From the fine folks at Ripley’s that bring you shrunken heads and very tall men, comes the very beautiful Ripley’s Aquarium, located at Broadway at the Beach. The aquarium is a $40-million, state-of-the-art, 87,000-square-foot aquarium. It is part of the American Zoo and Aquarium Association. Meaning, in additional to fun and entertainment, the aquarium also is home to a world-class marine facility that is involved with environment education, conservation, and research.

The Rio Amazon exhibit displays piranha and other beautiful fish that are found in the Amazon River. You can marvel at the animals in the sea life collection, such as a giant octopus, sea anemones, coral, jellyfish, a seahorse, and an array of dazzling fish. At the Sea-For-Yourself Discovery Center, you get a chance to hold a horseshoe crab or pet a gentle ray. A dive show and marine education classes are presented hourly.

The big attraction by far is the Dangerous Reef, a 750,000-gallon tank with the world’s longest moving glide path at 330 feet. Here you glide your away through a tunnel of beautiful and brilliantly colored fishes, rays, eels, and more. You also get a close encounter with quite a few sharks! Kids, both small and over 21, will love this. It is such a thrill to be this close to sharks. In fact, it was after seeing this that we decided to get certified to scuba dive, just so I could get closer to the sharks. When we were here, the glide path was off, offering us a chance to take our time going through the tunnel.

There is a café and gift shop on the premises. There are also several chances to have your picture taken for a souvenir. As soon as you walk in the door there is someone waiting to take a picture. For more information, to find out what is happing during your trip, or to purchase advanced tickets, you can go to www.ripleysaquarium.com. You can also purchase tickets right in the front. If there is a long line outside, duck into the visitors information store right on the corner. You can purchase tickets here, as well as tickets for most of the shows in town.

Phone: 843-916-0888

This is part of the Broadway at the Beach complex.

It is unique because you are going through a tunnel with fish on both sides of you and overhead. You can either ride the conveyor belt or walk at your own pace along the edges of the belt. I was expecting more colorful fish.

I will not revisit.

Although we bought a ticket for all three Ripley attractions (The Haunted Adventure was closed), Ripley’s Aquarium is in a different league than Believe It Or Not and The Moving 4-D Theater. It is also in a different location. The Aquarium is located at Broadway at the Beach and is one of the hottest attractions there.

The day we decided to visit, it was overrun by schoolchildren whose main ambition was to locate Nemo. A lecture was being offered just as we arrived. Sharks. We learned about all the different species in the aquarium by becoming familiar with their jaw formation and size. It is refreshing to know sharks don’t really like eating humans; however, they will bite in order to identify an object.

Next we walked past the piranha tank. Ferocious as they are, they look harmless. Another fish, the Anthunae, a grouper, can change its sex if there’s a shortage of males or females. Next we went to Rainbow Rock, a cave-like room. There was a presentation and dive show (a diver was inside the tank and an interpreter talked about what was going on). The habits and appearance of huge swarms of fish were discussed as the diver gave them food.

From there we entered Dangerous Reef. A glidepath (conveyor built) rode us through a glassed-in pathway. Six-inch clear acrylic walls allowed 12-15 foot sharks to swim over our heads. The nurse shark smiled at us with his many rows of teeth. He can’t close his mouth or he’ll bite himself and bleed to death. He sucks in (nurses) his prey and swallows it whole. The sawfish, another 10-footer, glides through the water expecting no danger.

The stingrays were kid-friendly because their stingers had been removed. We watched the dive show and then went upstairs, where the diver encouraged everyone to pet the stingray. One little boy was leaning over the edge of the tank and the fish whipped up and brushed him with his nose. The boy decided to look from a distance after that.

We bought the tickets for all three Ripley attractions for $34.50 Senior price. The Aquarium only would have cost $16.95. It was well worth it. The aquarium is open seven days a week 9am-6pm.

General Assessment: My wife and I have a particular fascination for visiting aquariums and have visited aquariums in multiple states

General Assessment

: My wife and I have a particular fascination for visiting aquariums and have visited aquariums in multiple states. We would rate this aquarium second only to the National Aquarium in Baltimore. Although significantly smaller that the National Aquarium, Ripley’s -- Myrtle Beach is well designed and a very pleasant experience.

Favorite Exhibits

: Our favorite exhibits were the (1) Leafy Sea Dragons , (2) the 330-ft underwater tunnel beneath the shark tank, (3) the Octopus (see photos). We also enjoyed the Horse Crab display that permits handling of the crabs, and the skate and ray handling area.

Shortcomings:

The Ripley’s Aquarium is not one of the larger aquariums we have visited. You can walk through in about an hour, or spend a couple of hours if you watch the various films and stop to read the placards located at the displays.

Price

: Adults - $15.95, Child. 5 through 12 – $9.95, Child. 2 through 4 - $3.95, Under 2 Free Open 7 Days a Week

To view the Ripley’s Aquarium website and brochure, click on the following link:

http://www.ripleysaquarium.com/

Visitors can walk through an underwater tunnel to view sharks, moray ells, poisonous lion fish, and a giant octopus. A touch tank displays horseshoe crabs, and a freshwater tank exhibits red-bellied piranhas. Hourly dive shows are presented. The aquarium also features interactive computer exhibits. A food court is available. Allow one hour and 30 minutes minimum. Daily 9am - 10pm. Mid-May through Labor Day, closing time varies rest of year. Cards - AX,Ds,Mc,Vi. Call 843/916-0888 or 800/734-8888. (Some of this information is from an AAA tourbook.)