The New England Aquarium, located on Boston Harbor, is one of three aquariums currently hosting the Animal Crossing: New Horizons Aquarium Tour.
Seattle Aquarium was the first to host the event, and after its success, Nintendo decided to expand the event and have the tour visit eight more aquariums across the U.S.
The national tour started in June and has made its way around various aquariums across the U.S. and still has a few more to go before the tour ends at the Tennessee Aquarium in February 2025.
Visitors of the New England Aquarium are given a preview of what is in store for them in the lobby. They are met with a bright and attention grabbing screen, displaying a scene from the game with many of its characters.
Most of the characters shown can be seen throughout the aquarium in the form of ‘life size’ standees. They can be found in many different exhibits providing endless photo opportunities for lovers of the game or anyone who may just find the characters cute or enjoy their art style.
The Animal Crossing: New Horizons Aquarium Tour also features many information plaques with the same information found in the game for the various types of marine life housed at the aquarium.
“It’s a really great way to introduce the aquarium visitor community to the game but then also introduce that same, hopefully new audience, that we’d like to drive to the aquarium to the animals and to the different diversity in marine life that we host,” said Chelsea San Martino, associate director of marketing and promotions at the aquarium.
The signage is placed near sea life in the aquarium that can be found in the game and the information is presented by one of the characters, an owl named Blathers, who is the museum curator in the game.
The plaques tie in the theme of the game with the aquarium while informing the visitors about the animals and also giving them a glimpse into the game.
“[The tour] offers aquarium guests the opportunity to experience a little bit more about the Animal Crossing: New Horizons game, and at the same time offer those same fans the opportunity to learn about the animals that they may encounter in the game that reside in the aquarium,” said San Martino.
Not only is the aquarium tour a great way for aquarium visitors to learn more about Animal Crossing: New Horizons, it is also a fun way to inform people who may only have come for the event about animal conservation.
“It [the tour] is just another entry point to get folks in and to learn about ways that they can connect and empathize with marine life…, if they came for the animal crossing exhibit or if they came for the aquarium and experienced the exhibit separately, we want them always to take away efforts that we all can do to help protect the blue planet,” said San Martino.
From taking pictures with standees to reading the information plaques, many people at the aquarium were incredibly engaged with the tour, even those whothat may not have been there specifically for it. Some visitors were even dressed like their favorite characters from the game.
“I think it has really resonated with the fanbase but also with the local community,” said San Matino, “We’ve seen such a great response from people so far.”
The Animal Crossing: New Horizons Aquarium Tour will remain at the New England Aquarium until Dec. 14 and is available to all visitors at no additional cost to the original aquarium ticket price.
