Each year, thousands of visitors of all ages from around the world come to the spectacular Maui Ocean Center just south of the Royal Lahaina Resort. Perched above beautiful Maalaea Harbor, with spectacular ocean views as the perfect backdrop, the aquarium is a wonderful place to encounter the amazing sea life found in the Islands, including about a quarter of the species only found in Hawaii. Guests will also discover the importance of the ocean and its creatures to the Hawaiian people.
Since its opening in 1998, the Center has faithfully created an environment that fosters an understanding and 
appreciation of Hawaii’s marine animals. There are hundreds of tropical reef fish, octopus, moray eels, sea turtles, sharks, stingrays, sea jellyfish and lots more amazingly colorful and unique ocean specimens.
Here, Hawaii’s natural ocean ecosystem is presented in a warm, inviting setting that features over 60 exhibits of live corals, interactive displays, touch pools, and a 750,000-gallon “Open Ocean” aquarium with a 240-degree, acrylic tunnel. There are daily interactive presentations by marine experts at various times throughout the Center, plus behind-the-scenes tours, turtle encounters, presentations by special guest speakers, and other educational programs to delight and inform the entire family.
For the more adventurous, some visitors can actually swim with the sharks, stingrays and thousands of tropical fish in the Shark Dive Maui®. The Center allows certified divers to get face-to-face with these unique sea denizens. Most divers in the ocean would rarely come across many of the sharks living in the Hawaiian waters, but they can here, including sandbar sharks, blacktip reef sharks, whitetip reef sharks, grey reef sharks, hammerhead sharks and even a tiger shark. The diver’s friends and family can also watch everything from a special viewing area and follow along the diver’s incredible underwater journey in a 54-foot-long acrylic tunnel through the exhibit.
The Center is open daily from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. (‘til 6 p.m. in July and August). For more information and reservations, call 808-270-7000 or go online at www.mauioceancenter.com. After a visit, check out the collection of items at the Center’s Maui Ocean Treasures gift shop or enjoy a great meal at the Seascape Maalaea Restaurant or Reef Café, overlooking the harbor. The Activity Centers at the Royal Lahaina Resort can also help with your arrangements to see Hawaii’s magnificent marine life up close.