{"id":2927,"date":"2015-07-01T11:40:59","date_gmt":"2015-07-01T15:40:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.cabinsforyou.com\/blog\/?p=2927"},"modified":"2026-06-25T14:49:25","modified_gmt":"2026-06-25T14:49:25","slug":"gatlinburg-aquarium-events-activities","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.cabinsforyou.com\/blog\/attractions\/gatlinburg-aquarium-events-activities.htm","title":{"rendered":"Activities &#038; Events at Ripley&#8217;s Aquarium In Gatlinburg"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>If you think you know what an aquarium is all about, you\u2019ve never been to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ripleyaquariums.com\/gatlinburg\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Ripley\u2019s Aquarium of the Smokies<\/a>! Yes, you\u2019ll get to see penguins and stingrays and sharks and LOADS of fish, but did you know that at Ripley\u2019s you\u2019ll also get the chance to participate in unique experiences like a FREE fish manicure at its Swarm Exhibit? With two levels and a variety of activities to enjoy, Ripley\u2019s Aquarium is your one-stop exhibit for education and entertainment when you visit the Smokies.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Behind the Scenes<\/strong><br \/>\nWhen you visit Ripley\u2019s Aquarium, be sure to reserve your behind-the-scenes tour of the facility. A Ripley\u2019s staff member will take you \u201cbackstage\u201d to see where the water quality for the aquarium is monitored, where the animals\u2019 food is prepared, and all the hard work that is put in to make sure these animals have everything they need to remain happy and healthy while at Ripley\u2019s. (Cost is $14.99 per person.) For those looking to take their aquarium visit to the next level, try one of these behind-the-scenes encounters for an experience you\u2019ll never forget!<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Penguin Encounter<\/strong>\u2014Interact with some of Ripley\u2019s most adorable creatures with this behind-the-scenes experience. You\u2019ll get to pet a penguin, take a souvenir photo, and learn interesting facts from an Aquarium staff expert. (Cost is $39.99 per person.)<\/li>\n<li><strong>Splash with the Stingrays<\/strong>\u2014Get up close and personal with these exciting creatures on a Ripley\u2019s stingray encounter. You\u2019ll get a behind-the-scenes tour, a souvenir T-shirt, and a chance to touch one of these amazing animals for yourself! (Cost is $29.99 per person.)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Just for Kids<\/strong><br \/>\nRipley\u2019s Aquarium is a perfect place for the whole family to have fun\u2014especially the kiddos! In fact, Ripley\u2019s offers several unique experiences just for kids that will give your children the chance to learn, explore, and have fun all at the same time!<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Jr Aquarist Camp<\/strong>\u2014Sign your little aquarists up for a chance to learn and be inspired by marine science and conservation practices. They will spend the whole day learning and exploring the aquarium as well as get the chance to go behind the scenes during a shark feed, get in the water with stingrays, dissect a squid, and more! (Cost is $79.99 per person.)<\/li>\n<li><strong>Kids Night Out<\/strong>\u2014Parents, if you\u2019re looking for a chance to get away yourselves, consider signing your children up for Kids Night Out at the aquarium. This is a perfectly safe way for your kids to learn and have a great time while you\u2019re away. They will explore the aquarium with scavenger hunts and participate in a variety of science experiments and artistic activities. And they\u2019ll get the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity of camping in the Shark Lagoon tunnel! This experience also includes a late-night snack and breakfast the next morning. (Cost is $39.99 per person.)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>General Info<\/strong><br \/>\nTickets to the aquarium are $24.99 per person for adults. Children ages 2-5 are $5.99 each, and children ages 6-11 are $13.99 each. For more information about ticket pricing or to purchase tickets, click <a href=\"https:\/\/ticketsgb.ripleys.com\/gatlinburg\/ItemShow.aspx?Grp=QuFHFAla6FI=&amp;Name=\/fEKQ85Gz0webfGSANYVHEdsEOXKQqvD&amp;SID=WEB-SWML-0315-001\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">here<\/a>. Discounts are available for AAA and AARP members, active military, and retired military.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>If you think you know what an aquarium is all about, you\u2019ve never been to Ripley\u2019s Aquarium of the Smokies! Yes, you\u2019ll get to see penguins and stingrays and sharks and LOADS of fish, but did you know that at Ripley\u2019s you\u2019ll also get the chance to participate in unique experiences like a FREE fish manicure at its Swarm Exhibit? With two levels and a variety of activities to enjoy, Ripley\u2019s Aquarium is your one-stop exhibit for education and entertainment when you visit the Smokies. Behind the Scenes When you visit Ripley\u2019s Aquarium, be sure to reserve your behind-the-scenes tour [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":2928,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[289],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2927","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-attractions"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.cabinsforyou.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2927","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.cabinsforyou.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.cabinsforyou.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.cabinsforyou.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.cabinsforyou.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2927"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.cabinsforyou.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2927\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":11302,"href":"https:\/\/www.cabinsforyou.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2927\/revisions\/11302"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.cabinsforyou.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2928"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.cabinsforyou.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2927"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.cabinsforyou.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2927"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.cabinsforyou.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2927"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}