Brookfield or Lincoln Park Zoo?

Moebelle

Moebelle

Well-Known Member
10+ year member
For almost a year now my 2013 summer vacation plan was to visit Chicago, go to a Cubs/Reds games, and visit the Brookfield Zoo. Just until a few days ago I honestly realized that the Lincoln Park Zoo was also in Chicago. I see that both zoos have great features and I can't make up my mind. So what zoo do you think I would enjoy most.
 
Moebelle said:
For almost a year now my 2013 summer vacation plan was to visit Chicago, go to a Cubs/Reds games, and visit the Brookfield Zoo. Just until a few days ago I honestly realized that the Lincoln Park Zoo was also in Chicago. I see that both zoos have great features and I can't make up my mind. So what zoo do you think I would enjoy most.
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Brookfield is much larger. It's also out in the suburbs, so it's a bit out of the way. There are some really good exhibits at Brookfield. Wolf Woods is top notch. Habitat Africa is also pretty outstanding. You'd also get to see the ever-controversial Tropic World.

Lincoln Park is free and closer to Wrigley Field. Expect to pay a lot for parking. Their gorilla/chimp exhibits are very, very good. African Journey is another nice one with a decent collection of species in both indoor and outdoor settings. There are some ancient buildings such as the Kovler Lion House that aren't much to look at unless you're into really old zoo architecture. The Brach Primate House isn't much better.

If it were me, I'd hit Lincoln Park and some downtown attractions. Battling Chicago traffic to get out to the west suburbs will likely be an all day event. I've seen Lincoln Park, the Shedd Aquarium (honestly more of a must-see than either zoo), and the Field Museum in one day. I'm a fast walker, but it's doable.

IMO, the top two animal enthusiast attractions in Chicago are the Shedd and the Field. Getting Lincoln Park in with them for free is just the icing on the cake, and far less of an adventure when it comes to getting around.
 
groundskeeper24 said:
Brookfield is much larger. It's also out in the suburbs, so it's a bit out of the way. There are some really good exhibits at Brookfield. Wolf Woods is top notch. Habitat Africa is also pretty outstanding. You'd also get to see the ever-controversial Tropic World.

Lincoln Park is free and closer to Wrigley Field. Expect to pay a lot for parking. Their gorilla/chimp exhibits are very, very good. African Journey is another nice one with a decent collection of species in both indoor and outdoor settings. There are some ancient buildings such as the Kovler Lion House that aren't much to look at unless you're into really old zoo architecture. The Brach Primate House isn't much better.

If it were me, I'd hit Lincoln Park and some downtown attractions. Battling Chicago traffic to get out to the west suburbs will likely be an all day event. I've seen Lincoln Park, the Shedd Aquarium (honestly more of a must-see than either zoo), and the Field Museum in one day. I'm a fast walker, but it's doable.

IMO, the top two animal enthusiast attractions in Chicago are the Shedd and the Field. Getting Lincoln Park in with them for free is just the icing on the cake, and far less of an adventure when it comes to getting around.
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Thank you for the suggestions:) I'm starting to change my mind. However, I've always badly wanted to Tropic World and the Living Coast look wonderful as well.
 
Moebelle said:
Thank you for the suggestions:) I'm starting to change my mind. However, I've always badly wanted to Tropic World and the Living Coast look wonderful as well.
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If you are going all the way to Chicago then why don't you just go to both zoos?
 
Moebelle said:
That's crossed my mind before but I don't know how long we're staying up there.
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How about this: use the quality of the elephant exhibit as a tie breaker. Whichever zoo, Lincoln Park or Brookfield, has the best elephant exhibit is the zoo that you will go to.

If you cannot decide which zoo has the better elephant exhibit then you need to go to both of them.
 
DavidBrown said:
How about this: use the quality of the elephant exhibit as a tie breaker. Whichever zoo, Lincoln Park or Brookfield, has the best elephant exhibit is the zoo that you will go to.

If you cannot decide which zoo has the better elephant exhibit then you need to go to both of them.
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I don't think Brookfield has elephants.
 
I would say go to lincoln park. When I went to chicago for 4 days last year I faced the same dliemma. It took me a while to realize that brookfield is very far away from the city and that lincoln park is close. I did not have a car so I walked miles around the city to reach various attractions but that was the fun of the trip exploring the city. Lincoln Park looks small but has alot packed in the small site. The exhibits are mostly average except for the excellent ape exhibit, wonderful nature trail and very good african journey. Lincoln park is also in a great location. It is part of a large park on the lake that is beautiful. I walked along the lake to get there and it was a great experience. I would also visit Shedd Aquarium. It is huge and has a great variety of species. It is also on a scenic location near the lake. I also visited the Field Mueseum which is any animal lovers dream. Half of the building is animals which took me 3 hours. You would be amazed at the variety of species they have.
 
I just talked to the person (and provider) I'm going with and they said we will be able to visit both. Thank you guys for the help :)
 
I would recommend that you take the train to brookfield zoo. The train leaves right from the main station, only takes about 30 minutes to get to your stop, and is a lot less stressful. Plus you still get a nice 5 minute walk from the station to the zoo. Make sure you catch the early train so you have enough time to enjoy the zoo.
 
At Brookfield I would make sure to see the Bear keeper talks because you can get good photos and up close viewing of the bears. Also while at the zoo look around for the tamandua who travels with keepers around the zoo. If you have any questions you can pm me.
 
I am glad you can do both. I wish I had spent more time at Lincoln Park Zoo, actually a Brookfield too. I'm a fan of Brookfield just by some animals in their collection such as, polar bear, aardvark, pygmy hippo, sloth bear, clouded leopard, binturong, wombat, etc.
 
Both zoos are very different in my opinion and are great for different reasons. Lincoln Park is very small and just over 30 acres. The Ape Center at Lincoln Park is fantastic in terms of exhibit design and viewing opportunities. It features a large troop of gorillas including a baby just recently born as well as some chimpanzees. Apes can be seen in a spectacular indoor/outdoor complex. I also love the Small Mammal-Reptile building as it has a modern interior with naturalistic exhibits (highlight for me here is the otters and caimans). The rest of the zoo is hit and miss with some poor exhibits and some average to above average. The setting of the zoo is awesome as it is right in Lincoln Park by Lake Michigan with the beautiful Chicago skyline in the background.

Brookfield is a very large zoo at 216 acres with a very open feel and beautiful grounds as well. There are lots of great exhibits here and many baby animals to see. The sloth bear cubs are a particular highlight as they are very active and playful. Definitely try to see them if you go to Brookfield. The dolphin show is a highlight too. Habitat Africa features good exhibits for giraffe and okapi along with other species. Great Bear Wilderness is a wonderful North American exhibit complex with great viewing opportunities for grizzly and polar bears, as well as a wonderfully designed wolf exhibit. As much as people might disagree with me Tropic World is a very impressive building. There are many primate species here including capuchins, spider monkeys, callimico, cotton-top tamarins, white-cheeked gibbons, orangutans, colobus monkey, red-tailed monkeys, and of course gorillas. The exhibits encourage natural behaviors and overall the experience for guests is awesome. There really isn't any other zoo exhibit in the US quite like Tropic World so it's definitely worth seeing. Overall Brookfield is a wonderful zoo experience and one could easily spend all day here.

Don't let the drive to Brookfield be a reason not to go. It only takes about 35 minutes to drive to Brookfield from Wrigley Field. Taking the train might be a bit confusing. You would have to take the Red Line to the Chicago loop then the Metra out to Brookfield. The easiest way from Wrigley would be to drive taking the Stevenson. In this case try to stay at the zoo until close (around 6) as by the time you leave traffic would not be nearly as bad going back into the city. Best of luck and enjoy your trip!
 
Others have already typed up thorough, informative responses and so I will not add a great deal to the mix. I will say that on my 2008 summer road trip I visited all 3 Chicago attractions and would love to be back again at some point in my life. Shedd Aquarium is brilliant and a strong contender for North America's greatest aquatic institution; Brookfield is a large zoo that takes at least 7 hours to tour, and I'd put it in America's top 20 zoos; and Lincoln Park is the facility that I'd not rave about but there are still some top-quality elements (gorillas, chimpanzees, African exhibits) and it can easily be done on the same day as Shedd Aquarium.
 
Been visiting both since I was a kid and Shedd as well its cool that your going to both we're doing BZ and Shedd this week as well.Possibly Lincoln Park too.

Team Tapir223
 
So here's the game plan...
The first day we'll get to the hotel and not long after go to the Brookfield Zoo. Afterwards we'll walk around the Shopping Mile (or whatever it's called). The next day we will go to the Lincoln Park Zoo by taking the subway. At around 6:30 we will head over to Wrigley to watch a 7 o'clock Brewers/Cubs game. Even though it's not the Reds, I still get to brag that I got to enjoy a baseball game at one of the most classic fields in all of baseball. The next morning we will head home:(
 
Are you staying downtown ? How are you getting to Brookfield Zoo ? Travel by train or car might take longer from the city to the suburbs than you think .Also are you planning to shop on Michigan Ave or Navy Pier ?

Team Tapir223
 
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