Marine Life Center

Fantastic experience: Cool little activity for the younger kids. It's free and the staff is very knowledgeable and friendly.

Positive experience: Fun and informational! The viewing pool was very active when we were there!

Fantastic experience: We had so much fun visiting this little aquarium. They have a small space but they pack a punch! Each tank was full of so much interesting sea life and the staff were friendly and answered all our silly questions. And it’s free!

Fantastic experience: Very educational! It's a small space but lots to see. Everyone is very helpful. It's free and great for kids and adults as well.

Fantastic experience: Donations welcome! A great little place to learn about our local marine communities and its residents. We happened to visit while there are less "residents" due to improvements in the facility. We still were in awe by all the creatures and the knowledgeable volunteers. Our 10 year old granddaughter loved the whole experience!

Fantastic experience: Great place to take your kids! Very cool aquatic displays with local marine life. The staff were very knowledgeable, and spent time telling us interesting facts about the creatures. And it's free! Highly recommend!

Fantastic experience: Great place to visit and spend some time in. Took my 4 year old and she had a blast. The staff was extremely kind and patient.

Fantastic experience: Amazing experience, the staff was very knowledgeable and friendly. We learned a lot and really enjoyed how eco focused they were. Highly recommend dropping by.

Fantastic experience: Very cute education center perfect for a trip for kiddos The volunteers were very helpful and the tanks look well maintained

Fantastic experience: I love this place! Absolutely amazing. It was a little busy when I went, but it's free, how am I supposed to complain?

Fantastic experience: It's a small building but there were some cool sea creatures. Admission is free. Good place to burn a half hour.

Fantastic experience: This place is so awesome! It’s free but please donate if you can. The close up view of the life that you live next to is unbeatable!

Fantastic experience: We love the Marine Life Center! Took our 3 year old and he did not want to leave. We learn new things every time we go.

Fantastic experience: We absolutely loved this small, free aquarium. The staff are really friendly and knowledgeable. The kids probably asked 100 questions and they answered them all! You should definitely check it out

Fantastic experience: Pretty neat little place. Staff were super nice, knowledgeable, and passionate. They pack a lot of species into there for how small it is. I enjoyed it as an adult, but it is a great place for kids too.

Fantastic experience: Super chill, and fun activity to do while in the area!

Fantastic experience: Such a nice marine center and the folks there are so fun to chat with!

Fantastic experience: Our kids loved it and the staff are super knowledgeable and friendly!

Positive experience: It's a small & fun museum a ton of knowledge for my kid.

Fantastic experience: Small little marine centre filled with creatures from the bay, run by delightful, knowledgeable staff. They even have an octopus. Such a beautiful informative centre.

Fantastic experience: Marine Life Center is a lovely small aquarium in Bellingham. Staff members are very attentive and helpful. My kids love it. It is a mandatory stop whenever we go to Bellingham. We love this place!

Fantastic experience: What a great little place. The people who work there are very knowledgeable and kind. I wasn't expecting much, but it was great for kids and the adults.

Fantastic experience: We took a group of students from FSD Community Transitions on a quick trip to observe some sea life. Sierra did a fantastic jobs accommodating some of our students. With some quick thinking, our students were able to touch some of the sea creatures even though the touch tank was closed. This was especially important to one of our students with impaired vision. Thank you, Sierra for your kindness and care!

Fantastic experience: The staff is really nice and knowledgeable. The place is small but definitely worth a visit.

Positive experience: A small free museum with a few things to see. Can't complain, as it is free, but don't travel there just to visit the museum. Go and also eat at nearby Anthony's and make a longer stay of it (You can park and walk to both fairly quickly). Staff is super friendly, and they are not taking donations right now as it is being fully funded by the port.

Fantastic experience: We were pleasantly surprised with this little Marine Life Center. Sitting off the docks where you can watch the boats come and go. Lots of fun to watch sea life, the large pool with all the live creatures is fun to watch. Great place to take kids, fantastic learning place. Cute business, highly recommend.

Positive experience: It's very small but fun for the little ones. Also it's free.

Fantastic experience: It's very small (essentially one room) but it's free and the person hosting was super knowledgeable and friendly and interactive with our young family. Great learning experience.

Fantastic experience: A hidden gem on the Bellingham waterfront. While it may appear small in size the collection of PNW marine creatures here is outstanding. It is a great place to spend time looking closely at the different creatures that cannot be done at a larger aquarium. Staff are also very knowledgeable and friendly. Well worth the time to visit if you're interested in learning more about what is in the local waters around north Puget Sound without the chaos of a large paid aquarium

Fantastic experience: Small but packed full of very cool things to see. Friendly and knowledgeable staff. Beautiful area and well worth the visit.

Fantastic experience: Such an amazing, free, educational experience at the marina! We went on a Friday around midday and there was a steady stream of people in and out. The staff member present was really knowledgeable and friendly. There were so many sea creatures to see! The giant pacific octopus was a favorite of course but the giant sea cucumbers, anemones, nudibranchs, fish, decorator crabs, and other animals were also spectacular! They also had some small toys around the room for toddlers/young children such as a sand table. Great for keeping a little one busy for a few minutes while everyone else stares at the octopus!

Positive experience: It was small but very informational. Pacific Octopus on site, along with many other sea creatures and corals.

Fantastic experience: Very cool to see the different sea creatures, especially the giant Pacific Octopus. Unfortunately the touch tank was temporarily closed, but you could still look at the sea creatures. Great place to take your kids to see what lives in the Pacific ocean

Fantastic experience: Kid loves seeing all the local marine life upclose. The staff is so friendly, good with the kids and informative.

Fantastic experience: STUNNING! Breathtaking encounters with marine life, up close and awesome. Super informative and was there to witness the Octopus feed while she cleaned and it was incredible.

Fantastic experience: A great free look at the marine environment of the puget sound!

Positive experience: Look, for what it is, it's well cared for maintained and generally and nice free place to go check out so my review may seem a little harsh. However, my review is for families with children under 3. We added it onto our itinerary thinking it was something it was not, so let me expand... my actual review would be 3.5 (if they would let me.) It is not just that it's only one room, it is also that it is a pretty tiny room. There is a bucket of sand an a couple puzzles for kids under 3. Over the age of 3 they might start to appreciate more of the fish and sponges in tanks. The main reason I rated it three stars instead of four is their stroller policy. Parents, you should know that only one stroller can go in at a time, and that is ONLY IF it's not crowded otherwise. So if you have little ones under 3, I would skip it until kids are older. I do think it's cool for adults and totally worth a 15 minute stop for older kids though. It's a nice offering for the area, just wish there were a few other things for the younger kids, or at least it was stroller friendly.

Fantastic experience: We had the best time at the marina today! Small space but wow, so much to see! And we even watched Blippi’s episode after we got home. Thank you Casey and the whole team! You were very informative and we actually stayed there for almost an hour and learned a lot!:)

Negative experience: Be prepared for a lot of signs telling you "NO..." And a few different aquatic specimens. The ratio is about 20:1

Positive experience: It’s tiny (literally it’s one room), but they do a good job with its size. First of all, it’s along the water and the staff are passionate about education. Signs explain each of the tanks and its habitants. There’s one tank that you can crawl into to poke your head through a bubble in the middle. There’s a kids corner with activities like coloring and origami. Public restrooms are nearby.

Fantastic experience: Great place to discover and learn about local sealife. The attendant was very friendly and great with kids

Fantastic experience: This place is amazing! We’ve been bringing our grandson (who lives in Seattle) since he was a toddler. Now, at age 7, when he comes to visit it’s the first thing he asks to do. That and get coconut prawns from Wanida Thai for supper I love that for the center, what’s best for their marine critters is of utmost importance. It fosters a sense of respect for the environment in the kids who visit.

Fantastic experience: Small but fun and educational place to learn about the creatures that live in our local marine environment. The staff are very knowledgeable and signs on or near each habitat/aquarium are really informative too. We learned a lot and enjoyed seeing the wide range of sea life - everything from an eel to fish, scallops, different types of crab, anemones, and so much more.

Fantastic experience: Super cute little marine center - loved how educational all the tanks were and they had some pretty cool fish and sea creatures. Also pretty awesome to see that they’re fully funded by the Port of Bellingham!

Fantastic experience: Super educational and super awesome!! Recommend for anyone who has some time to kill near the waterfront

Fantastic experience: A very small, fun and educational place to visit for adults and kids of all ages.

Fantastic experience: Sierra was very knowledgeable, welcoming, and answered all of our questions. The displays were awesome. We throughly enjoyed our visit!

Positive experience: Very compact (just one room) but nice and free mini-aquarium. The touch tanks were closed due to a sea star disease but there are still lots of good views for little kids to see lots of crabs, fish, and other sea life. It doesn't take long to see everything (maybe 10 minutes) but you could spend up to an hour, or maybe more, as they do have some kids toys and there are staff members happy to share info about the sea life! It was a little hard for my 2 year old to not touch everything and tap the glass but we managed.

Fantastic experience: This is a gem! A small sealife experience but so well organized to see lots of creatures up close and very well designed for kids especially. And it's FREE!

Fantastic experience: Great place and you can bring your pet. The staff are very friendly and informative. My dog's favourite place to watch fishes,

Fantastic experience: Small space but more than full of information! There is a stroller parking on the deck. A huge octopus and loooooooooong wolf eel? were my biggest wow today. Kids really liked there. The place is in the marina and you can enjoy the view of the yacht harbor too.

Fantastic experience: Awesome little learning center. Currently the touch pools are closed, but there’s so much to see and learn! There are some pretty incredible tanks to look in, a couple of octopus, and great knowledgeable staff. Highly recommend a visit!

Fantastic experience: I just turned 18 this January. I have so many young childhood memories from this place while staying with my grandparents during the summer. This place is amazing and will definitely leave a long lasting and positive impact on young kids as it did with me. Thanks to the amazing staff that keep this place free to enter and maintain it so well. Looking forward to returning again later this summer.

Fantastic experience: It's a little marine center tucked away in the middle of the buildings. Not sure why on Google it said it was closed on Sundays cause it's not. Loved that they had an octopus.

Fantastic experience: This is the sweetest small aquarium. Perfect place to take the smallest child and fun for any age. Free admission, but you can donate to help them maintain it. Large open tank in the center so you can peer in at several varieties of fish. Two octopuses were in separate tanks but next door to each other. Ted and Opal! Super sweet guide on sight to answer questions and help everyone enjoy the experience. Well worth dropping by.

Fantastic experience: The octopus is amazing! All of the critters are incredibly beautiful to observe. Such a fun little oasis of sea creatures. We love watching during feeding time and we especially enjoy observing the starfish and octopuses!

Positive experience: Sierra was a great tour guide! We made an appointment on a Sunday morning and really enjoyed our private tour. It's a fun little stop especially if you have young kids.

Fantastic experience: This place was amazing!!! Seeing how small it was & wasn't expecting much. I learned so much in the hour we spent there. The young woman, Ciara, who was working there, came out and gave us tons of information about the different fish. She let the kids there feed them as well. Ciara was Super friendly and knowledgeable. She seemed genuinely excited and happy to answer questions. All of this and it was free. I highly recommend stopping by for a visit.

Fantastic experience: As always, we had a great experience. Casey and the Fish are a local treasure!

Negative experience: Better call before you visit. I visited during posted open hours and it was closed. No explanation, no signs except the "Closed" sign. Not lunch time. Disappointed. Edit - Thanks for the reply. I didn't click through the Google Map links to Facebook so missed the notification, I guess that's the way it goes. The signs on the door were not clear, they don't tell a story, to somebody that has not been there before. Just trying to give the impression of somebody finding your place for the first time from Google maps. Good luck.

Fantastic experience: My toddler loved looking at the fish, a bunch of things were closed for cleaning, or to help destress the marine life, but we were fine with it, its nice to see that they care for the fish and animals

Fantastic experience: The MLC is one of our favorite places to take the kids, since they were small. We always try to go on a day that Casey (the one who runs the place!) is there. She's full of amazing marine life information and engages with the visitors with such ease. She'll interact with the ocean life whenever she can, so everyone can observe their activity. They've done so many cool things to the facility and it is such a treat and privilege that we get to see such amazing sea life, thanks to everyone at The MLC. In direct response to the ridiculous review left about things being closed -- you don't need to touch the sea life to appreciate and enjoy it (neither do your kids). The Octopus is young and new to the tank and needs you to be quiet and respectful around him. Your kids will appreciate you teaching them kindness toward all life, including being ok with not touching and not being noisy. Thank you, MLC, for creating such an amazing environment for families!!!

Fantastic experience: Super cute one room marine center. Loved the octopus ! The girls there were very knowledgeable friendly and really liked their center. Well cared for animals.

Fantastic experience: Amazing place to check out the pacific marine life. Octopus is gorgeous!

Positive experience: Small aquarium, but they do have a lot of fish and other marine life to look at. It's basically one room with several tanks in it. It's geared towards educational information about the animals there, presented in a way that appeals to kids. It's free to go. Well-behaved kids are encouraged.

Fantastic experience: We've gone a few times and always had a good experience. Even as childless adults you'll have a good time. When we went today we got lucky and the employee was able to feed the fish so even though the touch tank was closed we still had a great time. Maybe even better than with the touch tank open.

Positive experience: My son loves the touch tank, especially if there's an octopus! But the touching tank part is closed until mid September.

Fantastic experience: The people who work (volunteer?) here are so helpful and informative. The gal who happened to be there the last time we went was so sweet and patiently answered the dozens of questions our son fired off at her. Always a fun and educational experience

Fantastic experience: fun little place packed full of information. things to touch and look at!! my little and I both had a great time!!

Fantastic experience: What a fabulous community space! I can’t believe it’s free! The gal volunteering was obviously so passionate about her role and was more than happy to share fun-facts and answer my countless questions. I’m grateful for this opportunity to learn about marine life near me!

Fantastic experience: Really cute stop on a day trip to Bellingham, the kids loved it! They have touch tanks for the sea life. Free stickers and coloring pages. The worker there the day we went was very informative and kind.

Fantastic experience: Cute little place off the beaten path. The staff is very knowledgeable and happy to talk with you. Very educational place not just for kids!

Fantastic experience: Love going here on my lunch break and saying hi to the octopus! The staff is always so knowledgeable and friendly. And they always know how to work with all different kinds of kids.

Fantastic experience: Marine life center is a must when in the Port of Bellingham with little ones. Great homeschooling educational activity, the people who work here are SO GOOD about engaging with the children. They welcome all questions and love to answer them. (Our visit was May 14 2021) I called and was able to get in same day for a reservation (truthfully got lucky). We had the entire place to ourselves which made it very comfortable for the kids and easier to communicate since it’s a small yet unique space. Free to visit but they do accept Donations!

Negative experience: Very disappointing!!! Multiple time I drove up with my grandson — we travel 1.5 hours only to find it closed. Posted hours online and in the window showed we still had 3 hours left before official closing.

Fantastic experience: I believe this is where they keep the local touch tank for sea creatures This is really cool This should be a thing that's in every coastal city and has full government funding in my opinion education is the future

Positive experience: Girl working there, informed us of various species. Very nice lady. We took our two grand children to visit this place and they enjoyed it.

Fantastic experience: We arrived around feeding time and enjoyed the hungry and happy rock fish. Really neat for all ages! The employee was sweet and helpful with recommendations for fun in the area.

Fantastic experience: Outstanding experience for children. Reservation system makes it a little tough to get in, but I see why they're operating that way right now. The guide was really informative and great with our toddler, who was a little spooked by some of the bigger fish. Highly recommend as a rainy day excursion.

Fantastic experience: Amazing! Helpful and fun staff, touch tanks for the little ones and more informative lessons for the adults. 10/10 will be back.

Fantastic experience: Adorable little place. Easy to make an appointment and touch a few sea creatures. My kids 8, 5, 2 all loved it. Very friendly and knowledgeable staff. 20mins was the perfect time to visit and parking was easy. Thanks for the tour!

Fantastic experience: This is the place to take kids. Its educational and even has a instructor there to tell about the marine life and its very well kept. Best part is its FREE!

Negative experience: Very small and limited interactions. You can visit by appointment only and while wearing a mask. Staff are not very friendly or helpful. Expectation is that kids under 2 wear a mask even though mandate is for those over 5 years old. Save your time and go somewhere fun and interactive.

Positive experience: Just as a heads up to anyone with kids under 2 years of age. The strict precautions means that kids under 2 cannot go in the center.

Fantastic experience: It’s tiny but hey it’s free unless you’re kind enough to donate! Great for younger kids and a short visit. My niece really enjoyed it.

Fantastic experience: Its small but its a free aquarium. The kids absolutely love it. The workers are very knowledgeable and love answering the kids questions.

Fantastic experience: One of the must visit places in Bellingham. Family friendly and touch tanks too. The staff is amazing and they have tons of knowledge to share.

Fantastic experience: If you haven't stopped by, you absolutely should. While their aquatic displays are limited to just a room, it keeps the children easily entertained for over an hour. They have an amazing touch tank and another tank where you can step inside and get a 360 view from inside the tank. If you're lucky with your visit, you'll catch them during feeding time where everything in the center display comes "alive". For the cost of only a donation, if truly completes your trip to the marina.

Fantastic experience: My 2 year old loved being able to touch some cool creatures, play in their sandbox, go "inside" a tank, and watch some other creatures including crab, starfish, and and octopus! Such a fun, educational spot for children!

Positive experience: 3 and 1/2 stars. It was cool because they’re some animals and it interesting, but is quite small, we only stayed about 10 minutes. If you have small children I would definitely recommend.

Positive experience: Very small only about 5 different tanks, however very interesting displays. Its a great place to take kids with a lot of factual information geared towards them!

Fantastic experience: Always fun to see the marine life up close. Even touch, gently, some starfish!

Positive experience: Free entry and several tanks full of native sealife in this one room facility. Not really a destination but we stop in with the kids about once a year.

Fantastic experience: Helpful volunteers. Love the environment. Good rainy day activity for all kids. Probably don't plan to spend more than 45 minutes here, it's not very big but good for brief visits!

Positive experience: Very clean and well kept. Was a little smaller than expected and the staff didnt really interact and explain stuff.

Fantastic experience: Fantastic for a free little hands on aquatic exhibit. They need some fundraising to spruce up the place a bit, so make sure you make a little donation when you visit.

Fantastic experience: Because it's has an octopus! And more. A great place to take the grandboys for some interesting facts about the NW marine life. The volunteers were very informative and enjoyed hanging out with us. We had a ball!

Fantastic experience: Beautiful place to see. It's a small hall with 3, 4 aquariums. There are very interesting crabs and marine plants. Flawless place to walk through. Time of attendances will be round about 30 min - 1h

Fantastic experience: It's fun, it's free (you can drop a donation) the kids like learning about sea creatures. There are a lot of pictures with facts about sea friends.

Fantastic experience: This little aquarium offers a free view into the underwater life of the Pacific Northwest. The colors are astonishing! The staff are wonderful at answering questions and very informative and engaging. A real bonus when they have an octopus to observe, which seems often. They help the injured and disadvantaged and release them back into the ocean. And they have a touch tank!