Fossil Rim Wildlife Center Review

What a great experience! This is the only place I've ever gotten to feed giraffes by hand.

Animals were awesome,place was clean. They only allowed one bag of food per car.. NOT ENOUGH when you have 3 kids and 3 adults. I dont know that I would be back. Also that was not advertised on the website before ticket purchase.

Took my 3 grandkids today. We did the safari tour for the first time. It was amazing!! I will never go any other way! Taylor our tour guide was wonderful. We saw and learned soo much. Will definitely be doing this again!

Amazing experience for kids and adults with plenty of easy to see animals that come right up to the car, we went at 0830. No worries about getting sick from others because you can stay in your own vehicle.

Beautiful place , if we bought food for animals they will come near to the cars we can feed them

Very limited animals. After driving 100 miles our expectation was something bigger, but what we found wasn't expected.

We went on the guided tour, and it was definitely worth the money. The tour guide was very knowledgeable and kid friendly, and of course the animals were fantastic!

My daughter and I loved it. The only part that was upsetting is the giraffes didn t come to the car so we could feed them. The man at the gate was super nice and welcoming!!!

My parents brought my brother and me here when we were kids (probably about 15 years ago) and my husband and I just visited with our 5 month old son. It's so fun driving through the park and seeing different animals. It was just as much fun as I remember! Hand feeding the giraffes was the highlight of our visit! We also visited their petting area, gift shop and cafe. We will be coming back to visit when our son is older and can enjoy the animals with us!

The best part was the giraffes and zebras
Didn t see the Wolf you have to pay extra
Only one bag of food per car

Well worth the money. Only thing I wish for differently is the car pile ups could be moved along. Remember you can pass others.

Not many animals, too pricy for nothing! About 1.5 hrs drive from dfw area

We had one good and one bad experience here. The concept and animals are great, IF you get to see them. Forget about seeing anything on busy days. The staff make zero effort to keep traffic moving, so during busy times you spend hours on end looking at empty fields in a big traffic jam, with a car full of young kids, uugh! Yet, once time to close comes along, the staff does get really busy moving people along to the exit. They even close the bathrooms! So, I had to find a bush for my 5 yr old! By then, you have missed most of the animals. They seem to be suffering from their own popularity. Your best bet is timing it when few people are going to be there, rainy, cold days are the best bet. It is a shame, as when traffic moves, it is a wonderful experience for everyone. I don't think we will ever go back as it was so dreadful the last time we were there. The staff can be pretty annoying when they want to, so why not use it to move people along or at least force them to pull over and let everyone experience the park?

How lovely (and a little scary!!) it was to see and feed the animals up closed! Such a wonderful experience.

If you want to get away from hectic, monotonous, stressful city's life i would suggest you to go for long drive to Fossil Rim Wild Center. First the drive to fossil rim is nice and you can spend quality road trip time with your friends or with your love. Now lets talk about the fossil rim, as soon as you enter you need to take the entry tickets and also you can purchase the food for animals if you are interested. We went for our ride with slow drive there we have seen many beautiful animals such as giraffes, rhinoceros, cheetah, deers etc. You can interact with wandering animals like deers and you can also feed them in your way as well. The whole place is photogenic so don't forget to bring your camera.

Make sure you check the weather before planning for trip as if there is too hot or too cold you light not see any animals wondering on road.

Staff was friendly and also ready to resolve your any query

I would recommend Fossil Rim to every one that if you are in near by should go for it. Especially for kids.

Great place for parents & children to have fun !! Little pricey though but worth it .

Fun place to bring friends or family who've never been this close to wild animals before! Kids will love it, but if you bring kids, be ready to buy an extra bag of feed! Great road-trip stop.

Nice olace to visit animal and get a chance to touch some animals if your lucky

It was nice we just went at a bad time. It was too hot and the animals were trying to stay cool. Tour guide is the best way to go.

Every time I come here it is a great experience. There are a lot of animals to see and is worth the price. If you are trying to find a great socially distant activity this is a great one!

A good place to get close to animals and feel their need of love, affection and attention...

My kids loved it, very fun and exciting. We had a good time

Fun place to bring friends and family and to relax. Not many places let you feed the exotic animals and this place still does!

This is an excellent place to bring the kiddos. I am dissapointed that we took too long and didn't see the cheetahs. Not their fault though.

Awesome one of a kind experience! Although it was raining, we saw many animals and were able to feed them too. Most of them are used to cars and come really close, while others are shy and just watch you (which is adorable). It does take 2-3 hours (the scenic drive), but it's definitely worth your time. You not only see many animals that are endangered but also learn interesting facts about them and how the wildlife center is working on preserving these beautiful animals! The admission is a bit pricey but still totally worth your money!! I can strongly recommend it, you'll not regret it.

Awesome place to go, in the comfort of your vehicle! My family and I loved it so much to see and explore I recommend every goes ! My favorite were the giraffes

Would of given it a 5, but was disappointed at the amount of animals we saw. It seemed like there was a lot of animals missing. Not only that, they give you only 1 cup of feed (want even given an opportunity to buy more). It didn't even last halfway. Its very well taken care of, I'll give you that.

Excellent tour guide. Ample wildlife and human animal interaction. Beautiful scenery
Relaxing, informative and awesome. Well worth the price.

Best outdoor drive through zoo ever! Our family loves feeding the animals and got to hike there too. Fun petting zoo too, but closed due to COVID. Thank you for protecting so many different animals! Reminds us of our real human purpose.

We did the Behind the scenes tour which was fantastic. It was definitely an experience I would like to have again.

If you haven t experienced a trip/safari with animals coming all the way up to your car s windows and peeking inside to grab food, this place is a must go.

Very well maintained, friendly staff, friendlier animals! (Except ostrich who can get a bit wild!!)

You are sure to see all animals listed out. Plus if you opt for a guided tour, you ll see wolves, wild cat and a few more animals. We went on a rainy/pleasant day and for some reasons, animals were out enjoying the weather. Though, during hot summers they may opt to sit in shade. Checking weather and planning this trip becomes important.

Love this place! It s an animal sanctuary & a blast to drive around. Fun for adults & kids. The lookout point 1/2 way has a nice gift shop & bathrooms. Never tried the cafe. The animals come right up to your car. Definitely but a bag of feed if you go.

2nd time coming here with my family. They just reopened the park with some Covid-19 precautions. We love it and will visit again. Hour and half drive from Dallas. Highly recommend

It was pretty expensive , 50$ for 2 ppl and a bag of food. We saw ALOT of deer but was kinda disappointed. I did a lot of driving and don t feel like I saw a lot.

Pros:
Cabins are like glamping, very clean and cozy.
Water pressure and temp was great.
Pitch black when the lights are out and not a sound can be heard at night.
Cabins overlook a waterhole for the animals.
Fence to separate cabins from animals for safety.
Breakfast gets the job done (Eggs, sausage, fruit salad, cinnamon apples, cereal and bars).
The cook was very attentive making sure we had enough and asked if he should make more.
All staff encountered with professional and knowledgeable.
Cabin site is like a small community.
No tv, but they let you check out board games from the lodge if needed.
Behind the scenes tour is AWESOME!!
They are non-profit
Their heart is totally for the animals. Even if it causes a disappointment for the people. Major respect for what they are doing.

Cons:
AC unit very frustrating to work. It would only "hold" our desired temperature till a certain time (no more than a couple of hours). Then it would raise to an uncomfortable temperature. I found myself waking up several times during the night just to fight with it.
CABINS DON'T LOCK. Very big concern for us at first. My husband and I wondered if we were being set up. They don't lock unless you are inside. Beware the pin that you use to lock yourself inside can still be pushed out from the outside. So there is really no way of secure the cabin at any time. They suggest you keep your valuables locked in your car. But they also have you sign a contract stating they are not responsible for lost or stolen items. All contracts and paperwork was signed in pencil and we were not given a copy of any of it. This seems to be a norm since no pens were visible in the office at all. They know who is doing the behind the scenes tour and will be away from their belongings for more than 3 hours. We felt very set up. But in the end nothing happened.

Advise:
Take mosquito repellent, flash light and binoculars.
Don't loose any of the maps. You will need ALL of them.
Keep the front desk number with you. The cabin doesnt have it readily available and I t's not available online. I left mine in my car by mistake which is why I ended up with a restless night filled with an AC fight.
Pack light so it's not a hassle to store everything in your car since the cabins don't lock.

Overall:
We loved the experience and will be back when our child is old enough to join (must be 7 or older to do the behind scenes tour).

David was our tour guide, very funny, entertaining, and knowledgeable. Was worth paying more. Giraffes were the best part! The petting zoo with goats was extra fun

The park is vast and you get to see a variety of animals. Some of them are really sweet and it feels very satisfying to feed them. If you're lucky and visit the park on a good day, you can even get to feed the giraffe by hand. It's fun for kids and adults alike.

This place is awesome and the price is great! The animals are well cared for and their habitats are beautiful. The scenery truly looks like you re entering the savanah! We took our 2 year old and he had such a wonderful time! Can t wait to go back!

Didnt get to see the giraffes up close but loved seeing all the other animals in way you could never experience at a zoo

Very fun place to take your kids! You do see a lot of deer, but there are exotic animals that you can feed as well, like giraffes and zebras. Love that there is a petting zoo at the midway point, so you can get out and stretch and have some lunch. If you have a Dallas Zoo membership, you can get in for 50% off!

Beautiful scenery my children really love this Safari

Good thing what this place is doing. Little expensive but I bet keeping all these animals ain't cheap either

Fun experience! Buy the food because without it the animals make you feel guilty Haha. There are a few that stick their heads in expecting food and socializing!

It s a money pit for the wildlife enthusiast. Go early for the best chance to see wildlife.

Great family fun! This was our second time here and all of the animals were out and hungry. My kids and my dad loved every minute of feeding the animals. I just wish the gave more food in the bags.

The park employees were very friendly and helpful. The facilities were clean and well kept too.

This is different compared to Zoos around Dallas and kids will enjoy it. Take lot of water if you are going in Summer. It will take time to see all animals. Avoid going on long weekends

Amazing experience. It s a must visit place. Take the bus instead of your own car. The animals are really attracted to the bus plus they take you through alternate routes as well

Had a good time even though not all of the park was open.

Not very exciting place..it s the same repetitious animals.
Deers, deers and more deers. Would not come back nor recommend.

This is such a great place! Their work with animal conservancy is amazing.

Loved it.

Lots of people on the day I went.

FR opened a second road to help with traffic.

Good job guys.

Lots of fun, lots to see and memories made! The whole park was fabulous!

The animals are very cool. The fact that the staff don't seem to do anything to enforce the feeding rules means that what could be a nice slow drive is turned into a bumper- to- bumper nightmare caravan of inconsiderate, entitled jackases hand feeding animals they aren't supposed to. This place is trashy because they let it be. If they policed their park, and fined violators there would be no problem, but as it is I was disgusted by the lack of caring about the park rules by attendees, and the apathy of the staff.

Great place to visit with family and friends. Please don t let what I say below take away from the one of a kind great experience in Texas the park has to offer everyone.

I give it a 3 stars because I cannot comprehend why they would make the nice restrooms out of order and install porta potties which are disgusting. COVID-19 is sure to thrive in disgusting places !! Please have em gone by flu season y all. If you want to truly respond to COVID-19 hire more staff for sanitation. It appears you ve let go of more staff and gone personnel free.

It's a great time with the family!! If you have a family over 4 members and plan on going more than 2 or 3 times a year definately get the yearly pass!

I have been here many times and always look forward to going back. The user that said is sucks... Is completely OFF. Somedays are better than others and Holidays may have long lines. Be mindful of the days you pick and it will be amazing. We have had the giraffes put their heads in our car on SEVERAL occasions....
Beautiful and fun for the kids!

My husband took me here and we were able to drive our car through the habitations. I've never been that up close with animals before other than a zoo but this was much better! Zebras came to my window and are out of my hands. All kinds of deers did the same but the total highlight of my trip was when I stood in the sunroof to get a view of the giraffe and it walked over to me and ate out of my hand! A giraffe with his long neck came to me I was petrified because it was so large while also amazed because it had no fear just walked on over bent down to my hand and ate out of my palm. One unforgettable experience!

Was a great experience. Beautiful park and we saw all animals listed in the brochure. We will definitely come back and bring the kids. This place is #1 in drive thru safari parks.

This place is a great Escape, only an hour or so from metroplex. Great on a nice day with the top down.

Feed wildlife right from your own car.