Prospect Park Zoo — Attraction in New York

Really lovely zoo with many interesting "residents" to interact with!

It might not be the biggest zoo in New York City but it's definitely worth the visit. As an adult I found the complex entertaining and big enough to spend a couple of hours.

The center point of the zoo is the Sea Lion pool, which is very entertaining and I spend a lot of time watching the sea lions play and engage with visitors. It would be handy if there is information about feeding/playing time so I would not miss the most important part of their day!

Many terrariums and aquariums are located in the Hall of Animal such as ones with birds, mice, reptiles, snakes and even bats, however my favorite was the one with colorful Amazonian forest frogs and dwarf mongoose! Family of baboons and terrariums with other monkeys are located in the pavilion named Animal Lifestyle, which was also the busiest place during my visit.

I really enjoyed the barn experience! I was able to walk around the barn, touch, pet and feed (for $0.5 per load) goats, sheeps, miniature pigs and alpacas. All animals are used to humans so they enjoy occasional scratches behind their ears and are really friendly. There is a lavatory for washing hands afterwards.

Last but not least is the Discovery trail - a place where I had close interaction with non-domesticated animals such as otters, porcupines, dingo dogs and red pandas! It was really fascinating to watch them up close (when they were not sleeping)! On the trail I have encountered many freely wandering, colorful peacocks, also used to humans.

The entry fee of $9.95 for an adult is very reasonable, the admission ticket can be purchased at the entrance as well as via QR code/online. Toilets are available at the Discovery Center around the Sea Lion Court free of charge and well maintained. Opposite is a Café and gift store with adjacent seating areas.

Paid by card. Visited...

This is another small NYC zoo, this one in the borough of Brooklyn. Prospect Park is huge and the zoo is but one small part. The center highlight of the zoo are the sealions. Talk about super stars! 💙 They are people friendly and LOVE LOVE LOVE to work for their trainers at demo/feeding time. These sealions are healthy and well trained. It was so much fun to watch them playing and enjoying the crowds gathered to see them. Overall, the animal enclosures at the zoo are relatively small which makes viewing the animals nice because you can see most everyone. The enclosures are clean and well kept and the critters appear comfortable and stress free which is different than some zoos where all the animals do is pace. A female zoo docent placed at the baboon habitat had so much information to share today...it was a pleasure learning about this group and the youngsters are delightful to watch. Entry to the zoo is reasonable, and its not large and overwhelming like the Bronx Zoo can be, which makes it very family friendly. The 8 or so small reptile tanks right near the night creature display are definitely in need of upgrade. Beyond that small section, the rest was lovely. The barn area was very active today with birthday parties as well. Easily paired with the Botanical Gardens if you want to make a whole day of it. Short walking distance between gates on Flatbush Avenue. I recommend paying the $25.00 for parking at the gardens if busy street parking intimidates you. As first time visitors who linger to watch the animals and take lots of photos, we spent about 3 hours. Could be done in half the time if you...

$10 bucks won’t get you much these days but it will go a long way in creating wonderful new memories at the Prospect Park Zoo. I’ve grown up coming to this park as a teenager but never the zoo side which is off Empire Blvd and Flatbush Avenue.

About 1 and 1/2 hour tour of this well spaced animal refuge where turtles, seals and swans swim happily and peacocks roam free. You’ll feel like you stepped out of a Time Machine as you get swept up in the beautiful tapestry of this quaint zoo perfect for families or even a date night.

A particularly moving moment was knowing we stood on the sacred ground of the Native American “Lenapehoking Nation” at the Lefferts NYC Landmark & Historic House Museum which was built in 1783 and moved into Prospect Park in 1918.

The 1800 cencus showed more than a dozen enslaved Africans also were held captive on this land for at least two generations indicative of the Dutch Lefferts family being one of the largest enslaved holding families from 1783 up until 1827. Through sustained resistance, the forming of historic Black communities like Weeksville, founded by free African Americans is today located in present day Crown Heights, Brooklyn. Be on the lookout for more to come on this as we learned during the tour they just received a grant to do some restoration to this historic site which I would love to learn more about. We even took a spin on the carousel. So much fun!

Who knew such a rich history and legacy surrounded us in the heart of Brooklyn. Cheers to our next...