Ireland's largest aquarium, set on Dingle's marina — home to sand tiger sharks, gentoo and Humboldt penguins, playful otters, and a hands-on touch tank where you can stroke friendly rays.
The aquarium's largest exhibit holds over 440,000 litres of water and is home to sand tiger sharks Spike and Splash, plus Molly the rescued loggerhead turtle and moray eels. Despite their fearsome looks, sand tigers are surprisingly docile — daily aquarist talks reveal their vital role as keystone predators.
Two distinct penguin exhibits: warm-climate Humboldt penguins in a rocky coastal habitat with underwater viewing, and gentoo penguins — the world's fastest-swimming birds — in a chilled polar enclosure with a snow machine. Watch for courtship rituals, pebble gift-giving, and shared parenting during breeding season.
Roll up your sleeves and get hands-on with native Irish marine life. Under guidance from the aquarists, you can touch crabs, lobsters, starfish, and even stroke the backs of friendly skates and rays — a highlight for kids and adults alike.
The aquarium's lively romp of Asian short-clawed otters — the smallest otter species — has been a fixture since 2016. Watch them wrestle, slide into the water, and use their dexterous paws to handle food. Their incomplete webbing gives them remarkable precision for cracking shells and manipulating objects.
Walk through a 3-metre-deep underwater tunnel holding 53 tonnes of water, surrounded by swirling mackerel, thornback skates, and spiny lobsters among rocky shipwreck remnants. Then step into 'Deep Atlantic', Ireland's first marine immersive digital experience — a six-minute animation journey alongside a humpback whale off the Kerry coast. Note: the immersive screen room is temporarily closed during renovations.
Open April through October, this tropical walk-through exhibit is filled with colourful butterflies from the Americas fluttering among lush vegetation. A completely different experience from the underwater exhibits and a hit with younger visitors.
Load the interactive map to explore this place location.
