Taraporewala Aquarium in Mumbai

Mumbai is a major travel destination for tourists and travelers from across the world. The land of beaches, Bollywood and fashion, this city has a lot to offer. Mumbai is a city of stark contrasts, colors, and patterns providing opportunities for everyone to begin and fulfill their dreams. From the famous Gateway of India to the Elephanta Caves, the city is a distinctively ensemble of the Victorian-era and art deco buildings. One such attraction is the Mumbai Taraporewala Aquarium, India’s oldest aquarium opposite the famous Chowpatty Beach. This aquarium was constructed in 1951 and has been renovated on March 3, 2015, by the Department of Fisheries. The renovation cost around 22 crore rupees. The exotic fish have been brought from overseas and kept in the aquarium in a healthy ecosystem.

What’s Inside the Taraporewala Aquarium?

Now the renovated aquarium has a 12-feet long and 180-degree acrylic glass tunnel and fish are being kept in large glass tanks lit by LED lights. Since the renovation, Taraporewala Aquarium in Mumbai has become one of the most popular tourist centers in Mumbai. Around 2,000 fish of over 400 species are housed in the aquarium. The new varieties of fishes include Purple Firefish, Raccoon Butterflyfish, White Tail Trigger, Grouper, Azure Damsel, Blueline Demoiselle, Jaguar, Catfish, Red Devil, Clown Triggerfish, and Blue Ribbon Eel.

The aquarium also has sharks, turtles, rays, sea turtles, and stingrays. The aquarium is set up that it features different ecosystems for different fishes such as the moss aquarium is for pregnant fish, the plantation aquarium is for imported varieties of water lilies and aquatic plants and the island aquarium ecosystem.

A number of interactive activities have now been initiated for attracting the younger generations. The Fish Spa is one section where you can find the kids and adults gathered around the water to dip their feet inside the water with fish and the fish nibble away and clean the dead skin. The Touch Pool is another popular attraction where visitors can dip their hands in the water and touch the starfish, sea urchins, and sea cucumbers under staff supervision even though there are no dangerous species in this section.

India’s first President Dr. Rajendra Prasad inaugurated the Mumbai Taraporewala Aquarium. The place got its name from D B Taraporewala, a philanthropist from the Parsi community. The aquarium received INS 200,000 (US$2900) from Mr. Taraporewala for its construction.

There is an Amphitheater with a seating capacity of 50 people where the screening of documentaries of fishes and marine ecosystem is presented for the visitors. There is a circular tank in the aquarium where you can find many jellyfish.

Taraporewala Aquarium Entry Tickets & Timings

Entry Timings: 10:30 AM to 8:00 PM on weekdays, 10:00 AM to 8:00 PM on weekends.

The Ticket Window Open Time: 10:00 AM to 1:00 PM and 2:00 to 5:00 PM. The validity of the ticket is one hour after purchasing it. The aquarium remains closed on Monday.

Ticket Fee:

International adult visitors: INS 200

International visiting kids: INS 100

Disabled visitors: INS 30

Travel Tips

It is suggested that you should plan to go on working days and that too in the afternoons. During the weekends, the Taraporewala Aquarium in Mumbai is quite crowded, you can see a long queue along the road to buy the tickets.

Photography is allowed inside the Taraporewala Aquarium in Mumbai, but it comes with a price! If you click pictures using mobile phones the cost is INS 500, using the camera it is INS 1000, using a DSLR camera photography charges is INS 5000 and for videography, the cost is INS 10,000.

How to Reach Taraporewala Aquarium

By Road

The Taraporewala Aquarium is located on the right of Marine Drive, and it is walking distance from the New Charni Road Railway Station. You can either hop on an MTDC or local bus, that is available for Marine Lines, or use a cab service. Auto-rickshaws are also another option.
                     

By Air

If you are travelling by air, the closest airport is Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport that is around 23km from this location.

By Train

If travelling by local train the nearest stations are the Charni Road and Churchgate junction from the Taraporewala Aquarium.

The Best Time to Visit

The best time to visit Mumbai is when the weather is pleasant. The winters are lovely with cool breeze rising from the beaches and is a perfect time for planning a trip to Mumbai. During this time a lot of cultural fests are organized which can be a part of your itinerary for the Mumbai tour. It's the most preferable time of the year.

The renovation of the aquarium has been going on for a long time and there is still a long way to go for it to become a world-class aquarium. The Department of Fisheries is working on improving the quality and incorporating various ways to attract as many visitors as possible. The maintenance and up-gradation of the aquarium is a must for keeping this 68-year old structure in place and preserving its identity for future generations to admire and appreciate.