Ty Warner Sea Center, Santa Barbara

The Ty Warner Sea Center offers a captivating introduction to the marine world of the Santa Barbara Channel. Owned and operated by the city’s renowned natural history museum, this interactive aquarium combines education, conservation, and oceanography in a picturesque coastal setting.

Visitors begin their journey at the life-size model of a gray whale and her calf-suspended overhead in the entrance hall-to appreciate the scale and beauty of local marine mammals. Inside, well-curated exhibits highlight diverse habitats including kelp forests, rocky reefs, and sandy bottoms. Standouts include charming displays of moon jellies, decorator crabs, California two‑spot octopuses, and more.

The Sea Center’s hands-on experiences bring science to life. The Living Beach tide pool sends waves surging every minute, the BioLab traces marine life cycles from larvae to adult creatures, including sharks, and the Wet Deck features a moon pool for sampling ocean water and sediment. A Submerged Science Lab lets you examine your collected specimens further, and the Channel Theater showcases videos about the sea and its significance to the local environment.

For those curious about marine conservation, the Marine Mammal Mezzanine offers insightful exhibits on more than 30 species observed in the Channel. The center is also actively involved in restoration initiatives, including projects to recover the endangered white abalone and releasing swell sharks into suitable habitats.