Reviews
Really nice zoo, the whole zoo took about 90 minutes to 2 hours to explore and that was taking it at a nice pace. They have a lot of birds that are relatively close to where you can stand, with a few of them not even fully enclosed so you can look at them without a fence in the way. During the morning the animals were relatively active. They have a splash park for children. The entire zoo is shaded, with tree cover absolutely everywhere. The entire walkway is wooden paths which is nice. They have a nice little botanical garden area. They have a wide selection of animals like black bears and cougars and cheetahs and monkeys, rhinos. A few things that the Jacksonville zoo doesn't have. There are plenty of benches situated all over so if you do get exhausted you can have a place to sit. Water costs $2 Gatorade cost $4 and any canned drinks from the vending machine cost $4. I won't say to bring your own water and drinks but probably a good idea. The snack bar is relatively fairly priced, they also have alcohol in case you want to drink when you get here that is 9 to 10 bucks per drink. All in all it was a good experience and I would recommend heading over here if you are in the area. Tickets only cost about 20 bucks, 40 if you get the souvenir cup and a meal. A burger cost about 12 bucks and comes with fries.
We bought our tickets online months ago, a little disappointed. We arrived at 9am when it is supposed to open. We were arriving as some employees looked like they were arriving. The parking confused me, entering the zoo confused me as well. Things were marked, but not clearly enough. Some animals weren't in their enclosures yet because staff members were cleaning enclosures out. And the whole African section of the zoo was closed for renovations. Which that is a good bit of the zoo. The reptile house was air conditioned which gave you a break from the humidity, but some enclosures at the corners were hard to see into and some things weren't in the correct exhibit. Restrooms were clean. Gift shop is small, but everything is reasonably priced. Took us about an hour to walk through the entire zoo.
Very nice, but the wild Africa section was closed and that is the biggest section. However, there are so many things for the kids and family to do and see. Train ride is awesome, feeding birds, walking with kangaroos. The monkeys are very entertaining. They have an alligator snapping turtle, huge and prehistoric.
I love the zoo and botanical garden. I took my Grandson there, and he really enjoyed it. There are wooden walkways through the entire park, making it accessible for everyone. You are provided with a map at the entrance, and there are signs posted to guide you through the exhibits. I like the fact that everything is scaled to a child's eye view, so they can enjoy the exhibits all by themselves. There are plenty of areas to sit, rest, picnic,play, or buy food. There is a $2 discount if you buy tickets online. Seniors are $18.95, ages 3-12 are $16.95. Next visit,I will buy my tickets in advance.
I went to this amazing little zoo today! I homeschool my son, so every Friday we go on educational field trips. It was so much fun exploring the zoo together. It's a small zoo, but it's really nice and perfect for a little field trip adventure. Thank you !
A party of 6 visited here for the first time today. We were underwhelmed. There were not a lot of animals out or in the exhibits. We walked through the zoo and visited all the the open exhibits in less than 2 hours. The botanicals were better than the zoo animals. There is only one restaurant, a dipping dots stand and a couple vending machines for refreshments. The zip line was slow. The couple staff we spoke with were nice. The splash pad and giraffe feeding are nice attractions for little ones. We do not plan to return and would not recommend. We had more fun at Wild Florida.
I LOVED IT! Extremely worthwhile. Sadly it was extremely hot when we got there so some of the animals were taking refugee inside their habitats. Please remember to wear sunscreen! The best part was that I got the chance to feed the giraffe, this comes at an extra cost of 6 usd apart of the entry fee. We got an ice cream before leaving, soft serve that was really good.
Beautiful place. Need more benches in shady spots for resting. Kids loved it but the heat kept animals inside smart animals. Checker board in the rain was the best part kids said. Also snacks and drinks were crazy expensive!Visited onWeekdayWait timeNo waitReservation recommendedNoPrice for adult entry$16–20
The Central Florida Zoo and Botanical Gardens had an event on a Friday evening that my girlfriend and I attended. I've never been to this zoo but it was great to see the various animals they have here. The giraffes and cheetahs were a first time for me to see and so close in person. The parking could be better, and many people take up more space than necessary because there are no defined spaces. The parking lot also has many pot holes that could be better filled. The train wasn't running on my visit but it would have been fun to take a ride on depending on the views. It was raining and someone got a flat tire. Sadly, only 1 employee seemed to care to do anything to assist so me and a few others helped the individual change their tire in the pouring rain. That being said, I'll probably go back to enjoy a little more time without getting rained out. Price for entry: $8.00
Today was my families first time at this zoo. The Botanical Garden was great and the animals were great as well. It was a nice hot day which is perfect for an outside outing. The only negative side to the zoo is they have keeper shows all around the zoo but they aren’t very specific about the location and duration of the show. Thankfully one of the staff members, Dawn assisted us with some facts about the enclosures we were interested in. We also took the train ride which was super cute and we all enjoyed it. Overall it was a great visit.
