desk. Up ahead in the Orientation Lobby was an entrance with the overhead sign "Mountains" for the Mountain Gallery. Upon entering this gallery, we were greeted by a man-made waterfall. A doorway to the left led to the gallery's collection, mostly fishes. The Trout Pool was one of several open tanks. Next to it was a "Do Not Touch" symbol like the one shown on the Aquarium map. It meant no putting of one's hand(s) into the tank. Adjoining the Mountain Gallery was the Piedmont Gallery. With a similar collection but different species of fishes, the Piedmont Gallery also had some non-fishes and non-amphibians. I saw salamanders, frogs, owls and otters. The otters were adorable, as evident by the crowd. On the right past the Piedmont Gallery was the Coastal Plain Gallery. This gallery consisted of reptiles alongside additional species of fishes, most notably pond turtles, crocodiles, corn snakes and longnose gars. After that, we walked back towards the Piedmont Gallery. There was an exit past that gallery that led outside to the Outdoor Marsh Boardwalk. At the boardwalk to our right was Eagle Landing, a habitat area for two female bald eagles. Eagle Landing wasn't enclosed - no nets or walls - because both girls couldn't fly due to wing injuries. So no worries about them coming at us with beaks and talons. Don't ask me which one was Uwohali and which one was Shagoie Watha. Both looked the same to me. Across from Eagle Landing were marshes with two overlooks to view from. I took a photo from Bogue Sound Overlook. Further down the Outdoor Marsh Boardwalk was a shelter called Snakes of the Maritime Forest showcasing more slithering friends (or fears, to those that were ophiophobic), both venomous and non-venomous types. I recalled visiting the San Diego Zoo back in the early 2000s. Its collection of snake was at least five times more. After Snakes of the Maritime Forest was Tree-mendous Nature Play, a play area for kids and the young at heart. Wife observed that the surrounding woods reminded her of childhood times growing up in a similar surrounding. We continued onto Alice Hoffman Nature Trail for a short distance and then headed back to the building. After the Coastal Plain Gallery was another area. Judging by the extra-large model of a hermit crab and the two turtle seat sculptures for visitors to chill, we were in a foyer of a separate section... for saltwater species. This section was divided into two galleries of species exhibits. Tidal Waters Gallery was the first. Its collection included stingrays, seahorses and turtles, as well as fishes swimming in tanks with undersea decors. One such decor was a replica of Blackbeard's ship Queen Anne's Revenge shown in the video below right. Ocean Gallery was essentially a continuation of Tidal Waters Gallery with more saltwater creatures supposedly dwelling in the further depths of the ocean. There were two large tanks, each with a replica of a shipwreck. Of the two, The Living Shipwreck was larger and more prominent for another reason: sharks. Last week at NY Aquarium, I saw them swam over my head in the underwater glass tunnel. This time, they were swimming in front of me. Continuing on, there was a lobster in a smaller tank. The display stated "Lobsters" but I saw only one. Review continues in the final attached image.

Nice place to take the whole family. Plenty of parking but the parking lots get full fast and you…read moremay need to walk a bit. Staff is OK. I wouldn't say overly friendly, but not mean. I didn't pay so IDK if it was expensive or not. But there are lot of ways to get discounts. Lots of exhibits and educational sections. Hands on things for the kiddies as well as a little play area for the little ones. LARGE gift shop. One of the coolest things is this huge tank that has a 3:4 scale model of a sunken U-Boat with plenty of sharks and other fish. Nice way to spend the day. Keep in mind the only food is from a Dairy Queen concession outside. Only thing I hoped the air conditioning was cooler. Still, a great option for the family. Educational & fun

This store has always caught my eye, so I decided to stop by. The owners were immediately so…read morewelcoming and eager to help me with whatever I needed. They truly care about educating customers and showing you the fish they have to offer. I was so pleasantly surprised by Coastal Reef, and would encourage anyone to stop by-even if it's just to browse or meet the staff. You can see the dedication and passion for the aquariums from just a quick stop by. Highly encourage Coastal Reef for all your salt water needs!

Stopped in to take a look around and was greeted by the most friendly employees! Although I was…read morejust going to browse they were still super kind and informative. They seem to really love what they do, and the vibes are immaculate.

After 5 months of allowing the calcium to be too high in my salt tank and dozens of coral dying, he…read moredecided to break our contract (which his wife notifying me by text). He broke my glass lid and owed me money for coral frags he didn't provide and after asking numerous times for a refund of both, he continued to say he was "working on it".

Been getting services for my reef tank for over 2 years now and I really like the attention to…read moredetail. Will recommend services and you get good pricing. Thank you for doing an awesome job. I give them and thumbs up

I have to say that my wife and I set about visiting every local fish store we could find over a…read moreyear ago and wasn't impressed by any store we found at the time or owner(s) as much as we were impressed by Bruce and his store Sea Critters Depot. At the time I was thinking and wanting to get a salt water tank and even a reef tank, but thought it was just going to be impossible and really hard to do on my own as I just hadn't found a store or someone to help until I met Bruce. Bruce was so nice and patiently answered all my questions even though he knew I wasn't going to buy a thing that day and I didn't. I came back for a couple more weekends answering questions and didn't buy a thing and Bruce was kind and took the time to answer any question I came up with. Another thing that impressed me about how Bruce does business is that all those really expensive salt water fish you don't want to take home and die are put through quarantine by Bruce in his store for two weeks before he will let you buy them. Bruce doesn't have to do this and so far to date after being in this hobby for over a year Bruce is the only store that I've found that does this. Bruce is even nice enough to let you write your name on the tank for the fish you want in quarantine so you can pick the fish up after the quarantine is over. That way he doesn't sell you a sick fish and you know that as long as you do the right thing your fish will live a long time after you take the fish home. And this has been my experience. Every fish I've gotten has thrived in my tank. Another thing that impressed me that no other store I've been in does is that Bruce puts cards out on the tanks that shows a picture of the fish, the name of the fish, the price, and most important of all to someone with a reef tank is he tells you if the fish is reef safe, reef safe with caution, or not reef safe. So you know up front before you get excited to get a fish that it is safe for your reef tank or not. And for those that are safe with caution Bruce will gladly explain what you have to look out for and his experience with the fish. Bruce will tell you based on his considerable experience with the fish in reef tanks exactly how he expects they will behave and it's up to you to listen to his advice as he will let you buy it if you want the animal, but he certainly warns you first about what problems you may experience. I know I've not purchased fish based on what he's told me. And I've bought fish based on what he's told me and I watched to make sure I wouldn't have a problem since I know ahead of time that the fish might not be the best fit. You really can't go wrong buying from Bruce.

The owner is so helpful. I just started my saltwater tank and he gave great advice. Without his…read moreadvice, I would have made major mistakes.

I got a 20-gallon aquarium for my birthday in June, got the tank set up, and waited 2 weeks before…read moreadding fish. I bought 7 fish from Petco. All but 3 died. I went to Taylor's Aquarium, and they tested my water and gave me some bacteria to add to my tank since it was new. Petco told me my water was fine. I have since purchased 5 fish from Taylor's, and they have been doing well for over a month now. I'm planning to get to Taylor's today for a couple more fish. This is a family business, and they are really knowledgeable about aquariums. I think the owner has been in business for 30 yrs. Great service, healthy, fish, and really nice people.

This place may in the country, but it's well worth the ride to get quality! Since it is a family…read moreowned and smaller business, you may want to call for in stock availability!

We've had a great time every time we visit. Our family was…read moregifted a membership for Christmas and have attended the new year's noon event and the kids Olympics, along with a weekday visit, so far. The events are heavily discounted for members, which we love. The employees are great and there's not many people there during the weekday in the winter, anyway. This is a smaller museum, so it's great for our almost 4 year old. There's a little outdoor area with a few things. We love the school bus. Fun place to visit when the weather isn't great.

My kids had a great time here! Lots of different areas for kids to venture through. They offer…read morediscounts for military or educators so that was a plus! Spent two hours here and my kids still weren't ready to leave. Reminds me of a more simple version of marbles museum in Raleigh. 3/5!