Clearwater Marine Aquarium is excited to welcome you to enjoy the world of marine life rescue with improved safety measures!
Visiting CMA is a family-friendly experience where you will discover wonderful marine animals and learn about our mission to rescue and protect them in the wild. Explore the home of rescued dolphins from spectacular underwater windows in the 1.5-million-gallon Ruth & J.O. Stone Dolphin Complex or view them from above and soak in the beautiful Clearwater Bay vista on the spacious Dolphin Terrace. See our rescue work in action and view sea turtle patients in our working marine animal hospital or watch how the resident animals receive daily enrichment from our animal care team. Throughout your visit, health and safety for you, our staff and the animals we care for is our priority.
How We’re Keeping Everyone Safe
CMA has implemented significant safety precautions to protect staff, animals, and guests while ensuring a fun and educational visit.
Security Bag Checks
For the safety and security of our guests, team members, and animals, a security screening procedure is being implemented at Clearwater Marine Aquarium. Bag searches may be conducted utilizing a metal wand, a freestanding metal detector, or via a manual search through personal items with a dowel. All bags, backpacks, purses, and packages will be subject to inspection. Random screening or Total Population Screening may also be utilized.
The following items are prohibited and not permitted inside CMA facilities: firearms, knives, razor blades, pepper spray, chemical agents, stun guns, collapsible batons, glass bottles, alcohol, and any other item that would affect the safety and security of our animals (such as laser pointers, strobe lights, and fireworks). These items MAY be left in securely locked vehicles prior to entry into the facility.
The following illegal items are not permitted on CMA property at all, and may not be left in securely locked vehicles prior to entry: explosives, illegal drugs, or drug paraphernalia.
We appreciate your cooperation in maintaining the safety of our animals, guests, and team members at Clearwater Marine Aquarium.
Exposure to COVID-19 is an inherent risk in any public location where people are present; we cannot guarantee you will not be exposed during your visit. The CDC recommends that people get fully vaccinated. Per the CDC, vaccines are safe and highly effective at protecting people from severe COVID-19. Getting fully vaccinated yourself may also protect people around you. The CDC still recommends prevention measures for unvaccinated people. For more information see www.cdc.gov.
How You Can Visit Clearwater Marine Aquarium
Home to rescued marine animals, Clearwater Marine Aquarium is excited to welcome you with enhanced safety measures. We encourage booking advanced reservations online This allows CMA to provide a unique experience, with limited capacity for social distancing, while ensuring the highest standards of cleanliness.
Tickets and Visits
- All guests are encouraged to pre-purchase their tickets online on our website or by calling reservations.
- Admission tickets are only good for the date they are purchased for. Please choose your visit date carefully
Arriving and Parking at CMA
- All guests parking in the garage will pay at the exit when they leave.
- CMA recommends you arrive with ample time for parking and check-in with our guest services team.
What You Can Expect to See and Enjoy When You Visit CMA
- New Ruth & J.O. Stone Dolphin Complex – View rescued bottlenose and rough-toothed dolphins with numerous breathtaking floor to ceiling underwater windows and a beautiful view of the bay from Dolphin Terrace upstairs.
- Mavis’s Rescue Hideaway – Underwater viewing area with several rescued sea turtles and other marine life
- More Animal Habitat Areas – Explore Otter Oasis, Turtle Cove, Turtle Bayou and Shark Pass.
- Rufus Beach – Great white pelican aviary viewing.
- Stingray beach – View and safely touch our cownose stingrays.
- Marine Animal Hospital – Walk through our working marine animal hospital and see our rescue work in action!
- Dolphin & Wildlife Tour – 60-minute eco-boat tours available for purchase with limited capacity.
- Animal Care Experiences – Close-up experiences and photo opportunities with our resident animals available for purchase!
- Our expert animal care team and all CMA staff will be happy to welcome you and answer any questions!
Visit & Safety Questions and Answers
If you have any other questions or need to modify your visit plans, please contact our call center at 727-441-1790 ext. 0. We will try to respond as quickly as possible!