Point Defiance Park and Zoo.

I love this spot! It was also one of my mother's favorite spots. I took her once or twice every summer before she passed. She had a special love for the sea otters and loved the area set aside for the children, especially the meerkats and the petting section. The zoo will always hold a special place in my heart! The animal handlers are always helpful in answering questions and it's clear that they truly care about the animals. There's a nice gift shop near the entrance as well.

It’s a beautiful place with many beautiful flowers, trees and views. But the zoo was just ok. MANY animals were hard to see or find in their exhibit. And it is a small zoo with not a lot of animals to see. I think I enjoyed the aquarium part a bit more. They do have some nice spots for kids, but we didn’t need. At $22 online, which I understand why, I’m not sure it was worth it. I’ve been to many zoos all across the country and this won’t be memorable

The polar bears! Worth going just to see them play together. The twin sister polar bears are very cute and playful. We saw them playing in the water together and it was quite adorable. The zoo is fairly small and you can complete it in 3 hours. They seem to rotate some of the animals as well so you might not see all the animals that they have. The aquarium was a big hit for my 2 year old nephew. It also has a touch tank which is great for kids. There is another aquarium under construction that will open sometime in 2024. The tiger was beautiful and we were able to see her up close. There is only one Asian elephant at the zoo which made me feel sad for her since she seemed a bit bored and so I wish they had a companion for her. Overall a nice way to spend the afternoon here. And not a very expensive entry ticket.

We love Point Defiance! The surrounding area is full of beautiful trails and beaches. The zoo itself is great. The staff is always helpful and informative, answering questions and indulging toddler chatter. We use it as part of our homeschooling to discuss habitats, animals adaptation and diets, etc. They have lots of animal chats at various times to learn about the animals and I enjoy looking at the plants and seeing where they are from. It has plenty space to bring a picnic and a cute playground also. Lots to do and lots to see!

This was a great zoo for the price! It was big enough to have some unique animals and small enough to spend 2-3 hours and see everything. We loved watching the polar bear sister wrestle and seeing the red wolves! Well-kept and entertaining! Parking was easy to find and it was free!Visited onWeekdayWait timeNo waitReservation recommendedYesPrice for adult entry$21–30

The company I work for hosted an event here, and I gotta say, it was awesome. I brought my camera and had a blast! We had an up close encounter with a sloth and a falcon, lunch, and access to the zoo. The aquarium is actually pretty good, and my favorite part. I've been to a few, and this one was able to wow me with the jellyfish room. Amazing. Parking is crazy, just a heads up. I heard of a lower lot after the fact. Research it.

The aquarium here was really good! We only went into one. The other was closed. The hammer head sharks were super cool. My favorite was the jellyfish! They have a little show they play at noon, and it was actually pretty cute. Some of the animals didn't do their part correctly, but I think that made it so much better. Do see the animals act as animals. It was cute. My kids really enjoyed the day there today.

What an adorable zoo! And so much better than the Seattle Zoo in my humble opinion. The Pacific aquarium was incredible! Fantastic and visual viewing areas, and awesome animals! We also loved the kids area, and my daughter got to feed the goats!Visited onWeekdayWait timeNo waitReservation recommendedYesPrice for adult entry$11–15

This was the most kid friendly zoo I've ever been to, and honestly it being so hands on made it even more fun for my sister and I. We got to bring out our inner child and we had a blast. We also were estatic to see an opossum and puffins, along with all of the other animals and critters. The magic show they do in the afternoon was a blast as well. We had debated on going bc we thought it would be super cheesy, but it was a blast and we were laughing super hard by the end of it.

We really enjoyed our time at this zoo although this was one of the smaller metro zoos we've visited. The aquarium was fantastic. The staff animal talks were wonderful. Parking was horrible though. I wish we had known to arrive early in the morning to get parking. We ended up parking on the road a ways from the entrance, which was fine, but it was hard to tell if it was legal to park there.