Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden Reviews

If you re into zoos then you should check this out. Lots of fun animals to see. Festival of Lights is also well worth visiting. Little on the pricey side though for food and admission but worth it if you re into that kind of thing. If you don t have very long the Reptile House, Insect House ( not sure what it s called), and the Night Hunter exhibits are the places you should see while here.

Over hour to park when less than quarter of mile from the zoo. Parking attendants don't pay attention, goofing off and sending cars places without any reason. Base Camp Cafe had over 50 minute wait for pizza. No food in the oven with clearly right workers in the oven area talking and still more workers outside that area talking and three workers at the register talking. When asked why the long wait for food was told only one person working on food and they were really backed up. So what is everyone else doing besides standing around. I understand it's a busy time of year but literally our evening consisted of parking and waiting on food. If planning a visit eat before you come and allow lots of time to park. The lights are beautiful.

Took my 9 year old daughter for a Mommy-Daughter day. We really had a great time even with the rain. It's always a good day to go to the zoo!

My 18 year old daughter, my husband, and I visited the zoo this past week. We loved it! I enjoyed the variety of animals and the fact that the employees all seemed to be happy and enjoying their jobs. The enclosures were clean, and the animals looked well cared for. I was excited to see that the Cincinnati Zoo has manatee and has a rehab program for injured manatee. After the manatee recovers, they re-introduce it to the wild. We missed seeing the manatee in Florida, so I'm really glad my daughter had an opportunity to see them in Ohio!! We were also thrilled that baby Fiona made an appearance. I understand that she is just being introduced to public viewing, so I was worried that she would not be out. No fear! She was out and showing us all how a 400 lb baby hippo does her thing!! Great time at the zoo! I would definitely go back!

Thank you Cincinnati Zoo for free front line workers admission!

I'm not a member so we go on special event days, of which there are several all year. The zoo is clean, easy to navigate and the animals seem content. Quite a variety of species and something for everyone. There is plenty of shade for Cincy's steamy Summers and lots of food options, we however, bring our own picnic and never tire of finding new spots to enjoy the animals with our lunch. Parking costs $10 in addition to any entrance fee.

We had a great time here with the family! The reasons why I took off 2 stars was due to the fact that a family of 5 costs quite a bit of money which is fine except for the fact that ALOT of the exhibits were closed which made us all sad because we don t get to come here much since we live an hour away but either way we will return just maybe making sure the exhibits we truly want to see are open.

The zoo and all of the animals were great. There were a few of the exhibits that were closed like the gorillas. Most of the vendors were also closed. The train was running but the line was really long. There were hand sanitizer stations spread throughout the zoo.
The zoo was not enforcing the mask or six feet of distance. Obviously it would be impossible to police the entire zoo but in high traffic areas there was no one that i saw trying to keep people separated or wearing their masks. I saw whole families who did not have a mask. I thought kings island did a much better job making sure everyone was safe.

Wondeful that the zoo has EV chargers and also such a dedicated and hard working staff. We saw their maintenance crew hard at work in the rain the other day despite the conditions.

Renewal of membership. Walked around, rode the train with granddaughter. Best zoo in the world.

I loved my trip here. Affordable price, and well made exhibits.

Good experience but could be more exciting if they would have open all the sites but overall good..

Easy to navigate, clean facilities, plenty of opportunities for safe social distancing while giving the kids a fun activity to do.

The Cincinnati Zoo and Botannical Garden is one of the most acclaimed and outstanding Zoos in the country. From insects to elephants, the Zoo does a very good job of providing it's animals with the most spacious and natural habitats for individual species. There are many animals to see. It's hard to see them all in just one visit. Many of the animals are native to the continent of Africa and prefer warmer temperatures to enjoy being outside. But the majority of animal viewing areas have both outside and inside viewing areas. For the human visitor, you will find more than adequate restrooms, snack shacks, an indoor cafe, three gift shops and it's own postal express shipping shop. There is a train that will take you around the vast Zoo territory, but walking is recommended if you really want to take great photos of the animals. Cincinnati Zoo provides to it's visitors, an educational experience in addition to fun and that makes it an unequaled experience for adults and children alike. Once you visit the Cincinnati Zoo, you'll probably want to come back. They have their own parking lots and the Zoo is such a big venture that you'll see signs and be able to follow Zoo traffic from any highway any direction into the city and that makes it easy. You'll thank yourself for visiting the Cincinnati Zoo.

Great zoo! Clean and well laid out. Very kid friendly.

Nice zoo, perfect for a 3 hour adventure with the kids.

Beautiful zoo, but we went at the wrong time of year. Animals were not too active and it was way too hot and humid. Not the zoo's fault. I would definitely visit again during a cooler time of the year.

Our Zoo is magical! Always new and wondrous things!

If you have kids under 7 years old get a stroller, trust me, your back will thank you. Also realize the chances of seeing everything in one shot is not going to happen. Pick out a few animals and activities that are must see like the cheetah run. Also food and drinks so expensive. Save some money by bringing some snacks. Plan to spend at least 30 to 40 dollars on food, drinks, while there. It's important to make sure you drink enough fluids.

We had a blast at the zoo ,there was a lot of animals that we could not see because of the cold weather and all the snack places where closed ,we still had a blast and saw all the beautiful Christmas decorations they had.

Love the zoo, we have the zoo pass which let's us get in earlier (if you are local, highly recommend the zoo pass). Great food options for lunch, kids love the train and the goat area where they can brush the goats.

First time back since they redesigned. Loved it! Highly recommend

Very beautiful place to go. Especially if you love all kinds of animals and learning

Zoos are not ethical at all. Keeping animals locked up and to be viewed by thousands of people just for money. This is why I hate it.

I went to the Festival of lights, it was great. It was crowded but you could still move around. I loved all the lights, the Christmas music, and of course the funnel cakes.

I love the zoo, but it drives me crazy that they spend tons of money buying more land to build stuff when they have a lot of big open clear spaces in the zoo

Old zoo with several historic animal successes. Plenty to see but small enough for young kids to manage. Some renovation going on. Hundreds of springtime flowers ready to bloom!

Where to start... The employees need some serious training. I heard several employees using inappropriate language. Alot of just walking around...not really helpful. I asked one where the restroom was and she acted so inconvenienced to tell me. I saw several employees leave service gates open and just a lot of talking to themselves and basically hanging out. They didn't seem to care much about their job or the animals welfare. Very poorly managed. There were several exhibit s completely ruined by children screaming and banging on animal enclosures and the glass. Tapping and banging and yelling at the animals. Mainly kids there on field trips who were poorly supervised. The night Hunter exhibit was completely ruined. The kids were banging on every enclosure. Mind you it's 2:00 in the afternoon. So all of these nocturnal creatures are just trying to get some rest.
It was absurd behavior and cruel to the animals. There should be someone in there always to keep kids in check because apparently the adults in charge are pretty inadequate. (Harambe's tragic end comes to mind)
Half of the animal exhibits were closed or under construction. The only employees who seemed to care about the animals and actually have a genuine loving relationship with the animals were in the wings of wonder. I have nothing negative to say about any of those employees. Mostly Everyone else that worked there should seek different means of employment asap. They are living creatures and someone needs to be looking out for them at all times. A lot of stressful maltreatment and complete disregard for their mental welfare is what i saw yesterday. It was my first time going. I am relatively new to the area. This zoo is in drastic need of some new management. Get some people who love animals and want to actually protect them from the animals that come to "visit" them a.s.a.p. Most likely won't go back.

Good time. Weird wearing masks but having times set cut down on how many people were there. Actually more enjoyable since it wasn't crowded on a Sunday afternoon.

We live in Cbus. We have family in southern KY, so we all drove 2.5 hrs to meet at the Cinci zoo. Chilly today, so we were unable to see a majority of the animals (including Fiona, the polar bears and penguins! I thought polar bears and penguins liked the cold?!?) Disappointed the zoo doesn't offer more indoor viewing. The manatee building had 0 manatees...Also the only concession open was the main cafe. No vending machines or other stands open for water or other beverages/snacks available anywhere. The staff was nice and informative and the critters we DID see were amazing! The gorillas, bonobos and red pandas were a blast!

Lots of restrictions and exhibits shut down/ things closed off due to covid restrictions. Wouldn't spend my money there until things get back to normal again

A fantastic zoo overall. One of the best in the country.
The new kangaroo exhibit is pretty disappointing. You'll wait in line for an hour, and may not even see a kangaroo due to the poor layout. The path is far from the shed where the kangaroos hang out.

Was very clean. All park employees we encountered were very friendly. Kids had a blast.

Very nice zoo. Lots of shade and nice habitats for the animals.

Had an absolute wonderful time!! So clean & well kept!! Animals looked so healthy!!

Half the exhibits were closed. There was no guide to tell you which ones were actually open. Half the exhibits were very small for the animals. This is the absolute worst zoo I have ever been to. Everything is over priced. Better zoo's such as the St. Louis zoo are free.

Best zoo I've ever been to. So lucky to live in Cinti. Never gets old. Look forward to going every year.

Not the best day to visit the zoo. A little cold and not many animals out, but still a very enjoyable time. We definitely would visit again when it's warmer.

One of the best Zoos I've visited. I'm glad it's local so I can visit during the different seasons. Love zoo babies!!!!

Festival of lights is a great time. Plenty of places to stop and get a hot chocolate or cinnamon almonds. Service is incredibly slow at these locations, but everyone is friendly. The light shows are great as always. Although I wish they would mix the music up a bit from primarily Tran Siberian orchestra.

Amazing zoo, well laid out and great for photography. Great vantage points and amazing selection of animals. Cheaper on certain days and with other zoo memberships (check to see if yours is included)

Really nice zoo. Lots of animals. Saw the cheetah show and loved it!! Would go back to see other shows. Loved the giraffes! Probably my favorite animal. Saw lions and they look so powerful. They had a polar bear and I felt bad since it was in the 90s.

Excellent zoo. I loved taking the kids. Took us 7
Hours to explore the whole

My son and I have traveled to zoos in over 25 cities. Yes there are big ones with amazing layouts and hundreds of acres, but for being an land-locked, city centric zoo, this one has great activies, animal viewings, and signage for education. This is one of the must-sees in Cincinnati. Less crowded in the morning but more animals are active after lunchtime when it gets warmer. Plus, this zoo does a great job breading animals and seeing the babies every spring is so much fun.

We purchased a Cincinnati Zoo pass this year for the first time ever probably one of the greatest Investments we'd ever made I suggest everybody get one

Been a member for years and love the Cincinnati Zoo and Botanical Gardens -- we buy memberships for all our kids and grand kids. Visited in late August and, despite many signs stating that masks are required in certain area (as well as frequent PA reminders), many visitors weren't wearing masks. The zoo is not enforcing its mask policies so it isn't safe for anyone like us who is at high risk for Covid-19. So sad, because it needn't be that way. Masks should be required upon entrance or the zoo should close.

I love this place It's fun to bring my family here

Great zoo. It's easy to navigate and has a wide variety of animals.

I m 63 years old and have been going to the Cincinnati zoo since I was a little girl. It s the best! I love it!

Had a great time with my family! The flowers were absolutely beautiful and we got to see all the animals except the polar bear. The new baby giraffe was even born today and the employees were so eager to answer our questions about him/her! Best zoo around!

I am happy to live in this city for all the things we have to do including the zoo which is usually one of the top 5 in the country typically. It is a great place to take the kids for a day and always something I enjoy myself. They also offer season passes for great prices as well.

Family trip and the first trip with the granddaughter, we had such a terrific time. The zoo was beautiful!

The Cincinnati zoo is a place that cares about their animals and conservation. Everyone on staff is so knowledgeable and excited about the animals they work with- from front desk to those that work directly with the animals.

It is a place filled with joy and love. One of the best Zoos I have been to. Plus- you get to see an ever growing Fiona the Hippo!

Great location. They care about their animals and keep their park clean. The holiday activities are a joyous occasion, always. The deals they offer on yearly passes are wonderful if you plan on going twice or more within a year. Animals are great, and Fiona is cute.

I love the Zoo and experience you get. Usually packed and most times. Come super early on a weekday.

Best zoo I have ever been too! The exhibits are very representative of the animals actual habitats. Food is reasonably priced. There are many food options including graeter s ! They have a lot of fun events planned throughout the year. The Festival of Lights in the winter is amazing. I highly recommend the zoo anytime of year.

I can't get enough of this wonderful joyful place with amazing staff and fascinating animals. I only wish they had more money for more space and enclosures to help more animals and inform the public about the need to support a more healthy and sustainable world.

Not crowded. Social distancing and mask followed when needed. No bears. Train ride but missed the kangaroos. Next time.

It's amazing. But prepare yourself to walk a lot especially if you have kids.

Great zoo. Glad they continue to expand. Train needs a longer route though.

This zoo is enormous. Nice looking grounds, a lot of different species, and plenty of things to do.

Parking was $10, lots of walking to get to each exhibit, they had several under construction and closed. It was a good way to spend the day outdoors with the kids, but I think it will be better once they finish the other exhibits.

Absolutely dissapointed!...

we took our family ther last week and was so bummed to find out that all the anilmals got put down due to covid-19 :( had a "fun" time explaining that to my kids!

Would not recommend!
-Mike Winger

Excellent visit and an amazing job handling all the COVID protocols! Disappointed to see so many visitors not wearing masks though.

Great zoo! We visit as often as we can. Clean, well cared for animals and exhibits that are informational, educational and ever-evolving so there's always something new and exciting.

Took my daughter before her surgery at the Cincinnati Children's Hospital on the Halloween Trick or Treat event. She absolutely loved it!

Harambe will always be remembered. He was killed he didn't die

With this cooler weather and school in makes it quite nice to spend a day with grandkids on fall break

Overall a great zoo. It offers a wide selection of animals and a great place to walk. During spring they have millions of blooming flowers all over the zoo. The only con is the troubling and overly strict parking.

This is a great zoo, with changes that knick it from 5 to 4 stars. There is a lot of walking up and down. I think the signage here is inadequate and results in missed exhibits or lots of wandering around.
Some of the covid related changes are a pain, such as tickets are purchased online only and get more expensive closer to the date. There is NO reentry, which is new and easily overlooked. No maps given, so you must rely on your tiny phone screen. Several exhibits, not only indoor ones, are closed. It wasn't busy when we were there, but I read reviews describing hour waits to get into some exhibits. There are a few food vendors near the back and plenty of beer vendors more conveniently located.

Love the care that is giving to the animals. I also appreciate how the animals are grouped together and the family-friendly. My only recommendation is more signage for some of the more popular animals. Parking was easy to find and not a far walj from the entrance.

peaceful and pretty,
knowledgeable, friendly volunteers

Excellent first experience at the zoo. Took my infant daughter for the zoo lights and it was wonderful. Very colorful and a lot of exhibits were still open, which was great. Definitely recommend a pass as there is a lot to try and fit into an afternoon.

Love the zoo. Plus I like how they have ]things for the kids to do as well.

As a healthcare worker, we were told to not reserve tickets and that it was best to arrive in the afternoon (we verified this multiple times) So, we did that. We drove 3 hours with 5 kids to be turned away at the gate. Disappointing service!

Great place to visit during Christmas. Lighting is superb.

I don't like zoo's period. But this is a really nice place for someone who likes zoo's.

I love to see the animals and great variety of them!!! I know it was the off season but still they could have had more refresh replaces open.

A great experience! Learn about conservation and see the lights and animals. Fun night!

I'm always split on how I feel about zoos on wether the animals deserve to be there and be protected or risk endangerment in the wild. This zoo seemed to have a lot of room at least for thier animals. We walked around for four hours looking at the exhibits and could have spent longer. Great zoo