Collaborative Post

We’d always heard fabulous things about The Deep (Hull, East Yorkshire), but for some reason, we’d never visited ourselves until this weekend.

We were not disappointed!

The Deep

Once you’ve bought your tickets, you take the lift to the top of the building (make sure you take a look over the marina from the windows up here – it’s stunning!). From there, a gently-sloping walkway leads you from exhibit to exhibit all the way down to the heart of the attraction; the big tank!

The whole place is very pushchair friendly and there are lots of interactive displays to play around with. At 5 and 2, our children were a little young to understand the wealth of information that was on display but we loved watching the turtle on the 3D TV and ducking as the rocks seemed to fly straight out at us!

You start off in the prehistoric era and the walls are lined with life-size skeletons, and this enormous model of a Megladon jaw really made us jump as we turned the corner!

As we went deeper, we hunted for fossils, paddled in “light water” and even met some penguins!

The Tank

But without doubt, the star of the show is the HUGE tank. There were hundreds of marine animals for us to gaze at – it was mesmerising! From giant fish, to graceful sharks, to rays that were bigger than me!

We spent a good 15mins just watching them through the glass (and, as you know, anything which can keep a 2 year olds attention for that long must be worth seeing!)

But at The Deep, they really do save the best ‘til last. By the time you’ve walked through all the galleries, you’re right at the bottom of the building. That’s when you get to use…

The Bubble Lift!

Yup, the lift back to the exit travels upwards through the vast tank and has a clear wall so it feels like you’re right in there with the sea creatures. It even pauses halfway up so you can really immerse yourself in the experience.

I’ve never seen anything quite like it.

Christmas At The Deep

And as if all that wasn’t magical enough, the staff at The Deep have organised something extra special for the Christmas season.

The Hull Land Train has been fully decked out in Christmas trinkets and twinkling lights to give you a lovely Christmassy tour around the city. The carriages are fully heated and strewn with colourful cushions, making it really cosy, especially if you take the twilight ride at 3:30pm like we did.

The tour was interesting and engaging and the guide even threw in a few verses of “The Wheels On The Train” and “Spongebob Squarepants” for good measure! It was fantastic family fun.

You can also visit Santa in his grotto, which is nestled next to the big tank in the main building. But keep an eye on the time because he’s only there between 11am and 4pm even though the centre itself is open until 6pm.

Extra Info

I thought I’d add a quick list at the end of extra info I’d like to know (as a mum):

• Once you’ve paid to get in, you have FREE ENTRY for a year!
• The whole place is accessible by pram
• Our children (5 and 2) were a little young to understand the information boards and interactive games, but there was still plenty to keep them enthralled
• There is a small soft play area for young children
• The café had a box-style children’s option (choose 5 items) which was about £3.50 (I think)
• There is a well-stocked shop with lots of lovely things to buy
• They don’t force you to go through the shop, unlike so many attractions these days (hurray!)

For more information, check out The Deep’s website.

Anyway, I hope you enjoyed this quick review. We had a fab time and would definitely recommend it. I’d love to know – have you ever been to The Deep? Do your kids like sea creatures? Where will you be visiting Santa this year?

We were given a family ticket to The Deep for the purposes of this review. All opinions are my own. For more info, please see my Disclosure Policy.

Listed on Days Out Now. Check out their interactive map to see what’s on near you!