Calgary Zoo Review

They have animals that I havent seen before like the snow leopard

Really good day out, though we went during off season so it was very quiet. Some parts are quite small but overall it's very well maintained.

The only letdown was that all the concession stands were closed even on the other side of the park so there was absolutely nothing to drink once you left the entrance. That's a real oversight and highly inconvenient for visitors. There's also absolutely nothing to eat anywhere. First zoo I've ever visited which lacked in food and drink options and I've been to dozens all over the world.

great place but quite expensive for what u get. but still 5 star. in calgary things are expensive.

i went to this zoo and i was very impressed with the popcorn in this place the vender downed them in butter and then dumped a hole bucket of salt on them. the animals loved them to.

One of the better zoos with very interactive animals and quality exhibits

Always a fun adventure for our family. The pandas were up and about and so were most of the other animals today.

I love everything about the zoo, it's a wonderful place to bring the family and is also handicap assessable which is great for me. They have many events during the months and it is overall a great day to spend with your children, family or loved ones. It would even be a great place to go alone. Also a great place to practice your photography skills and learn something along the way.

There's so much to see and do here, it's really a shame that it's so pricey. 2 adults + 2 kids, AND a 20% discount for having an AMA membership = $100.34.

Plus, food and drink prices are definitely on the high side.

If the money isnt a concern to you, then GO! Check it out! You'll enjoy it!

Saw several animals that we have never seen before! Was just a little disappointed because there was so much construction and the dinosaur section was pretty run down. But you can't make things better without the said construction! Can't wait to see what they do.

One of the best zoo i have visited. Prices are discounted if booking for group. Over all good experience. Kids really loved it.

First ever visit. Great animal selection and containments. Clean! Food services reasonsble

Lots to see and do. The Sunday brunch is also delicious!

If you like any animal go here you ll love it I guarantee you ll like it I went in the winter it s was good and I uploaded 84 photos today so that s says it s worth it to me try it out

We wandered around in the cool rain looking for a warm coffee. All the kiosks we saw said open but no one in attendance???? In spite of that, we enjoyed the facility. Finally found a cafe and paid $23.00 for 2 soup and a coffee.

This place is great fun, lots to see and do. The staff are helpful and the shows are great to watch. Go to the shows early to get a seat, go on a cloudy overcast day as animals sleep or hide when it's hot.
I spent at least 5 hours here trying out as much as possible and it still didnt seem like it was enough.
All together my highlight was the penguins, they were inside in a cool room with lots of water and were very active putting on a show.
Bring snacks and drinks as it can get pricey, but if price isn't a big deal the restaurant there had pretty good food.

Great place for kids to enjoy.
The BEST PART IS IN STARTING.
" The Penguin World ".

Had such an amazing time. I would suggest going on a less hot day as many of the animals will be more active.

Beautiful place to visit and I think the animals are well cared for.

Something people should know about is you pay for parking when you leave. When you drive into the parking lot the machines take a picture of your license plate so you don't have to take a paper ticket. Once you've parked, you can proceed into the zoo entrance. After you spent your day and are ready to leave, go to the machines and pay for your parking. Just enter your licence plate. If you don't do this, you will get a tickey in the mail. It's 12$. That being said the zoo is very nice. It has pandas in it including red pandas. I suggest you bring an umbrella to hide from the sun because it's mostly all outside. Definitely recommend going back

Plenty of interesting habitats and animals. Lots of staff around answering questions and giving presentations. Very stroller friendly. However a lot of construction this time around.

The Calgary Zoo is one of our city s jewels. Come see our visiting pandas, or take a walk through the Canadian Wilds. Whether your visit is for an hour or the whole day, there s so much to see and the world class staff are always there to answer your animal questions. If you have the opportunity, the Zoo s behind the scenes tours are absolutely amazing with memories that will last a lifetime.

World class zoo! Our twin boys especially enjoyed the penguin pavilion and the prehistoric area. Highly recommend!

We weren t really a zoo goer but finally got a membership since the youngest one in the family seems to love animals. So we ve been going early in the morning, before it s too hot and too crowded, and that s been great. The animals seem to be more active in the morning too so we ve been enjoying seeing the animals without rushing. We are also enjoying the playgrounds!

Fun for all. Recent upgrades helps with the people traffic in the zoo. Panda display is nice. They were very sleepy early in the morning.

I have to give it a three star only because the pricing is so high , also looking at the membership prices and they are not much better. I really wish they gave more discounts out to allow couples to get the chance to see the zoo because it would be a great date night. Best advice come super early on a weekday to avoid all the kids and strollers. I wish they could host more adult nights maybe even stay open later then 5pm since its almost impossible to see anything with people's kids running around and pushing making it a waste of money. It cost 2 adults about 60$+ 12$ parking if you are not a member which is insane , not to mention the food so bring your own! , thankfully groupon sometimes has discounts but the zoo should try hosting more events for adults and more coupons way to expensive. I also saw the zoo staff just walk on by about 4 of them not even seeing the kids trying to scare the poor peacock , someone was gonna get hurt but no adults in sight!

Great place for any age. My favorite place to visit is the penguin exhibit! I feel the prehistoric park needs to be updated as there wasn't much there and it was very hard to see some as the shrubs were coving them quite extensively. I can't wait to see the new additions the zoo is doing! Always a great time here!

I enjoy seeing all the animals and the staff in the penguin exhibit were very friendly and informative.

Obviously another amazing place to bring the children. Wish we could have spent 2 days here looking at everything and taking in all it has to offer. The penguins are so adorable, The bears and lions were actually up and moving which was awesome, and my favorite...the hippos...were active and moving about which really made my day.
I think the Calgary Zoo people could try to do something to promote other areas, or make them easier for people to get around to. The Canadian wilderness exhibit was more of a nature hike than viewing the animals, which is probably why not a lot of people venture off that way.

The zoo, as always, was spectacular. The Pandas were out, the tigers were active and it was feeding/enrichment time for the Komodo dragons. How awesome is that! Partook of Safari Brunch, for $24 (if you are a member $27 if not) is probably one of the better values for brunch around town and you are right next to the hippo house. Go on a cooler day and go around 10, it's feeding time and playtime earlier in the day

Cgary zoo lights is such a great experience!!! So much fun!

Great place, lots of different animals, reptiles, butterflies, pandas, world class Zoo. You can purchase a variety of foods that some of the proceeds go are used to buy food for the animals. Or you can bring your food. Great displays. For all ages. Year round. Access by Ctrain or car

Lots to do and see, two stars off for the amount of construction and noise going on. One star added because the butterfly conservatory is truly magical! Only had an afternoon, should have spent the whole day. Looking forward to seeing the Panda Family next year!

Very nice place for kids as they have play area too. But not too many choices of food you will find in their food court. Plz introduce some more varieties of food too.

Nice place to take kids along with you. Lovely beautiful massive space with enormous enclosure for big animals. Penguins, tigers, lion, snow leopards, lemurs, exotic birds, gorialls, monkeys, pandas, fishes, snakes, reptiles, Africana and Eurasian animals. Lots of options to dine and for take aways. All in all great place for kids.

Amazing experience and a beautiful zoo. Lots of indoor and outdoor exhibits so it s nice to go even on a cold day. I have a small child and the zoo is very large. We weren t able to see it all in one day.

Expensive and they charge you for parking!? But overall my child had fun there. Do not go if you care about animals or hate people.

Loved this zoo. The kids had a blast. We spend the entire day here right up until closing. The panda exhibit was pretty neat to see

Very beautiful place, enjoyed the walk. More for kids though. Theres a lot of kids there. But it was gorgeous

Beautiful place for young and all,little expensive but it's all for a good cause

Awesome zoo! The penguins were so cool, the pandas were so cute, and the food and gift stores were really fun

I really enjoyed the "one way" pathways through everywhere. Made it a far more enjoyable experience during these weird times of not going out much.

Went for zoo lights, nice display this year with lights spread out. There were a few additional activities and some fire pits around the park as well. Can be a pricey night out but if the weather isn't too bad it's nice to see even though you won't see any animals. $10 per car to park in the lot on top of admission.

It seems like a lot of th animals sleep all day, and they close the zoo just as the animals start waking up.
Also the dinosaurs are very inactive. Jurassic World was way better.

Lemur experience in particular was pretty cool. You can get pretty close for pictures and sometime they will walk right past you. I thought it was kind of a bummer that they don't have discounted tickets for families.

Awesome place. Older animals but well taken care of.They need some Elephants

So many cool things to see and do at the zoo, my kids and I loved it. We bought annual passes as we didn't have time to see everything today and we want to be able to come back again. A great park area for my 7 & 5 year olds, nice cafe area's for snacks and coffee. The pandas were lovely and Penguins are always a hit.

Overpriced for parking, admission, food, etc. Not enough attractions to make this a regular stop

Really enjoyed the zoo, it seems like they actually really care about the animals there and there is good space for them. Only issue would be the cost seems steep and then to charge for additional activities once your in is a lot!

Lots of different animals that made the experiences unique. Loved the layout of the park, parking was easy and getting in was even easier. Will definitely be visiting again!

Great place to spend a few hours, admission price is reasonable, parking is $12 and the parking lot is massive. There are concession stands scattered around the zoo and a few gift shops. It was under construction when we went over this past weekend so some exhibits were not open to view.

Go. Just go and find out for yourself why this place is so fantastic.

Great day out and the animals are adorable. The keeper show with tigers is really educational too.

What an amazing Zoo and to see the pandas. Was a once in a life time thing to see. Because they are being sent back to China.

As far as zoo's go I would put the Calgary zoo on par with San Diego and Toronto, and Calgary gets an edge for a great location and often doesn't feel as busy. Parking is well thought out and transit access is ideal. Headliner exhibits are world class. And it's also just a really nice place to go for a walk.

Fantastic place. Penguins and lemurs were the highlights for our family.

Great fun for the whole family! Lots of exercise hiking around to all the exhibits, but accessible by people with limited mobility in wheelchairs and such as well.
More than you can do and see in just one day, so getting season passes is a good idea! Love all the feeding times of the animals especially! The zoo personnel are so friendly and informative.

We went to Zoo lights and it was amazing. Our 3, 4 and 6 year old loved it almost as much as my wife and I . If you're a Calgary Zoo pass holder, arrive before the zoo's normal closing time of 5pm and you can stay for Zoo lights for free. The lights come on at 5pm and the activities begin at 6pm

Always a great way to spend a day. Lots to see, with plenty of activities and playgrounds to keep the little ones entertained. Lots of green spaces for picnics (you can bring your own food). Animal exhibits were top-notch with viewing from many different angles.

Had a blast with the wife when we went lots to see and do. Sadly the dinosaur section was closed but will half to go back I guess

Great visit. Clean. Enjoyed the animals. Even though the bears didn't seem happy. And there was only one wolf. And a few deer. The buffalo seemed on. Miss the Eagle never seen them. Pandas were cute and the Penquins. The camels seemed bored. The mountain goats didn't look happy. Most of the animals were sleeping. And not active. Quite disappointed. Would return. Enjoyed the spirit.

Lions and tigers were super active today and the butterfly conservatory was decorated like Alice in Wonderland! Great way to spend time with friends and family.

The exhibits were very well done with a consistent rate of movement in the lines. My personal favorite was the penguin exhibit by all of them were spectaculary done especially the Africa portion of the zoo. All around I would definitely recommend this as a stop on a vacation or just for a day trip.

Awesome zoo with good selection of animals. Liked going in the winter since it was less busy and the animals were much more active!

Love this zoo. Sad that pandas are leaving but it was still a fun day out! I haven t been in over 2 years and now they have this cool play structure for kids called Bugtopia, definitely worth checking out if you have little ones with you.

The zoo is beautiful! I highly recommend the zoo lights.

Loved the zoo, I would recommend it for anyone visiting town.

Not a big zoo but well organized and you can spend a good day there. The best thing it is accessible through Calgary train

Really good zoo. You could spend a full day at the zoo or a couple hours depending on what you want to do. Skipping the dinosaur section or even taking the short dinosaur section can save a lot of time if you're pressed for time.

The food we ate was pretty expensive and not very good so eat before you come and grab lunch elsewhere after you leave or bring your own food if you're going to be there for the day.

Also note that during covid the water fountains and water bottle fill stations are closed so bring water with you to last the duration of your visit.

Paid for the upgraded membership to get parking. Received a $40 ticket in the mail two weeks later. Called the zoo and they told me it was my liability to deal with it legally with the City of Calgary.

I double checked that I registered for parking correctly and it was effective Feb 13 @ 00:00. Ticket is for parking at 19:30.

Fantastic zoo - well worth the price of admission. There are a lot of great interactive exhibits like the penguin plunge and lemur habitat that are included with the price of admission. Crowds weren't bad on the cloudy, cool August day when we visited.

This zoo never gets old and it is very well kept and updated.

Now it includes interactive exhibits with the animals which can't be beat!

A worthwhile stop and worth the journey!

Calgary Zoo is a must Visit.

Buy a pass and good for the whole year pays for it self in 3 trips.
All food bought at Calgary zoo goes to wild life conservation. So for their $$$ prices its worth it.

Was very disappointed that the zoo was full price even though many enclosures were closed and you were forced to travel in one way paths that made you miss some of the animals

Dinosaurs Haha, the dinosaurs are a great addition to the other animals and their fries are the best

We are members and LOVE the zoo. It is so amazing how our kids' eyes light up! What an amazing thing to have in our beautiful city!!! Thank you staff and volunteers!

Me and my daughter love the zoo! Always have a great time

The zoo is pretty big and has lots of different areas to discover like an African area, rainforest area, dinosaur park, butterfly enclosure, Eurasia area and more. The newest exhibit is the panda area and depending on when you go then there can be a line up. There's lots of shade and many places to eat but I would recommend bringing snacks as there are benches throughout and tables to have lunch. You need to pay for parking but the train also stops at the zoo so you don't have to drive.

Great family fun,just watch out where you pull over in parking lot to use phone,parking ticket for pulling over for 20 seconds ouch

The Calgary Zoo is always a fun place to spend a day, it can get a bit pricy but then again so can conservation.

Best time ever. Great animals well thought out. Lots to see and do.

The Calgary Zoo is a fantastic zoo where the enclosures are often designed in a way to make you feel like there is no barrier between you and the animals.
The best example of this is the Penguin Plunge. It makes you feel like you are actually swimming in and amongst the penguins for an unfiltered view of them. Definitely worth revisiting.

Always a fun to visit this place. Panda's are cool.

Loads of different animals/ exhibits with lots of detailed info to accompany them. For the best experience, go during the summer when a lot more of the outside areas are open.

My favourite part of the zoo is their panda exhibit. Moving them back China made me very sad!

I love going to the zoo during the colder seasons! So many of the animals are out and busy that would not necessarily be active on a hot summer day