The Dallas World Aquarium opened in October 1992 inside a gutted 1924 warehouse in the city’s West End Historic District, transforming an old industrial shell into a multi-level journey through rainforest canopies, coral reefs, and Mesoamerican ruins. Unlike a traditional single-building aquarium, the attraction has grown over the decades into a combined aquarium and zoo, expanding into neighboring warehouses and lots as new exhibits were added.
Today the privately owned, for-profit facility is AZA-accredited and known for showcasing rare species alongside its aquatic collection, including three-toed sloths, jaguars, Orinoco crocodiles, and black-footed penguins. Its signature Mundo Maya exhibit features a 400,000-gallon tunnel tank where visitors walk beneath sharks and stingrays, while the Orinoco exhibit recreates a South American rainforest canopy overhead. The aquarium is open daily from 8:30am to 5:00pm, with last entry at 4:00pm, making it an easy stop for a full downtown Dallas day.
Stats at a Glance
- Location: West End Historic District, Dallas, Texas
- Opened: October 1992
- Hours: Daily 8:30am – 5:00pm (last entry 4:00pm); closed Thanksgiving and Christmas Day
- Notable tank: 400,000-gallon shark and stingray tunnel (Mundo Maya)
- Species: About 248 species (roughly 464 animals)
- Annual visitors: More than 900,000
- Famous for: Walk-through rainforest and coral reef exhibits in a converted 1924 warehouse
The Aquarium Experience
Visitors move through a self-guided path that descends from rainforest treetops down to underwater tunnels, blending freshwater and saltwater environments across the site’s original and expanded warehouse buildings. The Orinoco exhibit, added in 1997, recreates a South American rainforest canopy, while the Mundo Maya exhibit, completed in August 2004, adds Mexican and Central American habitats above its centerpiece shark tunnel.
The aquarium is open daily from 8:30am to 5:00pm, with last entry at 4:00pm, every day of the year except Thanksgiving and Christmas, with a shortened 2:00pm last-entry on Christmas Eve. Because the self-guided path winds through both indoor rainforest levels and underwater tunnels, most visitors plan on two to three hours to see the full route without feeling rushed.
Conservation and Notable Animals
The Dallas World Aquarium has been an accredited member of the Association of Zoos and Aquariums since 1997 and has belonged to the World Association of Zoos and Aquariums since 2000, participating in cooperative breeding programs for threatened and endangered species.
Among its best-known residents are Antillean manatees, jaguars viewable in the Mundo Maya exhibit, and black-footed penguins in an outdoor South Africa exhibit. The facility is also known for one of the larger avian collections on display in the U.S., including saffron toucanets and hawk-headed parrots, alongside its three-toed sloths.
Explore more: Explore more zoos and aquariums.
Dallas World Aquarium FAQs
What are the Dallas World Aquarium’s hours?
It’s open daily from 8:30am to 5:00pm, with last entry at 4:00pm. It’s closed on Thanksgiving Day and Christmas Day, and closes early (last entry 2:00pm) on Christmas Eve.
Where is the Dallas World Aquarium located?
It’s in the West End Historic District of downtown Dallas, Texas, housed in a converted 1924 warehouse.
What animals can you see at the Dallas World Aquarium?
Beyond sharks and stingrays in its Mundo Maya tunnel tank, it houses jaguars, Antillean manatees, black-footed penguins, three-toed sloths, and a large parrot and toucan collection, among roughly 248 species.
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Photo: Jay R Simonson Jsimo1 / CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons.