Institute For Marine Mammal Studies

Fantastic experience: Took the family here, and I was a bit skeptical from the website. This place exceeded my expectations. The experience was a great one for my boys. We did the dolphin encounter, and it was money well spent. We are on a 2 ½ week road trip from Oregon, and this was the boys' most favorite activity so far. The staff was excellent, thanks for the amazing time!

Fantastic experience: Tons to do and well worth the price!

Fantastic experience: This facility is known for rescuing stranded and sick dolphins turtles and other marine life. It is so much more than a learning center. You are allowed to touch the stingrays in the stingray pool as well as the small tiger sharks. In the discovery room you are able to touch the horseshoe crabs starfish and hermit crabs. There are different tanks with different things in that you are allowed to touch. Every 30 minutes there is a different show they only last 10 minutes and so there's plenty of time to explore in between shows. Make sure you visit both buildings! The discovery room is set back so you might need to ask where it is. They also have a place where you can get food and drinks if you choose to purchase food there or there are picnic tables outside where you can grab your lunch from your vehicle and have a nice break.

Positive experience: This place is small so there isn't a whole lot to see, but you can tell that they care for the animals and birds in their care and don't overwork them for the shows. Good place for families to stop in.

Negative experience: Good experience! Sad the dolphins are in a small space all day !

Positive experience: Fun and fairly interactive. Shows are cool but brief. My main complaint is that the shows seem shorter than the time I went years ago. And the place is kinda small. The aviary is awesome and worth it. This place gives a lot of good opportunities for memorable pictures."It landed on her head!"

Fantastic experience: What an amazing experience. My son did the dolphin experience and feed the sea lion. The handlers were very knowledgeable, patient and caring. Highly recommended for kids and adults both.

Fantastic experience: I love having the opportunity to volunteer for this non-profit organization!

Negative experience: Side excuse for an attraction. The Dolphin exhibit was a sad excuse. Do not buy the ice cream treat-Over priced and taste terrible. None of the birds in the exhibit were native. Instead go to the Mississippi Aquarium

Positive experience: The check-in set up was a little confusing but ended up being a great day with the kids. The cafe was closed and my grandson got a little hangry before we realized it.

Fantastic experience: Main they givin out free alligators!! I'll love it and cherish it forever

Fantastic experience: It was a great learning facility. We did the sea lion encounter and enjoyed getting to meet McCoy.

Fantastic experience: I finally got all of my questions answered on what happened to the old facility and the animals after Katrina and it was pretty sad. This organization is still doing an awesome job in education people about marine life after all of these years. Everyone working on this end of the property were eager to answer all questions and educate you about every animal. This is more of a typical museum education component to the property while the Ocean Adventure seems to be geared towards entertainment. There is a great exhibit area that leads to the petting area. On the day we were there a couple of fish had just been introduced to the area so they were off-limits,but you were allowed to pet everything else after hand washing. The presentation about snakes and gators was informative and not boring at all. My only issue was the transport train that goes back and forth from the Ocean Adventure park to the Marine Mammal institute. Honestly you would get from point A to B quicker by walking as the distance really isn't far enough to warrant a train ride. It was a decent experience,but when we decided to head back to the Ocean Adventure area we walked. Its good to see this place thriving in the new location

Fantastic experience: We had an awesome experience at this place. My three Adult, daughters, grandson and I Experience the dolphin encounter, the bird encounter and the stingray encounter. It was absolutely life-changing and amazing! We got in the water with dolphins and their trainers, fed them, pet them, and even made them do some tricks for us. The bird encounter was with over 100 beautiful parakeets in a room where they flew onto your arm to How eat food directly from your hand. The stingray encounter was perhaps the coolest, we not only got in the water with the stingrays to pet them and feed them, but we were able to snorkel over the entire deep pool which also held bamboo sharks, grouper and redfish and numerous stingrays. Do not miss this adventure if you come to this area! It is so worth it!!!

Fantastic experience: Incredible experience seeing marine wildlife. Participated in the dolphin swim, stingray snorkel swim, and bird feeding, and had a very enjoyable and memorable experience!! All of the wildlife was wonderful and it was a once in a lifetime visit!!

Fantastic experience: This was such a hidden gym! The animal encounters are on the pricier side, but they were more than worth the money! The trainers go above and beyond to make sure both animals and visitors get the most out of it. There were also a lot of amazing activities that you get to experience with the price of admission, which is very affordable.

Fantastic experience: Each of my granddaughters celebrated their 8th birthdays with the dolphin experience!

Fantastic experience: I see so many complaints about not enough to do…don’t you complainers know what would happen if they had even more to do? You would go from paying $17/$15 per adult/child to Sea World prices. The crowds would be quadrupled, it would be a mess. Be grateful you have such a great little place to take the kids for so cheap. The staff are friendly, the shows are great, and there is plenty to keep kids entertained. That’s what’s wrong with the world, always want more more more, can’t ever be satisfied with what they have. Next time just go to Sea World. Go deal with the I-4 traffic and $30 parking and $60 tickets and $20 meals. I live in central FL and have passes to all parks and let me tell you, I would much rather have something like IMMS.

Negative experience: My family loves this place… would’ve been a 5/5 until I was told at the window they couldn’t accept a $100.00 bill unless it was a 2023 or more recent printed bill!!!??? How UNAMERICAN! We won’t be back. I’ll spend my HARD EARNED AMERICAN MONEY ELSEWHERE Since I’m unable to respond after your response, I’ll respond here …. She didn’t even ATTEMPT confirmation of the bill I handed her. I choose not to use any other method of payment except good hard earned legitimate cash! Thanks for the suggestion though

Fantastic experience: We spent a somewhat rainy day here and loved it!! Their dolphin show was our favorite but we enjoyed that we got to see all the shows and learn about the animals! If you're used to Sea World, this is a much smaller scale, but it was nice to walk around and not have to cover a lot of ground to see everything. Also I love that by going you are supporting their work with injured sea life! It took us about 3 hours to see it all. We even watched our favorite shows twice!

Fantastic experience: I came on a whim and I am so glad I did. Reasonable admission prices, interactive displays, the dolphin show was pretty amazing. Medium sized parking lot in front, employees are friendly and helpful, everything seemed to run like a well oiled machine.

Negative experience: Place is an absolute joke. You can see everything in about 15 minutes. Ray touch tank only has about 5 rays and you get followed around by a creepy guy the whole time. Sea Lions look awful with significant red marks on them that the staff try to pass off as normal. The dolphin and sea lion shows are awful and you won’t be able to hear much of anything from the speakers. For claiming to be a rescue place they’re really more of a poor man’s version of Sea World. They appear to only survive financially on the “experiences” with dolphins, rays, and sea lions. Tanks are way too small. Save your money and give to a more worth cause. Clearly ran by a bunch of greedy people taking advantage of the animals they claim to be saving. These people are a joke.

Fantastic experience: This was a great experience. The kids enjoyed the encounter with the stingrays and sharks! It was an immersive experience the kids will remember. We planned this at the last minute, but next time we will sign-up for the Dolphin and sea lion experience. We all enjoyed the bird exhibit where we fed the birds. I really enjoyed the museum and found it be educational and interesting. We'll be back next year for another enjoyable experience.

Fantastic experience: Everybody was so sweet & so we’re the dolphins. I thought I was going to be a scared but I felt so calm in the water. Awesome experience.

Negative experience: Well I'm going to try and be nice. To me it was not worth $40 for an adult and child and then my mother paid $57 for herself and my two grandkids. Very disappointed. During the dolphinsshow which lasted 15 ins Max you couldn't hear the girl clear on her head phone set. It's about a 30 min tour of the whole place. The best part was there were other people complaining that there wasn't enough to look at.

Fantastic experience: Very fun and a great experience! We did the Dolphin Encounter and we all loved it. Lots of great experiences and education available.

Fantastic experience: This is a very fun place to go. We had an experience with the dolphins and the sea lion which I very whole heartedly suggest to do. It’s a bit pricy but an experience you will never forget! How many times in your life do you get to act like a Biologist without the schooling it’s lots of fun. We had a great time!! The staff are awesome and will answer every question you ask them. Hats off to the owner for having a great staff!! The only thing I would change is let the person that had to change into their bathing suit should be able to change their bathing suit when they are done to the same room they started with instead of a cramped stall in a public restroom with no privacy! Other than that it was great time!

Fantastic experience: Amazing place and mission! The kids love it and we sent our daughter to the summer camp here one year.

Fantastic experience: Great place to visit for families. The dolphin show and feeding the little birds was awesome. The stingray pools are interesting. Make sure you check out the old building some more surprises inside. We had a wonderful time. Plan in advance and get to feed and take up close pictures with dolphin.

Positive experience: It was smaller than I expected but nice. The trainers and dolphins were awesome. But $4 for a powerade I'll drink that pool water that splashed me. But a great experience for the kids. Very informative speakers. The speakers in the ray pool house you can't hear,plus the kids yelping.

Fantastic experience: First I would like to say..they rescue and help sick and stranded marine critters. They don't abuse or torture. It's a place they use to teach young girls and boys about marine life.so they will grow up and respect it.. It cost money to help and care for these critters ...so just know you are helping to save dolphins and sea turtles..and all the other critters. A great bargain if you ask me.. The people are great and helpful.wonderful place...Thank you...

Fantastic experience: Wow I thought it was expensive, but then I realized this place has a lot to offer. Enjoy!

Negative experience: Be prepared to have Jordan the young punk kid yell and scream at every kid who's hand brushes the tail feathers of a bird. Parents beware. He made my young daughter and an autistic kid cry during this and I highly doubt management will do anything about it. They didn't off to comp us passes or nothing.

Negative experience: Don't you all realize that places like this are pure animal cruelty? The dolphins' teeth are filed down and they are tortured until they can even perform such "great tricks". What's more, they were brutally removed from the sea, their real habitat, and separated from their families! This applies to all marine life! Please don't support this and find out on the internet how things really work in such establishments, no matter how professional it may look!

Fantastic experience: Very informative presentations. Place was clean for us and the animals. We happen to go 2/21. We were with 2 student groups, students were polite and paying attention. ...Hats off to their teachers for good leadership.

Fantastic experience: Don’t let the gift shop clerk discourage you, this place is AWESOME!! Ask questions and save at least an hour for the discovery center! Great value, great learning opportunity, wonderful and knowledgeable staff.

Negative experience: This place is really cool and almost everybody is nice. The train conductor was the downfall. The guy that was supposed to be driving it was in it when we walked by but left and said he'd be back in 15mins. An hour goes by and no train operator in sight. Really sucks when you tell your kids to wait 15mins and end up with no train ride after an hour.

Fantastic experience: Jocelyn what's the lady that was doing the Stingrays today we went. She was so informative and Landry interacted so well with her. She actually finally encouraged my granddaughter to touch the Stingrays and she was thrilled. We come here every couple of months and this is the reason why. People like Jocelyn how hard to find she really made my granddaughter's day. Thank you Miss Jocelyn. See you soon.

Fantastic experience: Fantastic place. Brought my daughters and they loved it.

Negative experience: Be aware that there are only two dolphin & sea lion shows per day. Got there at 11:45 and would have had to wait 2 hours to see the afternoon shows, when it only takes 30 minutes to see the rest of it. Bird exhibit was just a bunch of parakeets. You can see that in Petsmart. Could not see dolphins or sea lions except at shows. A complete waste.

Fantastic experience: We visited in July and my son with special needs was treated amazing by staff. He did the dolphin encounter with Ellie and she went above and beyond for him. Everyone did, down to the employee who walked us there! Thanks to Mr. Moby for getting Cade here and seeing and nurturing his love for marine life!

Fantastic experience: This was the 2nd time were at the Marine Institute. My daughter's Stingray Swim was a great experience! Matt, the worker that was instructing my daughter was amazing. It happened that she was the only one doing this experience at our time slot, so it was very personal. Matt was very personable, friendly, and knowledgeable. Took the time to answer any questions we had. The experience feeding the rays and sharks was great! My daughter had a fantastic time and wants to eventually do the dolphin encounter (wanted to do that today, but the time we wanted was full). We also fed the parakeets. So fun. Had 4 land on us at a time. The only downside was we paid extra to be a "spectator" during our daughter's experience. It felt pointless when other guests came into ray pool area during her experience. I feel we would've have had to pay extra (other than we wouldn't have gotten to get first hand explanation of the rays and sharks). Overall, it was an amazing day.

Fantastic experience: This was a really nice place. You could tell the animals are well cared for and the grounds are very clean. We loved the show and getting to feed the birds.

Fantastic experience: My mother and I visited here from Kentucky. We did the sea lion kiss and dolphin encounter. The staff were very friendly. You could see their compassion with helping the mammals. We loved every bit of our visit!

Negative experience: I wish this could have been a better experience but it wasn't. We paid for the an experience that wasn't provided. When I asked about the train ride tour ( that my family waited an hour for) I was told it runs sometimes but weren't you given a map of the facility. The map was very vague. And the Supervisor/ Manager Amanda is not a people person; she should not work with the public. I know to go back to where people get paid to do their jobs at the Mississippi Aquarium. The people here must only be volunteers because we were given misinformation for one event, three different times. I would not recommend the food either. My burger was hot and cold at the same time. I tried to save money and I see you get what you pay for. I had to apologize to my family for a bad experience.

Fantastic experience: One of the best aquariums we have visited. Extremely memorable and lots of interaction!

Positive experience: Good place to take little children. Teenagers would get bored quickly. There are some interesting animal shows, but most are short. Dolphin and sea lion shows are entertaining but short. It would help if the sound system was a better design. Way too much echo for us older huys.

Positive experience: 2nd time there. This time my child's field trip. Amazing experience overall. Only COMPLAINT is the Gift shop employees are Rude and unfriendly! Sierra was the rude employee this time. All other employees were outstanding!

Fantastic experience: Best place for kids. Show that run all day and repeats. Dolphin, sea lions, birds, sting rays, and reptiles. Something for everyone. My 10, 6, and 2 year olds really enjoyed it even in the rain!

Fantastic experience: Great place for adults and kids, staff is friendly and happy to educate about each section of the center.

Fantastic experience: Great family experience! Dolphins, sea lions, stingrays, fish, and birds. We purchased a dolphin meet and great which included general admission. Highly recommend you learn so much about the animal rescue. All shows were informative. Hidden gem.

Fantastic experience: Went here on a field trip with 6 yr Olds. They absolutely loved it!! I love how almost everything was included in the cost. The kids were upset they couldn't dig for shark teeth though.

Negative experience: Been here a few times really enjoyed the last time.not so much..train not running ..more walking to do then usual ... Not good for someone with Parkinson's or back.problems.... won't be back until things are made more accomadating !! Actually would like a.refund !! Couldn't enjoy like I usually do ...!.very dissapointed !!

Fantastic experience: My husband and I really enjoyed our visit here. Loved the Stingrays and the Dolphins. The sea lion show and the dolphin show was very entertaining. Would highly recommend a visit here.

Fantastic experience: This place is awesome. Fairly cheap and more to do then expected.. They have 2 shows with dolphins and sea lions, a tank where you can touch the rays. They also have a bird area and a playground outside. Definitely coming back.

Fantastic experience: My wife and two little girls (4 and 2 years old) visited IMMS last weekend and highly recommend it to anyone traveling through the Gulfport area. It is truly a hidden gem in the state of Mississippi. We experienced feeding birds in an interactive aviary, a dolphin and sea lion show that was very educational, touched stingrays-also very educational (with help from very enthusiastic interns), and toured the museum. The turtle cafe offers ice cream and treats for the kids, and of course the gift shop has tons of stuff your kids will want! Overall, can’t believe I have never been and will be back any time I am on the MS Coast. Cheers!

Fantastic experience: Wonderful clean place to take family out for educational fun. Animals all looked happy and well taken care of.

Fantastic experience: Had a great time, was reasonably priced and able to spend a few hours taking in all the exhibits. Staff were friendly and welcoming!

Fantastic experience: What a wonderful place! So happy to support a local shop that supports the GOM in Biloxi. The staff are friendly and the facility is clean. Our granddaughter who is 6 was beyond the moon. The dolphin show was great. I recommend a visit ASAP.

Fantastic experience: We enjoyed all the exhibits. The people were friendly and the price was excellent.

Fantastic experience: Wow what an amazing little gem! Affordable for our family of 6 and we had experiences we will never forget! The dolphin show was incredible and we had so much fun feeding the birds and touching the sting rays!

Fantastic experience: Such an awesome experience for a great price! The dolphin show n sea lion show alone was worth the money alone! But to get to pet the the stingrays n the touch tank was fun n educational.

Fantastic experience: How have I not been here sooner? The hidden gem of the gulf coast. We swam with dolphins and sting rays. We also got a kiss from a sea lion! The little parakeets actually landed to eat some seeds too in the aviary. Such a fabulous time for the whole family!!

Positive experience: The dolphin show was was really cool. This place was a little smaller than we thought it would be, but there are neat experiences for the kids. The smaller stingray touch tank is more fun than the larger one. Plan for 2 hours or so of fun.

Positive experience: Very interesting place to learn about marine animals. The educational shows were short but allowed enough time to walk to the next event. The discovery zone had baby stingrays and other marine life to pet and was the kids favorite.

Fantastic experience: Wonderful!!! Got to see Dolphins, birds, snakes, and alligator. Got to touch stingrays, starfish, horseshoe crabs. So much fun!!!! Love it❤️❤️❤️

Fantastic experience: We really enjoyed this place! The sea Lion and stingray shows were very informative and the hands on area was awesome! Highly recommend!

Fantastic experience: Omg...that was a nice adventure. We spent the night with the Dolphins and sleeping on a cot was uncomfortable because my daughter wouldn't sleep on her own cot but of course it was mines I brought from home but our overall experience was astounding and I would definitely do it again.

Fantastic experience: My experience here was wonderful but the shows really make up this place . There really aren’t much animals to look at but there is a lot of educational resources here. The staff will give shows every 30 minutes and they do a very good job at it . My absolute favorite was probably feeding the birds .

Fantastic experience: We had a fantastic trip to IMMS. It's a great place to visit for families, birthday parties, and field trips. The staff and animals are excellent!

Fantastic experience: While looking for a memorable birthday experience for my young cousin, a friend recommended we take her to the Institute for Marine Mammal Studies. I cannot express enough how much of an amazing experience we had. A day later, I am still blown away by the personal interactions we had with the dolphins and the learning experience with multiple marine species. Dr. Moby Solangi and his team at IMMS have truly built something amazing. Their emphasis on marine research, conservation, and education is second to none here on the entire Gulf Coast. Their professionalism and capabilities for rescuing and rehabilitating marine life is extremely impressive. From Singapore to the Bahamas, IMMS is at the top of my list of conservation/educational facilities I have ever visited. A tip I would recommend would be to go online and purchase the tickets for the types of programs you would like. The prices are very reasonable to what I have seen at other institutions, and the fact that IMMS is a non-profit, you know your money is going to a good cause like saving a stranded dolphin. Grab a map from the gift shop and don’t forget the shows. Also, don’t forget to feed the parakeets, pet the stingrays, check out the tide pools, and say hello to the sea lion. TLDR; IMMS is the best marine life experience on the gulf coast, and better than any aquarium.

Fantastic experience: My son and I went on his first field trip with his kindergarten class today and we had a wonderful time. The exhibits are interesting and several are hands on. We loved it and will be coming back.

Fantastic experience: Glad we chose this place over the new aquarium. Very fun, interactive and informative.

Fantastic experience: Really awesome, educational experience with a bonus of live animals. Their main focus is conservation and animal rescue. All of the staff was very friendly and ready to answer our questions. The price is also very reasonable.

Fantastic experience: Fairly small but a fun, interactive place with friendly knowledgeable staff. Up close and personal with dolphins, sea lions, stingrays and a bunch of other sea life. This time of year (February) we were almost the only people there which made it even better! Not expensive either. Well worth it.

Positive experience: Such a fun time! Informative and so cool to see these animals up close.

Fantastic experience: This was an amazing experience to interact with the dolphins!!! What a dream come true! I had a wonderful time, and wouldn’t have wanted my first time to interact and feed dolphins to be anywhere else!!!

Fantastic experience: As much time I've spent in the area it's hard to believe I never knew this place existed. I good to finally know about it. Great place to visit and kids will love it.

Fantastic experience: Phenomenal Experience! Truly a hidden gem that I wouldn't pass up. The place is clean, with a fantastic schedule of events, affordable pricing & the staff are stupendous! In the museum you can dig for real sand shark teeth (even my older kiddos enjoyed this.) Every staff member is eager to teach & answer questions. When your here you can attend: snakes & gators talk, sting rays talk, dolphin show, sea lion show, and bird show; all last about 10 minutes but are open for questions for all curious minds (that means adults too.) They also have encounters which include the general admission in the cost. They have anything from dolphin kisses, dolphin encounters to hanging out with the string rays. As my daughter wants a career with animals I signed her up for Job Shadow. I can't speak for the other experiences offered but the Job Shadow experience was absolutely extraordinary! She was able to learn first hand from the trainers & experts themselves. They shared there love & knowledge of the job while making it fun & educational! If you have a kiddo that loves animals the way mine does I wouldn't hesitate and go make the day of their dreams come true, like mine.

Fantastic experience: What a great experience for the whole family. Fairly inexpensive, entertaining, and we all learned lots. This is a *must visit* to add to you list of things to do on the Gulf Coast.

Fantastic experience: Epic. The admission goes to an awesome cause. Great for kids and adults. Much cheaper than the aquarium.

Fantastic experience: Had such a great time at IMMS! Highly recommend it. Everyone was SO nice. It was great seeing all of the animals and hearing about what they do. Perfect experience for any age.

Fantastic experience: A must experience on the Mississippi gulf coast! Very interactive experience and great for all ages!! Family friendly prices and wonderful customer service

Fantastic experience: We had a great time at IMMS. It was only $16 to get in and was definitely worth it. There are a few shows you can go watch too. It is a good way to learn about sea creatures in an environment that actually cares about the animals.

Fantastic experience: Loved it!!!! Staff are great, friendly. Dolphins are really neat to see up close.

Fantastic experience: Great place to visit. We enjoy it more than the aquarium and at a lower price point. They have dolphin, sea lion, and bird shows. They also have a touch pool with sting rays and sharks, an area where you can feed birds, an outdoor playground, and another building with a small museum area and touch pools with sea urchins, starfish, hermit crabs, etc. My daughter enjoys all of the hands on activities and learning about the animals.

Fantastic experience: Wow, definitely worth it. We did the dolphin encounter as well and it was fantastic.

Fantastic experience: It was such a cute institute. They really care for the sea life that live there. The dolphins and Sophie the sea lion did not disappoint, and it was reasonably priced. Locals and tourists alike will love this place!

Fantastic experience: We absolutely love IMMS Ocean Adventures! You can feed birds, watch a bird show, dolphin show, sea lion show, reptile talk and sting ray show. They even have a touch area with alot of hands on education. Also, they have encounters and meet and greets. The staff is very knowledgeable and encourage questions. Tyler is especially awesome! After visiting our new local Aquarium, we decided the better fit for our family was IMMS!

Fantastic experience: Very friendly and knowledgeable staff. Incredible marine life shows and attractions!!

Fantastic experience: This place was SO great for the price. There are so many shows plus a lot of hands on activities! Our 3 year old loved it and so did all of the adults!

Fantastic experience: Best place. They have really amazing and interesting dolphin and sea lion shows. The staff is very kind. Their are multiple things that are very interesting.

Fantastic experience: My son who is 4 loved it. He soaked up the information from the shows up and had a blast and slept so hard.

Fantastic experience: WE HAD A great time, It was so nice to meet sweet APOLLO (rescue Dolpin) and also facility very clean all trainers and workers so nice specially Phographer Ms.Taylor she is such a young bright person Hope to see her and Apollo again!!!!

Fantastic experience: Snorkel with rays was worthit! Girls had a blast. Dolphin show was good. Sea lion didn't want to cooperate. Feeding the parakeets was a lot of fun! Though a little pricey, good family fun.

Fantastic experience: A wonderful place to visit. It’s not crowded, has a beautiful layout. Granted it’s not as big as an aquarium, but they are very knowledgeable about the animals and have wonderful experiences for people to experience. The ray pool was my favorite, plus it’s a nice way to catch a break from summer temps. You won’t break the bank with a visit. It was fun to watch the little ones see dolphins and sea lions up close. The parakeets are so much fun to watch.

Fantastic experience: Great experience for everyone. Very fun and educational. My family and I had a great time.

Fantastic experience: The staff was really educated on everything there, they were awesome with the kids, we love going there. We always recommend a visit there.

Fantastic experience: I absolutely love the manta rays the dolphin and sea lion show! Its just amazing!!

Fantastic experience: What an amazing experience we had at our visit last weekend! From the bird show to the dolphin encounter all was awesome! The trainers and staff are awesome. The animals were well taken care of and so much fun to watch and see.