Ostego Bay Marine Science Center

Ostego Bay Marine Science Center is located in Fort Myers Beach, Florida, right on the main wharf on scenic San Carlos Island. Though its hours can vary from season to season, the center provides visitors opportunities to experience interactive displays and exhibits with real marine animals and other creatures.

The center opens from Wednesday to Friday, usually from 10am until 4pm, more consistently during the summer season. Feeding opportunities arise daily, allowing adults and children to watch the creatures enjoy lunch. In fact, under careful supervision, visitors can watch hatching turtles and put their hands into sharks' mouths. Kids especially love touching the colourful starfish and the exciting summer camps and workshops, including Treasures from the Sea.

Through the varied camps and workshops held by the center, guests learn about lifestyles for some of the smallest and largest sea creatures off the Florida coast. Two hour type programs include presentations, shell cleaning, tank touches and hands on type tables. The most popular creatures include sand dollars, sea horses, sea stars, sea urchins and sea shells. Most of these programs are held on Thursdays (10am until 12pm).

For adults, the Ostego Bay Marine Science Center has three-hour, specially guided tours, running from October until May, from 9am until 12pm on most Wednesdays. Reservations are required as the shrimp tours, oil spill certification and refreshers courses fill up quickly.