Are you passionate about marine wildlife? Then why not become an Aquarist for a day at the Oceanarium! Get real hands-on experience and up-close encounters with our magnificent creatures. Spend a whole day (9am-4pm) alongside our Aquatics team and learn about the oceans’ ecosystems and all the creatures they are home to. Discover the wonders of the Oceanarium in this once-in-a-lifetime behind the scenes VIP experience!
Whether you plan to dedicate your life to marine conservation or just want to learn more about sea creatures, this will be a day of awesome discoveries. You’ll see behind-the-scenes of all of our exhibits and learn about how an aquarium runs and the ways we make the environments as real as possible for our creatures. Then you’ll get to meet some of our creatures face-to-face and feed them. Having learned, of course, how to prepare their food and what they need in terms of nutrition.
There are also enrichment activities to help the creatures maintain their natural behaviours, so you’ll see them in action and learn how they live in the wild. Finally, there’ll be health checks to make sure our creatures are in tip-top condition and learn what to look out for.
How do I book?
To make a booking, please contact us on 01202 311993 option two or email info@oceanarium.co.uk. This applies to gift purchases too.
What does the experience involve?
The ‘Aquarist for a Day’ package will include free entry to the Oceanarium and will consist of the following activities:
- Morning checks
- Exhibit maintenance
- Creature feeds – stingray/sharks/turtles (please note the animal may change depending on day) Shark feeds are on Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday & Sunday. Eel feeds are on Monday, Wednesday & Friday.
- Feed preparation
- Animal enrichment
- Animal health checks
The package also includes:
- £10 voucher to spend on the Gift Shop
- Staff discount in the Offshore Café*
- 1 free guest admission to be used on the same day**
- Free 'Aquarist for a Day' t-shirt.
- ‘Aquarist for a Day’ certificate
Time of experience
9.00am – 4:00pm (please arrive at least 15 minutes before start time)
Prices
Single Adult: £195
(16yrs+)
Child & Adult: £265
(10-15yrs) with responsible supervising adult
Two Adults: £320
(16yrs+) together
Additional details:
Experiences must be pre-booked and pre-paid for at least 14 days in advance. Earlier booking, is however recommended as dates are subject to availability.
Our Aquarist for the day experience can make a lovely gift for someone special! Gift certificates are available upon request, please ask for further details.
Unfortunately this experience is unavailable for children under the age of 10, due to health and safety reasons.
Please note Aquarist for the day experiences can take place on any day of the week, subject to availability.
Terms and Conditions
- All Animal Experiences are non-refundable, so please carefully check eligibility if a gift, availability if you require certain dates and all other terms before you purchase.
- Minimum age to participate - 10 years old.
- Bookings are subject to availability.
- This experience does not involve interactions with penguins
- The Oceanarium reserves the right to vary the timetable according to staffing and availability.
- We can take bookings for a maximum of two people per session. (Either two adults or one adult and one child)
- Children under the age of 16 years must be accompanied by an adult, who must be with them throughout the whole day.
- Due to health and safety reasons the experience is not available for children under the age of 10 years old.
- Please listen to the aquarist at all times. Your safety as well as the welfare of all animals is their upmost priority. As such, the keeper can stop the encounter or ask participants to leave the experience at any time should they feel necessary.
- The feeding experience does not involve any contact with the creatures themselves.
- During the Feeding Experience you will be handling raw fish and meat; however gloves are provided.
- If you arrive more than 10 minutes late without prior agreement then your experience will be cancelled and your experience will not be rescheduled.
- The Oceanarium reserves the right to cancel or amend an Animal Experience if deemed necessary due to animal welfare, health issues or unforeseen circumstances. In all occasions we will aim to contact you at least 24 hours prior and try to rearrange.
- Regrettably certain guests will be unable to take part including pregnant women, people with epilepsy; known allergies or relevant phobias and immunocompromised individuals.
*50% off all food and drink prepared in the café. Receive 25% off all wrapped and bought in items including crisps, cakes, bottles and cans.**Guest admission does not allow behind-the-scenes access, but enables the guest to come and take photos and see the ‘Aquarist(s) for a Day’ in action. Admission valid on same day, all day from 10am.
