THE Texas State Aquarium has set Saturday, May 13 as the official Grand Opening date for Caribbean Journey. The Grand Opening of the $58 million building marks the realization of 30 months of construction and three years of planning, rewarding guests with a several new engaging and interactive experiences and catapulting the Aquarium into one of the nation’s premier aquariums.
Caribbean Journey contains 71,000 square feet of exhibit space, more than doubling the total size of the Aquarium. The new exhibits will depict the jungles, seas, coral reefs, coastal lagoons, and other geographic features of the Sian Ka’an biosphere reserve in Mexico. Flamingos, crocodiles, birds, bats, a sloth, and other species can be seen in Caribbean Journey’s jungle level, while several overlooks allow guests to see sharks and fish swimming in the exhibits below.
Caribbean Journey’s bottom floor provides an immersive view into the Coral and Blue Hole exhibits, which will house sharks, stingrays, and hundreds of colorful coral reef fish. A highlight attraction will be the 400,000-gallon H-E-B Caribbean Sea Shark exhibit, where reef sharks swim among a replica life-size shipwreck. This underwater landscape can be admired from a 68-foot long display window – the longest in North America – and by traveling into an acrylic tunnel that crosses through the exhibit.
The Whataburger 100-seat 4D theater will premiere the BBC Earth’s Shark film, utilizing effects to make guests feel as if they’re swimming right alongside these ocean predators.
The top floor contains the scenic dining room, which can be reserved for private functions such as weddings or corporate gatherings.
texasstateaquarium.org/caribbean
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Picture Credit: WIlly Volk 94802649@N00/1379996042 Tiger shark via photopin
