2025 Zoo Bucket List

My current list as of right now is as follows:

Almost Certain
Downtown Aquarium Denver (planned trip with my dad)

Likely
Oklahoma Aquarium (solo trip if I can get the cash)
ABQ BioPark (road trip with a friend, also may include a return visit to Wildlife World Zoo and Aquarium and/or OdySea Aquarium)

Possible
Seattle Aquarium
Point Defiance Zoo and Aquarium
Woodland Park Zoo (all of those three would be on a trip to Seattle/Tacoma with my mom, which is likely to happen but idk how many she'll wanna go to)

Hopeful
Wonders of Wildlife National Museum & Aquarium
Kansas City Zoo and Aquarium
St. Louis Aquarium in Union Station
Sea Life Kansas City (all of these would be on a trip with my dad if we go to STL/KC)

Pipe Dream
Tennessee Aquarium (side trip with my dad if we visit Atlanta instead of STL/KC)

My dad and I are trying to see every MLB stadium in America, and our current possibilities for next year are those of the Rockies, Royals/Cardinals, and Braves. I usually squeeze in an aquarium or two any place we go lmao.
 
zoocard membership:
Wildlands Emmen (NL)
Zoo Osnabrück
Burgers Zoo Arnhem (NL)
Wild und Freizeitpark Ostrittrum


revisits:
Naturzoo Rheine
Tierpark Nordhorn ( when the Leopard having the new area)
Tierpark Recklinghausen (little but oho/ =€ Entrancepark)
Zoo Köln
Aquazoo Düsseldorf
Ouwehands Dierenpark Rhenen
Sea Life Oberhausen
Allwetterzoo Münster
Zoo Krefeld (membership phasing out)
Zoom Erlebniswelt Gelsenkirchen (Phasing out the membership)
Tierpark Ströhen
Zoo Duisburg
Tierpark und Fossilium Bochum (little and awesome park/ maybe for Membership )
Aquarium Wilhelmshaven
Zoo Hannover
Duisburg-Rheinhausen Damwildgehege (0€ Entrance)



For a new Visit/ Revisit after more than 20 years:
Zooparc Overloon (NL)
Dierenpark ZIE-ZOO (NL)
Gaiazoo Kerkrade (NL)
Aquazoo Leeuwarden (NL)
Appenheul Apeldoorn (NL)
Zoo am Meer Bremerhaven
Tiergarten Ludwigslust
Wingster Waldzoo
Der Grüne Zoo Wuppertal
Zoo Dortmund
Solingen ( Tierpark Fauna und Vogel- und Tierpark)
Tiergehege Oberhausen (0€ Entrance)
Terrazoo Rheinberg
Affen und Vogelpark Eckenhagen
Tierpark Hamm
Vogelpark Detmold
Adlerwarte Berlebeck


maybe to visit:
Vogelpark Niendorf
Zoo Artis Amsterdam (NL)
Weltvogelpark Walsrode
Grugapark Essen
Zoo Veldhooven (NL)
Pakawipark (NL)
Zoo Antwerpen(B)
Zoo Lepzig
Dierenpark Ammersforth (NL)

open for any new Places
 
Guaranteed:
- Zoo Wrocław ( Annual Pass )

Almost Guaranteed:
- Ouwehands Dierenpark

Possible:
- Zoo Opole
- Płock Zoo
- Warsaw Zoo
- Berlin zoo

(And other zoos in Poland, Germany and / or zoos in the Czech Republic.
 
Apart from my annual tours of a few Wisconsin attractions such as Milwaukee County, the only confirmed zoo plan for 2025 is returning to Brookfield Zoo in the summer. It would be my fifth time visiting, and I'm beyond excited to see the notable changes made in the seven years I was last there, from the species replacements in a few buildings, to the new major developments like the Nature Plaza and the upcoming Tropical Forests.

Outside of that, I'm hoping to make it to at least one of the following:

- Mesker Park Zoo (first time)
- Ripley's Aquarium of Myrtle Beach (first time)
- Disney's Animal Kingdom (returning - last visited in 2008)
- The Seas with Nemo & Friends (returning - last visited in 2008)
- Menominee Park Zoo (returning - last visited in 2016; the new bear habitat caught my attention)
 
Being a UK zoo nerd based in the South West, I tend to visit Paignton, Exmoor, Dartmoor, Axe Valley and Bristol Zoo Project most years. Alongside the regulars, I'll usually visit another 10 to 20 collections around the UK, though no visits are planned at this stage other than Chester for the ABWAK conference. That said, I have recently booked a holiday to Singapore where I hope to visit the Zoo, Night Safari, and River Wonders.
 
So far, I have already visited 9 Mexican zoos this year.

- Chapultepec Zoo, Mexico City, Mexico (January 2025)
- Zoológico de San Juan de Aragon, Mexico City, Mexico (January 2025)
- Acuario Michin CDMX, Mexico City, Mexico (January 2025)
- Parque Zoológico Animaya, Mérida, Mexico (January 2025)
- Zoológico Valladolid, Valladolid, Mexico (January 2025)
- Acuario Inbursa & Acuario Interactivo, Mexico City, Mexico (January 2025)
- La Reina Parque Zoológico y Botánico de Tizimín, Tizimín, Mexico (January 2025)
- Zoológico Los Coyotes, Mexico City, Mexico (January 2025)
- Parque Zoológico del Centenario, Mérida, Mexico (January 2025)

And currently have plans in place to spend a week and half at the start of February using Santa Barbara, California as a base and driving to all of the major, mid-major, and many of the smaller zoos between Monterey/Fresno down to San Diego/Palm Springs. Tentatively, those plans involve seeing 36 zoological facilities (31 new ones) on that trip, but as always these plans will need to be adjusted in real time if I spend more time at one place than I had anticipated or traffic doesn't cooperate (which is likely as there will be multiple days driving around the LA area). There are two days planned in particular that I believe I will need to cut something out when the time comes. The zoological facilities I plan to see while there are:

- Santa Barbara Zoo
- Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History Sea Center
- Los Angeles Zoo
- California Science Center
- Heal the Bay Aquarium
- Fresno Chaffee Zoo
- California Living Museum
- Monterey Bay Aquarium
- Monterey Zoo
- Applegate Park Zoo
- Charles Paddock Zo0
- Central Coast Aquarium
- Santa Barbara Bird Sanctuary
- Wildlife Learning Center
- Gibbon Conservation Center
- Moorpark Teaching Zoo
- STAR Eco Station
- Ocean Institute
- Peter & Mary Muth Interpretive Center
- Cabrillo Marine Aquarium
- Aquarium of the Pacific
- Birch Aquarium (2nd time)
- San Diego Zoo Safari Park (2nd time)
- San Diego Zoo (2nd time)
- SeaWorld San Diego (2nd time)
- San Diego Natural History Museum
- Living Coast Discovery Center (2nd time)
- Living Desert Zoo & Gardens
- Big Bear Alpine Zoo
- Bolsa Chica Conservancy's Interpretive Center
- Orange County Zoo
- Santa Ana Zoo
- Roundhouse Aquarium
- The Reptile Zoo
- Marine Mammal Care Center
- Doheny State Beach Foundation Aquarium

I will also for sure hit each of the 6 AZA places in New York City here as I am a member of both WCS and Staten Island. Most New Jersey places are also on the table as I am there for work all spring/summer and tack a visit on when I feel like it.

Past that there are always plans that are very tentative and materialize more in the moment, I go to the Orlando area for work every year in March and normally take one day off to do something else. I will be visiting either Zoo Miami or Busch Gardens depending on how much energy I have that day (that drive to Miami is daunting to undertake during an already packed work trip) and will surely hit at least one smaller place with either of those. If I drive down to Orlando, I am likely to hit at least one place on the way in order to stretch my legs. Similarly, I go to Atlanta every year and typically hit at least one place in the area and then a few places on my drive there and back. My wife wants to go to the Naples and Venice areas of Italy in September and if that happens I will surely hit a few zoological facilities there. She also goes to London multiple times a year, and if I tag along again zoos/traveling outside London using the trains will be an even greater focus this time around (Chester would likely be priority number 1 and she also loves Edinburgh, so that is likely). Basically, already quite a few planned visits and a possibility for quite a few more. Just need to see how the year plays out.
 
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