I was a little surprised that Lisbon's Oceanarium is not a more highly recommended destination. It can't compete with the beautiful tiled buildings or wonderful food of the city, but it doesn't have to. It's a unique and very worthwhile attraction that adds an interesting dimension to visiting Lisbon.
(Pedestrial approach to the Lisbon Oceanarium)
As we were staying not far from the aquarium (in the Parque das Nacoes neighborhood), we were able to enjoy a pleasant walk to it from our hotel. It was built for the 1998 Expo and was called the Oceans Pavilion -- a popular attraction of that Exposition. Today the Lisbon Oceanarium is one of the largest in Europe and is a world class facility.
(The main part of the aquarium is built into a riverside lagoon, and can only be reached by a pedestrian bridge)
(Tile mural near the entrance of the Oceanarium)
The aquarium is large with hundreds of exhibits, so covering it in detail is not possible in a post of this type. I will focus on those aspects I most enjoyed.
(Looking down at a crowd enjoying the large tank in the Lisbon Oceanarium)
The aquarium's star attraction is a 5,000,000 liter seawater tank which contains the largest animals in the facility, like a variety of sharks, rays and large fish, some of which you can see below. It's easy to spend a lot of time studying the tank....
(Some of the animals living in the 5 million liter tank)
(Video of the activity in the large seawater tank at the Lisbon Oceanarium)
There is an interesting exhibit of sea birds, including:
Common Murre....
Atlantic Puffins.....
Tanks of flatfish....
Atlantic cod....
Colorful anenomes....
I enjoy the camouflage of a leafy seadragon....
White Spotted Jellyfish (video)
Common Cuttlefish (video)...
Colorful corals and tropical fish...
The Oceanarium had a most enjoyable temporary exhibit, “Forests Underwater by Takashi Amano”. It features am extensive display of underwater forests inside huge aquariums. The colors of the plants and fish moving in the tanks was terrific.
I love aquariums, and this one did not disappoint. My wife and I spent a half day visiting, and it would have been quite easy to us a full day to explore all aspects of the facility in some depth. I would recommend it to families visiting Lisbon, and to anyone interested in the natural world.
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