Birmingham

Birmingham, Alabama, United States

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Birmingham is a city in the north central region of the U.S. state of Alabama. Birmingham is the seat of Jefferson County, Alabama's most populous county.

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Attractions of Birmingham

Birmingham Zoo

4.3

(3.7K)

Open 24 hours

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Vulcan Park and Museum

4.7

(2.5K)

Open 24 hours

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Oak Mountain State Park

4.7

(2.3K)

Open 24 hours

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Barber Vintage Motorsports Museum

4.9

(2.3K)

Open 24 hours

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Things to do nearby

Sip N Soil | Holiday Centerpiece

Wed, Dec 10 • 4:30 PM

2904 Old Rocky Ridge Road, Birmingham, AL 35243

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Birmingham, AL Murder Mystery: Solve the case!

Mon, Dec 1 • 12:00 AM

1601 6th Ave N, Birmingham, AL 35204, USA, 35204

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Walking Tour: Civil Rights History -The Church, Children & Community

Sat, Dec 6 • 3:30 PM

Lea Town, PR4

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Restaurants of Birmingham

Niki's West

4.4

(2.4K)

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The Fish Market Restaurant

4.4

(2.2K)

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Bright Star Restaurant

4.6

(1.5K)

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Texas de Brazil - Birmingham

4.4

(1.5K)

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Birmingham Zoo

4.3Zoo

Tikka Nation Tikka Nation

Your Spice Destination: Tikka Nation!

_iamnicole2_iamnicole2

@The Birmingham Zoo 📌 MOUNTAINBROOK, ALABAMA 2025 HOOTS & HOWLS 🎃 #halloween #birminghamalabama #thingstodo #vlogtober #fyp

PhillippiaPhillippia

We visited the zoo on a Wednesday morning during our summer vacation. We arrived one hour after opening. The lot was probably half full. No waiting at any of the ticket booths out front. They no longer have paper maps, which is great for the environment but not practical for those that don't want to kill thier cell phone battery using GPS to easily navigate the digital map they offer. Tickets were pricey...$14+tax for kids under 12. $19 plus tax for adults. We had a discount on one adult ticket as the person buying the tickets had a military I.D. Usually places give a military discount across the entire purchase, but they only gave it on his particular ticket. Once inside, my children's excitement (and mine) quickly began to wane. One exhibit after another and no animals. We immediately went to see the elephants and there were only zookeepers there cleaning. Went on to the rhino cage and there was none there (exhibit being built). We went to the trail for local animals and no bears, despite a bear icon being shown on the map. Went through the primate exhibit and at least 3 of the animals were not there. Went into the reptile exhibit and the main attraction, the Komodo Dragon, was not there. There were no tigers, hyenas, hippos, chimpanzees or many of the other big animals you would expect to see in African/Asian habitat areas of a zoo. We stayed for a little over 2 hours and after circling back a couple times, we were finally able to see the elephants right before we left at least. We bought the kids drinks to beat the summer heat, a 20 ounce soda and a Powerade. These two drinks were just over $9. I assume these high prices for tickets, beverages, etc are to help with the high cost of maintaining so many big animals, however the high cost to the customer should also mean more effort should be put into providing a good experience. For example, couldn't the zookeepers have cleaned the habitat BEFORE the zoo opened? Elephants, lions, tigers, etc are the main attractions...they should be available to view by opening time as a rule considering the high prices. No one wants to visit a zoo, pay high prices, walk around in the heat, only to leave without seeing the animals they came for. I would not recommend this zoo.

Kermit JonesKermit Jones

Okay, so my family and I are borderline professional zoo-goers. We've been to over 100 zoos, which basically qualifies us for honorary zookeeper status, or at least a punch card. We were kind of hopeful for Birmingham since it was new to us... but sadly, it just didn’t quite measure up. I don't want to bring the rating down but if this is what people consider five stars, they must have been visiting on a different day (or they need to get out more often). I admit that we were there on a public holiday but there were quite a few other visitors First off, the layout was like someone handed a crayon to a toddler and said, "Design a zoo." No real flow, lots of dead ends, and signs that were either missing, vague, or clearly playing a game of hide and seek. We wandered into one building that had no sign, no label, and no indication of whether we were walking into an exhibit or a storage closet. Thankfully, it was air-conditioned and had birds. So, mystery room for the win. There was also a lot of construction happening, which I get... progress and all. But some of the placement choices felt like a game of "Where shouldn’t we put bamboo?" Paths kind of meandered without purpose, and there was a certain vibe of "Oops, this wasn’t supposed to go here" all over the place. Highlight of the day? Watching an otter do its business in a way that can only be described as Megan Thee Stallion meets interpretive twerk dance. It was confusing, a little magical, and probably the most animated thing we saw all afternoon. Some of the bird exhibits were really well done, and a few of the habitats looked new and cared for. But others felt like they were leftover from a different era... possibly pre-Internet. There were staff members walking around, but very little was open. Dippin’ Dots? Nope. Snack carts? Also nope. My dreams of overpriced novelty ice cream were crushed. In summary: there’s potential here, and a few moments worth remembering, but overall it felt like the zoo was going through a mild identity crisis. Hopefully the renovations bring it back to life... and maybe put up a few signs while they're at it.

Bryan CBryan C

I like visiting different American cities and it is always nice when the city has a zoo. I say that because, with two teenage girls, zoos are the one attraction that we can all agree to visit. On a recent trip to Birmingham, Alabama, we had several hours before our flight from the local airport, and it was just the amount of time we needed to visit the Birmingham Zoo. We arrived at the zoo around noon and, fortunately for us, it wasn’t very crowded and we didn’t have any trouble finding a place to park. Walking inside, we decided to forgo using a map and started to visit the different animals based on whatever caught our attention. We continued to go from one section to the next until we had covered everything, which took less than two hours. The Birmingham Zoo is staffed by friendly folks and even though it wasn’t that crowded overall, there were lots of kids present, many of them from local summer schools, apparently. It was great to see so many happy children making their way from one animal exhibit to the next and learning about the different species. Zoos are great fun and great education for young people and it was nice to see so many youngsters soaking up the scenery and learning about the creatures that inhabit our planet. There were a fair number of animal exhibits that were closed, so we were a little disappointed in that respect. We also noticed that some of the areas, while clean, were in disrepair and this was most evident with the indoor exhibits. We also noticed that the Birmingham Zoo does have a train that will take you from place to place, for an added fee. We decided to keep walking, but it is good to know that this option is there, for those who need it. The animals on display at the Birmingham Zoo seemed to be well taken care of and while this zoo isn’t as large as others I have visited, it proved worth the investment of time and money. It is very close to the airport- only about 7 miles away- and thus made for a nice excursion before flying home. I recommend a visit if you find yourself in the Birmingham area.

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Vulcan Park and Museum

4.7Museum

Lucía MarianaLucía Mariana

🏛️ Vulcan Park and Museum in Birmingham, Alabama

mikebarcodemikebarcode

They do move in herds. #vulcan #statue #vulcanparkandmuseum #alabama #tourist #travel #tourism #traveler #touristattraction #jurassicpark #badonkadonk

david_h1269david_h1269

Parece que no entendiste Michi😁🤣🤣😁

david_h1269david_h1269

Un pequeño brindis #saluditos😎💖🇺🇸🇪🇨🇰🇷🇬🇹🇲🇽

bhamnowbhamnow

#NowPartner ✨ MAGICAL NIGHTS: The eye-catching holiday light show hosted at @visitvulcan is back to help spread Christmas cheer throughout Birmingham. Here’s what to expect. 👇 This nightly, festive celebration is filled with twinkling lights ⭐️, holiday illuminations 🎁 + a special visit with Santa Claus! 🎅 📅 Open Now - December 31, 2024 | 7 days/week ⏰ Daily | 4-8PM 📍@visitvulcan | 1701 Valley View Dr 35209 🎟️ Adult: $10 | Senior: $8 | Child (5-12): $7 📸 You can take pictures with Santa on these nights: ⭐️ December 13-14, 19-23 📲 Head to the link in our bio to join the festive celebration of Magical Nights @visitvulcan! Tag a friend you want to experience this with! 👇 #birminghamalabama #holidaylights #lightshow #vulcan #bhamnow

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Oak Mountain State Park

4.7Park

dolifetogetherdolifetogether

A must visit if you are in Birmingham, AL. Such a fun idea and activity with the kids! #alabama #statepark #nature #baldeagle #birds #trail #family #ideas #getout #state #park #hiking #beginner #horses #wildlife #travel #checkthisout

laurenkaycilaurenkayci

Uncover Alabama | Shelby county - Oak Mountain State Park & King’s Chair Overlook Over 700,000 people visit this Alabama state park each year. While some hidden gems are unknown, we believe this tourist attraction is worth the hype. The trail to King’s Chair Overlook is the one of the most popular trails in the state. This hike leads to breathtaking views of the valley below.

thetravelvoicebybeckythetravelvoicebybecky

💦 #OakMountainStatePark located in #PelhamAlabama is filled with #familyfriendly #thingstodo from one end to the other. ⛳️ The #campground is fully renovated, there’s great #golf, a pump track, #bmx course, #FlipsideWatersports cable #skiing, 100 miles of #trails, #beaches and #swimming plus the #AlabamaWildlifeCenter! When are you coming? #AlabamaStateParks #ALStateParks #SweetHomeAlabama #alabamathebeautiful #travel #stateparks #thetravelvoicebybecky

dolifetogetherdolifetogether

When I say WOW, I mean it. This is the nicest state park that we have stayed at yet. They had so much more that i couldn’t even name! Watersports, inflatable aquapark in the summer, fishing, nature programs and more! #statepark #alabama #fulltime #rv #camper #camping #fulltimetravel #fulltimerv #camperlife #checkthisout #mustvisit #visit #park #bmx #horsebackriding #golf #trails #wakeboarding #kayak #cabins #tent #sahm #travel #park

Amanda MacLeroyAmanda MacLeroy

Where do I begin? This place is awesome! There are so many possibilities that you can partake in ,no matter what age you are! My most recent visit was my first visit after 10 years of not visiting. So I wasn’t as familiar with the areas, updates, and activities available, but it did not matter at all. April 15th was my “middle” son’s 12th birthday and he couldn’t decide what he wanted to do, however after showing him an informational video about Oak Mountain State Park he immediately made his decision to visit there. The first thing he wanted to do was fish and the second was to find this “waterfall” he saw while watching the video. So off we went , only equipped with 2 poles, 1 tackle box and worms, water, a change of boots for exploring, and a fishing license. As soon as we arrived at the side , I believe day pass gate, we were greeted with a helpful friendly face at the booth you pay at. He could have just said that’ll be $7 and sent us on our way, but instead he was warm, conversational, and gave us many tips on where to go fish depending on what my son was wanting to fish for. He was extremely kind and began our visit on a very inviting note. We fished at the oldest lake first, hoping to snag one of the 7-10lb bass that swim there. No luck, but that was ok. We then ventured to the lake by the damn that is known for smaller fish, but gave us a chance at a higher quantity caught. It was very nice with shaded areas on the side bank and sunny areas next to the road. We didn’t end up having much luck with the fish that day , but we were satisfied regardless. Everything is easy to find when you want to fish. The next time we go we will go on a weekend so that we can rent a peddler boat or try a kayak or paddle board. They are available to rent on Saturday and Sundays. After hours of him fishing and me half fishing half laying out on the pier next to the beach area, we headed out to explore. Explore we did, apparently I set a record number of miles my iPhone had ever recorded me walking! 8 miles to be exact. We hiked several trails and learned some lessons on what to do and not to do for next time. Also, making sure your phone is charged , you have bug spray, you don’t wait til 2 hours before dark to go down trails you aren’t familiar with, etc. You know, rookie /lack of common sense mistakes…bc duh! Anyhow, our 2nd hike /exploration had a mission. We were going to find this mysterious “waterfall” he saw in the video. Yes, we found it. We also found that we shouldn’t have already hiked 4 miles before trying to trek up and down this particular trail. It was very steep and difficult for us being novices in these types of activities, and we weren’t really prepared for the terrain we encountered, but pushed thru because he really really wanted to this this hidden gem of a waterfall! It was beautiful and worth the bruises I received trying to get down to it. He smiled so much while there, skipping rocks and walking around in the water at the bottom of the fall in complete awe. The journey back up…we’ll honestly had a difficulty level well above what my body was ready for. But he loved it. I mean absolutely loved all the climbing and the unknowns. We even saw an actual “dung” beetle hard at work! We also stopped at the look out and took in the view. We didn’t do 5% of what the park offers and had a blast. Take your family and explore! Figure out what you do and don’t like. And go from there.

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Birmingham, Alabama — Travel Guide & Things to Do

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Birmingham

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Things to Do in Birmingham, Alabama, United States - Birmingham Attractions & Activities