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Tacky. That’s what you’d expect from the developers of the Kemah Boardwalk, a place designed to bring your 6-year-old and watch the money fly out of your wallet. If that’s what you’re expecting at the Downtown Aquarium, you’ll be a bit disappointed. Sure, there are cheesy boardwalk games, and the Shark! Voyage is pure kitsch. But the Aquarium Adventure is a bonafide aquarium, accredited by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums. For $16, you get the Shark! Voyage, the kid-friendly carousel, the Ferris wheel with its cool views of the downtown skyline, a lame up-and-down ride, and the Aquarium Adventure. Really not that bad. The main reason to come here is the Aquarium Adventure. Exhibits replicate the Louisiana Swamp, with turtles and alligators (together!); a ship wreck where you can peer out onto the bottom of the sea, including a coral reef and an octopus; the rainforest, with its snakes, birds, and piranha; a sunken Mayan temple (don’t miss the reticulated python); sea life around the legs of an oil rig in the Gulf of Mexico; and a touch exhibit with stingrays and baby sharks (but you can’t touch the sharks). Get your picture taken here as Davy Jones at the bottom of the sea.
The strangest (not that all new aquariums seem more like zoos) – and coolest – part of the Aquarium is the White Tigers of the Maharaja Temple. In the jungles of India around 1951, the Maharaja of Rewa captured a white cub and brought it to his palace for breeding. When the white tiger was bred with one of his daughters, a line of white tigers was created. All white tigers in captivity have descended from this line. The four white tigers here are worth the price of admission by themselves.
Outside are the rides. The 100-foot Diving Bell Ferris Wheel lifts you slightly higher than the surrounding overpass bridges and gives nice views of the downtown skyline. The Aquatic Carousel is the Aquarium’s take on the traditional carousel, with carved sea animals in lieu of the traditional horses. The Lighthouse Dive gives the been-there-done-scarier thrill of a 20-foot controlled fall. And last, but not least, there’s the Shark! Voyage. Cram yourself into one of those miniature train seats. Journey through the Houston jungle into the former Waterworks Building. Listen to a booming narration on those fearsome aquatic creatures, Sharks!, as they swim in the tunnel surrounding you. All kinds of Sharks! Tiger Sharks! Hammerhead Sharks! Bull Sharks! Sawfish (yes, they’re a type of Shark! too). But, wait – the best is yet to come. As you’re leaving the Shark! tunnel, the narrator drops little hints. Then bang! there it is – Jaws! Rising from the water. Blood dripping from his mouth. Probably human blood. Oh the chills going up and down your spine — make-believe that causes laughter from adults but the kind that kids just eat up.
Like it’s sister attraction in Kemah, the Aquarium is built around the Aquarium Restaurant. The Aquarium Restaurant is designed with an ‘under-the-sea’ theme, so you can see seafood behind the glass and on your plate. Like the other Aquarium restaurants, the service borders on terrible. Also like the Boardwalk, outside are those dancing fountains that kids just love. You might love it on a hot day, too, but you’d look pretty stupid all wet.
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