Turtleback Zoo Reviews

One of the better zoo's in the area. We try to come down as much as possible.

Love this zoo! A little small, but a really fun day trip with the family

The zoo was great, so many things to do and very affordable. Even more important the staff was great except for this one guy at the stingray touch tank. Nonetheless is was still fun. Look forward to returning.

We drove over an hour to see the zoo. The zoo itself was beautiful loved the attractions. My son loved the prairie dog tunnels, the sea lion and the touch tanks the the sting rays. My family and I loved ever minute. Can't wait to come again.

Amazing zoo.. beauty is that all animals are in their natural habitat and the zoo is very well kept

Great local zoo with just about everything you may want to see!

Don't know I could ever give any zoo a 5 star bc if habitat issues. But this is a nice zoo! Lots of staff around and a lot of habitats were pretty good sized, and none of the cement enclosures. Very reasonable price too. Thanks for a fun day with the kids.

It is a great zoo! Much bigger than I initially expected. There are a decent variety of animals for children to see and several spots to relax with the kids. Not a lot of eating joints except for one cafe and some ice cream vendors etc. but overall a fun place to see- takes a leisurely 3-4 hours to cover all grounds. Lines were long though!

My grandkids LOVE IT THERE! The best zoo EVER!!! Great atmosphere, clean, wide assortment of unique areas and variety of animals.

Lovely place. Enjoyed a Swan-boat ride with my girls. They loved it.

It brought back memories from when I was a kid"" to be totally honest, the last time I was here was on a school trip.. a lot has changed since then. It's a lot bigger an better than I can remember. I'm glad I went again,,But I had the excitement level as I did when I was a kid..So I suggest everyone should come an revisit there youth lol. And it's still very educational regardless of your age.

Fantastic zoo. Very clean, animals looked healthy and well cared for. A lot to do and see so worth the trip for those an hour to an hour and a half away. Free parking!

Best small zoo for toddlers and infants. I been coming here since my toddler was born. He loves to feed the animals, ride on the ponies, go to the avery to feed the birds, and on the train that gives you a relaxing little ride along the pond.

Today was a good day. We went on a class trip with a Pre-K class and we had a blast! They have a touching tank with a sting ray, we saw the sea lions, bisons & more! We ran out of time & didn't get a chance to see everything.
They have an outdoor eating area, as well as an indoor eating cafe with kid friendly food. They also have adult beverages served in the upstairs area of the cafe. I am including pictures for your review.

Turtle Back Zoo is such an awesome place, tons of animals and the staff is always pleasant. Great place for a fun day with the family

My husband and I went on the behind the scenes of the giraffes. It was amazing to see them in an open pen. The keeper was awesome! Very friendly and knowledgeable, she answered all questions cheerfully and thoroughly.
The zoo is very clean and you can tell the animals are very well cared for.
We will be back in the spring with my niece. We had a great time, I highly recommend!

The Turtle Back Zoo is great I've been there a few times during the summer and winter it's a beautiful experience and everyone is so nice the Christmas display at night all they asked for is for donations for the food bank they're also helping the community you should go and experience it you'll love it

We enjoyed our visit. The grounds are kept clean. Has turned around and become a great place to take our children.

Some of the exhibits are under construction for the time being, but that is to be expected if they are to grow their business. Recommend visiting during the autumn season.

The small location and limited animal viewing are one reason that we only go on school trips. During our last trip an attendant pushed my 5yr. old son. I made a complaint with a few people and they seemed very unconcerned. If u do happen to visit this place hope your experience is better than ours.

Great place they have made so many improvements the last year or so.

It is so fun to go with your family. They also have a train ride.

Very educational and a full day of fun for the family all in one

Nice zoo, eazy visit with a toddler. Nice train ride, play ground, and carousel.

Nice zoo! Decent collection of animals. They are well taken care off. Nice settings.

Love this zoo
Animals are well cared for
They have healed and release many turtles into the wild .
Kids love it

Love this place. But employees are not very friendly at all.. also they are not good with special needs children. Lots of animals and very clean.

Beautiful day for a zoo visit! I love that TBZ is expanding; however, there is currently so much construction going on, that the visit felt fragmented. Way too many animals off exhibit due to construction - specifically the Amur & Snow leopards. And, for some reason, many animals off exhibit in the reptile house. Lack of signage continues to be a challenge for several exhibits. The docent in the sea turtle rescue exhibit was very informative and engaged visitors. There needs to be at least 1 TBZ employee in the new (very nice) penguin exhibit as way to many kids were banging the glass and teasing the penguins.

I liked it but the tree top park is expensive. The zoo is good and we loved the pony ride.

Good local zoo. Not nearly as good as the Bronx Zoo, but it is still a good place to bring little kids on the weekend.

Our family outing to the zoo was great. Fun for the whole family and very educational

I love Turtle Back Zoo! Great place to take your family

I love animals.If you enjoy walking you will get plenty if exercise.Its free parking.Its $15 for adults and $12for seniors.There is also a train ride that takes you around the park and it is also free

Great experience for young and old alike. They even have a train ride and carosel!!

I'm a big fan of the Turtle Back Zoo! They renovated it a while back and I think they did a great job. It's not as extensive as the Bronx Zoo, but so much easier to get to if you're based in NJ and to navigate if you are with young kids. The train ride is a classic! They also opened up a rooftop bar if Mom & Dad take a break for a beverage :)

Great place for kids of all ages. Free parking. Clean and well-kept zoo, inexpensive and a wide variety of animals. There was a lot of construction during my visit, but hopefully that will be done soon. Also no maps were provided, which made it challenging to navigate and we ended up missing some exhibits.

One of my best zoo experience has ever happened here. Book a behind-the-scenes and ask to see Dyson

very nice and how they have renovate back from the 90s. they even have train ride for the kids,

Not a very big zoo but has many animals. I was charged 15 per person which is on the pricier end for a small zoo but I still had a great time and enjoyed! The train ride was free and beautiful!

Wonderful experience for my campers! Can't wait for the Asia exhibit to open!

This zoo has grown in the past few years and is still growing it is amazing

I just went here the other day, they had amazing exhibits and it allowed me to relive memories I had in the past.

It's nice place to take kids but you need to know when animals are sleeping or you dont see all the pets

Well organized, clean, spacious (even with COVID) and priced reasonably. Free onsite parking. Part of larger South Mountain Reservation Park system. Lots to do for days here. We are annual members and proud to support their programs for children of all ages. We just went first week of March, 2021 and lots of exhibits were still closed both due to COVID and the Winter Season, but many were open
Good to see wolves, bison, hyenas, lions, penguins, Gibbons, snakes, kangaroos, the cheetah and more.

Great for kids but during christmas show hours 5 - 9 pm, it's crowded and parking is a hassle.

What's not to love about the TBZ!? The grounds are beautiful and they have a variety of animals to get up close to. My kids love the choo choo train, dinosaur playground and the sting ray & sand shark touch tank (sugar is so friendly!) Its a wonderful and safe experience for the whole family!

Also in July and August they host movie nights and keep the zoo open late!!

This zoo is amazing. It is the perfect size. Not too big that you can't complete in the day and not too small that you'd be bored.

Admission is very reasonable. For 2 years now, I have purchased the yearly family pass which is well worth the price and pays for itself in 2 visits.

Staff is very friendly and knowledgeable. I highly recommend this zoo for a fun family day out.

Didn't get to see all the animals though due to time constraints but it's a well laid out and organised place with other attractions, ample parking space

No maps available and no clearly marked route to navigate exhibits

Great place to bring your kids! It's both fun and educational..

Great medium sized zoo at a decent price. Our visit was over the winter without much crowd. Plenty of exhibits for small children and was very clean. Definitely worth a visit.

The holiday lights evening was really lovely. We also enjoyed it during the summer. Definitely bigger than I had expected.

Visited the Christmas lights festival at evening. Very nice

I love this zoo, I got to witness when they first opened the Safari with just three adult giraffes and 3 baby giraffes. Now all the babies have grown up. Love the new addition of the Lions den. Was upset the touch tank was closed but will be coming back again. Now my daughter will get to experience this wonderful zoo.

Lots of space for the kiddos to roam. Most of the water exhibits were closed for renovations until Fall 2019. Went early on a Saturday - busy but not overly crowded.

A free of cost place for Christmas lighting! Cute train ride, pony ride for kids, eating place, pizza, coffee and so many animal lighting, animal petting! All for free 5 - 9 PM!

I enjoyed going to the zoo. However I would give it 5 stars if they had electric wheelchairs for people with disabilities. Which they didn't have the day we went... I couldn't get to see the other side of the zoo. Maybe next time.

love this zoo! It's large enough tho keep the kiddos entertained for the entire day without it being overwhelming. You can do the entire zoo in 2-3 hours if there aren't many people.

Better than average, especially for a small City zoo.

Turtle Back Zoo is really amazing! They have all kinds of animals, and most look very well cared for. My favorite exhibit was the reptile area. Food is a bit pricey, but they do have some meal deals. I skipped the petting area, because of covid.

Great family friendly zoo. It is not a big zoo but perfect outing for a family

Had a nice time and appreciated the social distancing precautions the zoo was taking.

Beautiful zoo, great staff. A great place to take the kids of just go yourself. There is a lot to see.

The Turtle Back Zoo is a fantastic zoo risen from the ashes of it being abysmal in the 90s and early 2000s.

The animals are well cared for. Turtle Back Zoo has a ton of amazing attractions, and the park is clean and well maintained.

The park also offers a adventure section where you can do a treetop style obstacle course, a train ride, and a place to eat.

It's a good day trip that won't break the bank.

Not a world class zoo, but what they have done in setting it up makes it look like one! Took 2 of our grandchildren there and had a great time! Son is a member, so they go often, and, as we did as members of a really big zoo in another state, we only stayed as long as the kids could handle, a couple of hours. Definitely got our money's worth! Lots of eye-level things for the little ones to enjoy, though due to COVID-19, no touching of animals. They still enjoyed seeing and watching them!

Small Zoo, but good for very little children as they tire easier. Small exibits, and a lot of common animals. Nothing that wows you. You can tour the whole Park in under 3 hours.

I grew up coming to the turtle back zoo and now I love taking my children. The zoo is constantly upgrading and expanding and the kids adore all of the interactions.

I had no idea it was so sophisticated, really quite wonderful for young and old, company picnic at the gazebo was a hit. Highly recommended.

Nice little local zoo with a reasonable collection . Suitable for family small children that doesn't want to go to Bronx zoo.

Much better for kids because it's small therefore walkable

Turtle back zoo never disappoints. My daughter is 2 years old and I brought her when she was one year old as well. The zoo is the perfect size- not too big, not too small. Ride the train a few times, take a break inside and watch the penguins swim, etc. If the sun is out, you will be sweating profusely. Especially as you push your stroller up the many steep hills of this zoo. But it is worth it for the nap your kid will take after.

Nice zoo, free parking. Great for kids! In the summers you can buy their lettuce to feed the giraffes. It's a hilly walk through. Electric vehicle charging is free for first two hours.

Love this place .great for kids definitely would recommend friends and family

Had the best time here! Plan a day trip here and it is fun for all ages!

Great learning experience for small and big kids. Very nice staff.

we had a cool experience at the zoo. they have their free parking, so you don t have to look around. everything is organized well. a mini trip with train is included in price, some petting animals, cafe to take a brake

The zoo is great! We went in late winter/early spring and the crowds we're small. It didn't take long to see all the animals. Check it out if in the area.

Went to see the Christmas lighting spectacular and it wasn't that exciting. The lighting wasn't designed attractively and the animals didn't look happy in their captivity.

There wasn't many vendor food trucks and it was only one with a very long line.

So glad the zoo was able to reopen! Wear your mask, bring a hat and a water bottle. There were a couple of fast-moving lines for indoor exhibits, but it was no problem. Took a train ride, got some shaved ice, bought souvenirs. It was a great time!