I don’t know if you were like me when I was a kid and jumped in any pool … I would pretend that I was a mermaid and would squeeze my legs and feet together imagining it was a tail, and I would cut through the waters just like the mythical creature. Does that sound familiar?

Well, pretend no more! Cut through actual waters (in this case, the 117,000-gallon aquarium at Silverton Casino Lodge), don colorful tail and fins, and live out your mermaid fantasy at the property’s popular Mermaid School.

Photo by: Courtesy of Silverton Casino

There is no experience required for Mermaid School—just a love for mermaids, fish and water and a little imagination (and strong swimming skills). Classes are offered for both adults and kids, and each class is led by an instructor and Silverton mermaid. In the waters during each class is a safety diver, too, certified in water rescue. The class is about 90 minutes long and entails (get it?!) 30 minutes of tail and fin fitting, instruction and photo taking, 30 minutes inside the aquarium and a 30-minute behind-the-scenes tour. “It’s everyone’s dream to be a mermaid, and your dream is coming true!” said Sierra Gomez, mermaid and instructor.

• The first 30 minutes: Getting ready. Choose what tail you want to wear (sizes kids 4 all the way up to an adult 3X). The tail fits like a tight skirt going from the ankles to above the stomach. Next, you fit the fins on your feet, which act like the tip of the mermaid tail and help you move through the waters. Photo taking is next, while you’re still dry and your hair and makeup are perfect! Mermaid School provides a backdrop to pose in front of.

Photo by: Courtesy of Silverton Casino

• The second 30 minutes: Getting in the water. You’ll be swimming with more than 2,000 animals inside the tank containing 100 different species. “They’ll come over and get close,” said Kristin Janise, Silverton’s aquatic safety manager, mermaid and creator of Mermaid School. “We definitely have a few fish that have personalities and they’ll come check you out, but there are no issues with harassing people.” Guests will get to dive, swim and play out their mermaid fantasies, but there is a platform for sitting inside the water for those that are a little timid and need to take time adjusting to their surroundings. “If the kids are nervous about the fish, I just tell them to wave to them and to say, ‘Bye-bye fishes,’ and they’ll usually swim away,” Gomez said. “But the animals are so used to people that they don’t really bother you.”

• The last 30 minutes: Getting to see behind the scenes. “People just see the main tank and they think that’s it, and we show them the back area and they realize all it takes to keep this place running,” Janise said. Tour the quarantine area, where new residents are observed before joining the aquarium. See where the food is prepped and where the chemistry equipment to test the waters is stored, check out the seamstress area where the mermaid tails are kept looking good, and get a look at the various tanks with live coral reefs and cool inhabitants like hundreds of jelly fish babies.

A helpful tip: Bring your own swimsuit and camera. The Mermaid School provides everything else, including tail, fins, goggles, towels and the magic of making mermaid dreams come true.

Silverton Casino Lodge, 702.263.7777, silvertoncasino.com

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