Registration is now open for the 2026-27 school year!
Classes for kindergarten–fifth grade are available between 10am to 1pm on Tuesdays and Thursdays from October 13 to December 15, 2026.
Check back soon for information about winter and spring 2027 programs.
Book a class
Enhance your field trip with a class at the Seattle Aquarium!
Our educators will guide you and up to 32 of your students (at a time) through lessons that support Next Generation Science Standards while providing students with the agency to influence the class based on their prior knowledge and interests.
On-site classes are reserved for student/teacher groups with a minimum of 10 students. Classes are one hour in length and take place in our classrooms at the Aquarium. Please plan the timing for your full field trip accordingly.
Homeschool co-ops and other alternative school groups of 10 students or more who fall into the same grade band are welcome to register for a class with us. We are unable to accommodate custom programming.
Please see the “2026–27 availability and capacity changes” section below for details about our current availability.
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About our on-site classes
On-site classes take place in our classrooms here at the Seattle Aquarium as part of a field trip. All programs are 60 minutes long. Admission to the full Seattle Aquarium campus—including our Ocean Pavilion—is included.
The schedule is designed to ensure everyone’s experience is as pleasant as possible and to minimize overcrowding. Groups are expected to arrive at their designated entry time.
Late arrivals may not be accommodated due to the tight scheduling of groups. Teachers are responsible for relaying exact arrival details to their bus drivers and are expected to account for travel when selecting their entry time.
Our classrooms are located on the second floor of Pier 59. Groups arriving less than an hour before their program start time are required to enter Pier 59 first and will NOT be permitted to visit the Ocean Pavilion before their class. This policy is intended to make sure groups are in the right place and ready to begin their programs on time. Groups are welcome to visit the Ocean Pavilion after their scheduled class, time permitting.
After booking your program, you will receive more information to help your students and chaperones prepare for a visit to the Aquarium and their exciting class. Please read all correspondence from registration@seattleaquarium.org carefully as we try to cover everything you need to know for your field trip. Still have questions? Please visit our school group FAQ.
2026–27 school year availability
Due to capacity constraints, we are only offering classes for kindergarten through fifth grade in fall 2026 on a limited schedule. Classes are available between 10am to 1pm on Tuesdays and Thursdays from October 13 to December 15, 2026.
Stay tuned for information about our spring 2027 offerings, which will include expanded availability and additional class options, such as our well-loved Tide Pool Stewardship and Puget Sound Plankton Lab classes.
Before you book...
Effective September 2025 (ongoing): Please be aware that educators in multiple school districts have encountered an error message when trying to access our booking calendar, which is hosted by the third-party service You Can Book Me. This ongoing issue seems to be caused by school districts soft-blocking access to You Can Book Me on their secure networks.
As a workaround, we recommend accessing the booking calendars from a personal device not connected to your school’s network (such as a mobile phone or home computer). We apologize for any inconvenience. If you’re unable to get through to our calendar and booking form after trying on a different/personal device, please contact our Registration team at registration@seattleaquarium.org for support.
We understand that educators undertake a lot of preparation when planning field trips. Here is our suggested checklist of information to have ready BEFORE you view our calendar and submit your visit request:
At least two preferred dates and entry times for your group (in case your first choice isn’t available). Please note that program start times are separate from entry times. Plan to arrive at the Aquarium no later than 15 minutes before your program start time!
The highest possible student attendance your group may reach. (Please note we have a capacity of 32 students and 10 chaperones per class program.)
We require a ratio of one adult for every five students (1:5) for preschool through eighth grade, and one chaperone per 10 students (1:10) for grades 9–12. Groups without sufficient adult supervision may not be admitted, so please plan to confirm a minimum number of chaperones that meets our ratio requirement.
Does your group have any students with special needs or additional accessibility considerations? Seattle Aquarium may be able to provide some support. Let us know in the “accommodations” section of the form.
Are you the day-of-visit teacher or contact who will be attending this field trip to Seattle Aquarium? If you are booking on behalf of someone else or don’t know for sure whether you’ll be joining, please prepare a secondary contact who WILL be attending the field trip so we can make sure they also receive important details like parking and lunch areas.
If you’re interested in applying for our free admission and bus reimbursement scholarships, please read our pricing and scholarship information for details about qualifying criteria. King County schools, please check 4Culture’s website to see if your transportation can be covered by 4Culture instead of Seattle Aquarium.
Preview our Field Trip Code of Conduct and School Group FAQ so you’re aware of details such as where buses can unload, where to eat lunch and behavioral expectations for both students and chaperones.
2026 winter/spring class descriptions
Kindergarten–second grade
The Great Salmon Journey
Learn about the life cycle of one of our region's most iconic animals: the salmon! With the use of interactive storyboards and learner-driven activities, students will explore salmon from eggs to adulthood and discuss the many different factors that affect these amazing fish. Students will become invested in the journey of the salmon through role-playing and discover just how difficult it is to make the great salmon journey.
Third–fifth grade
Orca Discovery
Description: What do you have in common with an orca? Discover the connections we share by comparing the life cycle and physical structure of orcas to humans. Instructors will lead students in a discussion of how our actions can both negatively and positively affect these amazing animals.
Resources for planning your visit
We have created resources to help you prepare your students for their field trip. Please be sure to carefully review our school group FAQ, which includes information such as location of loading zones, lunch areas and more. On the preparing for your field trip page, we’ve included a video and social story that will help teachers prepare students for a visit to the Aquarium. This may be especially helpful for students with sensory needs.
Additional resources to be used at the Aquarium and in your own classroom or at home can be found on our teacher resources webpage.
After you have received your field trip confirmation, you may request a one-time Teacher Planning Pass by emailing registration@seattleaquarium.org. We encourage you to visit the Aquarium before your field trip to help with your planning process. Once Registration confirms the day/time you’d like to use your Teacher Planning Pass, we’ll send your complimentary ticket via email.
Please note that a Planning Pass only includes admission for a self-guided walkthrough of the Aquarium habitats. The classroom spaces in which our programs take place are not accessible to the public.
Pricing and scholarships
ON-SITE CLASS PRICING:
- $20 per student
- $15 per chaperone
- 1:1 aides are always free
The price for on-site classes includes admission to the full Aquarium campus.
Please note: There is a $5 service fee per visit* for all paid transactions (groups receiving scholarship admission are exempt). This fee helps our nonprofit aquarium cover payment processing costs, so more of your support goes toward our mission. Thank you!
*The service fee is charged per field trip, not per class. Even if you register for multiple classes during a single field trip, there will only be one $5 fee in that invoice.
We are excited to announce that we are now able to process payments online! This convenient feature allows groups to make payment in advance of their visits but on their own schedule, without needing to contact the Aquarium during business hours to process payment over the phone. If you select this method of payment, once your visit is confirmed you will receive a custom payment link unique to your booking along with your invoice. Messages regarding payment links will be processed by our tickets@seattleaquarium.org email address, rather than the Registration contact that school groups are familiar with. Please add tickets@seattleaquarium.org to your safe senders if you plan to use a payment link.
Free admission/programming
Our free admission scholarships also cover classes! The free admission scholarship is only available for schools located in Washington state. Scholarships are not available for homeschools. We offer free admission/programming scholarships to school groups who meet at least one of the following criteria:
- Public schools with 40% or more students qualifying for free or reduced lunch (verified through OSPI report cards)
- Title 1 schools
- Dedicated special education classes within a public school
- ECEAPs, Head Start and Seattle Preschool Program groups
The free admission scholarship covers admission and classes for all students and chaperones (including teachers). Chaperones covered by the scholarship are not limited to our required ratio; we welcome additional chaperones who would like to join the field trip. During the class itself, however, a maximum of 10 chaperones will be allowed in the classroom including the lead teacher, who must stay with their students for the entire program.
Aides required and accompanied by students with disabilities can enter the Aquarium free of charge even if the rest of the group doesn’t qualify for a scholarship. If applicable, please let the Registration team know in your visit request form how many 1:1 aides you are requesting comp tickets for.
Scholarship application process:
The Seattle Aquarium cannot pay for field trip transportation up front. Your school or district must arrange transportation for your group’s visit on your own. However, after the field trip is over, we may be able to provide a limited amount of funding for qualifying schools to reimburse their original source of transportation funding. The award is up to $400 per bus rented, with no limit on the number of buses rented (within reason and based on the number of field trip attendees).
Bus reimbursement funds
Field trip groups who qualify for a Free Admission Scholarship may also apply for bus reimbursement funds. Receiving a Free Admission Scholarship does not mean you automatically receive bus reimbursement funds.
Bus reimbursement funds are very limited for fall 2026. We ask that you only request a bus reimbursement if you do not have a different funding source available for your field trip transportation. Bus reimbursement funds are awarded first come, first served” based on when schools confirm their reservation (not based on the date of the visit). The maximum reimbursement amount is $400 per bus.
Bus reimbursement process:
The Seattle Aquarium cannot pay for field trip transportation up front. Your school or district must arrange transportation for your group’s visit on your own. However, after the field trip is over, we may be able to provide a limited amount of funding for qualifying schools to reimburse their original source of transportation funding. The award is up to $400 per bus rented, with no limit on the number of buses rented (within reason and based on the number of field trip attendees).
Our bus reimbursement scholarship is a separate application form than the field trip registration request form but uses the same qualifying criteria as the free admission scholarship. If you would not qualify for free admission, do not apply for bus reimbursement.
Our application form is sent via the third-party service Docusign and requires two separate signers with two separate email addresses. As such, we will request the name and email address of an administrator from your school/district who can be your cosigner. This can be a principal, secretary, treasurer or other office administrator who can best verify your qualifications. The application should automatically be sent to your office administrator at the same time you receive your copy; there is no need for you to forward the application to them. Different questions on the form are assigned to different signers. If the form will not allow you to complete a given field, it is because that field can only be accessed by the other signer.
For King County public schools only: Your bus transportation could be covered by 4Culture’s Curiosity Pass! Check out the 4Culture website for more information. If you are within one of the eligible districts, please contact your school district to learn more about how 4Culture may be available for bus reimbursement. Please note that schools listed as being eligible for coverage by 4Culture aren’t necessarily guaranteed funding.
Schools within the following districts are not eligible for bus reimbursement through the Seattle Aquarium for the 2026–27 school year. These districts have a contract with 4Culture that may allow them to be reimbursed for Seattle Aquarium field trips through 4Culture instead of through the Aquarium.
- Kent School District
- Federal Way Public Schools
- Auburn School District
- Highline School District
The Seattle Aquarium is not involved in the process of obtaining reimbursement through 4Culture. You must contact your district directly for information on how to apply. Please see the Transportation page on 4Culture’s website for support.
Contact us
The best way to contact Seattle Aquarium’s Registration team is via email at registration@seattleaquarium.org. Please note that due to a high volume of messages, it may be at least a week before you receive a response to any inquiries.
Urgent questions about already confirmed visits can be directed to our Registration office phone at (206) 693-6196. However, please be aware that we are often away from the desk or otherwise unable to answer this phone, so there may still be a delayed response to any voicemails we receive. Our office hours are 8am–5pm Pacific time, Monday–Friday.
Thank you!
Our work is supported, in part, by an award from 4Culture.
