Jellies Experience at the Monterey Bay Aquarium

I LOVE Jellies and I could stand and stare at them the whole day, definitely a must visit when at Monterey Bay Aquarium!
To see all these varieties of jellyfish side by side is just so amazing and watching them gliding slowly up and down is just mesmerizing.

One of the best exhibits at the Monterey Bay Aquarium — the one that brings us back time and again — and this year prompted us to get a family membership.
I had no idea there were so many varieties of jellyfish, from the tiny cross jellies to the much larger egg yolk jellies, from the translucent and hauntingly slow-​moving moon jellies to the thick and comically fast-​moving blubber jellies.
In addition to the tanks and cylinders containing the jellyfish, they also have a lot of educational exhibits — like one where kids jump on pogo sticks to learn how jellies move. There is no greater joy for a parent than to see wonder awaken in their child’s eyes as they observe our beautiful world, followed by curiosity about how its magnificent creatures live, move and eat.
So whether you have little ones or are just a kid at heart, still full of wonder, come to the Monterey Bay Aquarium, and stop by the Jellies Experience.

If you’ve ever wondered what your seafood looked like before it ended up on your plate, this is the place to be. If you like aquatic life this is the place to be. Such amazing information, you and your kids can learn so much. This is where kids need be taught, not in a classroom. It’s basically a zoo for fish. Yes, there are those annoying kids and their parents, but just go anyway.

The Jellies exhibit was our family’s favorite part of our visit to the Aquarium. It was genius to pair the jellyfish with the 1960s themed décor and music. The furniture, light fixtures, funhouse mirrors and bright colors amid the dim lighting worked perfectly with the jellies. The interactive features were also great.
We loved the interactive display where we drew and animated jellies, and they floated up the screen. Super cool, and then we emailed the drawings. The interactive display where we created light by waiving our hands was also super fun. We loved all the fun house mirrors, and especially the familiar and unfamiliar varieties of jellyfish. My favorite jelly on display was the blubber jelly native to Southeast Asia through Australia.
If I have one criticism of the Jellies exhibit, it is that I felt like there should have been more tanks of actual live jellyfish amidst the razzle dazzle.
The Jimi Hendrix quote in the exhibit was perfect: «You have to give people something to dream on.» Great exhibit. Magical.

YEAH — this was a great experience. My kids loved the lights and the aquarium always does a great job in lighting the exhibits.
I hope they have more special attractions /​set-​ups like this in the future — the theme was a lot of fun.
The best part — it seemed really spacious so it was not a crowded as many other places in the aquarium — I think it is because they had a lot of smaller displays that helped spread out the crowd.
Great job and a lot of fun!

this exhibit rocked! i felt like i was transported back to the 1970s, wearing bell bottoms and shakin’ my booty at a disco club. in reality, i was just walking through a very eclectic and far out display of dancing jellyfish, who were moving and grooving to 70s tunes. i never knew there were so many different types and colours of jellyfish! there was a section of the exhibit that explained the basic anatomy of jellyfish, and another section that explained how aquarium staff make their own jellyfish, pretty cool stuff! loved the special effects and lighting that i got to experience while walking through this unique exhibit. if you visit the monterey bay aquarium, this exhibit is NOT to be missed!!!

I am a huge fan of the Jelly experience. It’s my favourite exhibit at the aquarium! (Sorry otters)
The way they’ve set up the lighting, the way the color dances off the jellies, it’s beautiful. A perfect moment for a camera: D
A new aspect for me was finally speaking with the woman staffing the microscope. How small the jelly looked in person, but seeing them under the microscope, a whole world on a pin!
The exhibit isn’t too long, is well spaced out and now boasts an interactive wall next to the microscope where you can increase the size of small creatures and learn their scientific names.
Science is pretty cool.

I will call him squishy and he will be mine, and he will be my squishy =D
This was an awesome Jellies exhibit! Definitely a must see at the Monterey Aquarium, it’s dark inside but that allows you to see the jellies even better, especially the ones that glow and have neon looking things on them. So cool, bring your camera!

Everyone loves jellies! Truth be told, there are jellyfish tanks in the Aquarium that aren’t part of this particular exhibit which I found more spectacular and enjoyable (such as the famous sea nettles). Many of the pictures included on this page aren’t actually within the Jellies exhibit. The ‘experience’ itself has a groovy 60s theme, and is more reminiscent of a Disney dark ride than a scientific exhibit. It’s fun, but very kid friendly. To really see the amazing and varied jellyfish species the Aquarium has, the regular exhibits deliver. Don’t skip it! But it probably won’t be a highlight of your Aquarium day.

Amazing and so beautiful!
All the jellyfish are gorgeous. The tanks, lighting, design of the exhibit, and selection of jellyfish all come together and make this a fantastic exhibit.
This is definitely one of my favorite exhibits in the Monterey Bay Aquarium. The variety is overwhelming — from giant long-​tentacled kinds, to ones with crazy names like «egg-​yolk» jellyfish that actually look like an egg yolk, upside down jellyfish, and transparent iridescent jellyfish the size of a pinky fingernail. Oh my!
One of the most beautiful parts of the aquarium in one of the most beautiful aquariums I’ve ever been to.
The one confusing thing about this exhibit is the weird groovy music they have playing in this section. I guess that’s the theme, but it doesn’t seem to fit with these beautiful artsy — yet poisonous — jellies!
We’ll be back, though. :)

I LOVE JELLIES!
I came here for my birthday and it was DEFINITELY an experience! The jellyfish were by far my favorite part of the aquarium and I could have spent all day in here groovin’ around if I could have! Fun atmosphere, while also being educational and engaging for all ages.
Admittedly one of the best activities of the day was getting to draw your own jellyfish on an electronic screen and then «release it to the sea» with the jellys that everyone around you drew! So interactive!
I would absolutely recommended this to anyone and everyone that inquired about it!

My favorite is the Jelly Fish exhibit. Almost surreal !

This was a totally trippy exhibit! It was so psychedelically fun!
This is an exhibit within the Monterey Bay Aquarium about… you guessed it! Sea Jellies… set to some groovy music and color scheme :)
The entire exhibit was full of late 60’s/70’s era music and colors. I loved walking under the jellies and seeing Hendrix quotes on the wall. The jellies were pretty cool too. Overall, it was a fun exhibit. Highlight of my Monterey Bay Aquarium visit.
Good times!

Much better than the jellyfish exhibit at the Long Beach aquarium. Lots of space for people to take pics, and not just tiny small aquariums for one person to hog the glass with their fancy camera.
The tanks are nicely lit so even crappy cell phone cameras can take great pics!
The only thing they were missing was a jellyfish touch tank. Included with the price of aquarium admission.

Monterey Bay Aquarium, why you so trippy?
The person who designed this jellyfish exhibit is a freakin’ genius, and obviously was influenced by the hippy themes of the 1960s. Welcome to the Jellies Experience, a psychedelic trip into the world of these alien lifeforms.
This copacetic exhibit has everything you cool cats and chicks could want:
Psychedelic sign at entrance? Check. (
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Upside-​down jellyfish? Check. (
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Blubber jelly? Check. (
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Even weirder jelly? You bet. (
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Room with lava lamp-​like tubes and mirrors? Heck yes. (
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LED cage serving no apparent purpose? Far out! (
)
What a great way to learn about some of these exotic creatures that have roamed our oceans for at least 500 million years!
So next time you’re down at Monterey Bay Aquarium, don’t cut out till you’ve checked out this fine as wine exhibit, ya dig?

I have a personal theory about jellyfish that’s gonna make me sound crazy, but I don’t care… When the jellyfish rise up and take over humanity, just remember who called it.
Seriously though, jellyfish are alien drones sent to monitor us, take notes on our brain waves, then one day, assist in the takeover … in coordination with those turbine windmills (also alien information receptors).
Anyway, today we tripped it to the MBA and of course we spent a considerable time with the jellies. Monitoring and accessing them the way they do with us humans. We loved the variety of jellies and just how beautiful the exhibit was in general. We took tons of pics and they all came out so colorful that they look like we’re standing in front of and HD projection or jellyfish and not real, live jellies thriving in their tank.
Also, there’s actually 2 exhibits with jellies right now, the regular jelly exhibit (which I may have liked even better than the special exhibit) and ‘The Jellyfish Experience’ that’s set up like a psychedelic trip, complete with rainbow dancing J-​Fish and Jimi Hendrix quotes on the wall. Frickin’ California… far out, man.

I was very excited to see this new set up for the jellyfish but was left a little let down.
I like the 70s theme, but some 70s music playing would of really added to the experience.
I also thought the amount of ‘screens’ in this attraction was boring. I go to mueseums to see real life action! Although it was cool to see a jellyfish eat a fis
h.
There were many awesome jellies and I could be shown a jellyfish in any manner and still love it. I really loves the blue bubba? Something along the lines of that.
The attraction did have some neat areas for the kids to play and lots of information, but did not win me over. I still like the old jellyfish area more.

The jellyfish were definitely a star attraction at the MBA. Amazing. Out of this world. GROOVY, even.
The psychadelic spin on these lava-​lamp-​like exhibits is really clever and funny. I tuned out a number of times and didn’t think it was distracting at all. Personally, I would have preferred a more ethereal/​ambient type of music, like that of Brian Eno, because it was other-​worldly and very alien. But I get the connection with the 60s… crazy colors, crazy music, crazy shapes, etc.
Some of these amazing creatures are so unbelievably gorgeous. There were teeny-​tiny jellyfish, jellyfish with pulsating lights glowing from the edges of their bodies, fleshy opaque button-​mushroom types that were chocolate brown, orange-​gold and light blue, ones with hair-​like threads extending well beyond their bodies —so many interesting and varying types.
Each tank seemed to have a progressively stranger species in it that had some saying staring in disbelief and saying aloud, «Is that real?» I found myself delighting in the wonder that these incredible beings ignite in us.

The number of species they have is amazing! And the 70s theme is just a fun bonus that the jellies fit right into! Really a must go if you have the time :)

The pulsating ‘70s beats are a cute idea in theory but get kind of grating after a while (and I LOVE all music from the ‘70s). The kitschy ‘70s sets are kind of eh, but the jellyfish-​shaped hanging lamps are awesome. The jellyfish themselves are gorgeous to behold.