The Tennessee Aquarium has been ranked as one of the 10 best aquariums in the world.
Travel website TripAdvisor ranked the Chattanooga-based aquarium seventh in its 2018 rankings. The aquarium finished one spot behind the Dubai Aquarium & Underwater Zoo and ahead of Hawaii's Maui Ocean Center.
The Tennessee Aquarium received overwhelmingly positive reviews on the travel website with 83 percent of the 6,100 reviewers giving the aquarium either four or five-star reviews.
"The views and exhibits were absolutely beautiful. It was an enchanting experience. I was captivated by the penguins and the dive show," wrote one recent reviewer.
The Tennessee Aquarium opened in 1992 and later anchored the 21st Century Waterfront Plan which transformed Chattanooga's downtown.
The Georgia Aquarium also made the list, placing third. Lisbon Oceanarium in Portugal and Oceanografic Valencia in Spain were ranked as the top two aquariums in the world, respectively. Four U.S. aquariums placed in the top 10: California's Monterey Bay Aquarium along with the previously mentioned Hawaii, Tennessee and Georgia aquariums.
Contact staff writer Mark Pace at mpace@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6659. Follow him on Twitter @themarkpace and on Facebook at ChattanoogaOutdoorsTFP.