Seattle Aquarium’s Ocean Pavilion Is Finally Open

The wait is finally over: Seattle Aquarium’s Ocean Pavilion opens on Thursday, Aug. 29. This incredible expansion of the waterfront aquarium has been in the works for a decade, and I couldn’t wait to take my young daughter.

While the existing Seattle Aquarium exhibits on Pier 59 and Pier 60 focus on the local creatures you can find in Puget Sound waters — from the giant Pacific octopus to the northern sea otters — the Ocean Pavilion brings the Indo-Pacific and Coral Triangle to the Pacific Northwest. It emphasizes the message that all waters are connected, and Earth’s one ocean needs protecting.

The Ocean Pavilion welcomes all

As I walked up to the Seattle Aquarium with my family, I was greeted by the familiar blue building on the waterfront pier. But adjacent to the aquarium I have known and loved during my time living here, I spotted the new building. With a huge wall of windows and cedar paneling, the Ocean Pavilion looks sleek and modern.

We walked over to the Pavilion’s entrance, realizing that we only had to look up for a sneak peek of its largest exhibit before we even got inside. The oculus, a circular window above the plaza, looks into the new reef ecosystem. We spotted fish peeking between the rocks while an eagle ray swam overhead. We would have stood there for quite a while, but we knew there was even more to see inside.

Seattle Aquarium’s Ocean Pavilion exhibits

The Ocean Pavilion brings three main exhibits to the Seattle Aquarium: The Reef, The Archipelago and At Home in the Ocean. The center of the pavilion, One Ocean Hall, is an interactive display.

As we made our way toward One Ocean Hall, my daughter marveled at the glass fish hanging from the ceiling — handblown by Lummi artist Daniel Friday. Indigenous art is highlighted throughout the Pavilion, honoring the Coast Salish people.

The Reef

As the path from the entrance opened into the immersive exhibits, we were drawn to The Reef, a 500,000-gallon tank with tropical species from the Coral Triangle. The huge window looking into the reef ecosystem is curved, like a contact lens, so I felt as if I was truly stepping inside the ocean.

As my daughter got closer to the window, three spotted eagle rays glided by. She watched in awe as they swam around, delighting in their show.

We also spotted an Indo-Pacific leopard shark swimming along the sandy floor, looking for a resting spot. The Indo-Pacific leopard sharks in this exhibit are part of the aquarium’s world-first program that works to breed and release young sharks to restore wild populations. A display next to the reef invites families to learn more about all sharks and rays.

One Ocean Hall

Stepping out of The Reef and into One Ocean Hall, we were immediately transported to a digital mangrove forest. Footage shot in Indonesia by a Seattle Aquarium crew was projected onto the floor and walls, giving us an underwater view of somewhere we have only dreamed of visiting.

This footage can change, and the Seattle Aquarium has an archive that includes different environments like kelp forests, coral reefs, and bioluminescent life, along with narrated videos on a variety of topics. The aquarium’s Visitor Engagement team has control over the videos, and may play different footage based on guest questions and other variables.

My daughter loved seeing the images under her feet as she walked across. This is a perfect spot to rest, too, as benches along the wall offer a place to sit and take it all in.

Alas, my daughter was not too keen on resting. There was too much to see and do, especially once she spotted the next exhibit.

At Home in the Ocean

Up next: a dark hallway with a series of smaller habitats, leading up to the kid-friendly Coral Reef Encounter. Given the chance, my daughter would have spent all day (or week) here. This tunnel brings everything to kid-size, giving little ones the chance to pretend they live in a coral reef. A touch screen outside the tunnel allows users to select the theme inside, changing the lights and displays.

At the end of the tunnel, an oversized cushioned anemone with soft tentacles invited my daughter in. (I am now worried her birthday wish list will include an anemone-shaped couch.)

In the habitats outside the Coral Reef Encounter tunnel, we spotted small clownfish weaving between anemones, unique coral species springing out of rock formations and more. Many of the windows into the habitats were eye-level for my toddler daughter, giving her a look directly inside.

Interactive screens next to the habitats helped us identify species. My daughter was excited to check out each screen throughout the Pavilion, as she could easily reach them to tap on the different images. We had to read the names of different species to her, but she loved seeing the images pop up on the screen.

The Archipelago and upstairs exhibits

Once we had thoroughly explored the downstairs exhibits (just kidding, we would return downstairs to spend another good chunk of time on the cushioned anemone), we headed upstairs to see the second-floor exhibits.

What’s incredible about the Ocean Pavilion is the interconnectedness of the exhibits. While we could peek at the coral of The Archipelago from downstairs, and spot the mangrove trees and rock formation when we were in One Ocean Hall, we went upstairs to get a closer look.

While we spotted sea stars and coral during our visit, the mangrove lagoon will soon have small rays and fish and continue to evolve over time. The mangrove trees are already growing — one day they could be as tall as the rock formation in the center of the grove.

From the second floor, we got another view of The Reef, spotting our eagle ray friends for a second time and meeting a new friend, a large moray eel. The four, second-story Reef windows give different perspectives into the habitat. And still, there are spots in the reef where fish, eels and rays can hide and take a break from being observed. The exhibits were thoughtfully designed, first and foremost, for the marine creatures that live in them.

As we walked along the Port Soundwalk to the different viewing windows for The Reef, we heard underwater sounds on the speakers, including a parent-child dolphin duo communicating.

In addition to the new exhibits, the new Ocean Pavilion has an Animal Care Center. It allows aquarium staff to treat the creatures that live in the Ocean Pavilion exhibit without transporting them, and visitors get a peek behind the scenes at what it takes to keep the marine life healthy. While aquarium visitors will not be able to interact with the staff in the Animal Care Center, they can watch them hard at work. Next to the Animal Care Center, the Discovery Lab will have different hands-on activities and learning opportunities.

Also connected to the Animal Care Center is the aquarium’s Jelly Nursery. In the blue water, visitors can see live jellyfish at all different stages of development and hear more about them from aquarium volunteers.

Other exhibits at the Seattle Aquarium

Admission to the Ocean Pavilion is included with Seattle Aquarium tickets, so we couldn’t resist spending part of our afternoon at the original aquarium. As we walked into the aquarium, we were greeted by staff explaining the marine life in the Window on Washington Waters display. We watched crashing waves, gently touched anemones in the touch pools, saw swimming jellyfish and met the aquarium’s new giant Pacific Octopus. Then we walked across to see marine mammals like northern fur seals and sea otters.

Plan to spend a couple of hours at the aquarium to experience all the exhibits, and return to see what’s new.

More plans for the Seattle Aquarium and Seattle Waterfront

The Ocean Pavilion was built into Seattle’s Overlook Walk, which will connect the rebuilt waterfront and Pike Place Market. Later this fall, the public roof will open, with a garden of native plants and artwork for the public to enjoy.

I am so excited for the Seattle Waterfront to continue to expand, and cannot wait for my next visit.

Editor’s note: This article was originally published in April 2024 and updated in August 2024 by ParentMap’s family fun editor, Meredith Charaba, with details of the Ocean Pavilion’s opening following her visit. Madison Miller contributed to this article.