We had season passes for both of the two years we ...

We had season passes for both of the two years we lived in San Diego. I like the upgraded pass as it is nice to be able to bring in a free guest. Some of my favorite less visited areas are the fern canyon trail (closest thing to my Hawaii home that I have found on the mainland) and all of the aviaries. The bus tour is best for first timers, however there is a great rooftop jaguar viewing area that you only get to see from a bus (after construction on Africa Rocks connector is finished and they close the road to pedestrians again), although you can just get on the kangaroo bus (quick stop bus) to see it... As long as there is room available, it can be very busy on the weekends! While I love the night hours, really Africa is the best place to see animals after 5pm as many of the animals throughout the zoo have early bedtimes and will be off exhibit in the evening hours. And take the skyfari towards the polar bears (away from the front entrance) as lines returning can be quite long. Have fun! I always see something new and interesting. I almost forgot, don't skip the reptile house, they have one of the best snake collection with lots of tropical species as well as a few local north American species. There are also some reptile sections hidden in small segments throughout the zoo. I skip the children's zoo, only because it is crowded. There is a great bug house and some nice smaller animal exhibits.