Beluga Encounter FAQs

Parking is available on the Museum Campus in several lots. See more information about parking at Shedd here. Metered parking may also be available on Solidarity Drive up to 10 hours, but only after 8 a.m. Shedd is not responsible for cars ticketed or towed by the City of Chicago. Parking is not permitted on the aquarium's service entrance. Vehicles parked at the service entrance or the bus turnaround may be subject to towing. To learn more about parking on the Museum Campus, visit soldierfieldparking.com.

Please meet at the Extraordinary Experiences kiosk in the main galleries a minimum of 15 minutes before your scheduled tour time. Please note, late comers may not be able to join the encounter and will forfeit the program. Please be on time for your experience.

For the safety of the animals, no one under 5 feet (60 inches) tall may attend the experience.

Participants up to 17 years old must be accompanied by a participating paid adult age 18 or older.

During this encounter, you may come in contact with shellfish and seafood. For safety, we recommend that guests with shellfish and seafood allergies do not participate.

You will be wearing neoprene waders during the encounter, so wear comfortable clothing. All participants must wear socks, a short-sleeve shirt and either shorts, jeans or slacks. You do NOT need a bathing suit or wetsuit as you will not be swimming in any of the habitats. Please bring a change of clothing and a towel as you may get wet during your encounter. Participants cannot wear jewelry (including wedding rings) or artificial fingernails. There will be lockers available for all personal belongings.

Those in your party who are not participating in the experience are not permitted to follow along and are not allowed in the behind-the-scenes areas. Please arrange a time and place to meet with your party after your experience.

You may reschedule up to 10 days before your original reservation date; attempting to reschedule in less than 10 days will result in forfeiture of the experience with no exceptions. To reschedule, call 312-692-3355 (Monday through Sunday, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.) or email [email protected]. If a participant needs to cancel the encounter and is unable to reschedule, no refund will be made. Please note that all Shedd experiences are nonrefundable.

In the event that Shedd Aquarium needs to reschedule the encounter, the participant will be notified by phone no later than 24 hours before the encounter, and every effort will be made to reschedule the experience. If an alternate date and time is not possible, a full refund will be made to the purchaser.