On a beautiful site overlooking the Croatan Sound, the North Carolina Aquarium on Roanoke Island is one of three state-operated aquariums on the North Carolina coast.
The Aquarium on Roanoke Island features the 285,000-gallon “Graveyard of the Atlantic” exhibit with a 1/3-scale replica of the USS Monitor, interactive exhibits, two touch tanks, a theater and “Oceans Revealed: Power of the Planet,” featuring “Science on a Sphere.”
Sharks! Coming in summer of 2010, the Aquarium will bring new sharks to the 285,000-gallon Graveyard of the Atlantic exhibit and a new 10,000-gallon exhibit that will feature smaller sharks. Let Dr. Finnegan take you on a journey through the Aquarium featuring educational facts that dispel shark myths!
Throughout the aquarium are exhibit tanks filled with fishes of North Carolina coastal habitats, including sharks and rays. In the “Wetlands on the Edge” sky-lit atrium, you will see river otters, alligators and turtles lazing on logs in the sun. Each day at the aquarium there are educational programs, fish feedings and demonstrations.
The gift shop has a great selection of toys and gifts related to sea life and ecology. Snacks are available outside the aquarium from vending machines, and in the summer months there are food vendors on-site.
The aquarium is open 9am. to 5pm. every day except Thanksgiving Day, Christmas Day and New Year’s Day. Ages 13-61 $8; Ages 62 and up $7; ages 3-12 $6; children ages 2 and under are free, NC Aquarium Society members and registered North Carolina school groups are admitted free. |
