Rated as one of the top aquariums in the world, Monterey Bay Aquarium delivers on its promise to "inspire conservation of oceans." No matter the age, when people visit the aquarium, their eyes fill with wonder and excitement. We have been back to the aquarium time and time again, each time we visit, there is always something new to experience.

A Few Star Exhibits:

Sea Otters - Even though these furry and lively animals do not do "tricks" as in Sea World, they are great fun to watch for kids and adults alike. They especially like to "show-off" by swimming right up next to the windows when they see children.

Giant Octopus - Have you ever seen a giant octopus up-close? Here is your opportunity at the aquarium. People surround this exhibit to capture pictures and look in awe at the amazing creature.

Outer Bay - I never realized how beautiful jellyfish are until this exhibit opened in 1996. They feature the largest collection of jellyfish in the United States. But not only do they show jellyfish, they also have a gorgeous 1 million gallon tank filled with sea turtles, sharks, tuna, and other outer bay creatures.

Splash Zone - For the kids, or the kid in all of us. This section of the aquarium is designed for the little ones to explore and interact with ocean creatures. The biggest hit for everyone-the penguins!

Ticket prices vary by age. Adult tickets are $24.95. Child, student, and disabled tickets are also available for purchase at different rates. For more information, please visit www.montereybayaquarium.org.

If you go to Monterey Bay, this is a must see!

It costs around 20 bucks, and you can spend a good 2 or 3 hours inside just looking at the wonderful marine life. Get a visitor's guide in the front so you can catch otter- or penguin-feeding time. (On a side note, in case you DO have kids, the Monterey Aquarium has the feedings on webcam. You can get the kids excited a few days earlier by showing them this!)

You can also rent out scuba gear and they will take you on a short snorkeling lesson. It was a bit pricey, though, so we passed and were able to enjoy ourselves just fine.

There are a few stations where you can actually touch a stingray or a starfish or an urchin!
This is a great place for kids, but aren't we all kids at heart? I'd definitely go again, and you should too!

I would say the Aquarium was the highlight in Monterey. It is very well designed and very family friendly. Even though it was quite crowded on the day I visited, I never felt it was overwhelming. First thing to worry about is parking. I parked the car on a meter parking as I knew we would not be able to spend more than 3 hours due to our travel schedule. However, having spent some time there, I wished I had parked the car in a parking structure and spent the entire day at the Aquarium. It is possible for one to buy a ticket and re-enter the park with a stamp on the same day. The Aquarium is open 10am to 6pm and summer hours are 9:30am to 6pm. There are some machines which will give you quarters if you insert $1, or $5 bills, but none of them worked.

I started with the Sea Otters. Make sure you are there for feeding time. The trainers were very good with the Sea Otters. Don't miss the Sharks, Jelly Fish, and especially the Penguins. The Aquarium is very well designed for children. There are amazing interactive displays. I would definitely bring children here. We also had a snack at the Portola Cafe which is inside the Aquarium. It is very high quality food for reasonable prices. Actually a delightful surprise. Usually I am very much turned off by the quality of food service at Aquariums and parks in general. But this was the exemption to the rule. Here is the website; www.montereybayaquarium.org.

Wow, what a place! It has a kelp tank, touch pools, and a million-gallon Outer Bay tank that houses sharks, sea turtles, and sun fish. This is the same tank that held the Great White shark they had. She was beautiful!

I highly recommend this place for any and all families. I even like to take dates here. It isn't very expensive for such a great experience. Prices are Adults $21.95, Seniors $19.95, Student with ID $19.95, Children 3-12 $12.95, and children under 3 free. Disabled people can get a $12.95 entrance fee.

If you would like to see more, please go to www.mbayaq.org.