Shreveport, LA
In my last post I talked about attending the KISS: End of the Road tour with my son in Bossier City, LA. Anybody familiar with the area knows that right across the Red River is the city of Shreveport. It’s the third largest city in Louisiana and the center of a region known as the Ark-La-Tex.
Located downtown along the Red River and nestled between casinos and the Sci-Port Discovery Center is the Shreveport Aquarium. I decided that a visit to the aquarium would be the perfect way to end me and my son’s little vacation to northwest Louisiana.
To be completely honest, I wasn’t expecting very much from this aquarium. I read through a few online reviews and visited the aquarium’s website and came to the conclusion that this would be a fun place, but probably nothing too amazing.
Thankfully the aquarium far exceeded my expectations. Yes, it isn’t a very large aquarium, but it makes up for its lack of size with beautiful exhibits, tons of opportunities to interact with sea life, and a staff that was both friendly and knowledgeable about the animals and plant life in the aquarium.
We were greeted with a smile at the admissions desk and offered the chance to purchase a feeding token to feed stingrays. My son didn’t want to feed the rays but I went ahead and purchased a token for a small fee. We then entered the first wing of the aquarium. It featured tanks full of brightly colored fish and other animals. Lionfish, clownfish, pufferfish, and other sea life darted in and out of reefs and hid behind rocks. Throughout the exhibit, seafaring items such as anchors and cannons dotted the walkway.
As we left the first portion of the aquarium, we entered a large solarium that featured wood ducks, turtles, fish, and vegetation native to Louisiana. The area also had a small play area for younger children. Despite it being in the 90’s outside, the solarium had cooling units in place that kept the temperature reasonable. It wasn’t hot, but it was warm enough for the reptiles in the exhibit to remain comfortable.
We left the solarium and headed into the portion of the aquarium that featured starfish, clams, and jellyfish that you could touch in the water. It was fun getting to touch and feel these creatures in the water. There are obviously strict rules in place about touching the animals, so please respect these rules so that others can enjoy this experience. Also in the area, seahorses and baby sharks are in tanks for observation.
The next area that we entered was the massive aquarium featuring all sorts of fish including a number of sharks. Two “portholes” were available that allowed people to experience being at the bottom of the ocean with tons of sea creatures swimming around you. This is a perfect place for a photo op.
The final exhibit area was my favorite. I cashed in my token to feed fish to stingrays and touch them as they swam by in their pool. The rays were extremely friendly and didn’t seem to mind all of the people touching them. Feeding them is definitely a memorable experience and I recommend it if you ever visit the Shreveport Aquarium.
The final area in the aquarium was the SALT Cafe and a small gift shop. My son and I didn’t eat in the cafe, but it had a nice view overlooking the Red River. There was also a massive foot made out of plastic bottles that reminded visitors of the impact that plastic can make on our oceans.
This aquarium turned out to be a nice surprise and an excellent way to cap off our trip to the Ark-La-Tex. I have plans on bringing the rest of my family here in the future. Visit the aquarium’s website for more information on the exhibits and experiences that happen throughout the week including meet and greets with pirates and mermaids!
Thanks for reading this post. I have one more upcoming post about another experience that my son and I had while visiting the Ark-La-Tex, and you don’t want to miss it!
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