Georgia Aquarium Pirate Days Event Family Fun Weekend

We were invited to attend the Pirate Days event at the Georgia Aquarium in Atlanta, Georgia this weekend and we had a blast! The Pirate Days event is going on September 24th-25th from 10am-4pm and includes fun-filled activities for the entire family. If kids 12 and under dress as pirates, they even get in FREE! This means if you are reading this on Sunday morning, there is still time to go!!
The explorers for the day were my mom-in-law (aka Grandma), Rylee (my niece), Josiah, Liam, and, of course, me! This post is a little bit about what to expect and all the fun we had today!

Silliness in the car!

Parking Deck On Fire!

Well, we arrived at the Georgia Aquarium around 1pm, pulled into the huge parking deck and were searching for a parking place when we saw smoke coming from a car on the 3rd floor... Then, I looked down and saw fire underneath!! We backed up, called 911, and parked on a lower level. By the time we got out of the deck, we were surrounded by firemen, police officers, and other aquarium workers who definitely took charge of the situation, put the fire out, and everything was resolved by the time we came back to our car later! They did an awesome job evacuating the area and making sure everyone was okay! 

Let's Eat! Yummy!

The kids were already excited from seeing the fire trucks and were very ready to get to the aquarium! Liam was super hungry, so we decided to hit the cafe first. We all ate a hot dog, pizza, goldfish and french fries! Everything was fresh and delicious. Liam ate all of his food and didn't want to stop eating until done with the final piece of pizza. As we sat eating, all of the kids dressed as pirates took a Pirate Walk around the aquarium, so we got to watch the show! Right beside where we sat was one of the fun pirate stations set up for a treasure hunt! Of course, we had to go there right away and the kids searched for prizes. Josiah and Rylee won whistles and tattoos and Liam won stickers! 

Making Pirate Hats!

As we were walking to our first exhibit, Ocean Voyager, we saw another station set up for your very own Pirate Name Tag! Josiah's name ended up being Sailor Josiah the Sharp-Tongued (how true, indeed)! They loved their new names for the day and also received another tattoo. Another station we found was to create your very own pirate hat! This was the favorite activity of the day! I helped Rylee and Josiah cut their hats and then they drew their own pictures. The hats are very cute and Josiah was very proud of his. The last activity we found was the Arrrrrbrushed tattoo for a $5 donation to the 4R program, which promotes rescue, rehabilitation, research and responsibility.

Showing off the new hats!

In addition to all of the fun activities going on, all of the usual exhibits were open to the public. The kids had a blast and loved the Pirate Days event. Everything was set up in a way that allowed the kids to have fun participating in activities, but without all of the crowds that often comes with events. The stations had plenty of space and multiple people working to make sure everyone was able to participate and move on to the next activity. I was very impressed with how well it all went. 

Posing with Deepo!

Oh, the last part of the aquarium we ran into unexpectedly was a small show with Deepo the fish! We walked in near the end and the kids were absolutely captivated by the talking fish. Even Liam sat, watching intently, waving and saying hi to Deepo. When he started crying, Deepo even said, "Hi, Liam! Don't cry, it's okay"! That seriously made his day. All of the kids got to ask Deepo questions. Rylee asked what he liked to do and he said he works most of the time. Josiah asked him if he ever went night night (isn't that cute?) and Deepo told him he goes to sleep at 8pm every night except when he has to work late. Before we left, the kids had to get their picture taken with Deepo and Liam had to wave good-bye again. I've never seen that before, so that was definitely a welcomed addition. Now I really want to see the Deepo Undersea 3D Wondershow.

We also wanted to see the newest addition to the aquarium, Dolphin Tales, but the kids were exhausted by the time we got through everything else. The Deepo 3D show and Dolphin Tales are an additional fee, but really don't cost much at all. I can't wait to see the dolphins next time. I've heard it is amazing.

We sat, watching the fish for a long time! The kids loved it!

Driving the boat!

We had such a wonderful time, just like every time we visit the aquarium! We all love the sea otters, sharks, jelly fish and the albino alligators (Liam's favorite). We even got to see the Beluga Whales eating lunch and performing tricks. We exited through the gift shop and the kids each picked out a toy before the long ride home. We'll definitely go to future events at the Georgia Aquarium! 

 Lastly, here's Liam near the end of the trip, which pretty much sums up how we all felt after a day filled with fun...

This post was written for the Georgia Aquarium. No compensation was given, only admission to the event. All opinions expressed are 100% mine and only mine.