Discover an underwater world at Turkey's gigantic aquariums

With its gigantic aquariums, Turkey is ready to make both kids and adults smile. Home to Europe's biggest aquarium, Istanbul lets you discover the mysterious underwater world.

Sharks, mammals, fish and many other sea creatures are ready to meet you in Turkey's aquariums. Strolling in an aquarium is like diving deep into the ocean and swimming with your ocean friends, whose underwater lives remain a mystery to us.

In the last 10 years, the number of aquariums in Turkey has been rising swiftly and their capacity has been developing to meet visitors' expectations. There are long queues in front of the aquariums over the weekends, as parents bring their children to see the amazing underwater world. So, if you do not want to wait for hours in long lines to get into an aquarium, you should visit during weekdays or make a reservation before you go (available only in some aquariums).For those who are eager to discover what is going on beneath the water, Turkish aquariums await you.

Istanbul Sea Life Aquarium



Visiting Istanbul Sea Life Aquarium (formerly Turkazoo Aquarium) is not just one of those regular daily activities for your kids. Istanbul Sea Life, Europe's largest aquarium, helps visitors get a view of the underwater world and thematic galleries. Rainforests, Coastal Cliffs, the Black Sea, Touch Pool, the Deep Mediterranean, the Dangerous and Weird, Docks and Piers, Caves, the Underwater Tunnel, the Great Barrier and Indo-Pacific Reefs, and Discovery Zone are among the thematic galleries there to allure you. Opened in 2009 in the Forum Istanbul Shopping Mall, the aquarium has an 83-meter-long underwater Ocean Tunnel, 270 degree panoramic viewing Sea Bed, 21 themed zones with 47 display tanks and more than 15,000 sea creatures. Among the sea creatures, are the 2.5-meter-long tiger sharks and small sea predators. If you are eager to get behind the glass and visit the sea creatures up close, you can dive and swim with them. The water in the aquarium is from the Marmara Sea, an inland sea located between the Aegean and the Black Sea. The aquarium is located only five kilometers away from the Atatürk Airport and it is close to the railway and motorway transportation systems.

Aqua Vega Aquarium

With a total capacity of 4.5 million liters of waters and 98 meters in length, Aqua Vega Aquarium, in the capital city of Ankara's Mamak district, is one of Turkey's and Europe's largest tunnel aquariums. It is also Turkey's largest mall aquarium. Here, you will see sharks, smaller sea creatures and many more interesting sights. In the Aqua Vega Aquarium, you can dive and meet our friends coming from the world's oceans and rivers. The aquarium also has a "World of Adrenaline" zone in which 250 different wild animals are living and you can discover the most dangerous species in the world, such as snakes, tarantulas, poisonous frogs and many more. Deep seas and oceans are still a mystery to humanity. So, if you would like to take a further look at life underwater, Aqua Vega awaits you.

Istanbul Aquarium



Istanbul Aquarium is the world's largest thematic aquarium and an official member of the World Association of Zoos and Aquariums. Considering its volume, variety of fish species, and activities on travel routes, Istanbul Aquarium is a place where you can spend the whole day discovering an underwater world. Situated in Florya on the European side of Istanbul, the aquarium is a double-story building covering nearly 22,000 square meters. There are 64 tanks containing 6,800 cubic meters of water, which display 15,000 land and sea creatures from over 1,500 species. The entire aquarium is classified in 16 themes from the Black Sea to the Rain Forest. The aquarium is one of the most original and richest facilities in its field, boasting travel routes, interactivity and the latest technologies. Completely in compliance with the international standards of aquariums, Istanbul Aquarium is where all the living creatures enjoy conditions as close as possible to those of their natural habitat. This place is one of the perfect spots to visit for adults and children. You can be sure to be dazzled when you discover the world hidden underwater in Istanbul Aquarium. It is a vital addition to the cultural city of Istanbul, with thousands of visitors each year and cutting-edge technology in each spot of the aquarium.

Antalya Aquarium



Antalya Aquarium is the world's biggest tunnel aquarium and is located in the heart of Turkey's tourist center, Antalya, where thousands of local and foreign tourists visit each year. Awarded the Travelers' Choice award in 2014 and 2015 by TripAdvisor, Antalya Aquarium offers education, inspiration and discovery at the same time. Being 131 meters in length and 3 meters in width, Antalya Aquarium is the world's biggest tunnel aquarium and you will be amazed when touring the 40 different thematic aquariums it has. In the aquarium, you can make snowballs from real snow in the aquarium's Snow World, see the most poisonous species in the tropical reptile house, WildPark, and sail the world's seas with the multi-dimensional movie technology in Oceanride XD Cinema.