Christmas Underwater with Scuba Santa at Adventure Aquarium

Buy aquarium tickets online in advance (date-based pricing); hours vary by day, check the aquarium calendar.

About this adventure

Christmas Underwater turns Adventure Aquarium on the Camden Waterfront into a holiday visit for the whole family from late November through Christmas Eve. Scuba Santa dives every day among the sharks, sea turtles and stingrays, and children can wave to him through the glass, take selfies and write him letters. The 550,000-gallon Shark Realm holds what the aquarium calls the world's tallest underwater Christmas tree, and indoor snow falls around the 20-foot Rotunda tree every hour on the hour. Younger children can catch the Merry Fishmas puppet show with Boris the shark, a holiday sing-along led by an elf helper, story time at Scuba Santa's throne (Mrs. Claus reads on select dates) and, on Fridays through Sundays, the stage show The Gill Who Stole Fishmas. Add-ons include a winter scavenger hunt in which every finisher wins a prize, plus holiday photo spots around the building. Plan on two to three hours to see the animals and the seasonal shows; the aquarium is on Riverside Drive next to the Battleship New Jersey, a short ferry or bridge ride from Philadelphia.