Sydney Sealife Aquarium or Manly Sealife Sanctuary? Your time is short and you want to decide which Sydney aquarium to visit? Here is a detailed comparison and many photos to help you choose based on your expectations: animals, locations, atmospheres...
Welcome to the Battle of the Sydney aquariums!

THE RULES OF THE AQUARIUM BATTLE
In this guide you will find how I think those 2 aquariums compare in regards to Atmosphere, Installations, Exhibits, Location, Accessibility & price. And then I am sharing some of my best-of photos (well it is still aquarium photos so the quality is not exceptional) & moments for each one.
And if you want to see more animals while in Sydney don’t forget to also check the zoos/wildlife battle: Taronga zoo vs Wildlife Zoo vs Featherdale!
Before telling your all about those 2 aquariums, let’s start with a picture of my favorite animal at those aquariums: the Shark saw

COMPARISON OF THE AQUARIUMS
Here is a table summarizing my opinions regarding the Sydney Sealife Aquarium and the Manly Sealife Sanctuary in regards to the following criteria:
- Atmosphere
- Set up
- Animal variety – exhibits
- Location
- Accessibility
- Price

My preference is slightly going towards Sydney but I also really enjoyed Manly and my time strolling along the beach after.
I have only assisted to one talk. It was in Manly and was really great. I learned a lot but in a light and fun way. And their love for the animals shines through.
Best of – Sydney Sealife Aquarium
A platypus
The first of at the Sydney aquarium is the Platypus exhibit. And I LOOOOOOVE Platypus. I was actually lucky enough to see one in the wild when I went on a tour to spot wild Australian animals. It is very exciting to see on in the wild but you actually only see its back from far away. Here I saw it swim, eat a shrimp and scratch itself (which was quite funny ) I don’t have great photos as they move fast and it is quite dark for the camera but I have a wonderful memory!

Installations
The aquarium as some great installations to get up close with the animals:

Interactive displays

Discovering the great barrier reef

The rock pool to touch some animals

All the space you need to observe

Surrounded by water!
Smaller fishes

Finding Nemo

Finding Nemo's friend
The Shark tunnel
And the amazing tunnels to get surrounded by sharks and rays…






And the slightly awkwardly placed food court when you get out:

Really, at an aquarium?
Best of – Manly Sealife Sanctuary
Installations
Not as varied as Sydney but still well designed for a great viewing experience


Tunnel
Manly Aquarium’s tunnel had some great sharks, giant turtles!




Happy loved animals



So have you made your decision?
Pint it!

Although I am not much of a aquarium loving traveler, I enjoyed this post. Nice pictures. 🙂 I have been to Sydney and Manly, but didn’t discover this side. Next time!
If I had the chance to visit Sydney, this aquarium is the first thing I will visit. It’s so amazing!
Not if, when… 🙂