Birch Aquarium At Scripps in La Jolla

After visiting the Birch Aquarium at Scripps in La Jolla, ca, we’re surprised it isn’t as talked about as other aquariums in California.  Sure it isn’t as big as the Long Beach or Monterey Aquariums, but Birch is a great place to bring the little ones.  

See The Full Detailed Video Below

Birch Aquarium Visiting Information

• Address:
  • 2300 Expedition Way, La Jolla, CA 92037
• Phone:
  • 858-534-3474
• Website:
  • https://aquarium.ucsd.edu/
• Hours:
  • Open daily 9am-5pm (We recommend calling them beforehand to confirm their business hours) 
• Entry price:
  • Adults $24.95. Child (Age 3-17) $19.95. Children 2 and under are free.
• Parking:
  • Free
• Time spent:
  • 2.5 hours
• What we packed:
  • sunblock, lip sunscreen, insect repellant, and water. 
• Food:
  • Splash Cafe right next to the entrance gate
• Stroller/Wagon friendly:
  • Yes
• Restrooms:
  • Yes
• Birthday party rentals:
  • Yes
• Gift certificates:
  • Ni
• Future events:
  • Kids Free in October. Promocode KIDSFREE22. Two free children with paid adult admission.

What We Said In Our Birch Aquarium Video

With over 60 habitats housing marine life up and down the coast from the pacific northwest into Mexico’s tropical waters, Scripps has a great collection of our seafaring neighbors to learn about.

Standout habitats have got to start with their 2-story 70000 giant kelp forest tank home to sharks, Ells, and the Black Sea bass. It’s an impressive tank that shows off one of the pacific coasts’ most diverse biomes. Birch also has a whole section (celebrating) seahorses and seadragons. The kids loved the large exhibit, and we spent a fair amount of time there watching them glide around the tank.

The girls also liked seeing the blue penguins, and the shark tank outside gave them a great view of various stingrays and sharks. Our oldest was so inspired by the tank that she bombarded the nearby volunteer with question after question about sharks that she answered without a hitch.

We also spent a while around Tide pool plaza, where the kids could reach into the touch pools and interact with sea stars, sea anemones, and more. The back side also offers a section where volunteers can share a curated list of animals, from hermit crabs to sea cucumbers. It’s all so informative, and the interactive nature of the experience really hits home, and you seriously can’t ignore the plaza’s beautiful view of the La Jolla coast.

Birch Aquarium is super informative. Scripps does research all over the world, and their passion for discovery is evident throughout the aquarium. Their oddities section is an excellent example of how they try to make unique animal adaptations into superpowers that children can get excited about and remember. As parents, we appreciate it.

Similar Options That Might Interest You

We explored birch for a little over two hours, with it easily slotting into a La Jolla itinerary that had us checking out the cave store, as other parts of the beautiful coast that you can click on here once they are up.

Waterfront Park (youtube video)

La Jolla Cove

See you again with more around California with kids.