Located in Pantai Cenang, around 30 minutes drive from Kuah Town, Langkawi, the Underwater World Langkawi is one of the largest marine and freshwater aquaria in South East Asia. Not only that, it had won numerous awards since its opening in 2005, including “Malaysia Best Man Made Tourist Attraction”. Therefore, don’t miss your chance of visiting this magnificent aquarium when you are stepping foot in Langkawi island. I had my chance of touring this place during my first visit to Langkawi. Here is a bit of overview of this interesting place. The sprawling complex is home to animals from three ecosystems -  tropical, temperate and cold. Beside, there are also the adorable penguins from the African continent.

Fish Tanks

Upon entering the building,  I went thru a series of fish tanks ranging  from sizes as small as a home aquarium to fish pond as big as a mini swimming pool. Some of the fish in the open ponds were so close to me that I felt like touching them with my bare hands. The fishes come from a wide range of species and most of them live in fresh water. Most of the marine lives are housed in closed tanks.  A particular interesting tank is a tunnel tank where turtles, stingrays and all kinds of fishes swim inside this six-million-litres water tank. Imagine you are only inches away from it and the marine life. All kinds of  fishes be it big or small swim above and all around you inside this tunnel. It’s thousand times more fun than watching National Geographic channel on Astro! I was tempted to take some photographs of the attractive marine life but tourists were not allowed to snap with flash for fear of scaring the fishes. Therefore, I had no choice but to take some shots without flash. It was quite a challenge though.

Other than tanks, there are also some ponds with otters, giant koi fish and also some world’s biggest fresh water fish such as the Amazon arapaima living there. On a rough estimation, I bet there are over 100 tanks housing  both fresh water and saltwater marine life of numerous shapes and colors.

A shark which doesn’t like to swim.

The gruesome striped eel.

The leafy sea dragon from the Kangaroo Island, South
Australia. It has leaf-like tendrils that wave gently in the water.

The giant seahorse. This is probably the biggest seahorse I
have ever seen in my life!

Tropical Rainforest

Upon further walking, a different scene unfolds at the Tropical Rainforest with trees, caves and waterfalls. One of the main attractions here is an eight-metre long Amazonian anaconda weighing 150kg. It’s a young one at five years of age. This slithery creature can live up to 40 yrs and grow up to 80 metres long. I was told that the anaconda at the Underwater World eats three or four chicken at one go, twice a week. The interesting animals to watch out for here are thepiranhas, gentle flamingos, giant arowana, and capybara and of course, the tiny marmoset from eastern Brazil.

School of giant piranhas from the Amazon river.

The Amazonian anaconda which is only 5 years old but weighting
more than 150kg!

The freshwater dragon fish from the Amazon river as well.

The world smallest monkey, the Marmoset.

Cold Continents

I thought this is the most interesting one among all the ecosystems. The star attraction here is undeniably the adorable penguins being housed here. The world has 18 species and the Underwater World Langkawi has two of them – Rockhopper and African. These creatures cost about RM45k each to bring in from Africa.  Underwater World Langkawi is actually doing a good job here in breeding the penguins. Initially there are 20, but the population here has now grown with the addition of its Malaysian-born chicks for both the Rockhopper and the African species. It’s a great joy to watch these birds lining up during feeding time.

Also not to be missed are the fur seal feeding times (10:45am, 2:30pm and 4pm) though they are separated by a thick glass of wall. But you can imagine these adorable creature barking with delight as they enjoy their meal or they would be lolling lazily or swimming in the water during their leisure hours.

The African penguins are seen walking adorably.

3D Cinema and Other Facilities

There is a 3D cinema with virtual reality technology that allows you to see various sea creatures that cannot live and survive in aquaria. Make you you don’t miss out on the 3D cinema because I felt like I was only inches away from these weird sea creatures while I was watching with a special glasses. Check on the viewing schedule first before visiting. Besides, there is also a gift shop, a merchandise centre, a dry seafood centre and ample free parking bays. Next to the Underwater World Langkawi complex are the Zon Shopping Centre and the Neptune Cafe, making the entire place a one-stop shopping, eating and entertainment centre.

Entrance Fees

RM28 for adult and RM18 for children. It’s best to call ahead before you come to the place. Certain sections maybe closed at times to facilitate maintanence.

For the rest of the photos taken at the Underwater World Langkawi, please visit the following photostream. Thanks for viewing.

www.flickr.com

>Location, Map and Driving Direction to Underwater World Langkawi:

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