London Aquarium, South Bank

We visited the aquarium today. If this is London at its best then my family and I are concerned. My 6 year old son is autistic and therefore a little unpredictable, but we thought this family attraction would be able to cope with our eccentricities. Of course we expected it to be busy, but we did not expect there to be a distinct lack of facilities and signage. We dragged all over the aquarium following staff instructions to find a toilet. When my son decided he needed to leave, despite explaining to 4 members of staff that I needed to get out quickly we were still directed through the entire aquarium! Very, very poor. The staff need to understand about issues with children and those with hidden disabilities because at the moment it is laughable. After my complaint, we have been offered free entry with a half hour head start on other visitors which I appreciate, but I really feel that changes need to be made as this apparently family friendly attraction is not family friendly at all.

IThe first thing I would say is go IF you have a merlin card or 241 offer. If not it is terribly expensive for what it is. The children will be impressed with the star fish, the walk through tunnel where sharks lurk overhead and the many colourful fish. Really though the cost is prohibitive and at £28 per adult, over 12`s class as an adult, I would recomend you buy a Merlin card. The staff are excellent and do encourage the children to explore the tanks through glass magnifying domes. The placement of the Aquarium on the embankmant is good as the London Eye and River Thames are right there. There can be very long queues in the school holidays so do expect this. I would go in winter if possible. Do your purse or wallet a favour and stay out of the gift shop.

We came here for our childs 2nd Birthday in January 2012. He loves fish so we knew this would be a success which it was - he loved all the tanks of fish and the penguins and you could get right up close to the tanks for a really good view of the fish swimming around. He loved the sharks and the rays. Although our child really enjoyed himself - there were a couple of areas which were a bit tedious. I only saw 1 baby change and that was right at the entrance so make sure you stop here if you need to. The entrance price is very expensive so look out for buy one get one free deals (I managed to find one easily on facebook). In my opinion its not great value for money as we spent less than 90 mins looking round the whole aquarium which isnt that long for the money. It is also quite busy in parts and our child struggled to get a look at some of the tanks.

We visited the London Aquarium today and thoroughly enjoyed it. My son is 3 and my daughter 5 and it was so good to see their little faces looking with amazement at the fish. We loved the open tank with sting Rays that came right up to you and crabs walking around on the bottom. The sharks were amazing, my son sat with his face up against the glass for ages, fascinating creatures. It was very busy at the start and I was worried the children would struggle getting to the front of the tanks but luckily it got less busy as we went through. The children especially liked the glass walkway with killer sharks swimming below!! There is a supervised tank for children to put their hands in and touch some real sealife, which my son loved! We were given a scratch card fact finder trail on the way in but my two were probably still a bit young for that. Highly recommended!

We were really disappointed with The London Aquarium. It isn't as large as we imagined, especially as it is The Sea Life Centres premier site. Their is a children's questionnaire, which is a scratch card type and it did hold the boys (4 and 5) attention, but we also spent 10 minutes looking for a question that no longer existed and all they got for it was a plastic medal! The toilets were dirty, the floor littered and it took 30 seconds to complete the shark walk. A real disappointment

It's a cracker. From the scary shark tank, with those cold faced monsters cruising along side your cheek and appearing terrifyingly from around corners, to feeding the gentle rays in the open Manta tank, the place is a hit. Mine love winding down further and further into the dark. It is however very expensive, various vouchers are available all over the place, when last I looked Tesco did 2 for 1 admission on its clubcard points. It is also merchandised to the hilt and HOT, but it is superb aquarium.

I visited the London Aquarium with my children recently and it has just been refurbished. It houses a wide variety of sea life and its central feature is a massive tank which contains many different species including sharks and sea turtles which my son really enjoyed. The Aquarium is on a number of levels but there are plenty of lifts so it is easy to get around with a buggy. It was very busy when we visited and as such some of the displays were a little difficult for my son to see, there is also no eating in the aquarium which makes things a little difficult with children who like to snack. I do think it is quite expensive to get in to but, compared to other aquariums I’ve been to in this country it was quite good.

They've had a makeover since I last went and it works much better as a layout. The big tanks still have that 'wow' factor even after a 2nd visit and the two 6 year olds and 4 years old I took loved it to bits! I particularly liked the new British rock pool area where the children could, with supervision, touch little creatures like anemones and starfish. Things to watch out for: - It can be pricey (as with most things in London). Do your homework. Check out deals before you go. - It's very dark and easy to get disorientated so keep close eye on young children and make sure you brief the older ones on what to do if they get lost - It gets warm - it was sleeting outside but as soon as we were in I found myself carrying four sets of coats, hats, scarves, gloves, etc. I never found a cloakroom or lockers so check as soon as you arrive - You have to go through the gift shop (as with many places these days). Nothing gets me going more after a lovely visit than to spend the last 15mins arguing with my kids about why they can't have that oversized stuffed turtle teddy!!

Definitely worth a visit, as its great for a wet day – and there is a pool, where kids can stroke the fish. However, it’s expensive, dark and facilities are limited. On your visit, you are sent round a set route which takes 2-3 hours, with toilets / nappy change at specific points and nowhere to get a drink – this can be difficult with toddlers who need the toilet immediately, babies needing a change and any kids demanding a drink – so make sure you are prepared!!

The London Aquarium is a firm favourite of ours, especially on a rainy day. You'll walk from room to room discovering all kinds of sealife, and our kids particularly enjoyed the Manta rays. It's also conveniently located on London's South bank where there are plenty of child friendly restaurants on offer for a pit stop after, including Giraffe and Las Iguanas.