What other travelers are saying about Osaka Aquarium Kaiyukan
Top 2 for a reason. Actually had a blast here. The staff were friendly and the animals seek to be well taken care of. The exhibits were large and insanely pretty. There were multiple floors and even a themed cafe. There were I believe 2 total gift shops. If anyone like myself love aquariums, please definitely check this one out. Get your tickets on advance and the line will go quickly.
Though I haven’t been to too many aquariums in my life, this has gotta be one of the coolest ones. The layout of this place is awesome with one massive central tank that has an incredible diversity of sea animals including the 2 whale sharks. The surrounding smaller tanks are also awesome as they all contain such unique ecosystems. Conveniently being located right by a shopping mall allows this place to be a full day event as well. I thoroughly enjoyed my time there and I would be sure to quickly get through the first half as the latter half is much less crowded with people.
Really a fun place to spend the afternoon indoors. This is a timed entrance ticket, we had arrived after 1 pm and bought tickets for timed entry at 345 pm. Luckily the aquarium was open till 8 pm, but we were able to see everything in a few hours. Lots of beautiful fish to see and the large shark tank was impressive, as were the dolphins and penguins. I was with teenagers and young adults in my party and they enjoyed every minute of it. Was nice to be indoors, out from the heat for a few hours.
Kaiyukan is one of Japan’s biggest and best aquariums. We were impressed by the layout of this aquarium - you take the escalators up to the top and then you slowly work your way down in a circular motion around the main central tank, ensuring that you don’t miss anything and that the flow of people is smooth and organized. The crowds were tolerable - lots of people but not in a chaotic way. As you work your way down, you see fish and other aquatic life from different areas of the world from playful otters to curious dolphins to energetic sea lions to laid back penguins and much more. The star of the show is the central tank with the gigantic and majestic whale sharks. One could spend hours admiring them, and some do. Allow at least 2 hours to see the aquarium, though 3 hours will allow more time to sit and admire the animals more, plus explore the gift shop at the end.
So impressive. Loved seeing the whale sharks but I hope they get released soon because I don't think anyone can make a tank big enough to entertain a whale shark. But it was an impressive tank. I went at night and it still took an hour to get in. The dolphin habitat was impressive and the otters. Some of the penguin area seemed small. I would go again. If you love watching things swim by then save at least 4 hours for it since you will probably have to wait an hour for entry. Also it's dark at night and hard to see where you walk so be careful.
