Here in a natural amphitheatre on the floor of a once glaciated valley three streams meet and combine their strength into a frothing river On all sides the rust brown fells rise up into the clouds. There is no cafe or toilet inside the Aquatarium; visitors are directed towards a coffee shop and toilets nearby.. At the end of a twisting, swooping, Lakeland road past miles of conifer and beech woods, lies a promised land. A well stocked shop has all manner of watery souvenirs and toys. From Windermere you can take the steamer across the lake to Lakeside.Opening times: daily from 9am to 5pm (last entry 4pm).Admission: adults pounds 4.95, children pounds 3.45, family ticket (two adults with up to three children) pounds 15.50, children under four free of charge.Facilities: full access for the disabled. By car it is a 25-minute drive along the A590 from junction 36 on the M6. The nearest station is Windermere, which has direct connections with Oxenholme, Preston and Wigan, all of which are on the main rail network.

The man let it out of its tank for a walk and we were watching it watch the fish through the glass.Matthew: I thought the best bit was seeing Ben underwater in the tunnel when I was on the bridge.The dealGetting there: The Aquatarium is located at Lakeside, near Newby Bridge at the southern tip of Windermere (015395 30153). But there weren't many big fish here, except for the catfish; he was good. I think my favourite was the iguana [an overseas visitor in the aquaquest lab]. I have seen the big rays in that last tank before, at the Sealife Centre in Scarborough. Together with the field book we paid about pounds 13, and it didn't even take an hour to go round.Benjamin: I liked it. We thought it was going to be a nature documentary or something, but it seemed to be more about tourism in the Lake District Also, the visit is maybe a bit expensive. There is quite a variety and I particularly liked the way that you follow the story of a river - and aren't the ducks great? If it stops raining we are going out with the field book to see what we can recognise down by the real lake.If I was disappointed with anything, it was the video presentation.

I thought the boys would enjoy it more than me, but I surprised myself. It's here that you leave the tranquil, delicate world of the lakeland river as fresh water disappears out to sea. When I visited, one section was being refurbished to accommodate a pair of otters. No doubt the frolicking of these furry creatures will steal the limelight from the diving ducks when they arrive at Easter.The visitorsSandra Collins, from Humberside, took her two sons, Benjamin, 13, and Matthew, nine.Sandra: We had a great time. He'll spend most of the time wallowing out of sight at the bottom when he does get quite big, so the plan is to wait until the tunnel is full of visitors and then lure him up to feed face to face with everyone."Leaving the lake's still waters, you rejoin the flow as it wanders on through lowland Cumbria to where river merges into estuary and grey mullets, flounders and sea anemones appear in the tanks.