Dubai Aquarium Behind the Scenes Tour: What to Expect
The behind-the-scenes tour at the Dubai Aquarium & Underwater Zoo in Dubai Mall takes you into the working side of one of the world’s largest aquarium tanks: the food preparation area, the life support rooms and the places where animals are cared for. It is not sold as a standalone ticket. It sits inside the higher tiers of the attraction, so the real question is which pass includes it and whether the extras around it suit you. This guide covers what you see, what it costs, who can join and how to book without surprises.
TL;DR
- The tour is an optional private add-on within the Platinum experience, which also includes full aquarium and zoo access, per the official Visit Dubai listing.
- Platinum Pass tickets are listed from AED 399, and you must collect them at the At The Top main counter in Dubai Mall before you enter.
- Expect to see back-of-house areas such as food preparation, quarantine and the dive platform, and to hear how feeding, cleaning and care work day to day.
- Children under 15 need an adult aged 15 or older. Large bags and strollers go to the luggage counter.
- Confirm the tour length and time slots on the ticket page when you book, because they are set per product.
Table of Contents
- What the behind-the-scenes tour is
- What you can see backstage
- Which ticket includes it
- How much it costs
- Booking conditions to check
- How long it takes and when it runs
- Is it worth it?
- Our perspective
- Plan the rest of your day
- Compare tickets before you book
- FAQ
- Sources
What the behind-the-scenes tour is
Most visitors meet the aquarium from the front: the tunnel, the viewing panels, the zoo levels. The behind-the-scenes tour flips that. It is a guided walk through the areas the public does not normally see, led by aquarium staff, and it is designed around the question guests keep asking: how does a place like this actually run?
That is not marketing spin. When the tour launched, the aquarium’s then general manager explained that it was developed in response to guest demand to understand the science and operational practice behind managing a major aquarium. The current official listing describes the tour as a way to learn about the aquarium’s conservation and breeding programs.
If you want a ticket that lets you walk the tunnel and see the zoo, the standard entry does that. If you want to know why the water is clear, what the sharks eat and where sick animals go, this is the tour.
What you can see backstage
What a tour covers can change over the years, so treat any list as a guide rather than a promise. Two sources give a consistent picture.
A 2011 report on the tour’s launch described access to the dive platform, the food preparation area, the laboratory area and the quarantine facility, along with talks on day-to-day feeding, cleaning and animal care. A technical write-up from the company that built the aquarium’s systems lists the back-of-house facilities as life support systems, veterinary facilities and coral growing tanks.
Put together, here is what a visitor can reasonably expect to learn about.
Food preparation
Feeding a tank this size is a kitchen operation. Fish, shrimp and other food are prepared and portioned for different species, and the tour explains who eats what and why. The 2011 report notes that pairing tours with feeding sessions helps visitors understand diets and feeding habits across the aquarium’s different zones.
Quarantine and veterinary care
New arrivals and animals that need treatment are kept apart from the main exhibit. Seeing the quarantine area explains something people rarely think about: an aquarium is as much a hospital and a nursery as it is an exhibit.
Life support and water quality
The water in a tank of this scale does not stay clean by accident. Filtration, temperature control and monitoring all happen out of sight, and this is the part that engineers and curious teenagers tend to enjoy most.
The dive platform and laboratory
The dive platform sits above the main exhibit, which is how the tour gives you a view of the tank from above. The official Visit Dubai listing for a related experience describes a private tour of the exhibit from above as part of the Platinum package. The laboratory is where water and animal health are tested.
Which ticket includes it
This is where many visitors get confused. The tour is not usually bought alone, and the names of the tiers matter.
The official listing for the Platinum experience states that it includes full access to the Aquarium and Underwater Zoo. A private behind-the-scenes tour is listed as optional within it. The same page lists an animal encounter, a glass-bottom boat tour and food and retail vouchers.
| What you want | What to look for | Worth knowing |
|---|---|---|
| Tunnel and zoo only | Standard entry | No backstage access |
| Backstage plus extras | Platinum experience | Includes full access, optional private tour, animal encounter, glass-bottom boat, vouchers |
| Animal interaction without the tour | Encounter tickets | Check which areas are covered |
Tier names and inclusions are revised by operators from time to time. Before paying, read the “What’s included” list on the page you book from and look for the words “behind the scenes” or “private tour” by name. If it is not written there, assume it is not included.
You can compare the current options on our Dubai Aquarium tickets page, which covers the tunnel walk and underwater zoo.
How much it costs
On the official Visit Dubai listing, Platinum Pass tickets are priced from AED 399, a figure shown in July 2026. Treat that as a starting point. Prices on attractions in Dubai move with the date, the day of the week and the tier, and resellers sometimes bundle extras differently.
What the price buys is the bigger point. You are paying for a package that includes general admission, so the tour is not a separate AED amount sitting on top of an entry ticket. Compare it against buying standard entry plus individual add-ons, and count the vouchers and the boat tour as part of the value only if you will use them.
For a family of four, the arithmetic changes quickly. Check the child pricing on the page you book from, because the supervision rule below applies to the whole group.
Booking conditions to check
The official listing spells out several conditions that catch people out on the day.
- Collect your tickets first. Tickets must be collected from the At The Top main counter at Dubai Mall before you visit the attraction. Do not go straight to the aquarium entrance with a voucher.
- Age and supervision. Children under 15 must be accompanied by an adult aged 15 or older. A 14-year-old cannot supervise a younger sibling.
- Glass-bottom boat limits. The boat is not applicable to children below 2 or to pregnant guests. If someone in your group is excluded, the rest can still go, but plan something for them.
- Bags and strollers. Large bags and strollers must be left at the dedicated luggage counter. Pack light, particularly if you are coming straight from shopping in the mall.
If anyone in your group has mobility needs, contact the attraction before you buy and ask about access to the back-of-house areas, as these are working spaces and may not match the public routes. We have not found an official statement on this, so do not assume.
How long it takes and when it runs
Tour length and time slots are set by the product you buy, and they have been described differently over the years. Reviewing the pages that rank for this search, one tour at another aquarium abroad runs about 30 minutes and others around 45, so do not carry assumptions across. For Dubai, read the duration and the opening hours on the ticket page itself, and book a time that leaves you room for the rest of your visit.
A sensible plan is to allow the tour plus a normal walk through the tunnel and zoo, and to avoid booking a tight dinner right after. Dubai Mall is large, and getting to the counter and back takes more time than most people expect.
Is it worth it?
It depends on who is coming.
Curious teenagers and adults get the most from it. If you have ever wondered how a tank this size is kept healthy, the answer is in the rooms you pass through.
Families with younger children may find the standard experience, plus an animal encounter, a better fit. The tour is explanatory, and small children want to see animals, not pipes. Our guide to Dubai attractions for families sets out ages, heights and planning, so you can judge what suits each child.
Aspiring marine biologists should also look at the aquarium’s own education offering. The Aquarist Programme is described as an educational, hands-on journey designed to spark a lifelong love for the ocean, which goes deeper than a single tour.
Couples can treat the Platinum package as a half-day plan, with the boat tour and private tour giving a quieter pace than the main crowds.
Our perspective
We look at Dubai attractions from the visitor’s side of the counter, and the aquarium is one where the ticket name decides everything. Most disappointment we see comes from people who assumed a backstage tour came with their entry and found out at the door that it did not.
Our advice is simple. Decide first whether the backstage tour is the reason you are going. If it is, book the tier that names it and ignore the cheaper one. If it is not, the standard entry and one animal encounter often give you more time with the animals themselves. We also suggest reading the inclusions line by line, because the same attraction appears under different names across booking sites.
We compare options across providers and link out to the booking page, so we earn a commission if you book. That does not change how we read the inclusions: we would tell you to skip the tour if it does not fit your group.
— Sami
Plan the rest of your day
The aquarium sits inside Dubai Mall, so you can build a day around it. The Platinum pass includes food and retail vouchers, which makes lunch in the mall an easy fit. Collect your tickets at the At The Top counter first, take the tour early while you have energy, then spend the afternoon wandering the tunnel and zoo at your own pace.
If you like animals more than architecture, look at our page on wildlife attractions in Dubai to compare other options. If you are visiting Abu Dhabi as well, the National Aquarium Abu Dhabi tickets page covers the other major aquarium in the UAE.
Compare tickets before you book
We list Dubai attractions across categories, including observation decks, waterparks, wildlife and cruises, and link you to the booking pages so you can compare inclusions side by side. Start with the Dubai Aquarium tickets page for the tunnel walk and underwater zoo, or browse everything on our tickets page.
FAQ
Can I book the behind-the-scenes tour on its own?
Usually not. On the official listing for the Platinum experience, the private behind-the-scenes tour is an optional part of a package that includes full aquarium and zoo access. Check the inclusions on the page you book from.
How much does the experience cost?
The official listing shows Platinum Pass tickets from AED 399, as published in July 2026. Prices vary by tier and date, so confirm the current figure on the booking page.
Can children join?
Yes, with supervision. Children under 15 must be accompanied by an adult aged 15 or older. The glass-bottom boat in the same package is not available to children below 2 or to pregnant guests.
Where do I collect my tickets?
At the At The Top main counter in Dubai Mall, before you go to the attraction. Allow extra time to find it, and leave large bags and strollers at the luggage counter.
What will I see on the tour?
A 2011 report described the food preparation area, quarantine facility, laboratory and dive platform, with talks on feeding, cleaning and care. The current listing highlights conservation and breeding programs. The exact route can change, so treat this as a guide.
Sources
- Dubai Aquarium & Underwater Zoo - Platinum, Visit Dubai
- Dubai Aquarium & Underwater Zoo unveils the aquatic world, Al Bawaba
- Junior & Senior Aquarist Program, Dubai Aquarium
- Dubai Mall Aquarium Behind-The-Scenes Tour, Advanced Aquarium Technologies