TACOMA, Wash. — Would you get up close and personal with the king of the ocean?
The 60-minute adventure at Point Defiance Zoo's South Pacific Aquarium allows up to four guests from the same household to experience the thrill of getting up close to more than a dozen massive sharks while learning their biology and how we can protect them in the wild. Our dive experts will teach guests the basics of breathing air while underwater, then guide you into a sturdy cage in our 225,000-gallon warm water shark exhibit.
“The real reason why we are doing these dives, is generally when people think about sharks there is a lot of fear about there, but sharks are really amazing,” said Heidi Wilken from the South Pacific Aquarium.
The South Pacific Aquarium is home to large crevalle jacks that swim amongst nurse sharks, sandbar sharks, a blacktip reef shark, a sand tiger shark, and a zebra shark.
The Eye-to-Eye Shark Dive has new safety measures to keep you and the staff safe, and align with state and national dive program guidelines.
If diving's not your thing, fear not! You can try the Pacific Seas Aquarium Behind-The-Scenes experience where you can touch a moon jelly fish, feed an anemone and more! It's a fascinating tour through the backstage areas that only aquarists get to see.
“It’s just so cool to show people things that they may know they are out there in the world but they haven’t spent time looking at and really seeing up close,” said Amy Hale, Point Defiance Zoo & Aquarium.
You'll also enter the shimmery world above Baja Bay, spotting green sea turtles, hammerhead sharks, and eagle rays, and discovering how they are fed and cared for. It finishes with a private session hand-feeding sea stars and anemones in the Tidal Touch Zone. Don’t forget to get your finger hugged.
A truly extreme experience in the heart of Tacoma.
Point Defiance Zoo & Aquarium: 5400 North Pearl Street, Tacoma, WA 98407
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