Pavilion No. 23. Moskvarium

The Aquarium zone is home to more than 12,000 representatives of marine wildlife: sharks, seals, rays, turtles, caimans, an octopus and hundreds of fish species. Some of them—like dolphins, walruses, sea lions, and the majestic orcas—even star in aquatic shows.

You can easily spend a whole day here. Children and adults alike will find it immensely fascinating to learn more about the incredible World Ocean species and discover distant seas. The Moskvarium is not just a place to spend a day off; it's also an educational facility, with exceptional opportunities for marine biodiversity research.

This Centre of Oceanography and Marine Biology, the largest such facility in the Russian capital, was opened in 2015. At the moment, this complex features three main zones.

Aquarium

The Aquarium exposition is housed in 80 tanks that recreate marine ecosystems fr om all over the planet. When you come here, you will be able to see more than 12,000 salt- and fresh-water animals, including Baikal seals, beluga sturgeon and other sturgeon species, common caimans, turtles, an octopus, different crabs and exotic fish, morays and many others.

The Aquarium is further divided into several themed segments: fresh and salt water bodies of Russia, Africa and South America; the coral reef hall; and so much more. The exposition boasts the largest collection of sturgeon species in Russia: the beluga sturgeon, the kaluga, the Russian sturgeon, the starry sturgeon and the sterlet.

The Aquarium guests are particularly interested in the following activities:

• feeding sessions with seals, carps, piranhas and other Aquarium species (you will find the feeding schedules on the Moskvarium's website);
• an interactive zone where you can touch a horseshoe crab or a star fish;
• walks down the sea tunnel while giant sharks swim over your head.

But one of the most magical adventures at the Aquarium is, without a doubt, the Mermaid's performance in a panorama tank with the world's largest fresh-water fish, arapaima gigas. The performances are scheduled for the weekends.

The visit to one of the largest aquariums in Europe will be made all the more exciting by thrilling tours and quests around the Aquarium exposition, educational classes in the lectorium, and creative workshops.

Swimming with Dolphins Centre

A unique space where you will meet the world's friendliest dolphins.

You will experience breath-taking emotions and get a real boost of energy by swimming in the company of these smart, mischievous and friendly mammals under the supervision of experienced coaches. You will also hear their mesmerising underwater song!

Additionally, the centre provides dolphin therapy services and operates a school for young dolphin coaches, wh ere kids learn to interact with the animals correctly and practice different commands in the water and on solid ground.

Aquatic Show Auditorium

This state-of-the-art auditorium for performances with aquatic animals has a capacity of 2300 seats. It includes an enormous pool and an ultra-modern auditorium with a stage. The space's design is mindful of safety requirements and also aims at making the shows as spectacular as possible. The immersion effect is ensured by more than 20 pieces of equipment: 10 bubble machines, 8 snow machines, 2 fog machines that create a white mist over the water and powerful wind machines.

The Moskvarium in figures:

• more than 6 million visitors since opening;
• area: over 53,000 sq. m;
• number of salt- and fresh-water animals: over 12,000;
• marine mammals: 6 species (walruses, sea lions, beluga whales, dolphins, orcas and Baikal seals);
• total water volume: over 25 mln litres;
• auditorium capacity: 2300 seats.

You can take a mini bus from the VDNH metro station; metro exit is in the centre, closest to the last train car.