London Aquarium rip-off

We had some friends visiting us from abroad, so on Sunday we went to London. Since we don’t live there, we joined them and became tourists for a few hours. Our friends insisted that we visit the aquarium as quite a few adverts and guide books say it’s a must. “Your wish is our command” we said and we joined the queue. As it turned out, the place is actually a must not. A total rip-off. We spent half an hour there only because it was raining outside. Being very central, the underground building is inundated with tourists who fight for every good viewing spot, making the experience even less enjoyable. In addition the aquarium is being refurbished so some sections are not open for visitors. In every normal place, the whole site would be closed while major construction work takes place, but not here. We actually had to carefully avoid the builders and watch out for things falling. This is bad management and pure greed.

I’m sure the aquarium will look much better when the new £5 million renovation will come to an end, but I’m not going back. Actually two days later I had to go to London again, this time just by myself and since I had a few hours to kill, I decided to do something I always wanted: visit the National History Museum. It’s absolutely fantastic and free. It’s also too big to see in a day, especially if you’re interested in finding out everything about Tyrannosaurus Rex. Next door is the Science Museum, which can be great if you have a slight interest in nature, science and technology. They have a nice section on space travel with some life-size rockets on display. Walk for another 10 minutes towards Hyde Park and you have the Serpentine Galleries. All these for free! London has so much more to offer than an aquarium in construction overcharging its visitors.