The Ucluelet Aquarium in this west coast ocean village, locals call Ukee, has had its most successful year ever of visitor traffic. This west coast catch-&-release micro aquarium draws ever more visitors as its “fame” spreads, locally, nationally & internationally: In 2023 it drew a record number of 40,O00 visitors. It has also had a good fundraising year. It releases its sea animal at the end of November, spending December, January & February cleaning & reimagining its environment. It will be opening again with new sea animal“visitors” on March 1. It offers season passes & low entrance rates. Posted by S Fuller.

We spent a wonderful few hours in the aquarium. At first we were dubious if there would be much to see as it is relatively small but you are immediately excited by the enthusiasm of the excellent staff and volunteers who point out interesting things to see. The diversity of creatures in the waters around the museum is extraordinary and there are so many to see from close by in the tanks. Many have stunning colours and are wonderful to watch. We saw the staff feeding an octopus which was an amazing site and this was followed by an informal talk on how they eat and live. We had a fabulous visit and would strongly recommend the aquarium to anyone young and old.

We were pleasantly surprised. Although we have visited Ucluelet many times we had never visited the aquarium. The sea life is gathered from the ocean around Ucluelet and is released and replenished regularly. Many of their fish tanks are open and visitors are allowed to touch the sea life. There is an amazing variety of sea life in the tanks! The staff were very knowledgeable and helpful.

This aquarium is really only one large open room. The centerpiece is a massive central tank with some small tanks beside it. There is also a number of touch tanks for kids. The staff is friendly and helpful. The entire location is likely about 30-45 minutes to see literally everything.

The place is just great! They collect the animals and plants in spring, keep them for the summer and release them in fall. Everything you can see there is from the area around. They seem to take good care of the animals and plants. It’s not very big, so you can see everything (and touch some animals) within 30-60 minutes. I would totally recommend this nice place and will be back if I ever make it to Ucluelet again. What a great experience!

This aquarium is a true gem! The marine life here is from the area, here for a season and re-released into the ocean. There are numerous touch tanks, and other big tanks. I learned so much. Our 10 year old really enjoyed the visit. I highly recommend a stop here while in Ucluelet!

The wonderful Ucluelet Aquarium (UA) is a learning gem in the stunning ocean village of Ucluelet on Canada’s west coast. I recommend this catch-&-release aquarium to all I meet visiting Ukee, as locals affectionately refer to their ocean village, & all who go love it. Staff, under the leadership of multi-talented Laura, are knowledgeable & friendly. Entrance fees are low, & lower still if one gets a season pass. This small non-profit gets busier with each year, as its fame spreads. It is open from 10 am to 4 pm plus pm daily. It takes around 45 to 60 mins to explore. All ages love the experience. One can also donate to this worthy institution by sponsoring its sea creature tanks, or by way of getting a cedar fish scale plague, both of which I have done, naming my wonderful Ukee family in gratitude. The fish cedar plague is 200$ plus & the tank sponsorship can range from some hundred to 2,000 plus dollars. It is open from March 1 to the end of November, when the UA releases the sea creatures it caught at the start of the year back into the surrounding waters.I recommend visiting it as well as donating to this inspiring place. Posted by S Fuller

Ucluelet aquarium is fantastic. We loved the wonderful design and layout of the building and the displays were wonderful. It was great to see local sea creatures in a catch and release aquarium and the interpretation was really well written and informative. We learnt so much. Colourful sea anemones, sea urchins, sea cucumbers, clams, scallops, hermit crabs, many different types of fish and so much more. The aquarium may not be that big but we spent about 2 hours there as there were so many amazing creatures to see in the tanks. The staff were so welcoming, passionate and willing to answer questions too. A great trip that we would recommend to anyone.