Celebrate PokéMONDAY at Clearwater Marine Aquarium

CLEARWATER, FL — Clearwater Marine Aquarium is opening its doors to Pokémon GO players on a mission to “catch ‘em all.” While players won’t be able to capture Winter or Hope during the upcoming PokéMONDAY event, they should be able to pay the two local celebs a visit as they take advantage of the lure blitz the venue has planned.

Set for Monday, Aug. 8, PokéMONDAY takes place from 1 to 5 p.m. at the Clearwater aquarium. The lures will be set up at the aquarium’s multiple PokéStops, according to officials. In addition, players will find the aquarium is also home to a gym, so teams can battle for control while visiting the venue’s aquatic residents.

Pokémon GO players who attend Monday’s event at the 249 Windward Passage aquarium are also eligible to receive free snow cone coupons with their ticket purchases and for checking into the aquarium on Facebook. In honor of the celebration, the aquarium is rolling out team flavors: blue raspberry for Mystic, cherry for Valor and lemon for Instinct. Players are also urged to wear their team colors.

Players who share their aquarium photos with the hashtag #CMAPokeMonday will be eligible to win two tickets to return for the next PokéMONDAY event. A date for that blowout has not yet been announced.

To find out more about the events or tickets, visit Clearwater Marine Aquarium online.

Clearwater Marine Aquarium isn’t the only Tampa Bay area attraction welcoming Pokémon GO players. Busch Gardens Tampa Bay is also running daily promotions through Aug. 7.

According to the park, more than 50 lure modules will be activated in such areas of the property as Jungala, Edge of Africa, Stanleyville, Egypt and Pantopia. Team hubs are also being set up as follows:

• Valor – Garden Gate Café and Gwazi Gifts
• Mystic – Dragon Fire Grill and Painted Camel
• Instinct – Serengeti Overlook Restaurant & Pub and Cheetah Gifts

Pokémon GO-related events will take place between 11 a.m. and 3 p.m. and 5 and 9 p.m. daily through Aug. 7 at the 10165 N. McKinley Drive park in Tampa.

To take advantage of the Pokémon GO festivities, Busch Gardens visitors do need to pay for admission. For more details about tickets, check out the park’s summer specials.

For those not in the know, the game works by having players move through the real world. As they do, their smartphones vibrate to let them know when a Pokémon is near.

Players then throw a PokéBall to catch it and add it to their PokéDex. The game uses a smartphone’s GPS and camera to turn the real world into a gigantic scavenger hunt. As players collect fictional creatures, they can use the Pokémon in their collections to battle other players.

Photo of Winter courtesy of Clearwater Marine Aquarium