Opened in 1985, the original Underwater World was the vision of Kelly Tarlton - an extraordinary Kiwi adventurer, diver, explorer and inventor, who wanted to share his love of the ocean with others.
Today, Kelly's vision has grown to become a world-class visitor attraction, offering a uniquely New Zealand Pacific and Southern oceans experience.
The Antarctic Encounter is home to New Zealand’s only sub-Antarctic penguins, offering a rare opportunity to see the magnificent birds up close in their icy domain. A unique snowcat ride brings you within arms length of the 80-strong colony of King and Gentoo penguins to watch their playful antics on the snow and their elegant flight underwater.
A walkthrough replica of Captain Robert Falcon Scott’s Antarctic hut (established back in 1911), complete with authentic memorabilia offers a glimpse at what it was like to live 100 years ago in the coldest place on Earth.
Enter Stingray Bay for an awe-inspiring look at the giant stingrays, before delving deep into the Underwater World to see the rich variety of species from New Zealand’s coastal waters. Come face to face with sharks, turtles, giant rays and other incredible deep sea creatures on the moving walkway.
New Zealand’s rocky shore and tropical species await you in Fish Alley. See everything from crayfish to seahorses, octopus to piranha and moray eels.
Kelly Tarlton’s offers thrilling Animal Adventures; hand-feed our giant stingray during a Stingray Splash, snorkel with amazing predators of the deep on a Shark Cage experience, or for the true adrenaline junkie, join Shark Survival – a cage-free shark dive. Take the plunge today.
It’s all waiting for you at Kelly Tarlton’s!
Aquarium
Auckland, Auckland City
