Tag Archives: is clearwater aquarium worth visiting

Visit To Clearwater Aquarium To Meet Winter The Dolphin

We had heard a lot about Winter the bottlenose dolphin who is currently the only dolphin alive without a tail so decided to visit her at the Clearwater Marine Aquarium. Enjoy our pictures of Winter the dolphin star of the movie Winters Tail taken at the aquarium here in Clearwater Florida.
Dolphin Winter Clearwater Aquarium

Is The Clearwater Aquarium Worth Visiting?

If you are in full tourist mode and are expecting an intense Seaworld experience with their performing Killer Whales they you may be a tad disappointed. Instead a visit to Clearwater Aquarium will be educational, relaxing, and informative and will get you up close with Dolphins.

Bottlenosed Dolphin
After parking in the small car park and admiring the rustic house boat floating in the water to the left of the entrance – yes the very houseboat in the movie Winters Tail, we realized that this small and dedicated marine animal rehab had been thrust into the limelight by the now famous permanent resident Winter and at the time of our visit was doing everything thing it can to accommodate the sudden influx of visitors.

We made out way straight to Winter’s area because they were just about to start her show. There are around 60 plastic chairs around the large pool that Winter swims around in. The staff explained how Winter lost her tail and ended up at the Clearwater Marine Aquarium. Winter swims and plays with a hula hoop seemingly happy and oblivious to all the fuss about her missing tail.

She was not wearing her prosthetic tail during our visit and the staff explained that she has learned to swim without it but they put it on her two or three times a day for rehab and to keep her back strong.

Holding Winter the Dolphin Tail

Winter was not wearing her tail so I got to hold it!

What we found most inspiring was the staffs total dedication and commitment for the animals. and willingness to talk about the animals. You can feel the enthusiasm they have for their work and we loved the fact it felt genuine – many were volunteers and you can tell they love their jobs. Ask any of them about the animals in their care and they were delighted the share their vast knowledge, positively beaming with pride when we continued to ask for more facts. This is why we love this place and if you have any interest in Dolphins and what’s swimming in the Florida oceans then you will love it too.

Facts, information, opening hours = Clearwater Marine Aquarium