Swimming with Whale Sharks in Ga

I received this email earlier today.

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I am happy to announce that on the TODAY Show this morning, the Georgia Aquarium, along with Meredith Vieira and Al Roker, announced Swim with Gentle Giants, our new dive immersion program that allows guests to swim or SCUBA dive with the world’s largest fish, the whale shark, in the world’s largest exhibit (Ocean Voyager) at the world’s largest aquarium. This program will be a great opportunity to introduce guests to the Aquarium’s whale shark conservation program and give them the amazing and rare opportunity to swim or dive with whale sharks and thousands of fish. We anticipate receiving a lot of media attention surrounding the program, which will give us another opportunity to communicate the headway the Aquarium is making in whale shark research and various conservation efforts.

Because of this tremendous media opportunity, six million people learned more about the Aquarium’s conservation efforts, the new immersion program and your daily efforts to provide the most engaging aquarium experience. As a thank you to our team, volunteers will receive a 20% discount on Swim with Gentle Giants. To sign up for the program, please call the Call Center at 404-581-4000 or visit the Information Desk.

The following information will be released to the media today. Please contact your manager if you have any questions.

GEORGIA AQUARIUM ANNOUNCES “SWIM WITH GENTLE GIANTS”

Guests can now swim or SCUBA dive with whale sharks at world’s largest aquarium

ATLANTA (Feb. 12, 2008) – Georgia Aquarium announced today that guests can now swim or SCUBA dive with the world’s largest fish, the whale shark, in the world’s largest exhibit (Ocean Voyager) at the world’s largest aquarium. Swim with Gentle Giants is a new immersion program at the Aquarium that introduces participants to the Aquarium’s whale shark conservation program and gives them the amazing and rare opportunity to swim or dive with whale sharks and thousands of fish including zebra sharks, sawfish, bowmouth guitarfish and schools of tarpon, cownose rays and more. Georgia Aquarium is also the only place in the world where participants are guaranteed to encounter the magnificent whale shark.

In addition to a 30-minute guided exploration of Ocean Voyager and access to behind the scenes areas, guests also receive admission to the Aquarium, all equipment provided, log book, certificate of participation, t-shirt and souvenir photo. No experience or certification is necessary for the swim program, and participants in the SCUBA dive program must provide certification from a nationally or internationally recognized organization and photo identification. The program is open to all guests age 12 and older. Participants under age 18 must be accompanied by a participating adult.

Participants may SCUBA dive daily at 3 p.m. or swim at 4:30 p.m. Swim with Gentle Giants registration opens today with the first slots available June 8 for Annual Pass members and July 1 for everyone. The cost for the swim program is $190 and the dive program is $290, and Annual Pass members receive a 10% discount. In addition to program discounts, Annual Pass members receive great benefits and family adventures that last for a year. Join Today!