Fodor's Expert Review The National Aquarium

The most-visited attraction in Maryland has nearly 20,000 fish, sharks, dolphins, and amphibians dwelling in 2 million gallons of water. The Blacktip Reef exhibit mimics a coral reef in the Indo-Pacific waters. It features pufferfish, stingrays, and more unusual creatures, such as the tasselled wobbegong, a carpet shark. In the Living Seashore exhibit, visitors can touch live stingrays. The aquarium also features reptiles, birds, plants, and mammals in its rain-forest environment, housed inside a glass pyramid 64 feet high. Atlantic bottlenose dolphins are part of several entertaining presentations that highlight their agility and intelligence. The aquarium's famed shark tank and Atlantic coral reef exhibits are spectacular. Arrive early to ensure admission, which is by timed intervals; by noon, the wait is often two to three hours, especially on weekends and holidays.