Monterey Zoo Monterey Zoo, Good or Bad?

[BumbleB]

Forgive as I am new here and don't know if this has been discussed. However I was on Google Maps looking at zoos and came across the Monterey Zoo and I was shocked at how pedestrian it looked. No trees in any exhibits from what I could tell. Every animals is behind fences, and the "owner" lashed out on multiple people who left bad reviews for what seemed like legit complaints.

Has anyone been there and is it as bad as Maps suggests?

 

[snowleopard]

On my Snowleopard's 2023 Road Trip: California, Arizona & Oregon thread, I wrote a comprehensive review of Monterey Zoo on page 4. I visited in 2017 and then again in 2023 and I say at the beginning of my review that "this place tries hard, with varying results". It's improved tremendously and now has around 75 exotic species, but still has a way to go.

Here's the link:

Snowleopard's 2023 Road Trip: California, Arizona & Oregon

 

[StoppableSan]

Forgive as I am new here and don't know if this has been discussed. However I was on Google Maps looking at zoos and came across the Monterey Zoo and I was shocked at how pedestrian it looked. No trees in any exhibits from what I could tell. Every animals is behind fences, and the "owner" lashed out on multiple people who left bad reviews for what seemed like legit complaints.

Has anyone been there and is it as bad as Maps suggests?

I visited in July 2024. I think as far as ZAA facilities go, it's one of the better ones I've been to! The only egregiously bad exhibit I saw was the hyena exhibit, and the "savanna" with the rhinos (formerly elephants), zebras, wildebeest and water buffalo could use more shade and more plants, but everything else was genuinely solid! The exhibit they had for *seagulls* in their bird section caught me off guard, but the zoo generally had a very consistent design, the Land of Oz habitats for their lions, tigers and bears (hence the name) was honestly their premier attraction, one thing I actually really liked were the in-house logos they designed for each section and made metal cutouts of, all-in-all I'd say it's worth a visit for sure! They're currently fundraising to bring giraffes to the zoo, I'm curious to see how it goes.