Popular Denver-area aquarium is closing for good

By Shawn Patrick on January 29, 2024

When I first heard about SeaQuest Littleton closing down, I was a little bummed, but after hearing why, maybe it is a good thing after all… 

The interactive aquarium/zoo is closing its doors for good  on Feb. 4 after years of citations and reported injuries to visitors and animals.

SeaQuest is a petting zoo of sorts that opened a location in Littleton in the summer of 2018 in the Southwest Plaza, but state records show at least 30 injuries between June 2018 and January 2019. In one incident, a python struck an employee and latched onto their hand. In another incident, a little girl was bitten while feeding an iguana. An animal cruelty trial was held in 2019 involving a manager of SeaQuest Littleton, where the employee was ultimately found not guilty, but a sloth suffered burns to its face, and the list of other issues goes on and on. 

Eventually, Colorado Parks and Wildlife suspended SeaQuest’s license, but only for animals it regulates, allowing the aquarium to stay open. 

Although their Facebook post announcing the closure doesn’t mention why, it does say SeaQuest will be safely relocating its animals. 

Last year, two other SeaQuest locations, one in Connecticut and another in Georgia, also closed permanently, but SeaQuest will still have seven other locations still open after the Colorado branch closes.