Oakland Zoo Reviews

Giant turtles and monkey family were above all expectations. Close look at the Lions and picturesque elephants area were amazing too

Maybe not a good idea to come during Christmas holiday time. So crowded. Had to park far away from the gate. And the restroom - had to wait for long because space is very tight. I d say it s not worthwhile to drive from South Bay if you re taking a baby younger than 2. The drive was challenging for us and the 10-4 timing is just hard to accommodate our baby s schedule(our baby no longer can fall asleep in stroller). Inside it s long walks from site to site and somehow just didn t feel so interesting. Not to blame the zoo, but I regretted my decision, especially considering the $24/each +10 parking. I d recommend a smaller park like happy hallow, for families with young babies. For big fancy zoo, I d say the one down in San Diego.

Got to remember it was winter when we came from that all the animals were out well kept clean had a blast

It was a wonderful day and the whole family was very happy.

I recently moved here so I was unaware that the area with all the California animals was new but it's great! Zoo has large areas for animals so they are not stuck in small cages. Take the ride on the new gondola to the top. It's worth it!!!

Great place to spend a day! Adult, or kid. New gondola is great!!

I came here for my birthday and it was a nice day. It is very small but I don't mind, the animals seem happy and there is staff available at every exhibit to answer questions. I took a ride on the cable car to the cafe at the top of the zoo and the view at the cafe is really something special.

Small zoo, With not a lot of animals. You can roam around the place in 2 hours.. Kids will enjoy.. Not for adults

It is the best zoo I have been to. All of the exhibits are great!

One day I'll see the entire park. Until then, it's an adventure.

Beautiful and exciting place for kids.different types of animals,train around the zoo,and cable car to go up to the hotel at top of the hill are some highlights.vast area with neat and clean environment.

The Oakland zoo is so much fun. You can find all kinds of interesting animals, get on rides and even fun games too.

The new gandala to the cafe is cool, but the cafe itself already needs an upgrade and it's over priced. The zoo was a slight disappointment....not enough critters.

Great day at the Oakland Zoo! Loved the variety of animals/ exhibits and the care taken of the grounds. The gandula ride gave a great view of the Bay area. Looking forward to the new California exhibit next summer!

I went on the week days instead of the weekend. Wasn't crowded was a good thing.

It's a great zoo to take your children there's lots to see. I loved that you can see the animals up close. The guides are very informative and helpful. Just be aware that there is a lot of walking and hills! Bring good comfortable walking shoes. Oh! I do wish there were more restroom stalls in some of the restrooms, especially when there are multiple schools on field trips. Lines can get very long.

Zoo lights is amazing second year coming.. So pretty

What a different world!
The surroundings around the Zoo, it's a very busy city, once you enter the Zoo, what a nice place to spend quality time with the family.
Thankyou

A good zoo with nice exhibits (giraffes, tigers grizzly bears) and a petting area with goats. The new exhibit with a cable card ride offers incredible views of bay area overlooking Oakland and into San Francisco.

The Oakland Zoo is a wonderful organization that does so much for animal conservation. We are proud members and love visiting the zoo. We really love the new California Trail and couldn t get enough of seeing the stunning jaguar!

Nice outing with a two year old. Not too big. Plenty of play areas.

Very hilly for young children. Only main Cafe open. All other food/drink places closed.

Good selection of animals, new facilities being built. Great value from the annual pass. My toddler loves running around it, and enjoys the train ride.

Lovely zoo with a lot of animals to see. Parking is hectic to find and it takes a while to get in. The line to pay was long the day we went and it took a while to pay. Also they didn't provide a map of the zoo when I paid so we just went on our own. The food is expensive inside for just two chicken strips its $10 and a burnt pattie its $12 I think oh well kids were hungry. They have bungalows that take you on a ride now that is amazing.

Great zoo for younger kids. Manageable to see the whole zoo. Petting zoo is great. The train ride and skyride cost extra but make for a complete experience.

Lot of improvements...it's spread out..lot of walking...nice employees..
you'll have a great time at the Oakland Zoo...if you can take a picnic lunch..it costly there soda/water $4-3 each...popcorn $4...
Air ride $3 person the other one included in admission..amusement park tickets $1.75 each or a book $24.00...all rides 2 tickets each...

Its nice, clean, employees are friendly, my kids loved the gondola ride and train ride

So much fun for kids of all ages! Good for the visiting and locals! I had a blast with my family at the tram ride Christmas lighting show. And oooh the animals! So many!

Casual, not too crowded, easy to walk, great for kids.

Loved the exhibits! Unfortunately they only had one cafe open for food and took about an hour and a half.

Really nice exhibits to view the animals and get some nice photographs. Great selection of animals including elephants. The tram to the new facility/restaurant is free and the food was suprisingly good. The staff was friendly and helpful. A few places could use some maintenance but the overall experience was outstanding. Looking forward to going back. Get there earlier than later as parking can fill up quickly.

It's definitely worth checking out. For a smaller zoo, it's done up decent. I recommend it. Beware that it's a pocket drain. They charge 10 dollars just to park, let alone the entrance fee.

A bit pricey of course, and parking can be a pain but overall a very positive experience for people of any age. Its very well kept and showcases a plethora of different animals. Its worth the ticket so long as you enjoy your time spent there.

Was happy to see most of the animals awake, and the new exhibit was good except did not see the coyotes or the black bear, but was nice day

Great zoo. Although wish i saw the tigers. And the reptiles

Great zoo with lots of animals as well as fun rides. Plenty of places to stop and get a snack. Sort of expensive but I guess that's not surprising.

It's Rundown but it is a lot of fun, if you like looking at animals in cages.

A perfect zoo for kids of all ages! Support them by becoming a member. Lots of upside to memberships for you and the animals.

I prefer San Francisco zoo as it has more variety of animals and not so hilly.

Awesome zoo, especially with the new trail on the top : bears, eagles, wolves and more !
We go once a month at least.

The Oakland Zoo has a lot of really interesting animals -- tigers, lions, elephants, giraffes, and more. And you can get very good views of all of them. There is also a play area in the middle of the zoo that the little kids love. It's best to take a wagon or stroller to this zoo.

Good place to take kids but kind off small for a zoo

We love to visit this place. The zoo has been updated and is much nicer than years ago. More features fun for even younger children. The new Gondola ride takes you even higher than before. The view of the bay is spectacular from the top. There is even a cafe up there. As it decends back down to the main part of the zoo you get sight of parts of the zoo you can't see on foot. One of our all time favorite parts of the zoo is the train ride.

Super expensive and not worth the price. SF Zoo is a better alternative.

Gondola halfway to the stars. Fantastic place for kids of all ages. Cafe food meh

This is one of the best zoos I've visited. Most of the animals can always be seen. Accept those darn lions. But if you take the Sky Ride you can see them from there. The train is also cool for seeing animals you can't see from anywhere else. The food is pretty good and the staff are super friendly.

The better of the Bay Area zoos, it comes with rides, a skyride, elephants, and an afternoon of animals! The lemurs are adorable, and the goats are friendly.

ProTip: Don't go when it's raining and/or cold. We went on a Saturday around 10:30 and it was lightly raining. The sign at the entrance said to decide if you want to go because the zoo might close. Luckily it didn't, but the animals weren't fans of the rain. The least kept up exhibit was the insect building; it also smelled pretty bad inside. Overall it was a good visit, especially the gondola ride to the California Trail. Also, to get a better view of the Bay than the bison overlook, go to the outdoor area of the nearby "visitor's center," which is actually a restaurant.

Great zoo and a great place to bring the family. Gondola ride to California Trail was one of the highlights.

This is a small zoo but great for a family outing. I recommend bringing water and your own lunches. The cafes are a bit over priced.

Free gondola to the cafe on the hill with gorgeous view. Great animals. Good visit for kids and adults.

Although it's a small zoo, me and my daughter had a blast and spent the whole day seeing all the animals and had some down time for other activities like their little rides for kids! I think I had more fun tho

Very nice, small zoo. Although hilly, easily walkable. Great place for kids, but even good for us old folks!!

The best it's helpful for the species that live there and there is new changes

Membership is quickly worth it. Wonderful staff and it never gets boring for the little ones.

It was a great place for the kids and parents. I like the fact that going to the zoo is not only good for looking at the animals but also good that we were able to walk the whole time!

It's awesome place for everybody .. even with the toddler as well as aged people

Fabulous variety of animals, including elephants, zebras, big cats (lions, tigers, mountain lions, panthers) and giraffes. Love the new California native collection! Would love to see hippos, rhinos, and more small mammals, but SF Zoo is close by!

Make sure you wear comfortable shoes. Lots of walking; be prepped for walking uphill

The night show was disappointing. A zoo is about animals. The night show was about pushing people through and getting extra money out of us. There were no animals. Hopefully it benifits the animals at the zoo that were not out. The day. Time Oakland Zoo is awsome.

Beautiful place to have a very good relaxing day. Some animals hide, but I understand them. Got to see a lot of our fellow animal friends some I have never seen in my life. I enjoyed the cable car ride which took us to the big lounge-balcony area where you can eat! There are different areas that are divided into continents and each of them represent its own animals. You can take a train ride between the areas that cost a little over one dollar per person. Please go on a sunny day, you will enjoy much better.

It gives me excitement and happiness seeing those land and water animals. It was a beautiful experience.