Oberhausen: SEA LIFE Ticket and Behind the Scenes Tour

The most unusual part of SEA LIFE Oberhausen is not the public aquarium. It is the chance to step into the working areas, handle food for the animals, look through a real laboratory microscope, and help feed marine life. You also see Germany’s largest shark breeding tank, including young blacktip reef sharks, catsharks, rays, and other small sea creatures.

I like the hands-on feeding session, since it turns a standard aquarium visit into something you actively take part in. I also like the small group of no more than 10 people, which should make it easier to hear the guide and ask questions. The main drawback is simple: the behind-the-scenes portion lasts only about 30 minutes, and some of that time is spent in one work area rather than touring many hidden rooms.

Key points

• See a 148-square-meter shark nursery with young blacktip reef sharks, catsharks, rays, and other sea life.
• Prepare food and feed aquarium animals, one of the most personal parts of the visit.
• Look through a real microscope in the aquarium laboratory.
• Tour the aquarists’ work area and learn how feed is prepared.
• Enter the aquarium about 60 minutes early so you can explore the public exhibits before the scheduled tour.
• Join a German-speaking guide in a small group limited to 10 people.

Entering SEA LIFE Oberhausen and finding the tour

Your ticket gives you admission to SEA LIFE Oberhausen, but the timing takes a little planning. You should enter the aquarium roughly 60 minutes before your booked behind-the-scenes time. Show your ticket at the entrance, then explore the public exhibits at your own pace.

This early arrival is not just a waiting period. It gives you time to see the main aquarium without rushing, and the public visit helps put the later work-area tour into context. You first see what the aquarium presents to the public, then learn what happens out of sight to keep the animals healthy.

At the end of the aquarium route, wait at the meeting point for your scheduled start. The tour itself lasts about 30 minutes, while the complete activity takes about 90 minutes when the aquarium visit is included. Pay close attention when you enter and tell the staff that you have a behind-the-scenes booking. One booking problem reported at the entrance involved staff not asking about the extra tour, which caused the group to complete the tour before the intended aquarium visit.

That is an easy issue to avoid: arrive early, show your ticket clearly, and confirm the tour time before walking into the exhibits. The activity provider is Merlin Entertainments Group Deutschland GmbH.

The 148-square-meter shark breeding tank

The star of the public aquarium is Germany’s largest shark breeding tank. Its shallow 148-square-meter basin is used for young blacktip reef sharks, catsharks, rays, and other sea creatures.

The shallow design matters. It lets you see the younger animals more clearly than you might in a large, dark display tank. You can watch how the aquarium gives these animals space to grow while keeping them visible to the public. The breeding tank also shows that an aquarium is not only a place for finished displays. It can serve as a working environment for raising and caring for young marine life.

The young animals are especially useful for families. Children can see that sharks and rays are not simply large, distant shapes moving through a tank. They are living animals at different stages of growth, each needing careful food preparation and monitoring.

I would give this area plenty of time before the guided portion begins. The later tour focuses on food, laboratory work, and feeding, so seeing the nursery first gives you a useful visual reference. When the guide explains care routines, you already know which animals and tanks are involved.

What the public aquarium visit adds

The aquarium admission is included, and you can visit the displays before the guided portion begins. This is important when judging the $36 price. You are not paying only for a half-hour talk in a work area. You are also receiving entry to SEA LIFE Oberhausen and time to see the full public exhibition.

I recommend moving through the aquarium at a steady pace rather than racing to the meeting point. The booking instructions allow about an hour before the tour, which is enough to get a proper look while keeping an eye on the clock. If you stop often, read every sign, or have young children with you, you may need to keep your route moving.

The public displays also help you decide how much value you place on the special access. If you only want to see the aquarium, a standard entry ticket may be enough. If you are curious about aquarists’ daily work and want to feed animals yourself, the added tour gives the visit a different purpose.

One useful point is that the guided portion comes at a fixed time, while the public aquarium visit is more flexible. You can choose where to spend your attention before the tour, then meet the guide at the end of the aquarium route. That format works well if different people in your group have different interests.

Inside the aquarists’ feed kitchen

The behind-the-scenes visit begins in the working area used by aquarium staff. Here you learn about the feed kitchen and how food is prepared for the animals.

This is where the experience becomes more practical than a normal aquarium talk. You are not just hearing that the animals need special care. You see the area where food preparation happens and take part in getting food ready. The supplied details do not specify every type of food or the exact menu, so you should expect an explanation and a supervised preparation activity rather than a full training session.

The food work also gives you a better idea of what aquarium care involves. A display may look calm and simple from the public side, but the animals still depend on staff for regular preparation, careful handling, and correct feeding. The activity connects those ordinary work steps with the sharks, rays, and fish you have already seen.

For many people, this will be the strongest part of the tour. Feeding brings you close to the animals in a way that simply standing beside a tank does not. It is also the part most likely to hold a child’s attention, provided the child can follow staff instructions and wait for the correct moment.

The small group helps here. With a maximum of 10 people, you have a better chance of seeing what is happening and taking part than you would in a large public presentation. Still, the activity is short, so not everyone should expect a long turn with every animal.

A real microscope in the aquarium laboratory

The tour also visits the aquarium laboratory, where you can look through a real microscope and learn about the technology used there.

This detail may sound modest, but it gives the visit a useful scientific side. The aquarium is not only about large animals and dramatic tanks. Staff also need tools for checking and understanding the smaller details of marine life and the water environment. Looking through the microscope lets you see part of that less visible work.

The information provided does not specify exactly what specimen you will examine, so do not book this expecting a particular organism or a long laboratory lesson. The safe expectation is a guided introduction to the lab and a chance to use the microscope.

I like this balance between the feed kitchen and the laboratory. One part is physical and hands-on, while the other shows the careful observation behind aquarium care. If you are interested in marine biology, animal care, or how aquariums operate, these details make the visit more useful than a standard walk through the tanks.

Feeding the animals at close range

The feeding session comes near the end of the tour. After learning about preparation and the staff’s work, you get a bowl of food and help feed marine life at an aquarium tank.

This is the moment that gives the $36 ticket its clearest special value. You are close enough to take part, but the activity remains supervised. The exact animals available for feeding can vary, so the description does not promise that you will feed a specific shark, ray, or fish. It does promise an opportunity to feed aquarium animals as part of the guided visit.

The experience is also brief. One account of the tour describes about 30 minutes in a room learning about feeding, followed by feeding fish at a tank. That is an important point for setting expectations. You are getting a compact working introduction, not a full shift alongside the aquarists.

If you want personal contact with marine life, this should be the highlight. If your main goal is to walk through restricted parts of the building, you may find the tour limited. The phrase behind the scenes can suggest a large staff-only maze, but this activity focuses on selected work areas, food preparation, the laboratory, and feeding.

How much is $36 worth?

At $36 per person, the price makes the most sense if you plan to use the included aquarium admission and care about the special activities. You receive the public visit, a small-group German-language tour, access to staff work areas, a laboratory demonstration, food preparation, and supervised feeding.

I would not call it a bargain for someone interested only in seeing the exhibits. The added cost is paying for access and participation, not simply more tanks. The short guided section is the key limitation, especially if you expect an extended tour of the aquarium’s internal operations.

The value improves for families, animal lovers, and anyone who enjoys seeing how attractions work from the staff side. The feeding session provides a clear memory, while the microscope and feed kitchen add substance. You also avoid having to arrange separate aquarium admission.

A 4.3 out of 5 activity rating suggests that the overall format works well for many people, but the mixed impressions are useful. The most praised elements are the friendly staff, the interesting information, the large ocean aquarium, and the chance to feed animals at close range. The main criticism is that the behind-the-scenes access does not go as far as some people expect.

That gives you a fair way to judge the ticket. Think of it as a public aquarium visit with a short, hands-on staff introduction, not as a long technical tour of every private facility.

Language, group size, and accessibility

The live guide speaks German, and the supplied information lists German as the only language. If you are not comfortable following German instruction, especially during food preparation and feeding, this may not be the best choice. The aquarium visit itself can still be enjoyed at your own pace, but the special tour depends on understanding the guide.

The group is limited to 10 people. This is a useful size for a room-based demonstration, since you should be able to see the work and hear the explanation without a large crowd around you. It also makes the feeding activity feel more personal, although the short schedule means each person’s hands-on time may be limited.

SEA LIFE Oberhausen is barrier-free, and an elevator reaches all levels. Wheelchair users can therefore access the aquarium’s levels. The information does not give detailed specifications for every behind-the-scenes doorway or work surface, so you may want to confirm any particular access needs before booking.

Pets are not allowed in the exhibition. Guide dogs are welcome. Smoking is not allowed.

Who should book this experience?

I would choose this activity for a family that wants more than a normal aquarium visit. The shark nursery gives children something specific to look for, and the feeding activity offers a clear reason to join the guided tour. The microscope can also appeal to older children who enjoy science.

It suits adults who are curious about animal care, too. You do not need to be an aquarium expert. The appeal is seeing the practical steps behind a public display: preparing food, checking details in a lab, and feeding the animals under staff supervision.

It is less suitable if you want a long tour of restricted areas. The guided part is about 30 minutes, and some of the time is spent explaining feeding in one work area. You should book it for the combination of aquarium admission and hands-on activities, not for extensive access to every staff-only room.

The German-only format is another major consideration. If you understand German, the tour should be easy to follow. If not, you may miss much of the value even though you can still explore the aquarium itself.

Practical timing and booking advice

Reserve the time that fits your day, then plan to enter about 60 minutes before the booked tour. Do not arrive at the last minute. You need time to show your ticket, see the public exhibits, reach the end of the aquarium route, and confirm where to wait.

Keep your booking details ready at the entrance. Since one person had to complete the guided part first after the staff missed the connection between the aquarium entry and the extra tour, it is worth stating clearly that you have a behind-the-scenes time slot.

The activity offers free cancellation up to 24 hours before the booking for a full refund. You can also reserve now and pay later, which is useful if your schedule in northern Germany is still changing. Transportation is not included, so you must make your own way to SEA LIFE Oberhausen.

Souvenir photos are available for purchase on site but are not part of the ticket. Pets and smoking are not permitted, while guide dogs are allowed.

Should you book SEA LIFE Oberhausen Behind the Scenes?

Book it if you want to feed marine animals, see the shark nursery, and get a short look at the staff areas, feed kitchen, and laboratory. The small group and microscope stop add more substance than a standard aquarium entry, and the included public visit makes the $36 easier to justify.

Skip it if you expect a long, wide-ranging tour behind every aquarium wall. The special portion lasts about 30 minutes, and the focus is on feeding information, food preparation, the lab, and one feeding activity. For the right expectations, it is a pleasant and useful add-on. For unrestricted access, it will feel too brief.

FAQ

How long does the SEA LIFE Oberhausen activity last?

The complete activity lasts about 90 minutes. You should enter the aquarium approximately 60 minutes before your booked behind-the-scenes time, and the guided portion lasts about 30 minutes.

What does the ticket include?

The ticket includes admission to SEA LIFE Oberhausen and a guided behind-the-scenes tour in German.

Is the aquarium admission included before the guided tour?

Yes. You can enter the aquarium before the booked tour and explore the public exhibits at your own pace.

What language is the guided tour in?

The live guided tour is in German. German is the only language listed for this activity.

How many people are in the behind-the-scenes group?

The group is limited to 10 participants.

Can I feed the aquarium animals?

Yes. The tour includes preparing food and helping feed marine life under the direction of aquarium staff.

Will I see a shark breeding area?

Yes. The aquarium has Germany’s largest shark breeding tank, a shallow 148-square-meter basin with young blacktip reef sharks, catsharks, rays, and other sea creatures.

Is SEA LIFE Oberhausen wheelchair accessible?

Yes. The aquarium is barrier-free, and an elevator makes all levels accessible.

Can I bring a dog?

Pets and other animals are not allowed in the exhibition. Guide dogs are welcome.