ZooTampa and Florida Aquarium Combo Ticket
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Our take
By Matt Spaulding, Founder and writer
The two halves are not the same size, and that shapes how you use the ticket. The Florida Aquarium sits downtown on Channelside Drive, and reviewers keep landing on the same number: roughly two hours to walk the whole thing, past Wetlands of Florida, Stingray Beach, the coral reef tanks and Heart of the Sea. It is compact and nicely staged, and people who show up expecting something enormous tend to say so afterward. ZooTampa is the longer day. Its Florida Waters section opened in March 2026 as the zoo's largest expansion, putting the David A. Straz Jr. Manatee Critical Care Center in front of visitors with underwater viewing onto rehabbing manatees, alongside jellies and an expanded otter habitat. The Stingray Shores touch pool, open since 2024, sits in the same area. Every ride comes with entry, including the Expedition Wild Africa safari ride and the Roaring Springs water play area. The catch is overlap. Both places hand you a stingray touch experience and tanks of Florida native fish, so running them back to back in a single day covers some of the same ground twice. The combo allows one entry to each within a seven-day window, so two separate mornings is the better use of it. The sites sit about six miles apart, ten to fifteen minutes by car, with a paid daily lot at the zoo and paid garages a short walk from the aquarium.
Quick facts
- How long
- About two hours for the aquarium, and a half day or longer for the zoo
- Best for
- Families with young kids, and anyone who wants rehabbing manatees and a full zoo in one trip
- Booking
- One entry to each attraction within a seven-day window, in either order; confirm the window when you book
- Getting there
- Two separate sites about six miles apart: the zoo off I-275 at Sligh Ave, the aquarium downtown in the Channel District
- Parking
- Zoo lot charges a flat daily fee through ParkMobile and is free for members; the aquarium sends you to nearby paid garages about a quarter mile away
- Included
- General admission to both, plus all ZooTampa rides; animal encounters and the dolphin cruise are separate tickets
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Time slots and dated tickets sell out on peak days, so it pays to lock yours in before you go. Check current availability and pick your date.
Check tickets →ZooTampa and Florida Aquarium Combo Ticket FAQ
How long do you need for both attractions?
Plan a half day or more for ZooTampa and about two hours for the Florida Aquarium. Reviewers consistently report walking the aquarium in roughly two hours without feeling rushed, while the zoo's shaded loops, the Expedition Wild Africa safari ride and the Roaring Springs water play area fill a morning and then some. Taking on both in one go makes for a long day with small children.
Can you visit ZooTampa and the aquarium on separate days?
Yes. The ZooQuarium combo covers one entry to each attraction within a seven-day window starting the day of purchase, and you can do them in either order. Splitting them across two mornings is the more comfortable plan, since the zoo is largely outdoors and the aquarium is a shorter indoor stop. Confirm the validity window when you book.
Is the combo ticket worth it?
It pays off only if you want both, since the two sites overlap. ZooTampa's Florida Waters area added underwater manatee viewing and jellies in March 2026, and the zoo's Stingray Shores touch pool has been open since 2024; the aquarium also has a stingray touch area and Florida native fish. If you want one stop rather than two, buy a single admission instead. Compare the combo against two separate tickets for your dates before you book.
What is included, and what costs extra?
Included is general admission to both properties, plus every ride at ZooTampa, including the Expedition Wild Africa safari ride and Roaring Springs. Extra tickets are required for the aquarium's Wild Dolphin Cruise, SeaTREK, Penguin Encounter, Sloth Encounter, Stingray Feeding and Undersea Explorer VR, and for ZooTampa's Signature Encounters. Worth knowing if you are packing swimsuits: the aquarium's outdoor Splash Pad closed permanently after Hurricane Helene, while Roaring Springs, the zoo's water play area, is included with admission.
Where do you park at each one?
ZooTampa has its own on-site lot with a flat daily fee for non-members, paid through ParkMobile, and free parking for members. The Florida Aquarium runs no garage of its own. The Channelside Garage and a City of Tampa lot are each about 0.2 miles from the entrance and the Cumberland Garage about 0.3 miles, all paid and all a short walk. Valet at the main entrance is run by an outside operator and can be unavailable when a cruise ship is docked at Terminal 2.
What is the best time of day to go?
Start at the zoo at opening. ZooTampa opens at 9:30 in the morning and the aquarium at 9, with the aquarium staying open an extra hour in June and July. Tampa afternoons run hot and storm-prone through the summer, so the outdoor half belongs early in the day. The aquarium is indoors and air conditioned, which makes it the sensible afternoon or rainy-day half of the pair.