Gdynia Aquarium

The aquarium sits at the end of Gdynia's pier, in a low building next to the moored museum ships, and it is run by the national marine fisheries research institute rather than as a private attraction. That shows in the content: alongside the coral reef and Amazon tanks that most aquariums have, there is a serious section on the Baltic itself, its fish, its low salinity and the state of its stocks. The building is small and the route is a single loop over two floors, taking an hour at a steady pace. For a rainy day on this coast it is one of the few indoor options in walking distance of the waterfront.

History

Attempts to found an aquarium in Gdynia were made in the 1920s and 1930s, and it finally opened on 21 June 1971 as the Oceanographic Museum and Sea Aquarium of the Sea Fisheries Institute, a name it kept until 2003; it is now run by the National Marine Fisheries Research Institute (Wikipedia, Gdynia Aquarium).

The main sights

• The Baltic tanks - local species and habitats explained properly, which is unusual and the best part here.
• The coral reef section - a warm water display with reef fish, the busiest room in the building.
• The Amazon and freshwater tanks - large river fish and a humid planted section on the upper floor.
• The pier setting - museum ships moored alongside and open sea views from the walk out.

When to go

It is indoors and works in any weather, which means it fills up precisely when the weather is bad. Weekday mornings are the calmest. Summer afternoons and rainy weekends bring queues at the door and slow movement inside. Buying a timed ticket online in advance saves standing outside, and the last entry is well before closing.

Practical notes

It is small, and visitors who have seen large European aquariums find the ticket expensive for the size. On a wet August afternoon the corridors are shoulder to shoulder and the tanks are hard to see. Labelling is largely in Polish with partial English. Parking near the pier is difficult and paid, so arriving on foot or by train is easier.

Nearby

The museum ships and Gdynia waterfront are alongside, and Sopot and Gdansk are twenty minutes away by train.

Key facts