Oakland Zoo Reviews

Zoos suck! The animals all look sad. Look at them:( all caged up for your kids to look at. Disgusting!

Family fun place. My kids love it. They have train ride, gondola, sky ride.

Pretty crowded early on the weekends and not a lot of shade, but a great place for little kids and the new expansion has pretty nice views.

Love the remodeling. Had a great time
on a Field trip. Also was nostalgic from when I was a kid, and bringing my kids. It was a beautiful day.

Jul/22/2017 very less no.of animals. Gondola is ok for view, as of now there is no fee for that. I felt SF zoo is better.

We got to see the animals really active, and they have so many of most of them.
The grizzly bears were particularly fantastic, there were so many of them and they were actively playing, bathing, and eating. Their bath pond is right up against the glass so you can see them up close!

My kid loves it here and has fallen in the lily pad area a few times

closes too early. didn't get to visit the whole park. that was disappointing. but enjoyed what we did see. several areas empty or overgrown, still a nice day out with the grandkids...(5 & 6 yr olds)

Of course it's a 5 start place. Happy animals, good staff.. and I've been volunteering here for 2 years

Love coming here! And their new gondola ride to the California trail is amazing! Breathtaking views and awesome enclosures.

We were there for about 4 hours all of the staff members were very nice and all around the park sharing great knowledge and information about the zoo animals. A few exhibits were closed, I wished there were more elephants. At the time we were there only one came out. Food was pricey at the Landing Cafe and the gentlemen serving was not wearing gloves and was on his phone (not sanitary)

Place is not much big. There is some animals. They care good with them. Adult price is $25 for 2018. Here is okay for seeing animals to kids.

I'm speechless because I really could not see animals were asleep or sick just a lot of people have nothing.

The Zoo is hands down the greatest place you could possibly take your family for some fun and enjoyment, being able to see all the animals habitats and lifestyles while having it be a fun learning experience for your kids is nothing more than you could ask for when you see those faces light up.

I like Oakland Zoo. The place is very familiar and safe for children

Admission is pricy and the workers were being a bit racist to me and my family but overall it was alright

I enjoyed walking around here. It can get pretty crowded.

When you're tired of racoons and dogs in the city, go there for more exotic animals! ;-)

Great zoo! I loved seeing the animals, but even better is you can tell this zoo is animal friendly and cares about them and not just bringing in money. They are also very environmentally friendly which is a plus! They have canned water instead of plastic water bottles! There are also very good views of the Bay Area here! The animal signs are very informative and interesting!

Fun ride up gondola with 91 yr old Mother. Fun nature walk on upper level of expanded zoo grounds. Good visibility of wildlife in natural like settings. Courteous staff, lovely view, tasty cafeteria food.

Nice place for a weekend getaway. Good to go with kids aged 4-10. Reasonably priced.

Nicely laid out and animale seem to be well cared for.

Beautiful place to spend with the family. A lot of walking uphill, great exercise experience and lots of animals.

i have been there i love all there animals:-P aswome

Great place to take the family and see some wild animals that aren't kids

The Oakland Zoo always makes for a fun few hours. My favorite animal from when I was a kid was the Siamang Gibbon who had the loudest voice I've ever heard. He was always our first stop on any visit.

The zoo seems to be keeping up with the times and modernizing when money allows. Luckily the zoo will be allowed to expand into Knowland Park.

Love this place! Animals are amazing and there's lots of room to roam. I've never felt like this zoo was crowded b

I love the zoo but guests are definitely not social-distancing.

I liked this zoo better than the SF zoo the animals look more relaxed and happy.

The signs are hidden very easy to get lost. The sign are not even child friendly..

We had fun. There are a lot of animals to see, food is available and two trams to ride to overlook the zoo.

The new area with the Gondola is pretty cool, gets busy ton the weekends, but goes fairly quick

Nicer than I expected. Definitely better than SF zoo. Animals seem fairly happy here. The new gondola is spectacular!

Great zoo so many animals. Cant wait for the new animal exibit

Fun experience for the children. Lots of different animals with and a few terrarium exhibits. Food was small portions for the cost, but that's to be expected in today's entertainment

Cool morning. Not too crowded, even with "Boo at the zoo". Reminders everywhere about distancing and masks.

Five stars. It was beautiful zoo. I'm so surprised how big the areas were. I enjoyed the gondola ride and seeing the gorgeous view of the bay, I would recommend everyone to come here and I would come back. Also, be sure to check your library's Discover and Go program for free admission AND parking (Tues-Thurs only!) We scored both, which saved us a chunk of money. Arrive early for parking and bring sunglasses, a hat and bottled water, especially if it's sunny out.

Loved all of it.. even the uphill walking was worth it

Plan strategically when you go! Today when I went it was very crowded and very loud. However, when school isn't out, you almost feel like you have the place to yourself.

Regardless, the animals are simply spectacular and the gondola rides are very relaxing and beautiful. I would definitely reccomend to all ages!

Wide open spaces.. Variety of animals.. Good Gondola ride..

This zoo and it's staff are great. They have tons of animals and exhibits to look at, and plenty of kind and knowledgeable staff members. I only wish that they were able to have more of their stalls open for snacks and souvenirs. It seemed like most of the stalls away from the front of the park were not open. It could be because it's winter though. Great zoo though, and the keepers were feeding animals throughout the day, so it was fun to be able to actually see some active animals.

Took my son here today for his 4th birthday. Hes autistic so we knew it would be a gamble as to if he would respond well or not. But how the staff reacted was pretty poor. Line cooks made jokes about the noises my son made when he was over stimulated. Waiting on pizza. "Chef" chris in particular. Along with another "chef". as a fellow cook . theres a level of professionalism that needs to be upheld on the line . especially within earshot of customer. If you have autistic children don't bring them here. The staff is so rude and not compassionate

It s a fun place to visit with your family . The gondola ride was the star event of the day and views were breathtaking. The petting zoo was also a fun activity.

Admission price is 24 dollars and there is a mandatory parking fee of 10 dollars. The entrance is up far on purpose with no pedestrian access. When inside, there are some rides that require more fees. The food concessions are overpriced - bring food and water from home! The zoo itself is pretty decent and not dilapidated even if many animals look pretty old. However at these prices it's a place for the rich. The upper part with the gondola is actually quite nice but all day I had to think how much I will have to work to pay for the whole family to enter here :(

IMO, best zoo in California. Love how much space the animals have to roam, the new gondolas, and the addition up the hill is really great.

THE OAKLAND ZOO WAS GREAT ME AND MY DAUGHTER SHASTA AND FRIEND !!!

Good for the price. Zoo has lots of exhibits and park is clean. Bathrooms are so so. The rides are expensive and very cheap. Train ride only shows 2 animals but u cant seem them anywhere else in the park. Lots of places to sit and snack and bathrooms are in great locations. Staff is friendly but hard to find. Parking is 10$ but is very spacious.

There were animals here. I was shocked. They had lions and tigers and bears oh my. They also had some arrogant giraffes who thought they were "all that and a bag of chips", but I didn't let them spoil our day.

Oh my gosh, this place was so fun, they added a new gondala ride to the top of the mountain with lots of new animals to see!!

Loved seeing the animals, but the food near the entrance wasn't that good in my opinion. Very beautiful scenery and nice overall.

Get a membership if you have little ones! So worth it!

One of my favorite zoos I've been to! Animals exhibits are quite spacious especially the new California Trail! Staff is very helpful and nice! The Gondola up to California Trail is a very nice addition.

Nice zoo, with good facilities. Highly recommend the gondola

Beautiful place, as well as a great selection of activities and animals.

Lovely zoo. There newest extension is amazing. FYI: be prepared for lots of walking uphills and downhills. And not very handicap friendly.

Always a nice day there. Road the new gondola and had lunch at the new cafe.

It was well spend Sunday at The Oakland Zoo.
Such a great place for Family fun, get to see many Birds, Animals, inscets, Reptiles. Best part was riding on Cable Trolleys , it was fun...

Another plus point you will get to see small shops for drinks or quick bites almost on every exit.

The only negative point i have being a father of one year old baby i feel like bathrooms were super dirty and chaning diaper wasnt easy task i would suggest come prepared....

Other than that staff was really really great. People were really great fully supporting to let others to see the animals not blocking cages at all.

Great location alkost cleant except restrooms.
Must visit.

We really enjoy the Oakland zoo. The exhibits are wonderful. I strongly suggest a annual pass for anyone with young kids.

I like the tortoises and wolves. if theres foxes i like them

We LOVE the Oakland Zoo! This is an excellent place to take your kids, there is so much to see and do. The ticket prices are so reasonable for how much you are getting to see. There are so many exhibits to see and we really enjoyed the employees who shared lots of interesting facts about the different animals.

I would definitely recommend visiting the California Trail portion of the Zoo it is fantastic. The gondola ride is fantastic! The views are beautiful!

I would also recommend going in the morning, the animals are very active then and you might get to see some animal feedings as well.

The Oakland Zoo is a nice zoo with lots of animal exhibits and plenty of vegetation. The site is a bit hilly so you can expect a couple of steeper climbs but nothing so tough you can't handle on foot but would be a real effort for a wheelchair.

For my list, I've created a bucket list of places to go. And they've been to all the zoos beside Oakland zoo. In December, one of my friends went to the Oakland Zoo with her 2 year old and family. She cognizant that Oakland zoo is not huge and not that many animals to see. Although her reviews were stuck in my heard, I still sought to see for myself.
Entrance- At the zoo parking entrance, you have to pay $10. There were signs posted on the windows of the entrance, credit card system temporarily down and cash accepted. I pretended as if we didn't read the instruction and gave my credit card. They guy said you don't have cash. I replied, no. Then he swiped my card. I guess to speed up at the entrance, they posted those signs.

We purchased the tickets at the zoo entrance and I kept saying to myself that should have purchased the groupon deal. It was expensive, $19 per adult without tax and for 2 year and up they charge. I think best time to come to the zoo is in the morning. We reached the zoo at 10.30am and the parking lot was almost full. At the entrance, make sure to grab the map so you don't miss out anything. Once you enter the zoo you'll see the gift shop on your right and the flamingos directly in front of you. Near the gift shop are the restrooms and on the left is the restaurant where we ate. The gift shop is small but remarkable, great educational toys, t-shirts, hats, sunblock, puzzles and etc.

Outside the zoo is the Outback Express Adventure Train. They have a train ride for adults and children that go around the zoo. Every time my daughter see the train, we have to ride. And she loved it. Our conductor did not give much information.
After paying the zoo entrance, we paid additional for the train ride. I felt everything was adding up very fast.

Wear comfortable shoes because there are steep hills in different portions of the zoo.
For the sky ride, you have to pay $ 3per person. I have 9 months old and they charged $3 for the baby. You can see most of the animals through the sky ride and it was totally worth it. I loved the newly opened Gondola ride. It had a beautiful view of the bay area. We saw elephants, giraffes, zebra, turtle, lemur, lion, buffalo, tiger and etc.

Overall, this was a great zoo and I would definitely come back when the new area is opened.

Lovely zoo for single visitors, couples and families with kids. I secured 11am tickets and was able to watch an amazing feeding of the zoo's huge tortoises and saw the grizzly bears enjoying some adorable pool time. Bring plenty of cool water, sunscreen and snacks.

New exhibit opening in July, complete with gondola!

I love the new addition of the California Trail! A variety of amazing animals including everything from warthogs, bald eagles, grizzly bears, girrafes, gibbons, and much much more. Great for both young and old.

We met up with a friend at The Oakland Zoo and we went to see the new section. The kids liked the gondola ride. It's a nice ride up with views. The new section is nice. There are animals there, they also have a new restaurant. We didn't stay long because my daughter didn't feel too well but we want to come back and enjoy it again when everyone feels better.