Riverside Reptiles Education Center — Attraction in Enfield

We bought a pass during the height of COVID and I’m soooo glad we did!!- During a time where we struggled to keep our very active toddler entertained, socialized, exposed to different surroundings; people, places etc., I can’t tell you what a blessing it’s been to have this place at our disposal. My favorite part about this place (aside from the reptiles), is the fact that every SINGLE time we visit, the owner ALWAYS goes out of his way to give us the best possible experience while we’re there- In fact, I don’t think there’s been a single instance where he’s not offered to take out a reptile for my children to interact with in whichever way they’re most comfortable. This includes holding them, petting or just observing them from afar… ALL WHILE receiving our very own, little private lesson. As he’ll also take the opportunity to share some of his knowledge/educate us on that particular reptile. Overall, I highly recommend visiting- It’s also clean and everyone’s extremely friendly. I’m hugely into supporting our local small businesses and I really hope he’s able to stay in business. Seeing what he’s accomplished thus far and during the height of COVID no less, it’s awe inspiring. I think he has plans to do a bit more too- I think a small educational room/area for young kiddos would be amazzzing!!!… Perhaps a salt water sensory table, a few “guess what’s inside sensory boxes”, a coloring table, maybe a “craft reptile of the week”? That might be a bit much. But super cool for our little ones. Nonetheless, the place is awesome!… I’d go just to see the Alligator! Which is...

Updating my review 2 years later to include our experience booking a party here. Our 4-year-old and his friends loved it! Our host Becca was so patient with the kids, reminding them to sit quietly, walk slowly, and wash their hands before and after petting the animals. Her knowledge of the birthday boy's chosen animal guests was impressive and she answered every question (even the silly ones) with enthusiasm. I would recommend a party with slightly older children (6+ just because the 4-year-olds had trouble remembering the rules which was stressful as a parent. We have been taking our son to visit for two years now, but once surrounded by friends, the walking feet get left at the door. We'd love to book again and I think some of our guests plan to return themselves!

Great place for an energetic 2-year-old with a short attention span, and his 40-year-old father. They each ran off in different directions to see the animals. The owner, Brian, let us watch him feed the tortoises and we even touched a tiny box turtle. There is a gift shop full of toys right when you walk in, which was a bit distracting from the live animals, but maybe that's...

We had our kiddos birthday here on a Sunday morning, and had never visited before. I'm so glad we did!! The party room is HUGE and has a lot of space to be comfortable with your guests, plus has 2 private restrooms. All of the kids were energized and having a blast the entire time...exploring, searching, and especially learning! Cassie was an excellent host and very communicative, flexible to our schedule while there and accommodated our requests. We got to meet Panda and a few others in the party room, as well as some other creatures in the exhibit that everyone in the center is able to see! The center and the party room and restrooms are accessible by wheelchair. I also appreciate that most of the creatures there are rescues/etc, and an amazing and unusual collection that you don't get to see everywhere. I feel like people who say otherwise just honestly have no appreciation for reptiles or maybe just not enough knowledge to appreciate what they are seeing. Our entire party enjoyed several hours here and had a BLAST!!! We could not have been more satisfied with our experience and are looking forward to...