Ripley's Aquarium of the Smokies

Embark on a hands-on aquatic adventure with the 10,000 marine critters that call Ripley's Aquarium of the Smokies home. Watch the underwater antics of exotic sea creatures up-close, scoping out playful penguins, graceful manta rays, balletic jellyfish, and majestic sharks.

Make your way to Ripley's Aquarium of the Smokies and head inside to travel under the sea in a series of captivating themed zones and realistic habitats. At the Discovery Center, visitors of all ages can experience the thrill of holding horseshoe crabs, and you can touch the smooth top-side of a stingray as it glides through the shallows Touch-A-Ray Bay.

Journey to the depths of the Ocean Realm, and step into a clear glass tunnel in the Shark Lagoon to marvel at green sea turtles, giant stingrays, and huge sharks up to 12 feet (3 m) long. Spot snapping piranhas and bright blue poisonous dart frogs in the Tropical Rainforest, and check out brightly hued clownfish darting in and out of colorful plants in the Coral Reef. Watch intelligent octopus exploring their habitats in the Gallery of the Seas, and then make your way to the Penguin Playhouse to come nose-to-nose with these tiny, tuxedoed flightless birds.

If you'd like to upgrade your experience, purchase a combination ticket that grants you admission to other great Gatlinburg attractions, entertaining family members of all ages at spots like Ripley’s Believe It or Not! Odditorium, Haunted Adventure, Moving Theater, Mirror Maze.