Yesterday, as part of my job as the VISIT FLORIDA Family Insider, my family and I visited The Florida Aquarium in Tampa.

We saw crocodiles, huge grouper fish, funny otters and wildlife native to the Sunshine State.  The highlight of the day – we participated in the Penguins: Backstage Pass Experience and got to meet the most adorable penguins!

This cute, little penguin in the picture above was named Cliff.  He liked us petting him so much that I thought he was going to fall asleep!  Maggie just learned about penguins last week at school, along with the letter “P” – so this was such fantastic timing.  She loved meeting the penguin biologists and we all had a good laugh when she taught the penguins how to walk!

There were eight penguins total and I even found myself giggling as they all waddled around the room.  Did you know that penguins have feathers, not fur?  I always assumed it was fur!  We even got to watch Rocky the penguin go for a little swim and eat fish.  (They swallow their fish whole! Crazy!)

This fantastic experience is an additional cost, in conjunction with admission to the aquarium – but it is extremely worth it!  The 30-minute Penguins Backstage Pass experience is offered twice a day for groups of no more than fourteen people.  You’ll have the opportunity to pet the penguins, watch them eat, learn from the biologists and take plenty of pictures too.

It was truly a once in a lifetime experience and extremely educational – for parents and kids!

Learn more about The Florida Aquarium

Check out The Florida Aquarium on Facebook and follow along on Twitter at @FloridaAquarium.

Visit their website at www.flaquarium.org – there are so many great things to see and do!