My Husband and I Are Aquarium Snobs, and We LOVE This Aquarium in the Heart of the Midwest

My husband and I love to go on road trips. We’ve been to Quebec to Vancouver to Texas and almost everywhere in between from our hometown of Madison, Wisconsin. And wherever we go, we try to track down an aquarium or two to visit.

We’ve been to Clearwater Marine Aquarium, Ripley’s Aquarium of the Smokies, New England Aquarium, The Columbus Zoo and Aquarium, SeaQuest Las Vegas, and Chicago’s Shedd Aquarium, (at Shedd Aquarium, we got up close and personal with sea otters during their Sea Otter Encounter experience!).

But there’s one aquarium that we love to go to again and again. It’s Dubuque, Iowa’s National Mississippi River Museum & Aquarium. Located just under an hour and a half from Madison, this Iowa aquarium is the perfect day-trip getaway for us. We came across it one day as we were searching for indoor activities to do during winter, and we were all too happy to fulfill our aquarium appetites by visiting one that was so close.

While the aquarium is an idyllic place to visit year-round, we’re partial to visiting when cabin fever sets in and we need to go to a place that feels a bit like a tropical paradise or a Midwest summer day.

Open 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily, we enjoy seeing the wide variety of animals, like the Cownose Rays that you can pet in a touch tank, or the North American River Otters that just received an updated habitat and are fun to watch as they frolic and play in the water. The sizable Giant Pacific Octopus is impressive to see, and is right next to a touch tank that mimics the waters of the Pacific Northwest and is filled with starfish and sea anemones.

The Gulf of America/Gulf of Mexico Aquarium feels as if you’re snorkeling in the Keys, with 40,000 gallons of water that boasts pufferfish, clownfish, and eels, among others. It’s become my favorite section of the aquarium since it’s bright, full of life, and beautifully designed.

Priced at $25.95 for adults, $19.95 for kids 3-17, and $23.95 for seniors, my husband and I opted for a season pass and we go so often that it saves us money. (Though we’re all too glad to give them our money, especially since the aquarium is big on animal rehabilitation, rescuing unreleasable animals, and conservation efforts.)

Although we’re partial to the creatures who reside at the aquarium, for you history buffs, there’s plenty in store for you, too, like touring the historic William M. Black Dredge Boat,  wandering through their real-deal Boat Shop, or viewing pieces of local history through the museum’s many galleries.

Whether you have little ones in tow or want to go for a unique date with your partner, look no further than the Mississippi River Museum & Aquarium. Every time we visit, my husband and I always leave feeling a little more educated and a lot more joyful.