Dallas Zoo — Attraction in Dallas

The zoo is split into two sections, one south of Clarendon Drive called Wilds of Africa which we went to first. We saw a cheetah, two hippos in the water (we saw one enter the water which was cool), okapi, klipspringer, chimpanzees, a crocodile, many birds in aviaries, and gorillas.

We then entered the Giants of the Savanna section and saw an expansive elephant enclosure with African elephants including a baby elephant. A couple warthogs nestling together was next followed by giraffe feeding where you can watch people feed giraffes just a few feet away (or stand in line to presumably pay to feed them yourself). The restaurant in Giants of the Savanna provides a good view of the lion enclosure, but from the walkway the lions were hard to spot. We could hear one loudly huffing and almost roaring, but could not see him. Next to the lions was an empty exhibit of African painted dogs (perhaps they were hiding).

We then returned to the main entrance via the tunnel under Clarendon Drive to get to ZooNorth (the other half of the zoo) and headed for the tiger enclosure because we saw signage that Destination: Dinosaurs (a temporary exhibit) was near the tigers. We saw flamingos before we got to the tigers. The tigers were making grunting noises (I couldn't see which one was making the sounds) and one was getting into a large cylinder and rolling it a little. That tiger then came out of the cylinder and grabbed the side with its mouth and dragged it several feet. I've never seen tigers so active before at a zoo.

Past the tigers is the Destination: Dinosaurs exhibit which was $6 per person ($4 with membership). A number of dinosaur sculptures line a meandering loop. Most of these sculptures are robotic in that they have some moving parts with limited range - a mouth that opens and closes slowly, a neck that swivels or rotates, a tail that lifts a little, etc. Sounds play from speakers to complete the effect. The dinosaurs themselves appear heavily borrowed from the Jurassic Park and Jurassic World movies (they only have real dinosaurs - not the ones created for the movies) because they look more like movie dinosaurs than modern understanding of how these dinosaurs looked. For example, their velociraptors are as big as grown adults and their T. Rex has no attempt to acknowledge feathers or proto-feathers. Still, it was a fun exhibit. Strangely, I was both pleased and disappointed in it at the same time. (In a quasi-Westworld moment, there was one exhibit which was a deconstructed dinosaur so you could see the pistons inside and control it from a control panel. It mostly worked.)

We then proceeded to view some gibbons, an empty otter enclosure, the red back of a maned wolf (not a wolf), a pacing giant anteater, an empty Galapagos tortoise enclosure, two chatty toucans, some vultures, and a harpy eagle. Signage is sparse with several birds lacking signs and other animals requiring hunting for signs. Not a bad zoo, very pleasant to walk through and spend an afternoon, but even though it's over a 100 acres, it feels small for such a big zoo.

Members of another AZA Zoo gives half off admission (pay at membership kiosk at entrance). Adults $12, Youth $10. No discount on parking ($12) or special exhibits like the Destination: Dinosaurs exhibit ($6...

I want to start by saying that I hate to leave a bad review for any location and that I do understand and appreciate what a good zoo is all about, (trying to protect and preserve animals and species and to raise awareness where needed...) and that is why I still gave three stars on my rating. Sadly, if I made this rating based on my experience alone and from a place of anger or contempt, I'd have probably given it a one, a two if I factor in the really cool Dinosaur exhibit.

But that is not what this is about.

I am simply stating these things so that people can make a more informed decision than I was able to make especially if they have other health issues like I do or have little ones or elderly with them when they come.

For the price, the hype, and the all-around look of the place, you just hope for a better experience. Firstly, where they direct you to park as a regular guest is still a good little walk before you even reach the entrance. Second, they recommend buying tickets before you get there and encourage you to buy the summer pass, but they don't explain what all it covers and they still offer you deals that were covered under the summer pass and you end up double paying for some things and get no refund. So there should be a clear description of what is covered by the pass. And then, even when you perched your tickets in advance, there is still a slow moving line to get in and a not so friendly greater. So after a long drive in traffic, a long walk in the heat (if you make the mistake of going in summer like I did) and a long wait in line, you might likely need a restroom. But, the restrooms were just awful... the one near the entrance had a line and no air conditioning whatsoever, to the point that it was hotter inside the restroom. Then the one at the dinosaur exhibit had an AC, but it smelled like straight-up mold inside. Even though I took the time to walk through the whole zoo, I only saw maybe two-thirds of the animals listed. I get that it's was a very hot day, and as such, some animals were hidden away trying to keep cool, and I don't blame them for that... but what I am referring to is mostly the fact that multiple enclosures weren't even being used, and yet you still have to take the long stretch of trail to get to the next few that are. All the while, dealing with some of the drink machines not working, and paying way too much for the food and drinks you can get. Plus, to top it off, as few members of staff and keepers were friendly and helpful, and others were anything but...

So, I say, if you are going to go... maybe wait till fall or spring and don't expect the best experience. If I'm wrong and I just went on a bad day, then you'll be pleasantly surprised. But if I'm right and it's anything like the experience I had, you won't be as disappointed...

But at the end of my day, I felt on the verge of heat stroke and hadn't even reached my car yet. It took me two days of my nine day trip to recover... so, in short, please just be careful and be prepared.

End note: the Dinosaur exhibit was pretty awesome and if I bring my kids when the weather cools off a bit I do hope it's still there for them to experience because they...

Having to entertain family for the holidays, what's more appropriate than the Christmas light exhibit here at the zoo? Looking at the special event tickets, I was inclined to go ahead and purchase the Patron membership package and it was so worth it!! They have an awesome reciprocity program with a massive amount of zoos all over the country. I'll definitely be getting my money's worth from this small contribution, including free parking, free guest passes, discounts and animal feedings.

The light displays were beautiful, and I loved the incorporation of the illuminated inflated animala. I appreciated the interactive maps and photo ops that were featured. Note that only a section of the zoo is open for lights event and the rest is closed off to the public. For me, the absolute highlight was the dinosaur projections and how the animatronic dinosaurs were decorated. I'm used to seeing them at dinosaur world or dinosaur land, not an actual zoo, so it was quite a surprise. The design of the projections and sound were top tier.

We adults really enjoyed the peppermint schnapps and hot cocoa on the chilly night.

My only constructive criticism was wanting more nocturnal animals to be incorporated in the event. It is first and foremost a zoo, right? Even so I'm looking forward to coming back during the day and enjoying the zoo in it's full layout and glory.

Update: I just went back today, in April. Huge shout out to customer service. I got carried away taking pictures and let my phone die and couldn't get into my car. While there is a charging kiosk in one of the restaurants, you have to scan a Q.R. code to obtain the charging service. Since my phone was dead, I couldn't scan anything. An awesome woman in the guest services office charged my phone for 15 minutes so that I could get in my car and actually leave.

Awesome reptile exhibit and loved the variety and abundance of primates. The butterfly exhibit was okay but nothing to write home about. I honestly preferred the dinosaur exhibit at night rather than...