A Guide to AQWA | Directions, Tickets & Activities [2025]

The coastline of Western Australia measures an epic 13,500 km, which means the region is never short on sea life. We’re talking sharks, turtles, and even creatures that are borderline aliens.

Catching sight of them in the wild, though, takes a bit of a grunt. Oftentimes, you have to pay for a pricey scuba diving experience first, book a whole day on a cruise boat, or be born with a bladder of steel.

That’s why we booked a trip to the 35-plus-year-old Aquarium of Western Australia (AQWA) and wrote this guide. Most of WA’s treasured marine life and watery attractions are all there, and we soaked them all just by taking an amble.

Things to Know

Address: Hillarys Boat Harbour, 91 Southside Dr, Hillarys
Contact Details: +61 8 9447 7500
Operating Hours: Daily – 9 am to 4 pm
Travel Time from the Perth CBD: 27 mins (23.3 km)
Website

How to Get Here

By Train: AQWA is accessible from the Perth CBD via the Yanchep Line, which can be boarded at the underground station.

The train stops at Warwick Stn, where you must hop on bus line 423, heading to St Helier Dr after Nerida Pl. From there, enter Southside Dr until you reach the aquarium; the walk usually takes 9 minutes.

By Bus: The aquarium is within bus reach of the Perth CBD through bus line 388, available at Perth Busport Zone B. It halts at Warwick Stn, so you just have to follow the previous steps to arrive at AQWA.

By Car: You’ll find free parking at Hillarys Boat Harbour. If it’s packed, the closest options are Sorrento Beach Parking Station North and City of Joondalup – Sorrento Beach Parking Station South.

By Taxi: If you want to calculate potential taxi fares from the Perth CBD to AQWA, use the table below.

Tariff 1 – 6 am to 5:59 pm
Flagfall	Distance Rate	Booking Fee	Waiting Time
$5.10	2.04/km	$1.80	$58/hr
Tariff 2 – 6 pm to 5:59 am (including all day Saturday and Sunday)
Flagfall	Distance Rate	Booking Fee	Waiting Time
$7.30	2.04/km	$1.80	$58/hr
Ultra Peak (12 am to 02:59 am on Friday and Saturday only)
Flagfall	Distance Rate	Booking Fee	Waiting Time
$7.30 + $4.30	2.04/km	$1.80	$58/hr

Things to Do

Snorkel, dive, or swim with sharks

From aquariumofwesternaustralia

Price (per person): $146 to $158 (Call to check for changes.)

Yes, yes—we said there’d be no need for a wetsuit, but it’s snorkelling and diving with sharks. Hard to pass that up! For 1–2 hours, you’ll be gliding inside the country’s biggest shark aquarium (named Shipwreck Coast) with the mislabelled creatures themselves.

You won’t be facing them alone, though; a PADI-qualified instructor (usually Brad) leads the dive, including the 15-minute briefing. Plus, the 3-million-litre aquarium also has schools of smaller fish and rays to gawk at.

Explore the aquarium on a glass-bottom boat

From aquariumofwesternaustralia

Prices (per person)

Adult (16+ years) – $45
Child (4–15 years) – $29
Family (2 Adults + 2 Children) – $136
Concession (Tertiary Student or Health Care Card required) – $37
Senior (Seniors/Pensioner Card required) – $37
AQWA Annual Member (ID required) – $10

Since the kiddos weren’t diver material yet, we opted for the glass-bottom boat experience. It was a mint deal, as we enjoyed a bird’s eye view of turtles, stingrays, and sharks for nearly 30 minutes, without getting splashed on.

The guided bit was the cherry on top. Our little ones went home knowing tons of animal facts, and yes, it had them Googling for more.

Gather the sprogs for a storytime

From aquariumofwesternaustralia

Price: Free with entry

Storytime Beneath the Sea is one reason families rock up to AQWA on a Wednesday, at around 9:30 am. The toddler-friendly experience is an interactive and sensory-based way to teach the tots about marine life.

Our kids’ first go at it got them instantly hooked. The guide had the proper energy and colourful materials to keep the sprouts engaged, with the stories requiring active participation.

Sing and dance for the sea with your toddlers

From aquariumofwesternaustralia

Price (per child): $161

If the previous experience is way too short for your tiny marine expert, consider signing them up for the 8-session Sea School. The weekly, 45-minute classes will have them dancing like jellyfish, singing for the ocean, and taking home original crafts.

Each meeting also features one aquatic animal in its natural habitat. The kiddos observe and study it for an entire day with the help of an expert, who’ll even teach them to sign the critter’s name in Auslan sign language.

Have supper under the surf

From aquariumofwesternaustralia

Price (per person): $195

You know, samey dates could be livened up with AQWA’s in-demand Dine Beneath the Sea event. A three-course menu in an adults-only section, with turtles gliding by the glass, will never not impress our lot, especially the lovebirds.

Better still, you won’t just be paying for the underwater venue; the food is premium, and the selection is vegan- and vegetarian-friendly. That means braised brisket or roasted pumpkin in pepita cream could be the table’s centrepiece.

Step beyond the ‘Staff Only’ sign

From aquariumofwesternaustralia

Prices (per person): (This experience isn’t available on Tuesdays.)

Adult (16+ years) – $67.00
Child (4-15 years) – $54.00
Family (2 adults + 2 children) – $225.00

The Go Behind The Scenes Pass is for folks who thought they’d seen every corner of AQWA. Boy, you’d be surprised by what those restricted areas hide.

What’s ace is that it’s not a wander-only affair. Without spoiling too much, we entered the Coral Bank of WA, fed a crayfish, studied the Shipwreck Coast’s creatures, and even examined microscopic coral polyps…all in a day.

Marvel at one of the world’s largest coral exhibits

From aquariumofwesternaustralia

Price (per person): Free with entry

Normally, a trip to Rottnest Island from the Perth CBD takes over 30 minutes; AQWA’s Coral Reef makes it quicker. Living corals from the Island can be observed here, with ranks of patterned limestone to boot.

Another reason to swing by is the zone’s prestige. You see, it’s one of Earth’s biggest reef exhibits, and you can relish all the colours and life through a stroll (or on the seats).

Listen to talks and watch feeding sessions

From aquariumofwesternaustralia

Price (per person): Free with entry

You’re not leaving AQWA without picking up a fact or two about local species. For instance, we arrived at around 10:30 am, just in time for the Turtle Rescue Talk, where we learned the right steps for turtle rehab and release.

At noon, we sat through another fascinating lecture. It was on rays and sharks, plus a ‘how to feed a school of fish’ demo.

What kept our kids rapt attention, though, was Build a Reef, kicking off at 1 pm on weekdays and 2:30 pm on weekends. Using LEGOs, it explained how corals are formed.

Learn what a starfish feels like

From aquariumofwesternaustralia

Price (per person): Free with entry

Seeing the faces of kids (and kids at heart) light up at the outdoor touch pool made this bit stand out to me.

The premise was simple yet absorbing: touch marine animals and learn what they feel like. In our case, the animals meant sea cucumbers, starfish, and even baby sharks.

Enrol your mini biologist in a workshop

From aquariumofwesternaustralia

Price (per child): $79

Kids Marine Biology might be AQWA’s most well-rounded experience for children (no teens permitted). The 3-hour program has lessons, craft-making activities, fossil examinations, and most importantly, lunch.

It’s pretty cost-efficient as well, considering it ticks some of the aquarium’s biggest draws, such as the glass-bottom boat and the behind-the-scenes tour.

Throw a birthday party

From aquariumofwesternaustralia

Prices (per guest)

Backstage Pass – $50
Mermaid Magic – $65
Turtley Awesome – $50
Additional Adults – $27

Birthdays are more fin-tastic at AQWA. Apologies for that pun, but most would agree; their three ocean-themed packages are well-received.

The Backstage Pass is essentially a behind-the-scenes tour, often picked by kids aged 8–16 years. Parts of the outing include the turtle rescue pool, AQWA’s filter systems, and the coral growing room.

Meanwhile, Turtley Awesome and Mermaid Magic are ideal for those between 4 and 9 years old. Both involve encounters with turtles, but the latter adds extras like a feeding session, mermaid-style makeup, and a glass-bottom boat ride.

Spot glowing corals

From aquariumofwesternaustralia

Price (per person): Free with entry

At the Glowing Coral exhibit, I overheard one kid saying, ‘Those look like aliens.’ Truth be told, I thought of the same thing.

This section flaunts some of Western Australia’s oddest invertebrates and anemones. On top of that, an immersive UV lighting system is installed to bring out the usually invisible bits of the creatures.

Go eye-to-eye with dangerous marine life

From aquariumofwesternaustralia

Price: Free with entry

We don’t blame scuba divers who blurt out expletives every time they clock a lionfish in the wild, which explains DANGERzone’s inclusion here. In this exhibit, you don’t have to risk your pants to observe some of Western Australia’s deadliest critters.

Deadliest critters, in this case, refer to peacock mantis shrimp, blue ringed octopus, sea snakes, cone shells, box fish, and more (including the mentioned lionfish).

What’s handy is the availability of fact sheets, which share unusual tidbits on the wonders. For example, did you know lionfish ‘sip’ their food through a vacuum formed in their mouth? No wonder they suck.