List and Rank The North American Zoos You Have Visited!

blospz said:
I always enjoy doing an annual post on threads like this since my list always changes. Here is the current ranking:

1. Columbus Zoo
2. Brookfield Zoo
3. Lowry Park Zoo
4. Smithsonian National Zoo
5. Cincinnati Zoo
6. Cleveland Zoo
7. Toronto Zoo
8. Philadelphia Zoo
9. Louisville Zoo
10. Virginia Zoo
11. Maryland Zoo
12. Akron Zoo
13. Buffalo Zoo
14. Rosamond Gifford Zoo
15. Lincoln Park Zoo
16. Pittsburgh Zoo
17. Seneca Park Zoo
18. Erie Zoo
19. Salisbury Zoo
20. Metro Richmond Zoo
21. Zoo America
22. Catoctin Zoo
23. Ross Park Zoo
Click to expand...

I have only been to #1, #2, #4, #5, #6, #12, #15, #16, and #18.
I rank them in this order-
1. Columbus
2. Erie
3. Brookfield
4. National
5. Cincinnati
6. Cleveland
7. Pittsburgh
8. Lincoln Park
9. Akron
 
Malayan Tiger said:
1 COLUMBUS!
2 Toledo
3 John Ball
4 Indianapolis
5 Binder Park
6 Potter Park Zoo
7 Detroit Zoo
Click to expand...
Detroit #7?
Out of these I have visited Columbus, Toledo and Detroit.
I rate them-
#1 Columbus (#1 overall in the 27 zoos I have visited)
#2 Detroit (6 overall)
#3 Toledo (13 overall)
 
1. Cincinnati Zoo
2. Columbus Zoo
3. Cleveland Zoo
4. Pittsburgh Zoo
5. Toledo Zoo
6. Akron Zoo
7. Erie Zoo
 
SamMetz said:
1. Cincinnati Zoo
2. Columbus Zoo
3. Cleveland Zoo
4. Pittsburgh Zoo
5. Toledo Zoo
6. Akron Zoo
7. Erie Zoo
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Erie and Akron at the bottom? I have visited all of these zoos and rate them-
1. Columbus
2. Erie
3. Cincinnati
4. Toledo
5. Cleveland
6. Akron
7. Pittsburgh
 
cloudedleopard said:
Erie and Akron at the bottom? I have visited all of these zoos and rate them-
1. Columbus
2. Erie
3. Cincinnati
4. Toledo
5. Cleveland
6. Akron
7. Pittsburgh
Click to expand...

Ive been twice and I have a lot of problems with Erie, to be honest. Compared to the other zoos in Ohio/PA Erie's exhibits pale in quality and size. And this just my opinion but, I don't think its a very clean zoo. I am planning on going back once they're open again to see their new cats exhibit, so maybe Ill rank it higher later on.;)

Akron's my home zoo, I live ten minutes from Akron, so I love it. Its a amazing little zoo, but I always say that its a zoo thats great for parents/children because its so small and so easy to get through. The majority of the enclosures are being/need to be renovated, so its gets a lower spot on my personal list. I still adore it though, I was there last Friday.:) I guess Im just waiting to see what their new projects will be for the rest of the zoo since the biggest part, Grizzly Ridge, is done. If they update the rest of the zoo like that it will probably beat out Toledo and Pittsburgh for me in the future.
 
1 Bronx Zoo
2 Brookfield
3 National
4 Tampa Lowry Park Zoo
5 North Carolina
6 Sa Diego Zoo
7 Jacksonville
8 St Augustine Alligator Farm
9 Philadelphia
10 Rosamond Gifford Zoo
11 Roger Williams Zoo
12 Cape May Zoo
13 Atlanta
14 Lincoln Park Zoo
15 Central Park Zoo
16 Staten Island Zoo
17 Watertown
18 Queens
 
Montana119 said:
1 Bronx Zoo
2 Brookfield
3 National
4 Tampa Lowry Park Zoo
5 North Carolina
6 Sa Diego Zoo
7 Jacksonville
8 St Augustine Alligator Farm
9 Philadelphia
10 Rosamond Gifford Zoo
11 Roger Williams Zoo
12 Cape May Zoo
13 Atlanta
14 Lincoln Park Zoo
15 Central Park Zoo
16 Staten Island Zoo
17 Watertown
18 Queens
Click to expand...
I have visited out of these-
Bronx, Brookfield, National, San Diego, and Lincoln Park.
I rate them-
1. San Diego
2. Bronx
3. Brookfield
4. National
5. Lincoln Park
 
cloudedleopard said:
I have visited out of these-
Bronx, Brookfield, National, San Diego, and Lincoln Park.
I rate them-
1. San Diego
2. Bronx
3. Brookfield
4. National
5. Lincoln Park
Click to expand...

I will echo the advice of other users and advise you to moderate your post count. Replying to every post here is completely unnecessary, and can be considered spamming. If users want to see your list of ratings and compare it to their list, they simply have to find your list and read it. You do not have to post at every possible moment. I'm saying this to you because I'm trying to help you. Your current philosophy of posting as much as you will alienate others from respecting you as a member of the ZooChat community, and can even perhaps lead to punishment from moderators.
 
This is my list. I had two ties. National Zoo and Lowry Park Zoo were both number 4, and Stone zoo and beardsley zoo were both number 8. This list is not an accurate portrayal of zoos continent wide, so don't judge it like it is (since I have been to a mere 13). None of these zoos are perfect, obviously.

1. San Diego Zoo (~2006)
2. Bronx Zoo (~2012)
3. San Diego Zoo Safari Park (~2009)
4. National Zoo (2012)
4. Tampa Lowry Park Zoo (~2010)
5. Los Angeles Zoo and Botanical Gardens (2013)
6. Roger Williams Park Zoo (2015)
7. Franklin Park Zoo (2015)
8. Stone Zoo (~2010)
8. Beardsley Zoo (~2010)
9. Central Park Zoo (~2010)
10. Prospect Park Zoo (~2011)
11. Montreal Biodome (2014)
 
Here's a new list after having visited a few more zoos over this past summer. This isn't necessarily based on quality this time but rather my own satisfaction. I'm listing these as 'any form of animal institution' rather than separating them by subject.

1. SeaWorld San Diego (New)
2. Busch Gardens Tampa
3. St. Louis Zoo
4. Columbus Zoo
5. San Diego Zoo (New)
6. SeaWorld Orlando
7. Cincinnati Zoo
8. Brookfield Zoo
8. Shedd Aquarium
9. Indianapolis Zoo
10. Milwaukee County Zoo (New)
11. Newport Aquarium
12. The Mirage Hotel (New)
13. Lincoln Park Zoo
14. Cleveland Zoo
15. Louisville Zoo
16. Mandalay Bay Shark Reef Aquarium (New)
 
Of the major zoos I've been to:
1) San Diego Zoo
2) Omaha's Henry Doorly Zoo
3) Saint Louis Zoo
4) Columbus Zoo and Aquarium
5) Sedgwick County Zoo
6) San Diego Zoo Safari Park
7) Woodland Park Zoo
8) Shedd Aquarium
9) Disney's Animal Kingdom
10) Dallas Zoo
11) Minnesota Zoo
12) Denver Zoo
13) Nashville Zoo
14) Memphis Zoo
I've also visited every zoo in Kansas, but I didn't feel like including them
 
I have not been to a myriad of zoos, but here is my current list:

1. San Diego Zoo, California
2. Bronx Zoo, New York
3. Georgia Aquarium, Atlanta, Georgia
4. Zoo Atlanta, Georgia
5. Mystic Aquarium, Connecticut
6. Montgomery Zoo, Alabama
7. Birmingham Zoo, Alabama
 
1. Bronx
2. Columbus
3. Brookfield (Chicago)
4. Philadelphia
5. Cincinnati
6. Maryland (Baltimore)
7. Smithsonian National (DC)
8. Lincoln Park (Chicago)
9. Central Park
10. Good (Wheeling, WV)
 
1.Toronto

is the only zoo I have visited in North America, so the rating doesn't mean much. But I thought it was a very good zoo!
 
An updated list after a couple years. In parantheses is the year(s) I have visited the attraction.

Zoo Rankings:

1. San Diego Zoo Safari Park (2012)
2. San Diego Zoo (2012)
3. St. Louis Zoo (2013)
4. Denver Zoo (2014)
5. Columbus Zoo (2008)
6. Brookfield Zoo (2010, 2011, and 2013)
7. Minnesota Zoo (2015)
8. Busch Gardens Africa (2008)
9. Disney’s Animal Kingdom (1998 - I think, 2004, and 2008)
10. Phoenix Zoo (sometime in the 1990’s, 2005, 2010)
11. Rio Grande Zoo (2015)
12. Knoxville Zoo (2013)
13. Buffalo Zoo (2011)
14. Milwaukee County Zoo (all my life)
15. Out of Africa (sometime in the 1990’s, 2010, and 2011)
16. Henry Vilas Zoo (2003, 2006, 2007, 2010, 2014, and 2015)
17. Racine Zoo (2009 - twice, 2014, and 2015 - twice)
18. Gatorland (2014)
19. Alameda Park Zoo (2015)
20. Smithsonian National Zoo (2009)

*I have visited Northeastern Wisconsin (NEW) Zoo sometime in the 1990’s as well, but don’t remember it enough; so I won’t rank it. Also, I have visited White Oak Conservation Center (2014) and The Wilds (2008), but decided to no longer rank them (at least in the Wilds’ case) due to them being in a whole other league as being primarily conservation breeding centers (and not being open to the general public in White Oak’s case).

And my very first Aquarium Rankings:

1. SeaWorld Orlando (2008)
2. Shark Reef Aquarium at Mandalay Bay (2015)
3. Albuquerque Aquarium (2015)
4. Aquarium of Niagara (2011)

*I have visited Shedd Aquarium in 2002 as well, but don’t remember it enough; so I won’t rank it.
 
So just joined this site, I've been to it and read many posts before including this list and decided I wanted to post my own. I haven't been to many zoos and don't get much time with school, but over the past year or so I have made some one day trips to see some zoos.

1) Minnesota Zoo (August 2015)
2) Milwaukee County Zoo (September 2015)
3) Lincoln Park Zoo (March 2015)
4) Como Zoo (July 2015)
5) Henry Vilas Zoo (September 2015)
6) Lake Superior Zoo (June 2013)
7) Red River Zoo (August 2015)
8) Racine Zoo (September 2015)
9) Chahinkapa Zoo (August 2015)
10) Zollman Zoo (August 2014)
11) Oschner Park Zoo (September 2015)

I have also visited DAK when I was in about 6th grade and don't remember much about it other than I don't think it was as built up then as it is now based on people's reviews here.

I've only been to two aquariums and ranking is pretty easy:

1) Shedd Aquarium (March 2015)
2) SeaLife Minnesota (Summer 2012)
 
Last edited:
mweb08 said:
New list after recent visits:

1. San Diego 9.3
2. Henry Doorly 9.0
3. Bronx 8.9
4. SD Safari Park 8.3
5. Miami 7.6
6. Columbus 7.6
7. National Zoo 7.2
8. Kansas City 7.1
9. Phoenix 7.0
10. Philadelphia 6.9
11. LA Zoo 6.9
12. The Living Desert 6.8
13. Virginia Zoo 6.7
14. Maryland Zoo 6.6
15. Oakland Zoo 6.6
16. Lincoln Park 6.5
17. Central Park 6.4
18. World Wildlife 6.3
19. Pittsburgh 6.1
20. Out of Africa 5.0
21. Santa Ana 4.2
22. Salisbury 4.2
23. Orange County 4.2
24. Brandywine 4.0

Aquariums:

1. Monterey Bay
2. Baltimore
3. Shedd
4. Sea World San Diego
5. Adventure Aquarium
6. Aquarium of the Pacific
7. Steinhart
8. Maui Ocean Center
9. Virginia Aquarium

LA moved up due to the new elephant exhibit and LAIR.
The Living Desert was very impressive but also rather limited.
Oakland is solid on the level of Virginia and Maryland.
Monterey Bay is great and goes to #1 on my list; although, not by a wide margin over Baltimore.
Lastly, the Steinhart aquarium is very good, but not up there with the elite ones imo.
Click to expand...

Time for another upadate:

1. San Diego (2015)
2. Henry Doorly (2009)
3. Bronx Zoo (2014)
4. SD Safari Park (2015)

5. North Carolina Zoo (2015)
6. National Zoo (2015)
7. Miami (2008)
8. Columbus (2009)

9. Kansas City (2009)
10. Philadelphia (2015)
11. LA (2013)
12. Denver (2015)
13. Phoenix (2007)
14. The Living Desert (2011)

15. Audubon (2014)
16. Maryland (2015)
17. Virginia (2015)
18. Oakland (2012)
19. Lincoln Park (2009)

20. Central Park (2012)
21. World Wildlife (2006)
22. Pittsburgh (2014)
23. Hershey (2014)
23. Prospect Park (2014)

25. Out of Africa (2007)

26. Santa Ana (2013)
27. Salisbury (2015)
28. Orange County (2013)
29. Brandywine (2015)
 
Sorry if this is a naive question, but what factors are taken into account when scouring these zoos? Are there categories? I'm interested in not just the size and animal variety of the zoo, but also would like to know the best layouts, food choices (A MUST) and exhibit availability based on age appropriateness? Are there lists like that?

Thanks!
 
Not a naive question at all. In fact, it's a question well worth asking.
 
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