Greater Vancouver Zoo — Attraction in Township of Langley

We visited the Vancouver Zoo today and, sadly, had one of the worst customer service experiences I’ve ever had — and more than one disappointment during our visit.

We rented a cart vehicle and at the end of our 1 hour we returned it thinking we were on time. We were one minute past the deadline , and the girl immediately charged us penalty. No understanding — just an automatic extra fee. She mentioned something that she is not a business owner. (So she is not motivated).

When we spoke to Manager Philip, he was completely unhelpful. He simply repeated the policy without any empathy, offered no solution, and made it clear customer satisfaction wasn’t a priority.

To make matters worse, the zoo train — one of the main attractions for kids — was out of service for maintenance with no prior notice anywhere on the zoo’s website or at the entrance by the ticket booth people. It was a huge disappointment for our children, who had been looking forward to it all day.

Between the inflexible and petty rental policy, unhelpful management, and closed attractions, the day left us feeling frustrated and let down. I’d recommend visitors double-check if the train is running before going and be extremely careful with rental return times — because even one minute late will cost you, and management won’t care. Left feeling ripped off and disappointed. Such a waste of $200 and plus a huge stress with the soulless manager and customer service. Never again! For globally recognized city like Vancouver this zoo it’s a shame because of the poor management.

PS. I can’t “reply to your reply”, but I would like to add after reading your reply .While I understand policies are in place, some flexibility and customer care go a long way toward creating a positive experience. There were no people waiting for carts/bicycles at the time we returned. Regarding the train, while updates may be online (small print somewhere that very hard to find) , many families (especially with young children) plan visits expecting certain attractions to be open. It would be much more helpful if this information were made more prominent at ticket purchase or entry.

I hope my feedback helps improve the experience for...

I recently visited the Greater Vancouver Zoo in Aldergrove with my family, and overall it was a fun experience, but definitely on the pricey side. From Port Coquitlam it took us about 40 minutes to get there, and admission was $36 per adult and about $27 per child (kids 3 and under are free).

Once inside, we rented one of the fun animal-themed cars to get around the park. Rentals aren’t cheap—$25/hour for the 6-seater bikes and $50/hour for the cars—but honestly, the car made our visit much more enjoyable and helped us see everything without getting too tired. My kids thought it was the best part of the day.

The zoo itself had a lot to see. My favourites were definitely the zebras, giraffes, tigers, and jaguars. The flamingos were so bright and colorful, and even though the red panda wasn’t out that day, it was still exciting to see so many different animals up close. There was also a whole dinosaur exhibit, which was a neat and unexpected touch. My kids loved that there were multiple bouncy castles included with admission, which gave them breaks between walking around.

Food and gifts were hit or miss. Ice cream was expensive but worth it, and the small café near the grizzly bears was a good stop (bonus points for having a real washroom, since most of the bathrooms in the park are outhouses). The gift shop surprised me with reasonable prices—cute plastic fashion rings for $0.99 and bear hair brushes for under $5.

There’s also a train that goes through the park, which looked fun, but it was $10 per person, so we skipped it since we already had the $50/hour car. Another note: there’s stroller parking near the entrance, but it’s not monitored, so keep that in mind if you leave belongings behind.

The zoo has both exotic animals and Canadian wildlife, from rhinos and hippos to bison and deer. I did feel a bit sorry for the larger animals in smaller enclosures, but it was still incredible to see them in person.

I hadn’t been here since I was a kid, and it was really nice to come back with my own kids now. They had the best time, and even though the costs added up quickly, it was worth it for the...

This zoo is fantastic! My sister in-law is an influencer and we had the privilege of experiencing a behind the scenes, VIP tour and it was absolutely amazing. We received a guided tour by one of the zoo keepers, Rita, and got to go behind the scenes with 4 different animals - the Giraffe, Hippo, Red Pandas and bears. We were able to get very close to them, feed them and take some fantastic pictures.

Even when we were just walking down the normal paths, it was extra special as all the animals know Rita's voice so they would come right up to the fence and follow us around as we were walking by. The lions and tiger in particular jumped up and came right next to the fence which was quite spectacular.

The staff and the overall experience was exceptional. We've been to many zoo's including the Africa Safari in Ontario, Hawaii Zoo, and the Singapore Zoo and, as crazy as it sounds, I would say this is right on par with those three. I honestly had no idea we even had a zoo in Vancouver until I had my son a few years ago. We've only been here once before as just a regular visit and that was great too. Kids absolutely love it, from the animals to the train, to the playground!

Now we got to experience a special package that included behind the scenes experiences with 4 different animals - I'm not sure this package is openly available to the public, but you can get packages with a behind the scene look with one of the animals of your choice. I would say this is very much worth the money, and I wouldn't hesitate for a moment to do this again. It's a very memorable experience. They were all great, but I would probably choose the Giraffe or Hippos as you're able to get a little closer to them.

Thank you Rita and the Greater Vancouver Zoo for the...