Monterey Bay Aquarium

The Monterey Bay aquarium is spectacular sight to see. The extraordinary Monterey Bay aquarium in California has the world's largest window; gaze at an enormous marine habitat with sea turtles, giant Sunfish, large sharks, and yellow and blue-fin tuna. There's a new, provocative exhibit connecting the shape, movement, and beauty of jellyfish to various art forms. Watch the sea otters at feeding time. The Lions are unbelievable; pickup tickets the day before and save 20 to 40 minutes.

Along the waterfront south of the aquarium, Cannery Row was once debilitated street of languishing sardine packing plants. Take a peek at the great Cannery Row mural; local artists have cover 400 ft. of a construction site barrier on the 700 block with depictions of the 1930s Monterey.

One would have to be a very cold fish not to love the best aquarium in our survey; beautifully set on California's Rocky Coast within 30 mi. of the Big Sur and Carmel (and near the historical locale Cannery Row), it's a favorite for a fantastic family outing thanks to the stunning exhibits ranging from touch pools for toddlers to big shark tanks; with so much to enjoy, your biggest challenge may be getting the children away from the sea otters to see the rest of the fabulous displays; N.B. just outside, you can watch sea lions, whales and other ocean dwellers swimming in their natural habitat.