Tarpon Springs, Florida: Spongeorama

See the movie and learn about our squishy friend, the natural sponge. The museum part of this attraction was reported closed Dec. 2024.

What happens when a deep sea diver ascends too quickly, then spends 45 years in a display at the free Sponge Museum? A photo collage.

Having finally visited this classic roadside attraction, I am sad to say that the museum is officially closed and there are no plans to reopen it any time soon. However, the classic old video is still there (the only additions being ads for local/related businesses at the beginning and end), and that alone is worth a visit.

A store with all size sponges and touristy things. They have a video on loop about the sponge industry. They also have a place to take pictures.

I took a new group of people to see Sponge-O-Rama, the film, and view the Museum of Sponges. The film was all I remembered it to be (Two men... alone in a boat... with nothing but a bucket and hook... and the endless sea....) but when I went to go traipse down the decaying aisles of the museum, I was horrified to find it was closed. They'd put tropical-themed shower curtains over the doorway and blocked it with bins. We were told that it had been damaged in a hurricane in September (entirely possible given the amount of termites living in the displays) but would not tell us if they had plans to reopen. I am heartbroken.