Oregon Coast Aquarium

The Oregon Coast Aquarium invites you to experience marine life first-hand. Encounter octopi, watch sea lion, otter, or bird feeds and learn about the fascinating pelican.

This museum is one of Oregon’s top attractions because it offers world-class marine education for all ages. The highlight of the museum is the “Passages of the Deep” exhibit. You walk through a series of underwater walkways and experience Oregon’s unique ecosystems. Visit a local reef, learn about the teeming wildlife in Halibut Flats, and view the Open Sea in all its glory. The exhibit moves you from near the shore out into the Pacific Ocean, and you see various indigenous sea creatures along the way.

The Orford Reef features deep crevasses with 100 foot long kelp, ideal to shelter sixty species of Pacific fish. The creatures in Halibut Flats nestle amongst shipwrecks which litter the Oregon coast. They include sturgeon, lingcod, halibut, flounder and skates. When you walk the longest tunnel you view aquatic life on the open sea. Here you’ll find sharks, rays, anchovy and mackerel.

You can even dive the aquarium with professionally trained guides or have a slumber party and sleep with the sharks. This museum is the center for ocean literacy on the Oregon coast. It is located on Yaquina Bay in Newport.