Six Tips for Enjoying Your Zoo or Aquarium Visit

Snow is falling outside my window as I write this, but the coldest of winter seems to have passed.  The day after tomorrow is the last day of February, and then it will be March.  Spring is almost here.  And with Spring, the zoo comes to life.  Sure, the keepers have been there all winter, as have the animals, but without the visitors, the place is like a ghost town.

Millions of Americans flock to zoos and aquariums every year.  I assume that they have a good time, otherwise they probably wouldn’t keep coming back, and most of those that I talk to see to be enjoying themselves.  That being said, it’s not uncommon to come across cranky visitors, upset for a number of reasons.  And so, in anticipation of the onset of the busy season, I’ve come up with the following –

Six Tips for Enjoying Your Zoo or Aquarium Visit

Visitors admire a giraffe at the Lincoln Park Zoo in Chicago

1.)    Choose Your Zoo Wisely

You heard it here first: NOT ALL ZOOS ARE CREATED EQUAL.  Some are big – so big that it would take days to explore them thoroughly, and visitors could get lost and starve to death in them.  Others are tiny hour-long strolls.  Some are very interactive, with lots of opportunities for petting or feeding, others are “look-don’t-touch.”  Most importantly, some take excellent care of their animals, others… less so. 

Think about what kind of day you want to have at the zoo and pick your zoo accordingly.  If you are one parent bringing six or seven young children, a full day of trekking around a two-hundred acre zoo with thousands of animals might be too overwhelming.  If you want to pet or feed animals, choose a zoo that allows that option.  Above all, do your homework and support a zoo that contributes to conservation and education while providing the best animal care possible. 

If you’re in the US, any zoo accredited by the AZA will be fine on this last point.  If a zoo is non-accredited, that doesn’t mean it’s a bad place or not worth visiting – I’ve been to some great non-AZA zoos.  Just check first.

2.)    Weather or Not

A lot of your enjoyment will come down to the weather and the time of year.  Sounds easy, just don’t go to the zoo in the dead of winter or when it’s raining, right?  Not so simple… A day with a light rain, or a cooler, overcast day might be the best possible day to go to the zoo.  Also, come early in the day, or later in the afternoon.  That’s when animals are often the most active, both in the zoo and the wild.

When is the worst time to go to the zoo?  The middle of a hot summer day when the temperature is in the triple digits and your sweat is boiling off of your skin, which is ironically when most people decide to go to the zoo.  Not only will you get sunburn, sunstroke, and a massive headache, you probably won’t see much of anything… AND you’ll still have to face giant crowds also competing to see nothing  When I studied abroad in Africa, we never even bothered looking for wildlife in the midday sun – we just sat around camp, lazed in the shade (much like the animals did) , and waited for the temperature to drop.

If a zoo has a lot of indoor exhibits – as many of the northern zoos do, having to shelter their animals from the long winters – winter may be the best time to go.  The same with aquariums – sure, the animals there are inside all year anyway, but there are typically fewer visitors then.

Inside the World of Birds display at the Bronx Zoo, it's always tropical, even in the middle of winter

3.)    Be Prepared

This one is really basic: especially if you are going to a zoo (and a big one especially), PLAN for it.  Wear comfortable shoes, clothes suited to the weather (layers are best – you can take them off or add them as need be), and a hat, sunscreen, and sunglasses if the weather so dictates.  Make sure your camera is charged; binoculars might be a good idea also, depending on the zoo.

Most zoos and aquariums sell food.  Pack yourself a lunch or snacks, if you’d rather save some cash; some zoos don’t allow food to brought in from the outside but have picnic areas outside, and most don’t allow food in animal buildings.  Feeding your personal snacks to the animals is never okay (no matter how much they beg).

Do some homework before you go to the zoo or aquarium to help get the most out of your day.  Ask yourself and your group what people want to see the most and plan accordingly.  If you have a group member who just loves seals and sea lions, try to find out if there is a feeding or training demo, and try to catch it.

Sea Lion training demonstration at the National Zoo

4.)    Speak Up!

If for any reason you are having a problem – you see something that looks wrong (like an animal that appears to be hurt or sick) or you have a question that is impacting the quality of your visit – ask someone! 

Right now, I take care of several animals that have “special issues” that we are aware of, and really aren’t that bad, but can look concerning to visitors.  I’d rather have a hundred visitors a day ask me if one of the monkeys is okay or not rather than have a single visitor see something wrong and not let me know.  Not only will you feel better knowing that either a) everything is okay or b) you have done your part to make it better, you might learn something as well!

Likewise, if there is something else you need – directions to a favorite animal, help finding bathrooms (you’d be amazed at how many people I’ve seen peeing in bushes in zoos around the country over the years) – ask an employee.  We actually do want you to have a good visit!

5.)    Follow the Rules

Seriously, we zoo-keeping folks are nice guys, really!  We just really, really hate it when people do stupid things, which they seem to do with great regularity.  I’m talking about hopping fences, banging on glass, poking animals with sticks, and tossing popcorn to the monkeys.

No one has ever had their zoo or aquarium visit improved by being yelled at by a zookeeper or other employee and humiliated in front of everyone else.  Likewise, no one enjoys being thrown out on their ear for failure to obey the rules.  Just don’t do it…  That brings me to the last rule, and the one I consider most important:

6.)    R-E-S-P-E-C-T!

      Show some respect to the animals.  If you go to the zoo expecting to see a lot of pet performers who want nothing more to oblige your every whim, you will be disappointed.  Animals will sleep when you want them to do something cutesy.  Animals will opt to stay in their off-exhibit housing.  Animals will hide from you, or not sit still for a good picture, or other such things. 

That’s because they are animals – living things with feelings.  If you expect them to be there to do what you want, you’ll get frustrated or upset, which will lead you to have a bad day, and possibly do something stupid (see #5).  If you treat a visit to the zoo as a chance to spend a day in the presence of exciting, wonderful animals that you otherwise wouldn’t share your day with, you’ll enjoy it, no matter what.

Just remember: you are a paying (if it’s not a free zoo) visitor, but you are still just that – a VISITOR.  The animals that you encounter at the zoo or aquarium live there.  It is their home.  Treat them with the courtesy that that entails.