Rosamond Gifford Zoo Review

Nice, small zoo on the hills of Syracuse. Perfect for the little ones and the family

This is probably the best small zoo I have ever visited. Their facility is a little dated but they have a great selection of animals. From Tigers and Mongolian Camels to an impressive number of Asian Elephants. They frequently have new species, and in the summer have little extras which they put up for visitors. They also have some great events both for the public and for members. If you are looking for a wonderful inexpensive zoo visit this place fits the bill.

Small but nice zoo. Nice place for a couple hours with the family.

Went during a bunch of renovation, so a lot of animals that were in the brochure weren't around but there were still plenty to see. We a enjoyed. I just recommend eating before going or after. Their food was WILDLY expensive (maybe for good cause, don't know) and mediocre at best. They messed up a few meals and forgot a lot. Otherwise, great place.

Always a joy to visit this zoo when we visit Sylvan Beach. Kids love it every time. And their veteran's discount is one of the best I've encountered.

A great time, as always. The snow leopards were beautiful!

Overall, not a bad zoo. Some animals (the elephants, deer, wolf, and a few others) had nice enclosures, but most others were very sad (the tiger, lion, kookaburras, and more). There is a dinosaur exhibit throughout the park with moving, roaring dinosaurs which the older kids seemed to like. My 22 month old, however, was TERRIFIED! I've never seen him more scared. And it was impossible to avoid them because they are all over the place! He enjoyed the live animals, but the dinosaur robots were traumatizing. I noticed other toddlers seemed afraid too. Something to keep in mind if you have little ones!

While I did not get to visit the zoo, the catering and event staff were fantastic. I would definitely recommend this venue for your large meeting or special event.

This "little" zoo turned out to be much larger and full of interesting animals than I had expected. The upcoming changes to the Elephant exhibits should help make this zoo an even nicer place to experience some amazing animals up close. Looking forward to my next visit!

Either love it or h8 it but it's the only one around

Cute little zoo. Had a wonderful time there and loved all the dinosaur's thought out the zoo. It took us about 3 hours walking slowly around and enjoying each one. Would love to go back one day.

First time visiting the zoo and I got to say I loved it. Exhibits were beautiful. The staff was very kind and friendly.

We are members and go to the zoo all the time and never get tired of seeing these amazing animals!

Great place and nice Family Fun. Unfortunately, not many animals to visit outside in the cold; "Mostly Humans". But, a nice place to visit for some family time. Will visit again and see if we see more animals outside.

It's good but can't say great, people are familiar with all birds and bears in North America so is the case with lions and tigers as they are too known - people want to see other species!!

The printing exhibit is great, they have public feedings that are great for entertaining kids

I have had only excellent experiences coming here as a child and adult with the exhibits and the staff. There is quiet a variety and plenty of educational opportunities. I remember the gift shop fondly: definitely a place for those interested in nature, conservation, et cetera. The price of admission is reasonable.

Military is free which is great we had an amazing time

is it the most brilliant zoo, no but will you have a great day with your kids and build a memory for you and your kids to look back on, YES!. only $14 for me and my 13 year old son. to me that is a low price considering the great expense of maintaining the property, animals, staff, utilities, health cost, food and so on. people don't think of the huge cost it takes to run these place and think a couple bucks bring in big profits. anyways their are so many different animals here that will keep yours and your kids eyes popping. but you do always feel bad for the animals living in such small places. like the one fennec fox that was quickly pacing back and forth. you knew he was distraught. the elephants seemed to be the same. other than that we where happy to go.

Was disappointed. Lots going on but few animals on exhibit. Dinosaur exhibits neat but would have preferred to see actual living animals

Nice place to take your kids my daughter enjoyed her self today

So, as a zoo this place is ok. However, I was taking a friends two year old there while babysitting and on the way there, he asked me, "will there be dinosaurs at the zoo?" To which I responded, "no, because we go to the zoo to see real live animals, and as cool as dinosaurs are, they're extinct, which means that there are none living anymore." We get to the zoo, and to my great frustration, it is FULL OF ANIMATRONIC DINOSAURS! So now I have unintentionally lied to a little boy by telling they wouldn't be there, and also completely confused him about the meaning of extinction.

I would also add that as we stood there, and I pointed out the robotic, predictable motions of the dinosaur to explain that they aren't real (and why my charge didn't be frightened) when another woman with a small child scolded me, because her son believed they were real, and here I was spoiling his good time. This isn't Santa people, it's science! Don't lie to your kid about the existence of real life dinosaurs! And this is not the purpose of a freaking zoo. You're supposed to feel connected to nature in some way, to appreciate the majesty of real-life creatures you may not get the chance to encounter in your life otherwise.

People were crowded around a fake dinosaur while behind them, real, actual elephants played and bathed in a little pond, practically unobserved. Very frustrating experience, on the whole.

Oh, and lastly, these fake dinosaurs were LOUD. you could hear then roaring all over the park. There was no escape. And perhaps that wouldn't be so bad, unless you are one of the parents with a terrified kids sure those mean dinosaurs are going to get them because they aren't in cages. In that case, you just have to take your horrified screaming toddler out of the zoo.. or at least you should.

Thumbs down for authenticity and experience. I have it two states instead of one because there WERE still lovely animals and it was walkable, even if you couldn't escape the Jurassic Park sounds effects.

Very proud of this zoo for its success in breeding the rare elephants... making a difference one baby at a time.

This was a delightful zoo. We were in the area and I was looking for something to do in the morning; I enjoy zoos and as a zoo member at home I always look for reciprocal zoos when we travel. I am very happy that we visited, this is a very nice, medium sized zoo with a nice variety of animals. I feel that the highlight was the elephants, since I live in Pittsburgh, I am always interested in seeing other zoo elephant exhibits and families. I also enjoyed the penguin exhibit, the water is large enough for them to leap! Some of the indoor exhibits were very nice. Overall I enjoyed the zoo very much and recommend it to anyone else who enjoys zoos who might be in the area.

It's a nice zoo and realizing that people don't support them like they used to - it's tough to keep it updated and new. The dinosaur exhibit is a way of trying to attract people - but if love to see the money put into the exhibit s and the park itself.

Needs more animals. Needs to have more attractions throughout

Finally, proof that birds are real. Always learning something new.

Wonderful exhibits and affordable admission! Plus you can bring your own snacks and drinks!

A lot of fun, abundance of rare and endangered animals there. They are big into recouping animals and making them comfortable as well. Become a member it is worth it, as you get discounts at other zoos because of it.

Took my granddaughter to the Noon Years Eve event. Lots of fun and things to do for the kids.

Best Zoo in the area. A Great place for families. My family goes about 1 every month or so. Would go more if it was closer. Even better it is owned by the city so it is a local place. A clean facility and staff always are willing to provide answers and education. Also renovations are always happening to improve the Zoo.

I have been coming to this zoo for many years. The facility hasn't changed much. But they have been adding new exhibits and attractions over time. I always enjoy seeing whats new and visiting with old friends (the lion and I go way back).

Because of covid you need a reservation but that was ok. Nice outdoor exhibits.

When the weather is nice, it's usually very crowded, but I don't think that takes away from the experience. It's a really nice zoo and if you take the time to talk to one of the handlers/keepers, they'll tell you all about the zoo's conservation efforts and give you extra info on the animals.

Zoo is great for kids, especially little ones. The Zoo is well maintained and clean.

Love taking my nephew to see the animals almost always something new to see

Beautiful zoo, meticulous, lot to do and see even on a winter Sunday afternoon.
Will definitely go back

It is a beautiful zoo but did not get the memo ahead of time to reserve and pay for the zoo online. We did not get the military discount but were able to get in.

Always plenty to see and do here. The staff do a great job of making sure the zoo is kept clean. We catch something new that we've missed before just about every time we go.

Went here yesterday with my girlfriends best friend and her little girl. Her best friend lost her husband. Her husband was in the military and died in action and they told her yesterday that she needed to have the veteran there after she showed the military ID and would not let her use her military discount of being free because he wasn t present. She explained that he was dead and they still made her pay. Never again will I step foot into this place. Very sad that she lost her husband in war and they couldn t let her in free.

Many of the exhibits have been remodeled and look great. With many new animals added. I love that they offer different activity areas through out for the children to play and mingle.

Lots to see..reasonable prices and easy to walk with blacktop walkways...

Everything was too far away couldn't see, like elephants and wolves

Very cute place. My husband, daughter and I enjoyed our time here. It's not a very large zoo but it does have some great animals. And the staff is friendly. We spent about an hour and a half here. It's worth a visit. And the kiddos really enjoy it.

Great experience but I would suggest going early in the day when the animals all are out

Fun to spend a couple of hours with the kids, not too much animals, but the environment itself is beautiful, staff really friendly and a lot of space for the little ones to run wild.

Wonderful experience as usual!! The dinosaurs were great!!

Amazing place. The animals where fun to see and the staff was friendly throughout the zoo. From the time we got there and bought our tickets till we left there wasn't a moment that we didn't enjoy ourselves. And the staff answered questions and where nice and friendly.

Love the set up, people are so long to answer questions about the animals and the animals seem well cared for

It is a good place for various events. This particular event was an event for Women Build, Syracuse Habitat for Humanity. We announced the name of the family that qualified for a home which will be built by our organization.

Our goal is to raise $125,000 to build their home. We are in fund raising mode and looking for volunteers for building the home, event planning, and grant writing to mention a few things we are hoping for. Before we begin building we are promoting our fund-raising . You will find us on Facebook, "Women Build".

Rosalind Gifford Zoo can host parties. It is a great place to host events.

This place is poorly maintained with all these artificial habitats for these animals. By the way those poor penguins where are all the animal rights activists! This place needs to be shut down and the animals returned to their natural habitats!

Missed the elephants this past visit, but the others animals were all out and ready to say hello!

I love this zoo! I always have a lot of fun with my kids here! Our go to in Syracuse.

Simply lovely. They've made quite a few improvements since I was last there several years ago. We had a great time in your very clean park. Staff were friendly and interactive. Would recommend going!

Easy to navigate, lots of fun stuff for kids. Friendly staff