A hotel is located within walking distance of the attractions.
There are multiple attractions in the complex and tickets can be purchased to see specific areas; to see all attractions (for one or more days); or, to acquire annual memberships allowing unlimited visits in a 12-month period. We opted to visit on a Tuesday when there are special rates for seniors (ahhh, the benefits of being old!)
There are three pyramid attractions that are housed in impressive glass pyramid-shaped structures: Aquarium, Rainforest, and Discovery (science-oriented exhibits and activities). Other attractions include Palm Beach (a water park), three theaters (Ridefilm Theater, MG 3D Theatre, and 4D Special FX Theatre), Colonial Paddlewheel Boat (hour-long cruises on the Bay in a replica 1800 boat), a Golf Course, and Zip Lines and Rope Course (shown below).
Upon arrival, we strolled around the waterfront area and outside butterfly garden.
We spent about three hours here and visited two of the pyramids. The first was the Aquarium Pyramid.
The structure is 12 stories high and houses 10,000 marine animals representing different different regions of the world that can be seen in various levels of the pyramid. There is so much to see here including sharks, manta rays, a wide variety of fish that are in tanks that can be seen from multiple levels...a beautiful design.
Here are a few of my favorites: stars (we learned that they are no longer called starfish because they are not fish) and a pregnant seahorse.
Loved these turtles. This is just a few of the many they had.
This was part of the "please touch" exhibit. Touching is permitted "with one finger, very gently" and no "picking up."
These were huge ocean catfish...there were about four of them on the bottom of the tank basically laying on top of each other. And a shark.
These jaws are from an extinct megalodon shark. It was the top predator of the seas about 15M years ago and could grow to 45'. Their teeth were the size of my hand!
Orchids and a pitcher plant.
Butterflies: Orange Julia, Cloudless Sulfur, Monarch
White-face Saki Monkeys can jump up to 30' from one tree to another. Females are gray (we only saw two males during our visit).
Two-toed Sloth sleep 15-hours a day hanging from a tree branch. Not sure if you can make out the sloth in these photos, but we did see one!
We thoroughly enjoyed the attractions we visited here. This is clearly a wonderful place for families to enjoy learning about nature. While we were there (a Tuesday morning) there were many groups of elementary school children enjoying the theaters and exhibits. To do everything here would take a few days. It is a very popular vacation attraction for families from Houston and the surrounding region. There are various package deals that are offered. Check out their website for additional information about hours of operation and admission fee deals.
Website: www.moodygardens.com
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