National zoo/Toronto zoo
I agree with the comments about both these zoos not being in the top ten in North America. I recently visited both zoos in the past month and here are my comments on both.
The National zoo is alot of hype and too much focus on pandas. These are remarkable animals but given the exhibit space and it just does not seem worth it. They could utilize some of the extra space to bring in other animals the public wants to see. I do agree that the Asia trail is very well done and the new elephant exhibit looks like it will be nice too. Part of me likes the old style exhibits in the elephant house, etc but when compared to some of the amazing exhibits out there today there is no comparison. Amazonia is overrated. It is not in the top ten of indoor tropical exhibits in the US. I consider it a c grade exhibit when compared to Lied Jungle in Omaha. The rest of National zoo is average. Large exhibits for lions and tigers and cheetahs. Average exhibits for the apes.
Toronto Zoo
I will preface my comments on Toronto by saying it was one of the first zoos i visited when i was younger. This would have been in the late 70's when the zoo was new and everything seemed amazing. I carried those memories in my mind for 30 years until i visited it recently. I was disappointed to see my memories faded with the years as the exhibits i remember as a young child were outdated and smaller than I remembered. Some of the multiple exhibit houses you walk into along the route are showing their age inside and out but are still nice exhibits. The Asia exhibit house is still very functional and nice for the animals. Very active orangutangs and nice collection of species including a huge reticulated python.
The Africa Plains exhibits are excellent and spacious. Huge areas for rhinos, lions, cheetahs, baboons.
The NOrth American exhibits were my greatest disappointment. I remembered taking the great tram ride through the NOrth American exhibits in the late 70's. I still think this is an excellant attraction for a large zoo as Miami has one in operation. Little did I know until i arrived that the tram had been closed since the early 90's due to some accidents. The foundation and track are still visible but are only remnants of the past. Due to the vast size of this zoo they should re open the tram. The exhibits in the canada/north america section don't get the traffic like the rest of the zoo as it is a long, tough walk and the exibits are so spread out.
The new Polar exhibit at Toronto is excellent. The best arctic wolf exhibit I have seen and one of the best POlar Bear exhibits.
My visit ended by walking through the outdoor Asia / Australia exhibits. Nothing really stood out and the exhibits were ordinary.
All in all Toronto is still a good zoo but not elite and not in top ten in North America. It has alot of space to grow as it is on over 700 acres but they need to update exhibits and find a better way to traverse the many areas.
I recognize everything takes time and money and that there are priorities for each and every zoo. I am not trying to be critical but offer some constructive opinion on the view of these zoos since i have visited over 30 this year so far.
