Adventure Aquarium

www.adventureaquarium.com


Opened 29.02.1992

 

City: Camden

Country: USA

State: New Jersey
 

Species 850

 

The fifth largest aquarium in the country, Adventure Aquarium is the only aquarium in the world to exhibit hippos and the only aquarium in the United States to exhibit a Great Hammerhead Shark. In addition, Adventure Aquarium offers numerous hands-on touch experiences including Stingray Beach Club, where you can touch and hand-feed gentle and curious stingrays, and Touch-A-Shark, presented by Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield of NJ. Add in the largest collection of sharks on the East Coast, and our all-new, interactive KidZone - and you have a day of fun ahead of you at America's Most Touchable Aquarium! Explore all there is to see and do.

Last visit 2014


Adventure Aquarium
1 Riverside Dr.
Camden
NJ 08103
USA

Phone nr 856-365-3300


Open minimum 10am-5pm 


Entrance

• Adult 44,99 $
• Child 34,99 $ 

Annual card

• Adult 64,99 $
• Child 44,99 $

There are several daily feeding shows, for the time please ask at the till station.

Feel free to take as many pictures as you want. If you publicate the pictures online plese mention the Aquariums name

History:

The aquarium was originally known as the New Jersey State Aquarium at Camden, and was operated by the non-profit New Jersey Academy for Aquatic Sciences, an organization chartered to run the Aquarium and further its mission of education and conservation. The current mission of the New Jersey Academy of Aquatic Sciences is to promote the understanding, appreciation, and protection of aquatic life and habitats through research, education, and youth development programs. The Academy was created in 1989, and oversaw the design and construction of the original attraction jointly with the New Jersey Sports and Exposition Authority—the government-run group that allocates public funding for sports and entertainment attractions, statewide. Inspired by the success that other cities, particularly Baltimore, had experienced with their own marine life centers, the New Jersey Legislature approved the bill that included the Aquarium's construction order in the late 1980s, and Governor of New Jersey Thomas Kean signed it into law. Ground was broken on a desolate stretch of the dilapidated Camden Waterfront in the fall of 1988. The original building was designed by the architectural firm The Hillier Group, and became a gleaming centerpiece for a dull and virtually abandoned area. Constructed primarily of cast concrete, accented by large glass and aluminum facades and topped by a large, white fabric dome, the Aquarium was completed by early 1992, with a total cost of about $52 million. It opened on February 29, 1992. In its first year of operation, the Aquarium hosted 1.6 million visitors. But trouble arose almost immediately when visitor and critics' reviews turned decidedly negative and scores began to express great disappointment in their grand new museum. Some reviewers went as far as to call the Aquarium a "prison for fish", worthy of "immediate demolition". The building's concrete nature was glaringly apparent both inside and out, as bare, grey concrete walls defined almost every public space. The cavernous rotunda, capped by the classic white dome, featured a deafening echo and was poorly lit. None of the exhibits were themed, and many of the tanks seemed to be lined up in neat, square rows. Graphics were almost non-existent, and the building itself tended to feel small. But the death knell came by way of the animals themselves — as a New Jersey–based operation, the original Aquarium displayed only native fishes, normally brown and grey in color, and just about nothing else. By the next fiscal year (1993), attendance had plummeted to a mere 400,000. Alarmed, the Aquarium's managers began a short period of intense renovation, just a year after opening day. This was featured on Michael Moore's television series TV Nation in 1995. The Aquarium never closed during this reconstruction phase, but many exhibits were periodically offline or inaccessible, making the small building even smaller. But the result was generally worth the inconvenience: in 1994, Ocean Base Atlantic finally debuted to the public. The new attraction, designed by award winning experience designer Bob Rogers (designer) and the design team BRC Imagination Arts, Made great use of the building's massive 760,000-US-gallon (2,900 m3) Open Ocean Tank (the third largest on the continent), this new, themed exhibit introduced fish, birds, sharks, and sea turtles from all across the Atlantic Ocean, and not just from the coast of New Jersey. The new attraction opened to critical acclaim by the public and was also the Themed Entertainment Association's 1996 recipient of the "Award for Outstanding Achievement." The exhibit featured the adventures of a fictitious marine biologist, Dr. Marina del Mar, whose Ocean Base Atlantic laboratory, by the storyline, was responsible for all of the animals, displays, and information presented in the building. The Rotunda was upgraded with the addition of a large, spinning mobile in the domed ceiling, made from more than a thousand polished aluminum fish shapes. A one-man submersible hung from the center, its lights shining on the Command Center — a glorified information desk made to look like the bridge of an underwater lab. Even staff members complimented the new experience; the black and purple Aquarium uniform, patterned on the then-hit TV show Star Trek: The Next Generation, was worn by anyone who worked in public view. These changes and modifications helped to improve the organization's image, boost attendance, and assist the New Jersey Academy for Aquatic Sciences' effort to stabilize the attraction for long-term operations. Over the years, the New Jersey State Aquarium once again fell into a period of stagnation, with yearly attendance holding at about 600,000. In 1999, the Camden City Garden Club announced plans to open a children's horticultural garden immediately behind the Aquarium, on 4 acres (16,000 m2) of land between the waterfront building and the street. Construction moved quickly, both on the Garden itself and a new facade, box office, and gift shop for the aging Aquarium. The combined attraction opened in 2000, but did not greatly influence yearly attendance. Work began briefly on a ride attraction in the old Gift Shop, but was halted halfway through due to lack of funds. Now about thirteen years old, the Aquarium started to see a gradual decline in admissions. Efforts were initiated in 1999 to expand the existing Aquarium physically. As it became clear that the Academy lacked the financial ability to undertake such a project, the State of New Jersey (who owns the buildings and the land) began to look for potential investors, developers, and operators for the aquarium. In 2003, Columbus, Ohio-based Steiner + Associates began negotiations on a lease agreement for the existing Aquarium and a development contract for the lands that surround it. The principal design and construction of a large addition on the north side of the building began in the winter of 2004. The Academy continued to operate the facility until September 7, 2004, when the doors were closed to allow a complete renovation of the existing structure. As Steiner Entertainment took control of most operational aspects of the building (Guest Services, Marketing, Finance, Graphic Design, and Husbandry), the Academy remained to operate the Education and Research/Conservation departments. ARAMARK took over food services, and Securitas took over security of the facility. In November 2007, officials at Adventure Aquarium announced that Steiner + Associates had agreed to sell its controlling interest in both Adventure and Newport Aquariums to Atlanta-based Herschend Family Entertainment Corporation. The Aquarium reopened in 2005 and was the renovations ended 2007. In December 6, 2009, volunteer diver Robert Large received a bite from a sand-tiger shark, permanently prohibiting him from diving again. The organization that oversaw the volunteer diver program at Adventure Aquarium, NJAAS, allegedly promised to cover all of his $75,000 medical expense, however Large only received $20,000. Efforts were initiated in 1999 to expand the existing Aquarium physically. As it became clear that the Academy lacked the financial ability to undertake such a project, the State of New Jersey (who owns the buildings and the land) began to look for potential investors, developers, and operators for the aquarium. The hippo enclosure  was renovated again in 2014.