The experience

Me Tarzan, you Jane? Join us on a wild adventure in the Amazon Jungle. Cross a bridge over a pond full of bloodthirsty piranhas and clear yourself a way through the green jungle along 12 terrariums with scary reptiles. From snakes and spiders to scorpions and iguanas. Get the creeps!

Enjoy the exuberant green colours of the tropical rainforest and meet a wide variety of reptiles and insects. Take a closer look at the piranhas and reptiles in our renovated Zee Aquarium. Twelve spectacular terrariums are home to tarantulas, tree pythons, praying mantises, big iguanas, scorpions, frilled-neck lizards, poison frogs, leaf insects, a chameleon, a stag beetle and …. there’s so much more! Go on an expedition and experience them up close. Can you sit and relax and enjoy your drink in the adjacent coffee corner whilst being watched by many creepy crawlies and reptiles of the Amazon Jungle?

The Zee Aquarium informs you of all you need to know about piranhas and reptiles of the rainforest. Are piranhas really as dangerous as they say and what do they eat? Is a piranha a saltwater or freshwater fish? And what about that little spider? Is it as innocent as it looks? Or the sleeping snake: what happens when it sheds its skin? The frilled-neck lizards are some sort of mini dinos: what do they eat and how do they survive in the jungle?

Next to the piranha pond ( that holds 40000 litres of water) is a water purifying system. Here you can see how the water in the pond is cleaned and refreshed. Fun and educative!

The surface of our planet is approximately 75% covered by water and contains 5 oceans in which the most amazing fishes and sea animals live. In the Atlantic Ocean big predators as well as cute little fishes swim between seaweed and rocks. From wreckfish to dogfish and sea bream: in the Zee Aquarium in Bergen aan Zee you’ll encounter a wide variety of fishes.

In the Zee Aquarium are a great number of aquariums with the most wonderful sea animals and fishes of the Atlantic Ocean. A life-size aquarium ( 25000 litres of water) with rocks and a real ship cannon on the bottom is the habitat of predators such as wreckfish, dogfish and sea bream.

According to experts our oceans contain approximately 1.3 billion cubic kilometres of saline water with an average depth of nearly 3700 meters. No wonder these oceans are home to so many beautiful sea creatures.

A visit to the Zee Aquarium is fun and educative: next to each aquarium is a digital screen that displays a lot of information about the sea animals.

Dreaming of a diving or snorkelling holiday to the Great Barrier Reef, Barbados, the Maldives, Hawaii or Curacao? Come dive with us and discover the moray eels, scorpion fish, cardinal fish, and other beautiful, ugly and fascinating fishes and other sea animals of the Mediterranean Sea. Get that Mediterranean-holiday feeling in the Zee Aquarium in Bergen aan Zee!

In 13 different aquariums you can admire a wide variety of fish species, sea animals and above all a fascinating collection of sea anemones and invertebrates of the Mediterranean Sea. Very special is our collection of coloured tube anemones that has been in the Zee Aquarium for over 40 years. The tentacles of these tube anemones come in an array of white, green and brown colours.

And what about the different species of trumpet fish and boarfish? Or crawfish and red fin perch? After a visit to our Zee Aquarium you’ll definitely know more about all these spectacular fishes!

Experience the thrill of meeting sharks face-to-face! But don’t worry, there’s a wall of glass between you and the sharks. Come and drift along an enormous coral reef and other different reefs that are threatened with extinction and meet the most beautiful and colourful tropical fishes!

In the shark tank that contains 60000 litres of water swims a group of big reef sharks. Let’s have a competition: stare at a shark as long as possible without blinking your eyes! In this part of the museum are also many different aquariums with a great diversity of colourful tropical fishes. From cute seahorses and clownfish ( Nemo) to moray eels, stonefish and big perches. Meet the tropics in Bergen aan Zee!

Another showpiece of our museum is the coral reef. Through a big window stony ( hard) and leather ( soft) corals can be admired. Worldwide there are about 4500 species of corals. Unfortunately many of them are threatened with extinction. Therefore we are very proud of our “ home-grown” corals. The Zee Aquarium in Bergen aan Zee has set itself the goal of returning a part of these corals back to their natural habitat. This way the Zee Aquarium contributes to the management and conservation of wildlife. By the way, did you know that corals aren’t plants, but animals?

There’s nothing more fun than fishing with a little fishnet or shrimp net in the North Sea on a beautiful summer’s day. If you prefer to keep your feet dry, come visit the Zee Aquarium and take a look at the North Sea aquariums. Here you can see all sorts of sea animals that live in the North Sea, from flatfish, plaice, dab and turbot to cod, mullet, crab and lobster. Meet them all here!

Fishes and sea animals of the North Sea can be admired in one big enormous aquarium and several small aquariums. On the bottom of the big aquarium is the wreckage of a ship. Watch crabs, lobsters, mullets, whiting and starfish swimming around the wreck!

After a storm many shells can be found on the North Sea beach. With over 7000 shells the Zee Aquarium in Bergen aan Zee has the biggest shell collection in the Netherlands. Of course you are familiar with the razor shell and cockle, but have you ever seen a Gloria Maris of Cypraeida Aurantium? You’ll definitely find them in our Zee Aquarium! Naturally all shells are provided with information about their occupants: the snails and other molluscs.

They seem to flutter through the water: look how the rays move with their wings, uh ……. fins! The Zee Aquarium in Bergen aan Zee is home to an impressive group of rays. Have you ever wanted to know what the skin of a ray feels like? Now’s your chance! Move your hand slowly through the water and feel for yourself! The rays are at least as curious as you are!

Our rays love to be stroked. Some people even believe that rays are as affectionate as pets. But is this true? And what do they feed on? Find out all facts and things worth knowing about the rays at the Ray Reef in our Zee Aquarium in Bergen aan Zee. Did you know that a ray isn’t a flatfish, but a cartilaginous fish and close related to sharks? Surprising, isn’t it? Visit the Ray Reef and with a bit of luck you’ll be there during feeding time…. Grab a seat at the Ray Reef and find out what happens at feeding time! Don’t miss it!

Don’t you think a lagoon conjures up images of pearly white beaches, azure blue seas and clear blue skies? Get a taste of this atmosphere in the lagoon in the Zee Aquarium in Bergen aan Zee! Watch the most beautiful tropical fishes, nurse sharks, perches and mackerels swimming in our lagoon.

In the Zee Aquarium in Bergen aan Zee you will find the largest seal pool in the Netherlands. Come watch our seals swimming, diving and playing with each other in their new pool. Or admire them whilst they’re relaxing and sunbathing on their private sand dune. If the weather is nice, take a seat at one of the picnic tables outside.

The new outdoor pool of 75 square meters is filled with 220 000 litres of water. The depth of the pool is 2.20 meters: plenty of space for the seals to play or romp around. Through the 2 meter long glass wall you can experience a day in the life of the seals.