Barcelona Aquarium Tickets

Whether you’re planning a family trip to Barcelona or simply have an interest in marine life, the Aquarium is a must-see attraction that shouldn’t be missed on your itinerary. With over 11,000 marine creatures, underwater tunnels and themed areas, it offers an experience that is both educational and entertaining for visitors of all ages.

In this article, we tell you everything you need to know to plan your visit: prices, opening times, how to get there, what to see and the best ticket options to avoid queues and make the most of your day at one of the city’s most visited attractions.

The best option

Barcelona Aquarium Tickets

An attraction for the whole family

Buy this skip-the-line ticket for a fun-filled day at one of Barcelona’s most popular attractions; the Barcelona Aquarium boasts one of the world’s most amazing collections of marine life

From £26 at Hellotickets

The Barcelona Aquarium with skip-the-queue entry is an ideal stop for families and curious travellers. Located in the Old Port, this aquarium stands out for its 80-metre underwater tunnel and for being home to over 11,000 marine creatures from all over the world.

You can explore different ecosystems, see sharks, rays and tropical fish up close, and watch penguin feeding sessions. All this without queuing and with access to all areas of the site.

If you prefer more flexibility, you can opt for flexible tickets with no set date or time, valid for 90 days from purchase. A perfect option if you’re not sure of the exact day of your visit**.**

Recommended if… you’re looking for an educational and fun experience, with quick and hassle-free access, ideal for the whole family.

As one of the city’s most visited attractions, the Aquarium offers various packages and pricing options. The cheapest tickets for the Aquarium are those booked online for a specific time slot: you choose the day and time, and your ticket is scheduled for use within a 30-minute window. This type of ticket is available from €25 for adults and young people aged 11 and over; €17 for children aged 5 to 10 and €10 for children under 5.

You can also opt for the Flexi-Ticket, which you can use on any day and at any time within 90 days of purchase. For this option, the ticket for adults and young people up to 11 years old costs around €30; children aged 5 to 10 pay €22 and children under 5 pay €12.

Other interesting options include tickets with a meal option for lunch inside the park. If you’re travelling to Barcelona with children, this option is often very useful, with fast-food menu options that eliminate the need for planning.

If for any reason you forget or prefer to buy your tickets once you arrive at the attraction, simply head to the ticket office located near the main entrance. Please note that the ticket office closes approximately one hour before the attraction’s official closing time.

Although this is a possible option, it is not one I would recommend to travellers visiting Barcelona for the first time or who will only be in the city for a short time, such as two or three days, as the ticket counter can have long queues, especially during the peak tourist season. The smartest option will always be to buy your tickets in advance, weeks before your visit, to ensure availability if you really want to visit this attraction.

Of course they are! The Aquarium is one of the best things to do in Barcelona during a family holiday; a fact well known to tourism companies, which have developed a tourist card called the Barcelona Pass that includes no fewer than 20 major tourist attractions across the city, including the Aquarium.

This pass is very useful as it allows you to explore Barcelona for two or three days (depending on the pass you purchase) and visit destinations such as the Sagrada Familia, Casa Batlló, La Pedrera or Park Güell. Some options also include a ticket for the Barcelona Tourist Bus, one of the best ways to get around between the various tourist sites.

The Aquarium is located in the Old Port, at the Muelle de España. Getting to this part of the city is really easy and there are several ways to get there, which are listed below.

• On foot: from the heart of Barcelona, head towards Plaça de Catalunya and you can take a leisurely stroll to the Aquarium. The walk will take around 25 minutes and you can make the most of it to explore the city’s streets.
• By Metro: taking line L4, Barceloneta station is just a 10-minute walk away; taking line L3, Drassanes station is a 15-minute walk away.
• By city bus: you’ll find that several public transport routes stop near the Aquarium. These are: V17, 39, 45, 59, 91, 120, D20, H14, V13 and V15.
• By tourist bus: the East route will drop you off at the Port Vell stop, just a 2-minute walk from the Aquarium entrance

The Aquarium is not just recommended; it’s an absolute must-see if you’re visiting Barcelona with children. If you’re only in the city for a few days and your itinerary doesn’t allow for activities that take longer, such as an afternoon at Barcelona Zoo, the Aquarium is a fantastic alternative that you can see in half the time, whilst offering the same level of engagement and fun for the little ones.

My recommendation to make the visit even more memorable is to get the children involved in the extra activities that the Aquarium includes seasonally in its programme. One of my favourites is a full-day activity, ‘Aquarist for a Day’, aimed at children aged 5 to 15, where they are shown the main tasks involved in looking after the fish.

If your visit doesn’t allow for a full-day activity, be sure to check the feeding times for the marine animals. Watch the show where the keepers feed penguins, rays and even sharks.

Whilst it’s true that every area of the Aquarium is interesting, some are more impressive than others. During your visit, be sure to check out the following.

• The Mediterranean Aquarium: Across 14 tanks, you can enjoy the largest exhibition of Mediterranean fish in all of Barcelona; it showcases the marine life of the different communities
• The Tropical Aquarium: In this area, you can enjoy the colours of the tropical sea and species of various sizes.
• The Oceanarium: An 80-metre-long glass tunnel takes you through the largest aquarium in the venue; visiting this shark tunnel is arguably one of the most thrilling experiences you can have at the Aquarium, where you’ll also see rays and other marine species.
• Shark Dive Experience: One of the Aquarium’s most impressive activities, known as the shark dive, takes place in a large tank where you can swim with sharks if you hold a diving certificate. If you don’t have one, you can watch others doing it.

At the moment, you won’t find guided tours or tour operators offering exclusive guided tours of the aquarium; although it may not be necessary to book a guide for this attraction, mainly because all the facilities are very well signposted and it’s easy to follow the information.

If you need transport…

In the absence of a guide with transport, you can use thetourist bus service to get there. In this case, you should take the East route bus and get off at the Port Vell stop, which is just a few metres from the attraction.

The minimum time you’ll need to spend on a visit to the Aquarium is approximately 2 hours; this will allow you to see the highlights and marvel at the beautiful creatures that live here. However, it’s certainly true that there’s plenty to see and do inside this attraction, as its 35 aquariums currently house no fewer than 11,000 specimens.

It’s no secret that the Aquarium building is a structure where space is used intelligently to make the most of every square metre, so if you have time to spare and can spend a whole afternoon exploring it at a leisurely pace, I can assure you that you won’t get bored!

Before visiting the Aquarium or any other attraction in Barcelona, it is important to check the opening times carefully, particularly if they vary depending on the season. The Aquarium is one of those attractions with changing opening hours throughout the year, so please bear the following in mind when planning your visit.

• During April and May, and again in October, opening hours from Monday to Friday are from 10.00 am to 7.30 pm. At weekends and on public holidays in May, opening hours are from 10.00 am to 8.00 pm; in April and October, from 10.00 am to 8.30 pm.
• During July and August, opening hours are from 10 am to 9.30 pm every day, as this is the peak summer season in Barcelona.
• During June and September, opening hours are from 10.00 am to 9.00 pm every day.
• During the remaining months (January, February, March and December), opening hours are from 10am to 7.30pm Monday to Friday, and until 8pm at weekends and on public holidays. These are the coldest months and the winter months in Barcelona.

Here are some tips that could be very helpful during your visit to the Aquarium. If you want to have a fun day with as few hassles as possible, please bear the following in mind.

• Feeding the animals or throwing objectsis not permitted
• Buy your tickets in advance to avoid queues at the ticket office
• Check what is prohibited at the Aquarium; please note: bicycles, scooters and kick scooters are not allowed, and pets and companion animals are not permitted
• You’ll need a good camera to take photos
• It’s a great attraction to visit in winter
• Visit the Aquarium when it opens to avoid the crowds