Houston Zoo Reviews

Zoolights was a treat for the family and better than last year.

Great zoo, not too big but sufficient enough for the kids to enjoy and not get tired ! Parking is a issue, suggest to go early morning to get parking easily. Exhibits and staff are good

Park was very clean and appropriate measures were in place to control the amount of people in the park/in animal houses. Staff was friendly and informative. Always a nice time walking around here for a few hours!

The workers are super nice. Can't see everything all in one visit. I recommend 2 or 3 visits.

Great Daddy Daughter Day at the Houston Zoo. Check event start/stop times if you're interested in participating with, or feeding, the animals. This way you won't miss out on anyyhing.

I had so much fun. The park is AMAZING. The animals looked comfortable & the whole zoo was covered with an array of different plant life, sculptures/painting/art. The only downside was not enough vending or food/drink stands were open!

This review is for the Zoo Lights. I really enjoyed my time at the Houston Zoo last night. The price is a little off-putting at $20 per person, even for kids as young as 2, but I would do it again. Kids absolutely love it, which makes everything worth it. There are lots of lights to look at, lots of displays, and lots of great music to get you into the holiday spirit.

Very nice zoo. Was there working but was able to sneak away and take a few pics. The employees there are all very nice and helpful, anything we needed they made sure we had it. I cant wait to come back when im not workin jus to see the zoo.

Houston zoo is one of the better zoos in the country in my opinion. Great location, beautiful grounds, TWO baby elephants, friendly keepers, and loads of special events. I always renew my yearly membership so I can visit whenever I want and take friends for free. A must-do if you have friends visiting h-town.

Such a great Zoo. Highly recommend spending a Friday evening there. They close at 7 and the last two hours are quiet and relaxing.

You need to take your family and spend the day at the zoo in Houston Texas. The kids will have a great time.

We love the zoo, we just wish there were more available parking spots. Avoid field trip days!!

We love the Hoston Zoo. They are always adding new events for your family to participate in. They also have been redoing and adding many animal exhibits lately to make the Zoo even better. Parking can be an issue at peek times, so aim to go early in the morning or later in the afternoon.

The zoo is amazing but the parking situation could use some help.

The kids love going to the zoo. A part is under construction that should be completed for next year. Can't wait to see it.

It was nice. Bathrooms kind of dirty and some animals looked sad. Could be the weather though.

The Houston zoo is a fantastic zoo. We've been a member for the last 7 or 8 years. Our kids love to go several times a year, and the membership pays for itself after your second visit.

The animals seem well-cared for, and the zoo staff are friendly and knowledgeable. They've got a good variety of animals, with some really great environments, particularly the gorillas.

Every year they do a special day where the park is open only for zoo members called zoobilee. They give out popsicles, have face painting, music, activities, games, etc

The zoo is located inside a phenomenal park area, that is worth exploring on its own. This is one of my favorite places in Houston.

Love it..
Price is good ..
Decoration and sponsor did a great job
Thanks for doing this for Texans to enjoy

love zoo's love animals
this place is great . lots of walking so wear your comfy shoes, but it's a grand ol time

Ok zoo Some animals were moving around. Because of COVID-19 alot of exhibites were close.

Great zoo, very well maintained, and you can genuinely tell that a lot of the proceeds do in fact go to conservation and education.

One of my favorite places to go in Houston. I love all the updated enclosures and the staff are so friendly and know so much about the animals.

When for the zoo lights and was not impressed, I feel our is overpriced and there are better displays around the city for a cheaper price. I do enjoy the zoo when I go to see the animals

I love going to zoos and this zoo didn't disappoint me. The layout was very easy to figure out. I wouldn't have know that a hurricane had come through if I didn't live near here. Loved it.

Always fun to spend a weekend here with the fam, although hard to get a free parking spot by the zoo theres always the option of $10 parking till close.

Great visit as always...friendly and helpful staff.

I enjoy coming to the zoo for dates and just to kill time. Items, and food can be a bit pricey. It's always nice coming on zoo lights and being able to have a s'more session half way threw.

Was husband employee appreciation night w/ Houston Methodist Hospital had lots of fun.

I'm not a big fan of Zoos in general but here the animals look in good shape and the zoo does a good job educating and promoting conservation.
If you plan to visit more than twice a year I recommend to get the membership.

The negative stuff:
Parking - The parking lot is very small so by the time the Zoo opens, the lot is already full. I use Uber or park along the light rail and then ride it to come here.

A little crowded
Always renovating but for what it's worth zoos are just simply amazing. I would definitely keep coming back.

Really great zoo. It's under construction right now, and still was amazing. I will definitely have to go back after they are done. All the exhibits were really clean and the animals looked well taken care off. Food was a little expensive but that's the same at all zoo's. They had a special dragon experience when we were there. It was really cool, life size Robot dragons. In all great zoo, my 5 year old daughter had a great time. We will be back.

Watch out for the elephants. One of them threw dirt all over me while walking by.

Amazing! Such a fun experience, especially the elephants.

The cooling fans didn't work well. It's best to bring a stroller or wagon for small kids. The rentals were expensive @ $15 for a 2 seater ride.

Construction is a bit like driving on Houston freeways, but I enjoyed taking great grandson.

Houston Zoo is great for my family. They have a good variety of animals and events throughout the year.

Still here and love this zoo..one of best zoos I've been to.

Expensive, but you can bring your own food and drinks.

My son and I did a behind-the-scenes excursion with the lions and got to get up close and personal with the 3 girls, sisters at that. Best thing I've ever done. It was incredible!

Great zoo. No real complaints. Animals sort of active. Clean, fun place to hang out!

What a great experience. Only wish there were more places to cool off and more benches to rest

Loved it for sure!! I've been 3 times already and still end up not seeing everything. That's a great thing cause there is lots to see and learn. My favorite part is the bugs, weirdly awkward for me but them things are something to see with your own eyes!

It was a nice cool day and most of the animals were out in their beautiful areas. We were with the grandkids and had a nice time!

2018 December Zoo Lights and it was amazing experience, good job!

They had alot of it closed down, I know not their fault it is because of covid. They had animals that our zoo didnt have which was cool. My daughter loved the dragon display they had. We did enjoy it

This is a first class zoo. The membership is worth it of you plan to go more than once a year.

been coming here since I was a kid. Always a memory making experience. This last week we got to see Elephants mating! Seriously beautiful and hilarious at the same time!

Its always a blast when you visit the Houston Zoo. But i feel like in summer the weather is too hot, but if you like hot days its fine.

What's not to love. friendly staff and clean. Great petting zoo too

Very good monkeys. There was just a common toad on display and that was funny. A nice experience!

I like taking my children to the Houston Zoo and they love it. But Houston is the 3rd largest city in the USA. And this Zoo looks old and rundown. The Lions look like they are not well taken care of. They really need to fix this Zoo up. Houston is supposed to be the city of the future. But our Zoo looks like it's from the distance past. Houston we can do better.

Great day with family thanks to the Houston Zoo. Friendly staff shared with us information about the animals.

If they would increase the parking & lower the price a bit, it'd be a perfect 5.

Nice, clean & functional entrance. I personally feel the ticket price is relatively too expensive sense it is funded by tax dollars and for what's able to be viewed. Additionally, several of the large animal displays should be visible or asthetically pleasing.

Great day to go to the zoo! A rainy day keeps the crowds and heat away!

My boys love seeing all the animals.
Educational and fun outing.

I like this zoo. Worth it to buy family annual passes.

Very nice people working there and letting us bring in juice and things was a major reason for going

5 hours here flew by and we saw everything, including returning to the elephants and the big cats again at the end. World-class zoo. Sea lion talk/feeding was also excellent.

It was a fun family trip. I love going to zoo though so I might be biased. This zoo was nice. The only issues were the lines (but understandable since it was a weekend) and all of the construction. There was soooo much construction everywhere. Hey that's great for growth but not fun to look at instead of the animals. Aside from hot line standing and glorious growth construction it was a fun trip.

Very nice place, bigger, I Couldn't see it all but we loved it .

A lot of fun. What made it so enjoyable was the fact that the animals were so active.

For a zoo this sucks. Lay out horrible. Not a big assembly of animals. I have traveled all over the united states and go out of my way to go to every zoo that I am in town for. This is the worst I have seen. Don't get me wrong animals look well taken care. But zoo needs a new engineer to design exhibits.

Educational and fun all in one plcae! The parking is horrible but there is additional parking provided. However this additional parking is not free but they do shuttle you to the zoo.

This was my first time visiting this zoo and I enjoyed it. There were many different kinds of animals, staff was friendly, and the bathrooms were clean too. If I make another trip to Houston, I would love to visit again.

We are members of the zoo and we love it so much!! We go any chance we can!!
The only reason for the 4 stars is because we just recently went to the Zoo Lights They were beautiful BUT what a huge disappointment to all that you could not see any of the animals
When reading about the lights they didn't say that the animals would not be visible.. just a real bummer

One of the best I be have been be too. The grounds are clean and a lot of shade.

Really great place to visit for animal lovers... I felt so fresh and quiet while visiting this zoo... Definitely best place to visit in Houston.

Favorite all time place to go with TVs the kids in a cool day for a picnic or a hit day and go to the splash pad. Bringing your own food is cheaper and convenient. Has great perks lots if sitting room would definitely recommend. Parking is tough but you should find a spot .

Most definitely worth the drive! I took my daughters who are 16 and 17 and even they had a good time! Pack some patience if you didn't purchase your ticket online especially on the weekend. Get there early because most of the animals are asleep by 3pm. Parking was easy. Just follow the signs for parking but be prepared to walk back. Wear comfortable shoes because it is all walk no ride here lol. If you don't want to break the bank they allow outside food but it must be in a cooler. I repeat WEAR COMFORTABLE SHOES! No flip flops, no flats, no open toe sandals preferably something with a soft sole.

Great place for the family or just a day to hangout. They got pretty much everything you would think or want to see, and the animals look to be very happy. The staff are welcoming and friendly. The price to admission is well worth the visit, and they got days that are discounted. Definitely recommend anyone to come check it out. Parking can be hard to find if its busy but just look around.

This was mine 1st time going and I absolutely loved it.

The Houston Zoo is very affordable and you're able to bring food and drinks in; more ways to save! The petting zoo, Children's Zoo, and playground area were enjoyable. For my family of three we only spent $22 on lunch which is not bad at all. Our favorite part was visiting the giraffe's. The baby giraffe was so cute! The other exhibits were just okay, I wish they were a bit more exciting and lively. My only complaint would be the food stations. I waited in line to refill a souvenir cup just to get to the front of line and be told I needed to stand in another line because he had to leave. I thought his actions were rude. We went to the restaurant near the giraffe's to get a refill and waited almost an hour for a drink refill. The cashier was slow and had difficulty reading the tickets as well as the register. I am not sure why they did not have someone else fill-in. A lot of the customers walked out or expressed their anger to other employees.

Would have gave it 5 stars but they were shooting a promotion for the bears I guess to expand the zoo and I wanted to see the bears since I paid like everyone else.. but they were hogging up the views and acted like they owned the place

Great day at the zoo. I arrived at 10:30 am Friday during a parking shortage. I went and had a early lunch. When I returned 2 hours later I found a great parking spot up close.

I ve been to the Houston Zoo multiple times. I would probably go more if the zoo stepped up its game regarding benches/seats. While there are benches/seats in multiple locations, more benches/seats are needed in SHADED areas. I found more than one place on my walk today where there were NO benches/seats, and frequent resting places (not just cool zones ) are needed outdoors near exhibit areas in the summer heat. Misting stations or mist sprayers in the cool zones would have been helpful and a much welcome respite from the summer Houston heat. Also, there are not enough kiosks/stands. Kiosks/stands exist, but they were unmanned/unstaffed possibly because there was NO COVER for staff/employees (who would have been subjected to open sunlight and NO shade if they had been manned/staffed). I suggest kiosks/stands with cool treats like snow cones, etc. (found at least one snow cone truck with a mist sprayer at a convenient location on a recent trip to the Dallas Zoo). Had I come upon a snow cone kiosk at just the right juncture of my walk today, you would have had my money. The last item I would call attention to would be the lack of bags for merchandise in the gift shop areas. While I understand the reason behind a no merchandise bag policy, carrying around merchandise purchased (even near the entrance on the way out and heading to a vehicle) can be darned inconvenient. I realize that the merchandise bag policy is not likely to change, but the other items I have mentioned can/should be addressed. Should you wish for me to change my rating, I wouldn t turn down a free (value) pass to return!

The zoo lights was so pretty! We had such a good time!

Loved taking my kids to the same zoo I went to as a kid.