Zoo Review: SEA LIFE Arizona

I came to the Arizona Mills shopping mall in Tempe, Arizona (just outside of Phoenix) to answer one question - would SEA LIFE Arizona differ in any meaningful way from SEA LIFE Michigan?  I was intrigued by the notion of the aquarium chain and wanted to learn what differences, if any, there were.  Should I make an effort to visit a SEA LIFE wherever I find one, or are the all the same?

The answer?  Pretty darn similar.  There were a few differences, but I found them almost negligible. 

Now, one thing I did like about Arizona vs. Michigan was the lack of an annoying film theater intro right when you come in.    Some features were almost identical, from the wrap-around tank of schooling fish to the touch tanks to the stingray tank that kids (or you, if you are not easily embarrassed) can crawl through to pop up in the middle of.   You'll see moon jellies and morays and other smaller aquarium favorites.  The themed octopus gallery, highlighting a variety of species apart from the giant Pacific octopus seen at most aquariums, was one of my favorite features at Michigan, and that was not replicated here.  Instead, there was Critter Canyon, a little educational area with displays of a few small native herps and invertebrates.

There was also the big tank with non-releasable sea turtles and small sharks, which can be viewed through windows or a tunnel, again just like Michigan.  The only difference here is that, instead of the ruins of a submerged Lovecraftian temple (as I choose to think of it), the fish and turtles here are swimming around the fossilized remains of a giant marine reptile.

The place did not make much of an impression on me.  Nothing bad, but I was literally in and out in half an hour, curiosity satisfied.  As I said in my review of Michigan, I'm not the target audience - families with small kids are.

Now, one thing that Arizona has to contend with that Michigan does not is a rival - the brand new, massive OdySea Aquarium has opened recently, and it has individual tanks which could probably fit all of SEA LIFE Arizona (and maybe Michigan too, if you cram them).  Now, to be far, when I was at SEA LIFE being nosy and eavesdropping, I heard two grandmothers telling each other how much they preferred SEA LIFE to OdySea for a variety of reasons - it's closer to them, it's cheaper to get into, and, most importantly for them, OdySea was just too big for them to manage with their grandkids.

I don't expect SEA LIFE Arizona to be muscled out by OdySea - it sounds like it'll keep it's quiet little niche in the mall and have a crowd to please.  I suppose the lesson is that, whatever your interests and tastes, if you come to Phoenix, there's an aquarium for you.

SEA LIFE Arizona