‘An incredible honour’: Brockville’s Aquatarium wins Travellers’ Choice award
The Aquatarium (AQ) at Tall Ships Landing, a nonprofit interactive science and education museum located in the heart of downtown Brockville, has become the go-to destination for locals and tourists alike to explore the wildlife, history, and diversity of the 1000 Islands Region.
In recent years since the COVID-19 pandemic, the facility has worked overtime to introduce new and enriching opportunities for visitors, including The Mermaids of March, The Pirate Festival, Travelling Bricks (an exhibition made of lego bricks), and more.
All this hard work has paid off, as the AQ recently announced that they have been recognized with the 2024 Travellers’ Choice Award from TripAdvisor. This means that the Brockville-born facility is part of the top 10 percent of things to do worldwide, according to their satisfied customers.
According to tripadvisor.co.uk, “The Travellers’ Choice awards honour travellers’ favourite destinations, hotels, restaurants, things to do, and beyond, based on the reviews and opinions collected from travellers and diners around the world on TripAdvisor over a 12 month period.”
The facility was previously recognized by TripAdvisor in 2020 with a “Safe Travels Award” for its commitment to safety and health protocols during the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown. This was awarded by the World Travel & Tourism Council.
Visitor Experience Coordinator Brian Elliot told Brockvilleist, “At the Aquatarium, we have many goals. To inspire curiosity in the history and local aquatic and wildlife of the 1000 Islands Region, to educate and to make our guests smile. Being recognized by our guests for carrying out our roles in a way that matters to their visits is an incredible honour.”
He continued, “Our recent recognition by TripAdvisor as a Travellers Choice Winner for 2024 is an honour we hold in high esteem. Our guests have spoken, and we are incredibly grateful for their kind support and recognition. Our sincere thanks for your continued support.”
Brockvilleist also spoke with James Wilson, who works in sales and marketing, and shared that the AQ’s continued success has been a group effort.
“Our executive director Thomas Harder or someone will formulate an idea and then it gets kind of percolated amongst all the different departments. It’s all about trying to get that teamwork in. Obviously, we take a look and kinda judge day-to-day by the smiles of the kids but this award is another way that we can validate the fact that we’re doing good.”
He shared his excitement to watch the AQ continue to grow and expand into the community beyond its four walls.
“The travelling bricks at the Centennial Youth Arena was a really good example of that both figuratively and conceptually. It was something that we typically don’t do but also something that was done off-site and people enjoyed it as well.”
On a final note, Wilson said, “This has given our staff an opportunity to reflect and see that we’re doing a good job. We’re out there delighting our visitors and that’s what we will continue to do.”