The Woodland Park Zoo Review

Love the Woodland Park Zoo. It's a great place to take your children. The animal displays seem more animal friendly than many zoos I've been too in the past, and the Zoomazium is a fun indoor space to for kids to run around and have a blast. The old carousel is a lot of fun as well. Although the single-day tickets are expensive, membership is a great deal if you're in the area and plan on visiting more than once or twice.

Enjoyed our visit to Woodland park zoo, beautiful and spacious.

Beautiful day for a quick trip to the zoo. Unfortunately, there was a power outage in the north part of the zoo.

It's woodsy alright. Nothing in the landscaping not even flowers.

Really fun zoo. Our family loves to come every time we visit Seattle

We have enjoy it each time we've been there. Animals always are out and interactive. Clean park. Reasonable price.

It's great that the zoo is still open, but so many exhibits closed due to covid-19 fears. Love having a membership, but probably won't renew our visit much more until life returns to normal.

The place is fun. Lots of animals. My daughter enjoyed a ton. You'll find here Hippo, Giraffe, Lion, Tiger, Jaguar, Bear, Gorillas, Monkeys, Butterflies, Penguins, Kangaroos, Anaconda, Zebra, Deer, Elephants, Otters and several other animals. There's also a play area for kids. Food was not half bad either. If you have young ones and are a local, it might be worth looking into those annual passes.

This is a really fun zoo to visit and can keep you busy all day if you spend time at each exhibit

Very well maintained, not very huge but crisp enough to enjoy with family. The zoo staff are extremely friendly and helpful. The penguin exhibit and the parrots/birds exhibit are the highlights. The rhinos were cute too. Must visit when you are in the Seattle area!!

Not enough animals...too regimented..you are told where to stand ...where to sit...where to rest

I'm not really into zoos. I've always felt like if I wanted to see an animal I would watch a nature documentary. I feel bad for all the Caged up animals.

But the Woodland Park Zoo was pleasant surprise. Not only did my two-year-old love it as expected, i actually had a great time too. Most of the animals live in bigger habitats. So it's a little harder to see the animals, but the animals you see seem to be a lot happier about where they're at.

The place is more than just a zoo. It's really great Park to wander around.

I really enjoyed this zoo. Great for the file and not expensive.

Hadn t been to the zoo in awhile, really happy I went. Cool weather week day is definitely the best time to go, as I m pretty sure the place will be absolutely packed during the week. It also seems like morning to early afternoon is prime animal sighting time, as it became zoo nap time across the board starting about two.

The exhibits are great. From my laymen s perspective they strike a good balance between good viewing for visitors and comfort for the zoo inhabitants.

My highlights were seeing lots of wolves, several beers and a whole heap of otters at very close range. Also some penguins :)

Very large zoo and animals have room to be comfortable. However, visiting it is almost too large to walk through and often animals are hard to see as they are somewhere else in the territory but not the viewing areas...

No Polar bears? Beautifully designed layout. I would consider this a romantic zoo (if there's such a thing).

Always a pleasant experience with the kids. Family membership is a must if you want to go over twice a year. We hang out alot during the summer. Lovely almost all year round!

Always a great place to spend a day with the family

This is definitely an pretty good zoo. There are a lot of different animals and most have some sort of zoo keeper lead educational program at different times on different days of the week. Some of the animals are shy so we didn't get to see everything but everything was great. There are plenty of shops too if you need a souvenir.

8/10 would look at trapped animals again.

Brought my grandson and kids here for Labor Day weekend. It was so nice outside but only saw a few animals. It was also tough because the Covid rules were stringent but what we did see were some good ones! I m sure if it wasn t Covid season it would have been a better more free way to visit. I appreciate them trying so much though! We will have to come back after Covid season or election

Great zoo with a good layout. Quite a few animals to see too. I'd recommend going earlier in the day as opposed to the afternoon, but the kids will have fun either way.

Love the Woodland Park #Zoo, from the staff, to the grounds , the animals.. the space is huge and full of trees and flowers.

Always a great experience. Tons of animals to see the zoo staff are very kind and always willing to answer questions. You can tell they love their jobs.

It was a great outing for granddaughter and me. My favorite were the white wolves. I noticed though most habitats were all alike no matter where animals originate from. But I think besides that the animals are well cared for.

Our family's tradition of going on Thanksgiving is one of my favorite

Bears penguins oh my good zoo use AAA to get discount if purchased ahead of time

Saw the whole thing with my spouse in 3 hours and change. Would be longer if we went earlier in the day and saw events. The butterfly gardens are like something out of a fantasy novel.

Was a cool trip. It waa cold and rainy but loved every minute.

I've never seen a zoo so cute and unique. Most of the animals here are either rescued or partnered with other conservation organizations from around the world. I'm very impressed to see a great diversity of animals and they make the area feels like where they come from. Eg, Malayan tigers area feels like I was in Malaysia. As a Malaysian, it feels like home!

Best zoo I've been to. Has a lot of animal exhibits, high quality and it feels like you're more in the wild than in a zoo. You should budget 5-6 hours if you want to take your time and see everything it has to offer.

Wonderful zoo, but wish there were more staff tours for general entry. Walkway cleanliness was an issue however.

Fun zoo to visit not to big but have wonderful exhibits and wildlife

We love this zoo, members for almost ten years, but been a visitor for about thirty plus years now. They take great care of the animals, wonderful programs and the membership is totally worth it!

I must say I was pleasantly surprised about this zoo. It's very well kept and it's clear the people that work here really care about the animals. The enclosures are fairly big, and the animals look healthy. On top of that, the zoo has many activities and programs. Great fun for all ages.

Loved the Silverado gorillas, the aviary, the rhinos, the orchids in the rainforest, the carousel was fun. Reasonably priced. Need more covered seating. It rains in the Seattle area.

Amazing place. The baby gorilla was hilarious. Running and climbing around, pounding it's little chest. I watched the baby gorilla 45 minutes alone while all the other gorillas were zonked out sleeping. Everybody will love what this zoo has to show, especially the little kid inside you.

One of the best things to do in seattle. It's an unexpectedly large zoo with all of the animals you'd expect. Great shops and the cafeteria and food stands are decent. Lots of options for kids to run around and explore. The only negative is the parking. It gets full, and while cheap at $6, takes forever because there are not enough parking machines. The few machines that are there are very slow and have long lines. I've wasted 30 minutes waiting to pay to park, which is not fun with excited young kids.

As usual with in-city zoos, I am torn between the good and the bad. The good being exposing the public and especially kids to the animals and their plight. The bad being the tiny enclosures and the resulting presumed damage to the animals. That said, the zoo seems to have done a fair job of balancing these things. There are good kids activities and places to get close to the animals. In some cases, the large animals that would have a large range, the enclosures are truly tiny. Given that it's Seattle, can't they find some big bucks donors?

Loved it. Great zoo. Impressed with the preps on covid 19 front. Highly recommend using City pass to skip lines at ticket windows.

Great deals, would recommend the CITYPASS for tourists and locals.

I love this zoo, the staff here. The education show was so much fun

It's best to get here early, as most of the animals are hidden or sleeping towards the middle and end of the day, especially if they don't have any enrichments or feedings. To avoid paid parking, we usually park on the street across from the zoo or a few blocks away in the residential area. I recommend bringing a backpack with water and snacks at least. I've been to better zoos and seen pictures of better ones with more unique animals, so I'm not too impressed with Woodland Park zoo. It seems like they've lost/gotten rid a lot of their better species and replaced them with lesser, fewer, or equal ones. Thank goodness they have both lions and tigers, as well as other wild cats. It seems like this zoo is mostly riding on those and the gorillas, along with their more kid-friendly areas/activities, since most of the other unique species are rarely visible. It's satisfactory and can do for a nearby zoo in town. Wish there were more exciting species of either bear-like animals or primate-like ones, though.

Always super fun but I did feel bad for some animals like the Snow Leapord and the Wallabees they were too hot, they should've been in an indoor cool room. It was a plus 90 degree day.

We went for a seasonal event, Zoolights, and it was absolutely magical. Thanks woodland Park!

Great Zoo, we spent the entire day there from opening to close and just managed to make it around all the enclosures.

They are doing the best they can with the current situation.

They had plenty of signage for their new one way path through the zoo. They did a decent job filtering the amount of people in one area at a time.

I think my one note would be to try and have more hand sanitizer around near signs and such as people were still touching everything.

This Zoo is awesome. Better than the St. Louis Zoo.

A great place for the family. Food is better than it used to be. Zoomazium is a great place for little kids.

The zoo was great except you have to do it in two days cause it has gotten so big

Oh my god, me and my family had the best experience at Woodland Park Zoo. They have so many exhibits to look at and prices are reasonable.

Great time plenty of animals to look at. We arrived around 10 in the morning and didnt finish until about 5:30 in the evening. Was able to see most of the animals since only a few were too shy to be in the open but overall a great time with my family.

Love the zoo. Good places to walk, good events, nice selection of sculpture sprinkled throughout, and also there are animals.

Great zoo. They are spending a lot of time and energy conserving animals, protecting their diversity, abundances and the ecological services, slowing the unnaturally high rates of species extinction.

Seattle doesn't claim to have the biggest or busiest zoo in the country, but what sets the Seattle Zoo apart is the staff and volunteers. You always seem to have someone within eyesight who can answer a question or point you in the right direction, but also let you explore on your own with hassling or bothering anyone. Everyone in uniform seemed to know every little fact about all the animals and even where each one usually liked to hang out. Its a zoo so the job can't pay much, but there was always a smile on everyone's face and a genuine willingness to make sure everyone was having a great time.

My friends kid had so much fun they loved all the animals their favorite was the chimps!

Very neat zoo with lots of cool animals!! Just what we were looking for and so close to the space needle and other amazing attractions. Parking was a little expensive but understandable. We will be back with all our kids!

Very nice staff. great setup so you can see all these amazing animals closely

Great place. Very organized.
My kids loved it!

Good for family...lots of walking, so keep that in mind if u bvb have little ones

Even with several exhibits closed, we had a great time. Saw several animals

Just became members love this place for walking and exploring with the little one my favorite thing about this place is the trees.

Great zoo!! Kids had a wonderful time and the animals were terrific. Tons of flowers and plants in the summer months.
Can t wait to go back!!

We visited the zoo while on vacation in Seattle and were only able to spend a couple hours there before having to leave. It is a fairly big zoo and we had to rush through. I would have liked to spend a longer time there and I can certainly see people spending a good few hours here especially families. I think you would enjoy it even if you weren't with the family. They have a big variety of species in the zoo and they do a great job of the exhibits. I did not try any of the food so I am not sure about that. I would not mind going back to the zoo if I am ever back in Seattle.

I've been to a lot of zoos and this one is probably the best laid out one there is. It's walkways are kept cool with tall trees and fantastic plants along the way. Staff members are impressively informative and friendly. Loved this zoo!

Wonderful enclosures for the animals. The staff provide plenty of enrichment for the animals. Staff are very knowledgeable and friendly.

nice place for a sunny day outdoor walking with child

Lots of animals to look at and it's quite big and set out well. There was lots of animals I got to see that I hadn't seen at zoos before like the wolves. I liked the enclosure where you can feed the birds and they land on you. Also good places to get food.

Great zoo. I would suggest not skipping the shows. Very fun for the younger kids. Also I always miss the exhibits in the middle and regret it every time. Make sure you don't miss them.

This park is Huge! Tons of animals to see the zoo staff are very kind, awesome place for kids to explore. Great zoo.

Great zoo, don't go too early. Because the animals may be sleeping. Its around 4 hours to see it all.

Friggin Sweet m8. Classic expensive food but everything else was incredible

Love the zoo. Have loved it since I was a baby. Now I bring mine. It has more to discover each time we visit. Only negative, please bring back the nocturnal exhibit!! But love the addition of the petting zoo, butterfly room, "zoo-nasium" and so much more!!

Probably the best Zoo I've ever been to! The animals were happy and mostly active. The staff was friendly. The exhibits were clean. It was a great experience all in all

Most animals here are living more in habitats than exhibits, which seems the only reasonable future for zoological gardens. This zoo is brilliantly arranged. It packs an amazing amount into its space, but feels spacious and massive. You lose track of the fact that you're near streets, much less inside a medium city. The other not-large zoos I've seen are laughable and cruel compared to this one. Yet the people watching is indeed excellent, and the visiting kids are clearly having a blast. Annual membership is very reasonably priced. A loving, organized troop of locals clearly keep this place awesome with contributed time and money. Edit: The chowder house has 2 big, decent $8 salads, though blackened fish on them is $4 extra. You're free to bring your own food & drink, and the picnic areas are nice. Parking is limited and costs $6. The bus drops you right at the west entrance (55th and Phinney) so take that or your bike if you can.

This place is amazing!! They have every cute little animal! The animals are absolutely gorgeous and the staff are really kind

Lots of information about animals of different continents! A must go place if you're buying Seattle Citypass.

Always love visiting the zoo with friends when in Seattle. Our families have such a great time, and it's a great design with lots to see. Highly recommend.

Staff were wonderful and accommodating, people were masked up (with signs advocating masks on at all times, A+), and the animals were out and about. A lovely visit that I will cherish for a lifetime.

Great place to spend a day viewing a huge variety of animals. Some hours are when some animals tend to sleep or rest, but you can usually see a lot of the animals out throughout the day. The layout of the zoo is also easy to go through and not have to back track too much. And the layout is sorted by regions around the world, so helps with educational purposes as well.

Love all the exotic animals they said have and the area you can walk into and have birds flying all around you. Huge park. Has multiple restaurant to order from and a big souvenir store. Great place to take kids and family for a day of fun and excitement! !

We really enjoy the zoo itself however, the food is really expensive considering the quality.