Adventure Us: SeaQuest-Lynchburg

April 20, 2021 | Cristy Carr | Adventure Us, Blog

If there are any animal lovers in your household, there’s a special adventure awaiting you in Lynchburg. Conveniently located in River Ridge Mall, SeaQuest is an aquarium with a big dose of land animals that offers kids a remarkably up-close, interactive experience.

The huge aquarium is the centerpiece. This big tank holds an array of fish, sharks, and rays, all friendly and eagerly awaiting a pet and a snack. Not far away, the otters frisk in their tank and a variety of cold water fish frolic. But marine life is far from the only attraction here. A number of exotic land animals make their homes here. You can see and get personal with an array of animals from the world over: parakeets, sloths, bearded dragons, capybaras, giant tortoises, and wallabies, to name just a few.

What sets this facility apart is that though it is small, SeaQuest has gone to great effort to make it engaging for all ages. When you enter, you purchase a set of feeding tokens. At many of the displays, you can exchange your token for a snack for the animal of your choice. For other animals, you can participate in feeding or greeting them under the supervision of a worker. This can make for a unique personal experience with a variety of amazing (and very cute) animals! Our kids circled the exhibit loop several times, and each time there was something new going on. You can enter the parakeet display with a worker and feed the birds from your hand. Another worker was walking one of the pigs on a leash. Another helper was holding a boa. To the delight of my kids, we crossed paths with the giant tortoise out for a walk, lumbering down the halls. These animals all seem to be well cared for and happy, and the workers are helpful and thoughtful.

There are several additional programs that make the experience even more exciting. You can reserve a 30 minute snorkeling session in the aquarium. Or, you can get a special behind-the-scenes session with Flash the sloth (some of the guidelines regarding these particular interactions are different than usual due to Covid-19, so if that’s the main reason you want to visit, be sure to call ahead to find out the current status of these offerings)!

SeaQuest participates in a number of nature preservation causes and also takes an active part in a number of outreach programs for local children.

Enjoy a one-of-a-kind hands-on animal experience at SeaQuest Lynchburg!