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Family Travel Places in Georgia

Our trip to the Georgia Aquarium & TWELVE Atlanta Centennial Park Hotel

This post may contain affiliate links, and I may receive a small commission at no cost to you if you click through on a link and make a purchase. Please read my full disclosure here.

My family had the wonderful opportunity to take a weekend trip to Atlanta, Georgia on behalf of the Georgia Aquarium. I was provided with Georgia Aquarium’s hotel package, where we spent 3 days and 2 nights at the TWELVE Hotels Atlanta Centennial Park in downtown Atlanta, just a few blocks from the Aquarium, Coke-Cola and the Children’s Museum. We arrived to our hotel on Friday, and I couldn’t believe how nice it was. I been to nice hotels but this was one of the top notch hotels that was very classy and elegant. All the staff were extremely nice and made sure you were very comfortable. We stayed in Twelve Hotels large suite with two bedrooms, two full baths, living room and kitchen area. It was really like a small apartment with everything you need for your families stay. Below you will see our hotel suite areas.

HotelCollage

Bedroom2 Collage MBedroom Collage

On Saturday morning, we went down and had our complimentary breakfast in the hotels restaurant, that has been named Best Downtown Hotel  Restaurant by Atlanta Magazine and Top Ten New Restaurants in the city’s searches.breakfastBar

After our breakfast, we grabbed a Taxi and headed over to the Aquarium. We had a scheduled behind the seas tour with our tour guide, Marvin at 10AM. The Aquarium opens at 9AM, so our first stop was to the Will Call to pick up our tickets, then headed inside to explore a little before our tour. My oldest two sons have been to the Aquarium on their school field trips this year and last and I accompanied them as a chaperone. My youngest, Eli, had never been to the Georgia Aquarium and neither has Greg, and the boys were excited to share all the fun facts and show us around, to see all the cool stuff they saw when they first visited.

Pic1

About the Aquarium – The aquarium was opened in 2005, and has seven galleries: Georgia Explorer, Tropical Diver, Ocean Voyager, Cold Water Quest, River Scout, Dolphin Tales and its newest addition the Aquanaut Adventure . Each corresponds to a specific environment. It houses between 100,000- 120,000 fish and other sea creatures and also has more than 500 species. It’s also the only institution that houses whale sharks outside of Asia. The aquarium and design was built around the whale sharks, that are kept in a 6.3 million gallon tank. The acrylic window in the Ocean Voyager exhibit is the largest window on the continent of North America. There are more than 61 miles of pipes and wires ran through the Aquarium. It’s located in downtown heart of Atlanta with many shopping, dining, entertainment and much more surrounding you.

There were so many questions I wanted to know, as I am sure we are all curious about how the Aquarium functions daily, what are the routines for workers, the animals and exhibits, how are the animals taking care of etc.? I was so full of questions before our trip that I was excited when Marvin, our tour guide covered most all the things I wanted to know even without asking him and when we had other questions he was able answered them.

About the Galleries:

 Tropical Diver is the largest habitat in the exhibit that holds 164,000 gallons of water. Not only does it house tropical fish, but it cultivates live tropical Pacific coral reefs and thousands of colorful reef fish.

 Coldwater Quest houses many kinds of different fish, Cannon Ball Jelly Fish, Blue Crabs, Japanese Spider Crabs, Moon Jelly, Pacific Sea Nettle, the Hawaiian Day Octopus, Penguins and Beluga whales and many more. Maris, one of the Beluga Whales were expecting a baby calf any day. When we got back from our trip I kept checking the site and Facebook Page for an update on the birth of the Beluga’s calf and found out it was born on May 10th at 1:35 am. What a special announcement on Mother’s Day to celebrate. Watch the video below of Maris the 20 year old whale’s calf get welcomed:

Dolphin Tales is one of the most exciting shows I’ve seen.  There are live actors, amazing effects, exhilarating musical score, all to educate and entertain the audience. The dolphins are very well trained and do so many neat acts during the show. 

River Scout has a wide diversity of animals that were found in the rivers of four continents including North America, Africa, South America and Asia. Animals range from the cute Asian small-clawed otters, albino alligators and many others.

Deepo’s Undersea 3D Wondershow is an awesome 3-D show in a 4D gallery, that every guest will love to watch. Grab your 3-D glasses at the entrance and go under sea with Deepo and his friends. Each show last 30 minutes and plays at different times. 

Aquanaut Adventure is the newest gallery and is a hands on Discovery Zone. It lets guests of all ages adventure on educational journeys through the Aquarium’s upper levels while completing a series of entertaining challenges. Once the guests have completed fie our of seven challenges they become certified Georgia Aquarium Aquanaut or Aquarium Scientist, so to speak. You can explore marine habitats, learn how animals thrive in extreme environments and even learn what it’s like to have a career in marine and aquatic sciences.

 Ocean Voyager was built by Home Depot. It’s the world’s largest aquatic habitat and the only aquarium to house whale sharks. It holds 6.3 million gallons of salt water. Along with the four whale sharks, there are also four Manta Rays (2 females and 2 males). They are many different kinds of fish, Leopard WhipRays and many others in this exhibit. 

Since the Whale Sharks are a main part of the Aquarium we wanted to learn as much as we could. We learned that unlike most sharks the whale sharks mouth is located at the front of the head instead of the underside of rostrum. The whale sharks mouth’s are very huge and when opened can reach up to 4 feet wide. They have 300 rows of teeth located on the inner side of each of their jaws and even though they have a large mouth opening their throat size is about the size of a quarter making their favorite meals like small shrimp. When feeding time there are four people who will get in the rafts and line up along the four separate lines and go back and forth feeding the whale sharks. They feed twice a day eating up to 18lbs of food.whalesharkWe were able to catch the feeding of the whale sharks. The ventilation fans used to create ripples in the were turned off during feeding time and the whale sharks know that it is feeding time. When you see the ripples in the water throughout the aquarium, those are created by fans so that viewers can’t see the rafters and pipes from each exhibit. 

whalesharkfeedingI was able to catch a short video of the feeding. Check it out below. 

There is also a 100 foot long underwater tunnel that you are able to walk through or ride the conveyor belt viewing all the animals in the Ocean Voyager exhibit. It’s acrylic windows weight 185 tons and is the second largest viewing window in the world.The Ocean Voyager is a must see because of the whale sharks, manta rays and other animals you are able to see and learn about. It is definitely a one of a kind sight to see. After exploring the Ocean Voyager, we went up the second level, to Marvin at the Tour Guide desk to begin our tour. 

BTS1

The behind the seas tour is a must if you have time. It takes about 2 hours and in that two hours you are able to see and learn so much about the animals, exhibits, how the Aquarium runs it is totally awesome. We were able to see the Husbandary Commissonary, which is a very large kitchen, equipped with stainless tables, counters, freezers, refrigerators, where all the animals foods are prepared. It has a freezer that holds up to 20,000 pounds of food and is -10 degrees, an a refrigerator that holds up to 6,000 pounds of foods. We were also able to see the Veterinary Clinic, where the animals are seen by the doctors, the loading and unloading docks where they receive packages and also a opening ceiling that can open when they have large animals come in like the whale sharks that were brought in using a very large crane. All of the hallways are large enough for the forklift to come through to move heavy things to their places.  

PART 2:

Misc AquariumAlso shown in the images is the food prep room, vet, tool room, loading dock, and filters room. The water is purified by a system that contains 141 sand filters, 218 pumps, 70 Protein Skillers that pump 261,000 gallons of water per minute throughout the aquarium.

PART 3:pipesIn the white bags contained sea salt that gets dumped into the tap water system so that it turns into ocean water. We were able to feel the water being pumped through the large pipes. The picture of the red and black round equipment piece is the actual size of the pipes and can be opened and closed off just by turning the wheels on it side. 

babypenguinBefore our tour was over we were able to see a baby Penguin that was just a month or so old. It hadn’t shed it fur yet so it wasn’t ready to be introduced to the waters.  Our overall trip to the Aquarium was a trip my entire family will not forget. We learned so much and was able to experience an opportunity that everyone should try. To schedule your trip to the Georgia Aquarium visit here. You and your family are sure to love the experience and adventures you get to learn about plus it is very affordable. Be sure to check out TWELVE Hotels Atlanta Centennial Park Hotel Packages that includes room and visiting the Georgia Aquarium here. 

Stay connected with Georgia Aquarium by following on Facebook l Twitter l Instagram l Google+

TWELVE Hotel Atlanta: Facebook l Twitter l Pinterest 

What is your favorite exhibit to visit when going to the Aquarium?

I created another blog post to share with you the top 5 things to do at the Georgia Aquarium and travel tips to help you plan your trip. Visit here to check it out. 

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44 Comments

About Jennifer

Hi there! I'm Jennifer the founder and author behind the scenes. I'm a stay at home mom of three boys, living in a small town in South Carolina. We love spending our time together outdoors and waiting for the next adventure.

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Comments

  1. Cara (@StylishGeek) says

    May 28, 2015 at 3:27 PM

    Wow! You have given me another reason to visit Georgia! My family and I have never been there but from your vacation to the Georgia Aquarium & lovely stay at the TWELVE Atlanta Centennial Park Hotel I am definitely tempted to go there! We love aquariums too!
    Reply
    • Jennifer says

      May 29, 2015 at 3:13 PM

      Yes, it is a must do thing with your family. We can never get enough of the Aquarium and this trip we were able to learn so much about the aquarium and all the behind the scene things that go on.
      Reply
  2. Penny Struebig says

    May 26, 2015 at 9:48 AM

    What a fun get away! The hotel and aquarium look amazing. Next time we're passing through Atlanta we might stay a day there and visit the aquarium.
    Reply
  3. Frugal Mom Eh says

    May 24, 2015 at 11:54 PM

    Looks like you had a great trip. The kids and I love going to aquariums and seeing all the fun water creatures.
    Reply
  4. Katie H says

    May 24, 2015 at 8:30 PM

    wow, that hotel looks amazing! I would love to go to the aquarium! I think i've been before, but it's been a very long time!
    Reply
  5. Emerald says

    May 23, 2015 at 7:52 PM

    Your hotel room looked so plush! Love it and the breakfast!
    Reply
  6. Jade says

    May 23, 2015 at 5:34 PM

    Oh, my little guy would enjoy the Dolphin Tales. We haven't been able to take him to the aquarium, yet. Maybe we can take him on a road trip to Georgia soon.
    Reply
  7. Nicole Lutzy says

    May 23, 2015 at 12:55 PM

    That aquarium has been on my travel list for awhile. Looks like nice family travel!
    Reply
  8. Jaime Nicole says

    May 23, 2015 at 12:39 PM

    I have heard that the aquarium is amazing. It looks like it is even better than I thought it would be. We will have to get down there with our girls soon!
    Reply
  9. Michele D says

    May 23, 2015 at 8:23 AM

    Wow! That breakfast looks amazing! I've never visited Georgia before but it looks like a great place to take the kids.
    Reply
  10. Peachy @ The Peach Kitchen says

    May 23, 2015 at 6:44 AM

    Oh my looks like you had a great time there at the Georgia Aquarium. I also love the centennial park Hotel where you stayed in.
    Reply
  11. Parental Journey says

    May 23, 2015 at 6:13 AM

    You had so much fun! I am so jealous. Would love to go there and check out those Dolphin tales. Well, maybe one day :)
    Reply
  12. Official Alanna Wong (@Alanna_Wong) says

    May 23, 2015 at 1:40 AM

    That looks like so much fun! I am actually going to Atlanta this July for a Conference so will have to stop by here!! Thanks for sharing!!
    Reply
  13. Esther of Local Adventurer says

    May 22, 2015 at 10:55 PM

    We loved frequenting the GA aquarium while we lived in Atlanta. :) You're making me miss it there!
    Reply
  14. Jennifer Williams says

    May 22, 2015 at 10:05 PM

    I have a friend that is planning a trip just to the area of this aquarium. They are so excited to get to visit it, now I can see why. I will have to share the hotel, they are still trying to figure out where to stay.
    Reply
    • Jennifer says

      May 25, 2015 at 12:03 PM

      Yes they will love it. Be sure to let them know about the Hotel and Aquarium Packages where they can save on stay and their visit to the Aquarium.
      Reply
  15. YellowTennessee says

    May 22, 2015 at 9:42 PM

    That hotel looks like my kind of hotel. I love places that make you feel like you are staying in a small home instead of a hotel room.
    Reply
  16. Krystal says

    May 22, 2015 at 6:24 PM

    I hope we get to head to Georgia soon. I have heard awesome thing about the aquarium!
    Reply
  17. Rosey says

    May 22, 2015 at 6:05 PM

    I love that you had a behind the scenes tour of the aquarium. I had one in Omaha and it was nothing short of amazing. I love your pictures!
    Reply
  18. Danielle K says

    May 22, 2015 at 4:49 PM

    Looks like an awesome hotel. We've been wanting to do that aquarium for a long time - I know my son would love it.
    Reply
  19. SexyMoxieMama says

    May 22, 2015 at 4:30 PM

    This looks like something that my kids and I would like to do. We will have to check it out when we are that way again.
    Reply
  20. Christy Maurer says

    May 22, 2015 at 2:03 PM

    That is an amazing aquarium! I have never been to one that has that much to offer. I would love the dolphin tales. I wish there was one closer to me. Your hotel was beautiful too!
    Reply
  21. Theresa says

    May 22, 2015 at 2:00 PM

    What a fun experience! Hmmm, we love so many of the aquarium exhibits, but I'd have to say the dolphins are usually my favorite stop.
    Reply
  22. Fi Ní Neachtáin says

    May 22, 2015 at 1:57 PM

    That looks like such a lovely place to stay, how nice that they left you a welcome gift. The aquarium looks fab too, I know my boys would love to visit there!
    Reply
  23. Brook Devis says

    May 22, 2015 at 1:21 PM

    wow.what a lovly place. you had great treat with welcoming drinks...the aquarium seems to be really great.. thanx for sharing
    Reply
  24. Amanda says

    May 22, 2015 at 12:38 PM

    We have always wanted to go to the Georgia Aquarium based on nature shows we have watched. I guess we will have to settle for the Shedd for now!
    Reply
  25. Liz Mays says

    May 22, 2015 at 12:05 PM

    That behind the scenes tour is so good, isn't it? It's amazing what goes on to support that facility. Their aquarium is fabulous!
    Reply
  26. Scott says

    May 22, 2015 at 10:24 AM

    I would love a behind-the-scenes tour of any aquarium! So much better than looking at the animals through the glass.
    Reply
  27. Victoria says

    May 22, 2015 at 8:19 AM

    Oh, how fun all that looks! We don't live too far from GA so might have to plan a homeschooling field trip for my girls to go visit!
    Reply
  28. Christina says

    May 21, 2015 at 10:56 PM

    I'm totally jealous! This looks like such a fun trip! I've never seen an aquarium do a behind-the-scenes tour, so that's totally fascinating.
    Reply
  29. becca112971 says

    May 21, 2015 at 8:41 PM

    What a fun place to visit and the hotel looks amazing.
    Reply
  30. tamaralikecamera says

    May 21, 2015 at 8:35 PM

    I would have loved this trip! That aquarium is on my dream list because it has whale sharks. The hotel looks awesome too!
    Reply
  31. AJ @ NutriFitMama says

    May 21, 2015 at 8:35 PM

    First- awesome breakfast! And the Georgia Aquarium looks so fun! We almost went while we were out there before, but decided to do some other things instead. Definitely going to have to check it out next time!
    Reply
  32. toughcookiemommy says

    May 21, 2015 at 8:31 PM

    These were truly some beautiful and comfortable accommodations. You guys must have had such an amazing time together as a family.
    Reply
  33. Liz Mays says

    May 21, 2015 at 8:14 PM

    Wow that aquarium trip looked so cool. Beluga whales are really cute looking! That hotel looks super nice too.
    Reply
  34. MyKidsGuide (@MyKidsGuide) says

    May 21, 2015 at 7:58 PM

    It looks like you had a blast during this visit. I would love to visit the aquarium with the family
    Reply
  35. Jeanine says

    May 21, 2015 at 6:44 PM

    I just watched that baby beluga birth on Facebook. My kids thought it was the most amazing thing they've ever seen. This aquarium looks amazing and I don't usually support ones with whales etc, but I have heard wonderful things about this!
    Reply
  36. Onica (MommyFactor) says

    May 21, 2015 at 5:21 PM

    That aquarium looks amazing with lots to do. My son would seeing the dolphins show.
    Reply
  37. tonyacoleman says

    May 21, 2015 at 5:08 PM

    That hotel looks amazing! I would love to stay there and my kids love going to aquariums.
    Reply
  38. Lisa Nolan at Monkey Star Pres says

    May 21, 2015 at 4:55 PM

    What a great trip! I would love to spend a weekend in Atlanta and visit the aquarium!
    Reply
  39. Christine Luken says

    May 21, 2015 at 3:31 PM

    Sea turtles are my favorite! The behind the scenes tour looks really interesting!
    Reply
    • Jennifer says

      May 21, 2015 at 4:40 PM

      Hi Christine, it really is interesting. It's one of the best experiences we have done and learned so much about in just a short time.
      Reply
  40. Robin Rue (@massholemommy) says

    May 21, 2015 at 3:30 PM

    That aquarium looks awesome. My boys love spending time at our local aquarium here in Boston.
    Reply
  41. Bri says

    May 21, 2015 at 3:28 PM

    That looks like the best complimentary breakfast ever offered! I love visiting the Stingray exhibit because we are allowed to touch them.
    Reply

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Hi! I’m Jennifer

Welcome to Southern Carolina Family.  I'm a stay at home mom of three boys, living in a small town in South Carolina. We love spending our time together outdoors and waiting for the next adventure. To see more about us visit here. Click here for Advertising & PR Inquires.

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