A short walk from the Sydney CBD or a ride on the Monorail or railway will get you to Sydney Aquarium where you can explore the wonders of Australian aquatic life.

It is located on the eastern (city) side of Darling Harbour to the north of the Pyrmont Bridge overlooking the waters of Sydney Harbour. Darling Harbour is a great place for a day trip in Sydney, with sight-seeing tours and tourist activities within minutes of Sydney Aquarium.

There is a large collection of over 650 species comprising some 12,000 Australian sea and water creatures including huge sharks and rays, platypus, fairy penguins, crocodiles, starfish, crustaceans and much more. Visit one of the most spectacular aquariums in the world and explore Australia's rich and diverse waterways, marine ecosystems and unique aquatic environments from most of Australia's water habitats.

Key exhibits are a series of underwater, see-through, acrylic glass tunnels where sharks and rays swim above visitors, and a re-creation of a Great Barrier Reef coral environment.
The aquarium opened in 1988, during Australia's bicentenary celebrations, and is one of the largest aquariums in the world. It is regarded as one of Sydney's premier tourist attractions with more than half of its visitors coming from overseas. A crocodile exhibit is planned for 2008.


FEEDING TIMES
Except for Christmas Day and New Years Eve when the aquarium closes at 6pm (last ticket sale at 5pm).
Opening and closing times are subject to change without notice and should be cshecked on the aquarium website before visiting.
Live Feeds are open to all visitors to Sydney Aquarium. (No live feeds on Public Holidays)

DAY	AM FEEDING TIME	PM FEEDING TIME
Sunday	11.00 am Great Barrier Reef Tank Feed	2.00 pm Shark Tank Surface Feed 3.00 pm Penguin Feed
Monday	11.00 am Great Barrier Reef Tank Feed	2:30 pm Crocodile Feed 2.00 pm Shark Tank Surface Feed 3.00 pm Penguin Feed
Tuesday	11.00 am Great Barrier Reef Tank Feed	2.00 pm Shark Tank Surface Feed 3.00 pm Penguin Feed
Wednesday	11.00 am Great Barrier Reef Tank Feed	2.30 pm Crocodile Feed 2.00 pm Shark Tank Surface Feed 3.00 pm Penguin Feed
Thursday	11.00 am Great Barrier Reef Tank Feed	2.00 pm Shark Tank Surface Feed 3.00 pm Penguin Feed
Friday	11.00 am Great Barrier Reef Tank Feed	2.00 pm Shark Tank Surface Feed 3.00 pm Penguin Feed
Saturday	11.00 am Great Barrier Reef Tank Feed	2.00 pm Shark Tank Surface Feed 3.00 pm Penguin Feed

Due to the needs of animals, all live feeding times are subject to change or cancellation, without prior notice.

GETTING THERE
Walking: Use Market St or King St access
Bus: Sydney Explorer Bus Stop 22
Ferry: Ferries from Circular Quay
Monorail: Darling Park Station
Train: Town Hall Station


In 2006, Sydney Wildlife World opened next to Sydney Aquarium, which is owned by the same Sydney Attractions Group.
The Sydney Aquarium is split into the following exhibit areas and highlights:

• Southern Rivers
  o Platypus habitat
  o Murray-Darling river system
  
• Northern Rivers
  o Saltwater Crocodile
  o Barramundi
  
• Southern Ocean
  o Little Penguins habitat
  o Seal Sanctuary
  o Sydney Harbour
  o Open Ocean Oceanarium
  
• Northern Ocean
  o Great Barrier Reef Oceanarium
  
  

The aquarium resembles a large wave, to complement the underwater theme of an aquarium and the maritime theme of Darling Harbour. It was designed by Australian architects and took nearly two years to build. The Great Barrier Reef complex opened in October 1998.

It features distinctly Australian themes and exhibits taking visitors through the continent's vast waterways and marine ecosystems. Exhibits cover the Southern and Northern River habitats and the oceans of Australia, through the Southern and Northern Ocean habitats.

Some displays are in the main exhibit hall and others are such as the Seal Sanctuary and Open Ocean exhibits are in floating oceanariums, amongst the largest in the world. Underwater tunnels allow visitors to examine marine life at close quarters. The Open Ocean Oceanarium houses the largest collection of sharks in captivity, some weighing up to 300kg and over 3m in length.

In December 1991, the first Seal Sanctuary opened. A new, upgraded seal oceanarium opened in September 2003 featuring Australian Sea Lions, Australian Fur Seals, sub Antarctic Fur Seals, and New Zealand Fur Seals. They can be seen below the water's surface from underwater viewing tunnels, and from above on an open-air deck. The Seal Sanctuary is incorporated into the Southern Oceans exhibit, which also features Little Penguins, the Open Ocean Oceanarium, and Sydney Harbour displays.

In October 1998, the Great Barrier Reef complex opened comprising a tropical touch pool, a live coral cave, coral atoll, two circular gateway displays and a massive Great Barrier Reef oceanarium. Over 6,000 marine creatures are in the oceanarium which contains 2.6 million litres of water pumped from Darling Harbour, filtered and heated before it reaches the display tanks. It is kept at a constant temperature of 25°C. The Oceanarium is 33 m long and 13 m wide, with a total area of about 370sqm and a water depth of 3.5 m. The final exhibit is a reef theatre where activity in a coral canyon can be observed through a window 7 m by 4 m and 26 cm thick.

In December 20th, 2007 a glass bottomed boat or 'Shark Explorer' began operating giving guests a tour of the great barrier reef tank.

Sydney Aquarium Website