When I am abroad I always make sure I explore every nook and cranny of a city, taking in as many sights, museums and attractions as possible, but do I do that in my hometown of Brighton? Hmmm, definitely not. I live in one of Britian’s main tourist towns and have barely visited any of the attractions myself, doh! So, we decided to have a ‘tourist day out‘ and visit Brighton Sea Life Centre, courtesy of #DoMoreWithAvios.
The Sea Life Centre is located in the heart of Brighton, just opposite the beach and Palace Pier. It’s a magical place, the Sea Life Centre is the oldest operating aquarium in the world and is nestled amongst stunning Victorian architecture. The main room is lit with beautiful rainbow lights with tanks of colourful fish lining every wall.
Walking through the different exhibits, we saw marine wildlife from all over the globe, from colourful tropical fish to pulsating jellyfish and this gorgeous smiley Stingray.
The sea life centre offers regular feeding sessions and informative talks throughout the day, educating us on different species, their habitats and conservation too. There is also a fun hands-on rockpool experience where you can have a go at handling some of the animals yourself. I was quite fond of this starfish and enjoyed tickling his spiny legs for a few moments!
One of the best parts of the experience for me was the walk through glass tunnel, in this enclosure there are sharks, huge stingrays and my favourite – a giant friendly Turtle, who swam right overhead, it felt like I could almost touch him. I don’t think I’ve ever seen a turtle so huge, also the sharks were lurking about, just inches away from us – it was an amazing experience. The only downside I found with this part was how busy it was, I wished we could have had longer in this part but we got shuffled along quite quickly – but we did go during school holidays, so it’s understandable!
The Sea Life Centre also has different sections for you to pass through, built like each natural habitat. There is a rainforest area, which is humid and hot. Here you can climb through the mangrove roots, discovering species such as piranhas, poisonous frogs and one of the worlds largest species of snake.
The new exhibit for 2015 is the ‘Jurrasic Seas’ – this shows you the creatures that have outlasted the dinosaurs and are still around today, with some hi-tech exhibits to meet the extinct creatures too.
Overall, we loved our day out to Brighton Sea Life Centre, it was really nice to do something different and experience something new that was right on our doorstep! I think it does get quite busy during school holidays, so avoid these times if you can but I’d recommend it as a nice day out for both adults and children alike – especially if the weather outside is a bit gloomy.
I visited courtesy of #DoMoreWithAvios. With Avios, you can collect points in various ways from travel to grocery shopping, filling up with petrol or even buying WINE! Then you can turn your points into cool things, such as days out like this (or flights, hotels, car hire etc!). I love a loyalty card (and a freebie!) so am already collecting points for my next day out.
If you decide not to use Avios points, the price for the Sea Life Centre is £35 for two adults which in my opinion is quite steep. I’d recommend if you are buying tickets for the Sea Life Centre to buy online as there are massive savings to be had – I have a keen eye for a bargain and found a few voucher deals too!
Where is your favourite place to go for a ‘tourist day out’ in your city?
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– Post written in collaboration with Avios,
however all opinions are my own.
If I didn’t love it, I wouldn’t blog it!
