Columbus Zoo and Aquarium Review

Best zoo ever visited. Its huge! And lot of well kept varieties of animals and birds. Nice aquarium as well. Each section takes 3-5 hrs depending on how much u r interested. One day is not enough to see this awesome zoo.

There is so much to do, that it can't be done in one day. Absolute amazing time! Take your kids, or not! Enjoy everything, take your time, and spend the day at the zoo.

It's such a great zoo! Exhibits are top notch, plenty of things to do. You need 8 hours to see the whole zoo.

Had a great time lines were short thanks for great only issue I have is running 1/3 capacity because of coronavirus is fine but that also mean they should not be running 1/3 of the experience

Ot was so cool to go in the morning because all the animals are so active!

This is one of the best zoo we ever visited in US and it the biggest zoo we been too. It is so vast that one day is not enough to see full zoo even if you want rush looking at all places, it has divided into continents like Asia, Africa, Australia, North America etc. It has aquarium too and its good to see so much but not big as or good as New York City aquarium. We loved the Dinosaur Islands and its boat ride. They have moving dinosaurs and with sound effects make it fun for kids and my son loved it. Though on weekends it gets very crowded specifically on sunny days so prepare your self for big waiting lines for attractions like boat rides and trains. These are not included in your main tickets but they are not costly just 2-3 dollars each. Overall it was fun day and we will love to visit again to compete pending area to see them. Highly recommended

Very nice Zoo. The animals live there in very good conditions

ALWAYS A WONDERFUL FAMILY EXPERIENCE!!!! Kid friendly in every way, food, fun, indoor/outdoor exhibits. Go online for discount tickets. Make this your new Family Tradition!

The zoo is always great but Zoombezi Bay was disappointing. The water was warm and not clean. After getting out of the water our swimwear had a nasty odor that didn t go away after rinsing off in the locker rooms. I can honestly say that we won t be returning to this part of the zoo.

Visiting family and went to the xmas lighting at the zoo. Was a very beautiful experience. Most attractions closed at this time. I do feel it was bit expensive for going late in the afternoon. Concessions were way overpriced.. I mean 7 or 8 bucks for a coffee.... other than prices being way too much for am abbreviated visit, it was enjoyable but reel in what you charge for an off season visit and make it little more affordable for a family of 4.

Hands-down a fantastic zoo.

-The animals have SO much space and are well cared for
-The education staff are stellar
-The zoo contributes a great deal of funding to wildlife conservation
-The zoo makes a conscious effort to train their staff in top-notch guest service practices

I suppose the climate change messaging could be stronger, but they are aware of their varied audience.

This is best zoo I've ever been too! If you haven't been here you HAVE TOO go! Loved petting sting rays!

Solid zoo, indoor habitats are a little dated. Good signage and refreshments. Quite a few refreshment and restaurants closed for COVID.

This time we decided to be kids ourselves and not take the grandkids. I had as much fun as when I was a kid myself. The zoo was excellent. If you are a smoker you are in for a hard time because there is no smoking on the zoo grounds. Nowhere, that was the only difficult thing for me.

Quite possibly the best zoo in the midwest. We drive from out-of-state to visit, and it s worth the trip. Great footprint and variety of animals without feeling cramped. I also really like the layout as it s easy to flow from one area to the next without feeling like you re backtracking or seeing the same thing twice too often. Plenty of food options, photo opportunities, and fun stuff for kids (playscapes, etc.). Reservations generally required during covid-era, but check first. If you need to ride out a storm, the polar exhibit is a great open air space to do so.

Took my 1 years old for the first time and we had a lot of fun. Both of us loved the sea lions. She got to ride the carousel and we fed giraffes and touched stingrays. You're not rushed around by anybody. Staff will let you watch any animal as long as you want. It was a weekday so we couldn't walk around the kangaroo exhibit. Only thing we didn't get to see were the rhinos but that was a case of bad timing. We went inside and they were outside and when we got outside the keepers had them inside and were cleaning their habitat. Hopefully next time though!

This Zoo is fantastic. I highly recommend a year pass as f you go more than twice. It is such a great deal.

Just a wonderful place to walk and see the animals. The Christmas lights this time of year are amazing.

Wonderful zoo! This is a full day experience. The only down side was the gorillas. They seemed bored and less than enriched. Otherwise it is a beautiful place and definitely worth a visit.

Great fun but go in the morning before it gets too hot! Animals seem most active.

Oh my goodness! This place is amazing. We did the africa savanna and it was so worth it. Loved feeding the giraffes up close and personal.

Of all the zoos I've been to, the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium is one of the best! Not only are the exhibits amazing and well taken care of, the amount of staff and volunteers around the facility is wonderful. They are full of information not only about the species in general, but with the specific animals that are currently in the zoo. It was a wonderful experience.

Wonderful animal exhibits. Engaging fir both children and adults. Wear sneakers to prepare for a lot of walking.

The a African exhibit was the best. Went to a special event where I went before the Zoo officially opened. Got to see the animals close up, with virtually no people or nose around. The baby elephant is out for veiwing!

Been a couple years since last time we visited but as always very entertaining for all ages.

It is big, we got there about 10 and left about 6 we saw most of the park. But we stopped alot and took our time. If you are going to go more than once season passes are worth every penny. Can't wait to go back. They have ropes up and the ground marked to help with social distancing. And to avoid high touch areas. And they have you going one way in some exhibits.

Beautiful exhibits, happy animals, and a clean atmosphere. The patrons aren't the brightest or most considerate, but the whole city seems that way. This is a great place to spend the day.

The Columbus Zoo tops themselves every year. The lights at this year's Wild Lights were fantastic. I have supper high expectations and every year they surpass them.

Wedding reception at the zoo! I got to pet baby animals. So much fun.

The best in US ... don t forget to visit aquarium &africa

Great staff and educators. Animals are very happy. They are aza accredited. Offer lots of enrichment for the animals and lot of educational opportunities. Most of it is outside so dress accordingly. Perfect for a date, family day or just to go by yourself. Will go again and would recommend.

Outstanding zoo with some unique exhibits. One of the best primate displays I've seen anywhere!

Wow! What a place! Wish we would have had more see everything. To do everything this park offers you really need a multiple day pass. The animals were much more active than we thought they would be on a hot summer afternoon and their were numerous exhibits where the animals keepers were talking and educating visitors about more than what all the signage could teach. We will be back!

The Columbus Zoo is a destination in and of itself for families from all over the country. There is so much to do that you can't get it in in only a day, allow several. Early morning is the best time to visit as the animals are up and about. The zoo has multiple continents populated with animals from the related regions. There are activities for all ages, a must visit.

Love it! Spent mothers day there had an awesome time.

The best zoo I've ever been to. So many animals and exhibits. The winter lights show was awesome!!

There us so much to see and do!!! I loved my visit!

Excellent zoo with wonderful diversity and fantastic shows and attractions!

Went for the Christmas lights. There are so many lights. The light show was really good. My nephews had a lot of fun!

All of the employees I encountered today were very polite.
View of the animals was nice and clear today .
As always park is very clean.

Although I do wish they still had a smoking area .

We went members reopening weekend and it was great! Employees wearing masks, everyone distancing, which was possible bc they were operating at lower capacity like they were supposed to!

Very fun place to be, is a zoo and a water park. Good atmosphere, good food, good employees

Really got our money's worth here. Most of the animals were viewable from their habitat or even their shelters and there's a big diversity of creatures and activities. Even during the pandemic with limited access to certain areas this was a wonderful experience thanks to the zookeepers (shout-out to those in the aviaries and kangaroo exhibits!)

A nice zoo. I would give it 5 stars but the lines to get in were disorganized and we waited way longer in our line (like 45 minutes) (even though we prepurchased our tickets) because there were other people cutting in front of us from the ticket sales line. We had a hard time seeing many exhibits because it was so crowded. It may have been a better day if it weren't so peopley.

We are so lucky in Dublin to have a works class zoo right here in our back yard. We get Zoombezi Bay passes every year too. If you plan to make a day of it, renting a Cabana is superb!

Columbus zoo is Awesome! A great place to bring the whole family. It's almost impossible to see the whole thing in a day. I would suggest bringing a picnic lunch, I will next time since you cannot buy a Coke on zoo property! You can rent a locker for $10.00 a day. Feeding the giraffe was cool $3.00 but you are not allowed to touch them. Great place to visit!

Great fun for my daughter and me, even with COVID measures in place. The zoo did an excellent job of ensuring our health and safety was a priority while still allowing for a fun day of adventure/learning!

Anytime you go to any zoo it's a toss up. Especially when it comes to the animals putting on a "show" for us.
The Columbus Zoo is always improving and adding new exhibits! It's always a family friendly experience. You might even run into Jack Hannah!

Everything was great and we since alot animals that was not out in the past

Great people! Love animals. I will bring a pack lunch next time. They are cleaning everything. That's good

My children and I really enjoyed it here! We loved all the animals here, the dinosaurs water ride. Amazing!

Security guys were very rude. We got rained out, they demanded us to get in the bathrooms, fine. But when you see a woman with a stroller hold the door. Don't let it shut while she's standing there struggling to open the door while trying to get a stroller thru the door. They need to hire some new staff! The lady who brought us to shelter at first when the tornado warning first hit was awesome, she carried my son while we had another toddler and the baby in the stroller, kudos to you lady thanks for your help!

I read an article a few years ago that said the Columbus zoo and San Diego zoo compete for top zoo in the country! Really? Ohio has the world's best roller coasters, and potentially zoo as well? So, we thought we'd look into a road trip from Fort Wayne, IN. Turned out that our local zoo membership was in the "reciprocal zoo" program, giving us a deep discount (half off I think?) at the gate in Columbus. Wow, are we glad we made the trip! This zoo is absolutely incredible! At 580 acres, this zoo delivers tons to see and do! It has over 7000 animals! There's an attached water park AND amusement park! Our kids especially loved touching the stingrays at Stingray Bay. One special note...we noticed immediately the special design and attention to detail with the animal habitats. They didn't at all seem inhumane or uncomfortable. The animals all seemed happy and natural. The engineering and research required for this must've been well planned. If you're planning a trip from out of town like we did, please take some extra time to research and plan all the available attractions, and budget as many in as you possibly can. This was the zoo experience of a lifetime. We can't wait until next time!

The best Zoo in the nation. Jack Hanna is the best thing that could have happened for our famous zoo. Natural habitats are provided for the animals. Paddle boat ride is a must to do. Great events year round.

This is one of the most (if not the most) beautiful zoo's we have visited so far. It is so large (bring comfy shoes!), beautifully landscaped and the enclosures are spacious and gorgeous. There is so much to see here and you will not be disappointed!

We love the Columbus Zoo. Be prepared to do a lot of walking. It is a great place to get those steps in.

Great visit staff was friendly large zoo and aquarium almost impossible to get through in one day! Only con was the concessions were a tad pricey.

The zoo is one of Columbus s best attractions. We go weekly: there s always something to see, and the special events are amazing.

Great place to take family and friends to relax. And feel lovey

This place is amazing. So much better than Detroit and Toledo Zoo.

Very nice zoo. 1st time here. Visiting from WI. Lot of things for entire family. Definitely will come back when in area again

During Corvid 19 it was perfect rides were running and the not much effected my time there it was really nice not having to fight for space which normally the place would have been shoulder to shoulder.

Just got back from wild light. Best show in town.

There may be 1 or 2 better zoos/waterparks in America, but not this centrally located to the rest of the country and for this price.

Very relaxing and got to see very well loved animals and reptiles

A very good zoo, the zoo is rather big so you better bring your walking shoes. I would recommend it.

Its great!!! My kids had a blast and so did his parents!!

My favorite zoo. We have been often and buy a family pass every other year. The grounds are large and stroller friendly. The animals are quite spread out. The terrain is mainly flat which is great for younger children. There are several play areas and many benches. The downside is that they keep raising membership prices. Ours was $89 10 years ago and it is $169 today. That is not affordable for a family with children.

So much to see. Recommend going as early as possible like at opening time. I wanted to see everything but this is a 2 day event. Kids loved it and so do i.

Love spending time with the animals and my family there. Love the bears.

I can only say, this IS THE BEST ZOO IN THE COUNTRY, hands down!!!

Simply fantastic! The best zoo I've been to. Better than LA and San Diego zoo's.

This place is a perfect day with family and friends.

Great fun and learning experience for little ones. Also a great time for big kids (adults)!

We all had a blast! Zoo all pass definitely worth it

Went to visit family and took the kids to the zoo. They really loved seeing all of the animals. Prices for lunch were surprisingly reasonable. Exhibits and pathways were beautiful.

I worked here and visited here alll the time and it's most definitely the best job I've ever had.

We loved this zoo. It was very clean and easy to walk through. They had so much to see and activities to do.

Columbus Zoo is a GREAT place to make memories! From seeing all kinds of animals, feeding the giraffes, riding ponies and camels and climbing on giant words to playing computer games, getting a delicious bite to eat, artistic face-painting, and waving to crowds while riding the train - Columbus Zoo has it all!

Great zoo. All the animals seem to be in properly sized exhibits. Would definitely go again