Houston Zoo Reviews

This zoo is located in the heart of great downtown amenities. While I understand that the upkeep & animal care is expensive - a family of 5 shouldn't cost $120 for the zoo. It would be good to add a coupon book w/BOGO & "free w/purchase" options to make the experience more economical. On my last visit I saw lots of families turn atound due to the price. It was $26 dollars for an adult, like $19 for child up to age 12 & I believe 2 and under was free?? Yep, expensive and that's just the entry cost! This is definitely a great family event that's both fun & educational but come prepared, pack a lunch & bring a cooler or this trip to the zoo could really set you back!!

We have been to maybe a dozen or more zoos across the country. This one is up there in comparable ranking.
I like the modern exhibits, plus they are super clean. Plenty of seating in the shade to watch the animals too.

I love animals and seeing them caged is no easy feat. I just pray that they are in good hands and being properly cared for.

It's always fun. We checked out the dragons exhibit. It was ok, nothing out of this world but my son thought it was cool. The additions they made to the elephant exhibit is awesome! So glad they have more room.

Christmas lights were amazing. Had a lot of fun, even got a free carousel ride for my birthday!!! Will be back next year.

Parking took forever but the lights were amazing. I swear it's photoshoot central in there lol . It was nice and worth the traffic of excited people.

not really a review..but is this a good place to go for rhe day with my six year old? Thx

The zoo is working on a new exhibit. The staff were awesome. Get in line for parking at least 20 mins before the zoo opens. Otherwise you will wait for a spot.

A very exciting and captivating place. I have seen so many animals from biggest to the smallest insects all covered and aptly represented in the zoo. The animals habitats are so closely imitated to what they are in the wilds, that really adds to the excitement of viewers.

Great place to take the kids for the day! The grounds are always spotless along with the bathrooms. Workers are eager to help and of corse all the great animals you get to see! One of my favorite places to spend the day!

Small, but tidy and animals look happy and calm.
I think petting zoo should not be a part of this. Animals there look really tired of all the people around.

Nice zoo, some very nice exhibits, some middle of the road ones. The primate area is really great, hoofstock kinda mediocre.

Highly disappointed! They are over charging people for nothing.Please do not go and waste your money on some lights that you might as well drive to memorial area and see better lights.

Its been a while since I have been. A lot if improvements. Really enjoyed my visit.

Such a great place. Many things to see and do--feeding the giraffes was one of my favorite! This is an awesome place to bring young children,but as an adult I enjoyed it too :)

Great zoo. If you're an adult who hasn't been to a zoo since childhood..GO..treat yourself to an amazingly grounding, humbling reminder that there is still beauty and grace in the world ! Drinks are a bit pricey but if you bring your own water bottle, there are free refill stations all around. 5 star Mini-vaycay.

Zoo had so many animals but the cages were too small for the animals to go around freely. The zebras dint have much space to race around. It looked a little artificial.

Always enjoy coming to the Houston Zoo! Definitely recommend

We love taking our boys to the zoo. The feed the giraffe's exhibit is awesome. We have also taken them to zoo lights. Kids and adults alike enjoy the festive holiday atmosphere!

We have the season passes, take me 2yr old every weekend, he had a blast everything we go, lives the elephants, lions, tiger, monkeys & the new Texas Pantano with the bald eagle, alligators excellent place to take the kiddos...

I've been going to the Houston zoo for decades. The staff are always friendly and knowledgeable. The habitats are well maintained, and it's obvious the well being of the animals is the top priority. They have renovated many habitats over the years, which have been big improvements for the animals and for the visitors. There are constructions projects happening right now for the same reason, and I appreciate that maps have been updated to include closed off areas.

Food is decent, and they have tons of water fountains and water bottle filling stations around the park. Parking can be hard to find if you show up at peak times. To avoid that, get there as the zoo opens, or an hour or so before the last entry.

The Houston Zoo is so nice. It was a beautiful day and the animals were all out sunning. The nature talks were fabulous. The zookeeper comes out and feeds the animals and has a little story about all the animals in their charge. The walking spaces are nice and viewing is made easy by the many view points that you get for each enclosure.

This place was a pleasure to visit. There were animals that I've never heard of, and it was a delightful experience. The gorilla habitat was breathtaking, along with the Lion habitat. Even the staff was helpful and friendly, which made for a easy going experience.

Nice zoo located in the center of Houston city. The animals doesn't seems to be suffering, they got large spaces to roam and live a decent life.

Get here early if you want to park anywhere close to the zoo. The gorillas and the lions were my son's favorite. Looking forward to seeing the new area when the construction is done.

This is a lovely zoo, bigger than Austin's, smaller than Dallas's, and equal to San Antonio's. Their Asian elephant exhibit is amazing, and arguably better than the San Diego Zoo's elephant exhibit. They also have red pandas in addition to many gulf coast animals that we don't see farther inland. Also, their zoo food is quite impressive with lots of options. This zoo is more expensive than others, but that's because they have so much more. Also factor in that you don't have to pay for parking.

Visited here with my kids and my kids really enjoyed.

So fun, my kids love the elephants with their babies and feeding the giraffe's. We enjoy the indoor exhibits, too.

Always a great time!! I do wish there was more parking , thats the bad part!!

Spectacular had a wonderful time with my family and such great staff

It was a nice experience, the aquarium was specially pretty, many species that I haven't seen in real life. The baby elephants were beautiful! Also you can feed the giraffes!

First time seeing the gorillas exhibit, it was by far my favorite. Daughter liked the bug room the most. Free refill water bottle for $6 was a pretty good deal considering the regular bottle is $4. Always a good time, arrive early as close to opening as you can it is much more enjoyable if you beat the crowds.

Awesome exhibits. Great for the kiddos and it s a affordable price

Fun experience for the family. Our daughter absolutely loved running around seeing all on the different animals!

Very nice very nice relaxing time to see the beauty of life!!!!!

Horrible.....its nothing like I remember as a kid or when I visited with my children...Those Poor Poor animals are not in the best condition the bird over the Bongo he had a sprang leg he was limping the whole time. All the of the water there for them was filthy green filled with leaves & debris. I've never been so disappointed with what's going on. Come on guys this was my grandsons first visit . We are a 3rd generation now of The Houston Zoo family. I pray its better next time if I go.

The zoo is nice and clean, and it's a bonus that it's right next to Hermann Park, but I'm not sure we'll be back. Although the kids loved seeing the animals, the enclosures are pretty old school in that they're quite small (for even the birds) and there are so many fences and barriers instead of a more natural enclosure. There's also currently a ton of construction, but that won't be an issue for long and the Texas wetlands exhibit that they're creating looks pretty awesome.

My daughter loves visiting the zoo. The membership is a great value. We visit very often

Location is near other attractions like parks/picnic areas, museums and a trolley/train tour. The parking is extremely hectic to maneuver through, we did happen to visit shortly after Christmas so it may just have been due to a busy season. We managed to find parking near the park with a 2 hr parking limit. Once we arrived the line was huge but moved very quickly. They do close at 4pm everyday and reopen at 5pm. They have a huge selection of animals and exhibits to see as well as food and snack stations. We really enjoyed our visit and look forward to coming back soon.

Just moved to the Houston area and spent 5 hours here, and we cannot wait to go back! We're going to get a membership so we can go as often as we want! It's not just an zoo, it's an amazing place for the kids to play and the food is awesome too!! Win win win!!

Came to visit from out of town and was really happy with the whole experience. Beautiful park right outside the front of the zoo, really great layout of the area and most exhibits you can get a really good look at the animals. If you plan it out just right you can see everything this zoo has to offer without being there too long which is great if you have kids. This zoo is also super cool about recycling and making guests aware of what plastics do to the environment by eliminating straws from the souvenir cups and having plenty of recycling bins and water bottle refill stations around the park. 10/10 would recommend.

Great experience, however more than half of the animals are endangered so they're not giving of a good energy.

All of the restrooms were super clean and the zoo itself was clean also. There is also a discounted rate for those that get food assistance from the government... I thought that was a kewl way to get low income kids out to learn.

The only reason I don't give a 5 star is because of the parking. I recommend uber lyft or the train. Other than that my family loves to come here, especially my three year old daughter. She loves the giraffes and well really all animals. We noticed you can plan parties for little ones, and so we hace decided to have her fourth birthday in the red room (Indoor party to cool off after playing with the animals on a hot day!) we have seen the zoo lights twice now and that is starting to become a tradition. It's a nice place to come as a group for a family day out. Or moms to even meet up with their own kids so they can have play dates as well!

My happy place in Houston. Must have visited like 20 times!

Do not go till the construction finishes and the zoo opens up the new additions in November-2018. The animals are still there but getting around is a pain. This was my 3rd visit to the Houston Zoo, and was the worst, if it had not been on First-free-Tuesday of the month, I would have been even more angry had I paid for the entry.

Went during the light lockdown. Most animal exhibits were blocked off.

Always a great experience here at the Houston Zoo. It sprinkled today and there were plenty of places for cover. All the animals were out and moving around. We were lucky. It's definitely a place to visit with the family.

Loved it but gotta be careful on timing can get packed super quick, gotta love Houston!

Great zoo. Especially love the indoor exhibits to beat the summer heat. Great variety of animals and other events that happen throughout the year.

Under going a lot of construction. Many of the exhibits closed. Well maintained and clean. Food is average and parking is miserable. Plan at least thirty to forty minutes driving around to find a parking spot.

What a lovely zoo. SO MUCH SHADE everywhere we went, making our July visit so much more bearable than I imagined. Definitely bring a stroller and/or a rolling cooler. Very affordable & lots to see & do.

Amazing trip to the zoo. Beautiful and clean! A lot of places to sit, eat and enjoy watching the animals.

Great place to spend time with family and see animals from around the world and it was a free day.. They are in need of parking for visitors.

Great place for kids! My daughter and nephew LOVE this zoo. the animals are diverse, the park is well laid out and the animals seem well taken care of. I would like to see hippos but otherwise they have all the animals you can want. I can't wait for the Texas wetlands exhibit to open and see some gators!

This is a great place to visit...just a terrible place to park.

The Houston zoo is always a wonderful place to visit! Be cautioned though, the food will set you back quite a bit of money!

My daughter loves the water park on the ouside of the zoo

Always a blast. The water splash area was a hit especially with this heat. The staff was very polite and helpful on grounds and in shops. Can't wait til the expansions are open. We had a blast.

I LOVE THE ZOO!! Houston Zoo it s pretty fun, I really recommend getting a membership you ll get a pretty good deal for you buck by getting one!.

PERFECTVPLACE FOR FAMILY AND COUPLES! I went by myself just to take photos of the animals! Take a jacket, everything is outside.

LOVED IT!!! I can't wait to go back and finish seeing the rest of it. There isn't enough time to see it all on one visit...lol

What an Amazing zoo! Such an array of different animals and the scenery is just beautiful. It was like walking through a rain forest and the dinosaur part was just an added bonus! Would highly recommend for both families and couples alike.

It is very good place to visit with your family. I can probably say that you will love it if you visit their at just once. You are definitely going to love it. And I will recommend you to visit their with your whole family and friends. Because they also have the right to enjoy life and time with you . So that's why I am recommending you to visit with your family.

The zoo is a great place to visit most days just be prepared during the summer with sun block and water. They seem to take pretty good care of all the exhibits and theres some really interesting information if you stop and read the signs. Also the staff is pretty friendly for the most part. Good place to have a day outing. I will say the parking is a bit chaotic but most zoo parking lots arent the best so just be prepared to do a few laps.

My wife and I decided to make this our final stop after our honeymoon cruise. This is the first time I have been to this zoo. I like in the DFW area, so the Fort Worth zoo has always been my favorite. This zoo is amazing. Even through there were a lot of people here, the way they have this zoo spaced out didn t give it the feeling of being crowded. The exhibits were very well maintained and we could get fairly close to all the animals with minimal obstructions. I will definitely be coming back when we are in the area.

Great place to go w the family and have fun learning about the nature

I always love coming here. I think im more excited than my kids are

We love the zoo and are members. During the covid catastrophe the zoo was so-so. I could not charge full price to people for half the zoo. Normally, the Houston zoo is one of the best. When it reopens at 100%, it is well worth it! Protip: get there early, as parking gets to be a hassle.

Houston Zoo what can you say been going to this place first 20 years it's grown as got bigger it's got better get a chance downtown by the medical center check the animals out

It's huuge!! And we could see all the animals, birds, fish and even insects!
A totally fun place to be with kids. Has many artistic photo booths too.
Not recommended in summer though - it gets too hot and tiring.

Love to come. Only sad thing is they got rid of my favorite bird, the shoebill.

I really liked the inter active theater with the 3 D views and the way the seats jolted. I also liked being up close with the lions! Tip: I can't confirm but I heard if you have a WIC Card, they give you a discount.

Wonderful place to spend the day. All the exhibits are beautiful and lots of talks and informational bits go on through the entire day. They are even doing a lot of good for the animal community which makes u happy. Highly recommended to take your kids and have some fun. Petting zoo, seal exhibit, African safari definetly something to drop by.

Pretty Nice Zoo! But the Parking is Horrible!! Almost waited an hour to park and ended up parking near a Gulf Course..... lets not mention almost got into a physical altercation with another driver who was very greedy for a parking spot. But the zoo was good.

Great Seal performance, but a little bit pricey. Go in cooler weather but go early to get a parking spot that isn't miles away.

Nice Zoo, go early, parking fills up fast and school groups clog everything up. We had a nice visit, saw everything and left just as it was getting crowded.