Taking hands-on to a new level at the Ripley’s Aquarium of the Smokies #PFTitanicFAM

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Disclosure: I received a complimentary pass for this review. The opinions shared here are 100% mine.

There are a few things in life I never thought I’d see. A penguin egg probably tops that list. After all, how often do you see a penguin egg in your everyday world? Well, we got to see one at the Ripley’s Aquarium of the Smokies during our  #PFTitanicFAM trip. That, and much more! We visited the aquarium last weekend on our Pigeon Forge trip and, as always, we loved getting to see the wonderful exhibits. The Ripley’s Aquarium folks are experts at taking hands-on to a new level. My kids enjoy touching the horseshoe crabs and stingrays. We loved getting to watch the scuba diver in the shark tank. It was all just wonderful!

Ripley's Aquarium in Gatlinburg, TN -- savingsinseconds.com #PFTitanicFAM

Getting to the aquarium was a bit of a headache. Last weekend was extremely busy in Gatlinburg. It’s always that way in the fall, mostly due to the leaves changing, but there was a lot of traffic due to the fact that the national parks were closed. The government shutdown drove a lot of people into the main areas of Gatlinburg so we had to battle for parking spots. We drove past at least six parking garages that were full. At one point we gleefully tried to pull into one that had an opening, but the sign changed to “FULL” just as we reached the gate. It was so frustrating! If you find yourself in Gatlinburg during such a busy season, try to park and take the trolley. We ended up doing that and it was a fun adventure. The trolley only cost 50 cents per person ($2 allows you to ride all day!) and it took us right to the aquarium. My son thought it was a train ride, so he considered it part of the trip. When we needed to head back to the car, we just hopped back on the trolley. We did have to wait a few minutes for the right one to arrive, but if you’re not in a rush it wouldn’t be a big deal.

Ripley's Aquarium in Gatlinburg, TN -- savingsinseconds.com #PFTitanicFAM

Once we arrived at the aquarium, it was simple to walk in and start our tour.   There were several interactive areas that kept the kids engaged, such as this Fish Guts manipulative pictured above.  The kids loved seeing the inner workings of the water cleansing process. We walked through the dinosaur exhibit as well. They have several tablets set up so children can take self-check quizzes, color the dinosaur, and more. My son was fascinated by the movies set up on the television screens. My favorite part, though, was the penguin playhouse. This time there was a penguin egg set up in an incubator and it was so neat to see it!!

Ripley's Aquarium in Gatlinburg, TN -- savingsinseconds.com #PFTitanicFAM

The kids in the aquarium loved crawling through the tunnel and seeing the penguins up-close. The penguins also swim below the floor; you can watch them through the glass window. Be sure to take your camera so you can snap lots of pictures.

Ripley's Aquarium in Gatlinburg, TN -- savingsinseconds.com #PFTitanicFAM

The Ripley’s Aquarium of the Smokies is always a fun place to visit. We can’t wait to see what they have in store for us next!

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Comments

  1. Oh, how cool! I love the uniqueness of animals!

  2. That sounds so much fun and educational as well. I’d love to go here.

  3. What a cool place! Thanks for sharing. My kids would love it!

  4. What a great place, I love aquariums. As soon as my little guy is older we are going to start taking him to some.

  5. My daughter would love this so much. Wish we had one around here. This is so cool!!

  6. We have been to a hands on aquarium before (not this one) and the kids loved it. Wish we were closer to go to this one!

  7. Maria Bravo says

    I’ve never seen a glass area where you can watch penguins so close! That is great. I would have loved the trolly trip too. With kids, getting anywhere, is half the fun.

    • Sherry Compton says

      I agree. It’s really like a personal observation of the penguins. How fun for kids and adults.

  8. Velvet Hubler says

    Wow that Aquarium looks amazing if I ever make it to that region of the Country I will have to visit there

  9. amanda whitley says

    oh im so jealous. i have been wanting to go here! my in laws live in Memphis and i have always said i wish they lived in gatlingburg because i would much rather visit there!

  10. Those tunnels look like so much fun. Thanks for the advice about taking the trolley

  11. I would love to see the Titanic Museum! I would love to be in the smokey mountains. The mountains are our favorite place to explore. There are so many wonderful towns, and shops. Not to mention how friendly the people are!

  12. Sherry Compton says

    Very cool! Fun and educational for kids and adults. My grandkids would love the fish guts interaction.

  13. Gladys Aguilar says

    A lot of my friends have gone to Gatlinburg and have told me bout this. I would love to take the kids

  14. Sherry Compton says

    We are a water family. My grandkids live in Florida and would love the string rays. We’ve been to hands on before, but this one looks really great. They are definitely fun to go to.

  15. Aquariums are so fun and educational.

  16. David Fultner says

    What an odd artical.

  17. amanda whitley says

    this has been on my list to visit for a while now. i have been so close but never had the time.

  18. Sherry Compton says

    Isn’t it amazing how even the small things like a trolley ride can really excite kids….It’s great that this became part of the adventure and fun.

  19. I’ll remember to take the trolly if I ever get to visit there.

  20. Aquariums are always a lot of fun. They’re perfect for the kids since they’re so educational!

  21. Jerry Marquardt says

    I would love to visit Ripley’s This aquarium look wonderful, and would satisfy my interests while visiting.

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