We always enjoy a visit to the The Trafford Centre, so when we were invited to review Sea Life Manchester, it was a perfect family day out.
My daughters enjoyed Sea Life Manchester so much so that when they got to the gift shop, they were disappointed it was the end.
Sea Life is jam-packed with fascinating fish, and on our visit, there was even more information to learn about sharks in their “Sharklife” event, which is on 4th – 19th Nov.
Our visit kicked off with a talk from one of the Sea Life team, as you stand around an interactive screen and watch a 3D projection show known as the Turtle Beach experience. This guides you through the life of a green sea turtle & with the help of the children’s participation, you learn the life cycle of a turtle from egg to the sea. We learnt that the temperature of the turtles egg can determine if it’s a girl or boy!
At the start, we were given a “Creature Identification Guide,” which my little girl liked to walk around with spotting the certain creatures in the booklet.
We were also given the “Fish for Facts” question and answer sheet. We did find this a little confusing as the named areas on the sheet weren’t always the same as on the information boards in Seal Lfe. We still managed to work out all the answers. My little girl always really enjoys a quiz when you have to look around to get the answer. Personally, I love it, too, as it means she is encouraged to read and take in the information. We handed this form in at the end in the shop and my daughter loved that she got a sticker and a magnifying glass as her prize.
As an extra activity for ,”Sharklife” we also got an activity leaflet with “Truth or Myth” questions. These were up all around the aquarium and again made the visit extra fun and made sure kids were learning without realising.
While my youngest enjoyed all the question sheets, my eldest just enjoyed looking around at her own pace, she was facinated when looking through all the port holes and when you could get up close to the fish in the special tanks you can pop your head inside.
She was using her phone to take lots of videos and photos of the fish which was lovely to see her interacting with them and making her own memories to keep.
Sea Life Manchester isn’t the biggest Aquarium but it still houses 15 discovery zones with a massive 5,000 amazing sea creatures. The displays are perfect for children, all at a good height so they can see through the glass and get really close to the fish on display.
What you may not expect to find, is the “Sub Aqua” Soft Play half way round. This gave the girls a chance to burn off some extra energy and take a break from concentrating and it gave me and their dad a chance to have a sit down.
We had such a great time at Sea Life Manchester which took us around 2 hours to explore. I would recommend as a great all-weather family attraction to visit whilst in Manchester.
If you are planning a visit it is cheaper to book your tickets in advance online. It is also worth looking at the combi ticket which is excellent value and includes entry to the excellent LEGOLAND Discovery Centre next door.
