Shark Reef Aquarium Tickets in Las Vegas: how to buy and prices

In addition to the best casinos and adult-oriented entertainment, Las Vegas has many family attractions among the things to see and do in the city. The Shark Reef Aquarium, one of the largest aquariums in the southwestern United States, is one such attraction and will amaze you with its exhibits.

Located off Mandalay Bay Beach on The Strip, the heart of the city, the Shark Reef Aquarium is an ideal choice if you're visiting Las Vegas with children

Tickets to the Shark Reef Aquarium are approximately 30 euros for adults, which includes access to all 14 exhibits and the Undersea Explorer VR Experience, an interactive attraction that combines virtual reality with the marine world where all the endangered species that inhabit the aquarium live together.

Unlike other attractions, such as the Stratosphere Tower or the Eiffel Tower in Las Vegas, children's tickets are not half the price of adults' tickets, but at the Shark Reef aquarium they are discounted and have a single price of approximately 23 euros for children between 5 and 12 years old.

Children under 5 are free when accompanied by an adult. Ticket prices remain unchanged during the winter and summer seasons.

Details of interest

• Adult ticket price... Approximately 30 euros.
• Ticket prices forchildren from 5 to 12 years old... Approximately 23 euros.
• Aquarium location... 3950 S Las Vegas Blvd, Las Vegas, at Mandalay Bay Beach
• Aquarium hours... Daily from 10.00 am to 8.00 pm.

There is only one type of ticket and the price depends on the age of the visitor, with adult tickets costing approximately 30 euros and children between 5 and 12 years old costing approximately 23 euros.

All tickets also include access to the Undersea Explorer VR Experience. This is an interactive show that combines virtual reality and the real marine world, where you can swim among whales and sharks and get to know the corners of the planet's oceans.

It's also one of the brightest shows in Las Vegas, so you'll feel like you're on The Strip or Fremont Street in the underground tunnels .

Entrance to the Shark Reef Aquarium is not included in the Las Vegas Go City Sightseeing Pass, so even if you have purchased the City Sightseeing Pass, if you want to visit the aquarium you will have to buy your own ticket.

The Shark Reef Aquarium, however, is centrally located and close to many of the attractions that are included in the Las Vegas Go City Pass, such as the High Roller Ferris Wheel , which offers one of the best views in Las Vegas.

If you purchase the Tourist Card and plan to visit the Aquarium on your own, you can organise an itinerary with the attractions in the area included in the Go City Pass and include the Aquarium.

Please note that the full tour of all the exhibits and the Undersea Explorer VR Experience will take approximately two hours to complete.

The Shark Reef Aquarium is an interactive experience that does not require guided tours, although they are not available. The tour of the 14 exhibits, the underground tunnels and the pools with sharks and other marine life can be done on your own and you can get information from the signage.

When you visit the Undersea Explorer VR Experience you will find yourself in an educational and immersive experience where you will be guided by the aquarium's instructors and receive audio and video instructions. The same is true when it's your turn to experience the virtual swim with sharks and whales.

Visit the Shark Reef Aquarium is one of the best tours in Las Vegas and the best thing is that you don't have to rely on a guide, you can discover it on your own.

There are no discounted tickets to the Shark Reef Aquarium and there is only one type of ticket which grants access to all exhibits and the Undersea Explorer VR Experience. Adults pay approximately 30 euros per ticket.

Children between 5 and 12 years of age are eligible for a discount, so each ticket is priced at approximately 23 euros. Children under 5 years of age can enter for free.

Please note that unlike other attractions such as the Mafia Museum or the Titanic Exhibit in Las Vegas, the aquarium does not have priority admission or queue-free admission, except for wheelchair users.

Unlike other Las Vegas attractions that include a 50% discount on adult tickets, the Shark Reef Aquarium does not have this benefit but does have reduced rate tickets for children between 5 and 12 years old, at a cost of approximately 23 euros.

The aquarium is one of the top Las Vegas attractions to visit with children, as is Madame Tussauds Museum and the Las Vegas Museum of Natural History, so if you visit this attraction with several of them the reduced rate could mean significant savings during your trip.

All children must be accompanied by an adult and children under the age of five can enter for free.

By purchasing tickets online in advance you can secure a visit for you and your group at a fixed price.

If you are planning to visit Las Vegas in December or in one of the peak season months I advise you to book your tickets in advance as they may run out or not be available on the day you plan to visit.

I also recommend that you buy your tickets online to avoid queues at the box office at the time of your visit, to save time and money and also to be able to organise an itinerary around the city in advance.

If you are visiting Las Vegas during Christmas, I also recommend that you buy your tickets in advance, as this is one of the busiest times of the year for visitors to Las Vegas.

The Shark Reef Aquarium is open daily from 10.00 am to 8.00 pm and the opening hours do not change during the winter and summer seasons, so you can plan your visit in advance without any problems.

The aquarium is centrally located in Las Vegas, close to the hotel and casino strip, the Bellagio Fountains, the Eiffel Tower and other major Las Vegas attractions, so you can combine your visit to Shark Reef with other activities.

You'll need between one and a half and two hours to tour the entire aquarium, including the 14 exhibits and the interactive Undersea Explorer VR Experience.

If you're only in town for a few days or want a quick tour, you can take the express tour, which will take about an hour, although I don't recommend it as you'll miss out on a lot of details.

Also note that when you buy your ticket you will have to indicate an entry time, which only has a one-hour window, so after that time you may be surcharged on the cost of your ticket for it to remain valid.

You can visit the Shark Reef Aquarium all year round, as the exhibits are permanent and the opening hours remain the same, although the best time to visit is in the summer, when you'll find the Shark Reef an oasis from the heat of the desert surrounding the city.

If you visit Las Vegas in the summer, you can also enjoy the attractions at Mandalay Bay Beach, the resort located next to the Shark Reef. If you're visiting Las Vegas in the winter, it's also a great way to escape the colder days.

You can get to the Shark Reef Aquarium by the Deuce bus to Mandalay Bay station and the 119 bus to Reno station. By monorail you can get to the aquarium by getting off at MGM station.

It is also possible to get to Shark Reef on the Las Vegas hop on-hop off tour buses, which include a stop at the Mandalay Bay station on all of their routes.

The Shark Reef Aquarium has one of the largest shark tanks in the United States. In total, its tanks contain more than 2000 animals, including crabs, piranhas, moray eels, moray eels, arowanas and parrot fish, as well as sharks of more than 30 different species.

In the aquarium you can also walk through two underwater tunnels that give you the feeling that you are walking under the sea, as well as visit the larger tank to touch horseshoe crabs and various species of stingrays.

Shark Reef's 14 exhibits can be visited during the museum's opening hours and the total tour of the aquarium will take between one and a half to two hours.

At Shark Reef you can also enjoy one of the best shows in Las Vegas, the Undersea Explorer VR Experience, which is an interactive attraction that combines virtual reality with the real marine world of all the species that inhabit the aquarium. In this immersive show you can swim among whales and sharks, dive into the world's oceans and live an augmented reality experience.

The Shark Reef Aquarium is one of the best options in Las Vegas if you're travelling with children. Don't think, however, that the aquarium is just a tank with dangerous sharks, because it also includes interactive and sensory activities that I advise you not to miss.

If you are planning to travel to Las Vegas in January or during Christmas, I recommend you to buy your tickets in advance, because this is the busiest time of the year and if you are travelling with a large group you might not get tickets for everyone, you might have to wait in long queues or the price at the ticket office might be higher.

Also keep in mind that the Shark Reef Aquarium is located on the main boulevard of the city, next to Mandala Bay Beach, a very popular artificial beach in Las Vegas during the summer, and some of the most popular attractions on The Strip, so if you organise an itinerary for your trip you can include a visit to the aquarium among other tours.

Finally, bear in mind that the aquarium has an average tour time of between an hour and a half and two hours, so take the time to see it in its entirety and don't miss the Undersea Explorer VR Experience.