SEA LIFE Manchester

Reviews

• DD

  Denz

  3 days ago
  2.0
  There is not many exciting things to see there. Very small place with the most basic fish possible except just 1-2. This normally wouldn't bother me, it's still a good experience if you've never seen an aquarium before. However it is extremely overpriced for the experience. You can pay a bit more and see the whole London zoo with hundreds of different animals including sealife. Making the tickets £5 at most would make it fair.
• SL

  shay light

  3 days ago
  4.0
  We visited Sea Life in Trafford center Manchester on weekend as my kids love turtles. We specially came to see turtles 🐢 here as we don't have in London Aquarium anymore. I bought tickets online with legoland discovery. As we enter we saw a small turtles 🐢 show which was really beautiful. My kids enjoyed that part the most. Then we enter to the Aquarium to see real fiahes and turtles. Under water tunnel wasn't good fun as its hard to see inside. Rather then other sides were giving more clear view. We saw baby lots of baby turtles 🐢 😍 which looks so cute and healthy. Then we reach where you can touch the star fish and crabs 🦀 but those one not real so kids can easily feel and rich them 🤣. There is small soft paly area for kids and toilet also just beside. There is also open water tank to see some big fiahes but its bit smelly. It wasn't very big Aquarium as its looks from outside the building. Its okay to visit once. Last we came out from the toy shop and kids bought few things as everything is too pricey, I dont know why. Its better if you close your kids eyes and run away. You can have full visit of Aquarium just in 30 mints or less if you kids dont want to play in the soft play area. Its located inside the Trafford center just on left side as you enter. So you have 5 hours free paking here but on weeked its hard to get parking. You need to book in advance as they have time slot for visiting. It should be little cheap as its not too big so people can visit again and again as kids love fishes.
• SH

  stacey hemming

  Aug 21, 2026
  3.0
  Visited several across the country and the Manchester centre was just a little disappointing due to its size, easily half the size of birmingham. You could be around it in 30 minutes when not rushing and taking extra time to read details for the same price as other centers. On a positive, the turtles chat at the beginning is great. Loved the visuals and interactive display.
• CB

  Chloe Bruce

  Aug 20, 2026
  5.0
  It’s on the smaller side of the sea life’s I have visited, however, I still think it is good value for money! Every staff member we interacted with gave amazing service, however I want to give a shout out to Laura! Laura really went above and beyond and made our experience unbelievable. I hope she gets the recognition she deserves as she really made our day.
• TH

  Toon Huygen

  Aug 5, 2026
  3.0
  SEA LIFE Manchester is mainly a fun day out for families with young children. Personally, I would not recommend it if you are visiting without children, as you may leave disappointed, just like the two of us did. The visit is quite short and feels more like a commercial attraction than a traditional aquarium. The tickets at the entrance are also very expensive. We paid around £46 for two people. It is therefore better to book online in advance, as you can save up to around 40%. I have visited many aquariums in my life, and SEA LIFE is definitely one of the most commercial. During the visit, you will come across paid photo opportunities, a VR experience that costs extra, and of course a large gift shop. You should not compare it with a large, traditional aquarium. One positive point is that clear information about the fish is provided on TV screens near the different tanks. For children, the whole experience is colourful, interactive and probably very entertaining. SEA LIFE is located inside Trafford Palazzo, directly next to the Trafford Centre. It is easy to reach by public transport: take a Bee Network tram towards Trafford Centre and get off at Trafford Palazzo. It is also easy to reach by car, and free parking is available at the shopping centre. In summary, I would recommend it for families with children, but adults visiting without children may find the high price and very commercial atmosphere disappointing. Personally, I would suggest avoiding it and visiting a zoo with aquarium sections instead, where you are likely to see much more.

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