Mystic Aquarium
One Of Very Few Aquariums In The United States Holding Beluga Whales, With An Outdoor Beluga Habitat, A Steller Sea Lion Exhibit And An Accredited Marine Animal Rescue And Rehabilitation Programme · Mystic, Connecticut
Mystic Aquarium is one of a small handful of places in the United States where you can see beluga whales, kept in a large outdoor habitat with underwater viewing rather than an indoor tank, and they are the reason most people come. Alongside them are Steller and California sea lions, African penguins, a coral reef gallery, a ray touch pool and a jellyfish gallery. The institution does more than display: it runs an accredited marine animal rescue programme covering the whole of southern New England, taking in stranded seals and turtles and returning them to the sea, and its research arm works on Arctic marine mammals. It sits five minutes from Mystic Seaport, which means most visitors to the town try to do both in a day and find that they cannot - the Seaport alone is five hours. It is the family half of Mystic and it is busy accordingly, which makes winter the underrated season: the crowds go, the price often drops, and belugas are Arctic animals that are visibly more active in cold water.
55 Coogan Boulevard, Mystic, Mystic, Connecticut, 06355, United States
Open daily through the middle of the day and afternoon, with longer hours in summer and a reduced winter schedule, closing on a small number of major holidays. Outdoor habitats including the belugas and the sea lions stay open in cold weather but the animals behave differently. Feeding demonstrations and training sessions run to a daily timetable posted at the entrance. Timed entry has been used at busy periods.