Trying to plan a one week zoo vacation

Z

zoolover123

Active Member
Hello, my sister and I are trying to plan a one week zoo vacation for either late July or early August (only time we can both take off) and are trying to figure out the best route to get as many zoos in as possible. We've tried sitting down with a map but need some helped with some more experienced people who have driven around the East and Midwest and done something similar. Our goal is to do as many possible in the time frame.

We live in Louisville, Kentucky. We are not considering Cincinnati, Columbus, Cleveland, or St. Louis because we already have separate one day trips planned for all of those.

Like I said, we essentially have seven days to do this trip. The zoos that are on the top of our go to list are: (these are in no order)
Henry Doorly Omaha Zoo
Memphis Zoo
Georgia Aquarium
Nashville Zoo
DC National Zoo
Bronx Zoo
Philadelphia Zoo

I know they are all over the map. Nebraska is pretty much the only state not anywhere near the rest, so we figure that one will probably have to wait. We had thought about starting in PA and heading to NYC from there and then down to DC with the possibility of going to TN.

If anyone knows any smaller zoos that have great collections in the area I would appreciate those tips also! We were just naming the big ones we've always wanted to attend.

Any feedback you guys can give is much appreciated! Thanks for your comments!
 
You must talk to Snowleopard. He does amazing zoo trips in the US every couple of years and can hit several zoos in one day. If anyone can help guide you he can. Try PMing him.
 
zoolover123 said:
Hello, my sister and I are trying to plan a one week zoo vacation for either late July or early August (only time we can both take off) and are trying to figure out the best route to get as many zoos in as possible. We've tried sitting down with a map but need some helped with some more experienced people who have driven around the East and Midwest and done something similar. Our goal is to do as many possible in the time frame.

We live in Louisville, Kentucky. We are not considering Cincinnati, Columbus, Cleveland, or St. Louis because we already have separate one day trips planned for all of those.

Like I said, we essentially have seven days to do this trip. The zoos that are on the top of our go to list are: (these are in no order)
Henry Doorly Omaha Zoo
Memphis Zoo
Georgia Aquarium
Nashville Zoo
DC National Zoo
Bronx Zoo
Philadelphia Zoo

I know they are all over the map. Nebraska is pretty much the only state not anywhere near the rest, so we figure that one will probably have to wait. We had thought about starting in PA and heading to NYC from there and then down to DC with the possibility of going to TN.

If anyone knows any smaller zoos that have great collections in the area I would appreciate those tips also! We were just naming the big ones we've always wanted to attend.

Any feedback you guys can give is much appreciated! Thanks for your comments!
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We have visited all of these zoos! Some of them multiple times and we must say they are all top notch choices.My first piece of advice is if you want visit all of these zoos in one trip then you gotta add more days to your vacation.Some of these such as as Bronx,Omaha and National are huge zoos.Best advice for a 7 day trip would be sticking to a particular area.For example Nashville,Memphis,Birmingham,Georgia Aquarium,Atlanta Zoo and the Tennessee Aquarium on your way back to Louisville.Feel free to ask us any questions you might have.

Team Tapir223
 
TZ fan, I will message him. Thanks for the tip!

TeamTapir223, I like your suggestion for doing the southern swing of zoos. We had considered doing Memphis in one day as its not much further from us than St. Louis and I have done day trips there twice. The hour difference helps us there.

I think we might just stick with Philadelphia, the Bronx, and the National zoos for this trip. I've actually been to all three but I don't remember the Bronx or the National zoos well. Phili I think we did in 2-3 hours a few years back, so not too worried about that. How much time should one give the Bronx Zoo to see everything?? I know it's massive!
 
I've spent several summers visiting between 30-50 zoos on vast, sprawling U.S. road trips through 30+ states...but if you only have 7 days then time is of the utmost importance. Zoos like Bronx, Omaha and National are full-day zoos and in the case of the first two you might even struggle to see everyting in a single day! A book by the name of "America's Best Zoos" (2008) is a great resource as it lists the 97 best zoos in the country and even has maps illustrating where the facilities can be found.

[ame="http://www.amazon.com/Americas-Best-Zoos-Travel-Families/dp/188714076X/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1399324647&sr=8-1&keywords=america%27s+best+zoo"]America's Best Zoos: A Travel Guide for Fans & Families: Allen W. Nyhuis, Jon Wassner: 9781887140768: Amazon.com: Books[/ame]
 
Like Tapir said stick to close by zoos. A good southern trip would be (considering Louisville is likely your "home zoo" I skipped it)

Knoxville Zoo
Chattanooga Zoo
Tennessee Aquarium
Zoo Atlanta
Georgia Aquarium
Birmingham Zoo (Bull Elephant herd, Bill Foster Louisville's former director is the director)
Memphis Zoo
Nashville Zoo
Home

Each destination would have a 2.5 hour-3 hour drive between them. This would actually be a great Zoo trip for anyone in the southeast to try sometime.

https://www.google.com/maps/dir/Lou...282071fd32!2m2!1d-85.7584557!2d38.2526647!3e0
 
Like other people have said on here, Bronx is huge. I have spent from 10 am to 5 pm there and had to keep moving to see everything. Two problems you may run into there in the summer.... the line for the Wild Asia monorail will be huge (possibly 1 hour) on the weekend. Also, on weekends their parking lots can become full by 11 am. I drove 3 hours once. Got there at 11 and the parking lots were full and they wouldn't even let people in when other cars were leaving. Turned around and drove home. I would recommend a weekday or getting there before they open.
One other lesser known zoo that I would recommend if you stay up around the DC/Philly Zoo area is Metro Richmond Zoo. I really liked that zoo although I'm sure others probably hated it. Really nice selection of animals there.
 
A consideration for the Omaha Zoo is that they have announced a massive new African savanna exhibit opening in 2016 (phase 1: elephants, mixed savanna with giraffes, zebras, etc., cheetahs, rhinos) and 2017 (phase 2: lions, wild dogs, antelope). The new exhibit will likely be spectacular and the scope of it likely means that a good deal of the zoo will be closed off or affected by construction until 2016.
 
So much to think about! Tschandler, I was surprised to see the animals at Birmingham Zoo. I really want to see giant otters, so I think that might be a sell. I think the plan now is to do Memphis, Birmingham, the Georgia Aquarium and then Nashville on the way back to Louisville. We are doing Indianapolis tomorrow (we haven't been for 14 years) and Cleveland and Columbus two days back to back after the Heart of Africa exhibit opens late May. Then St Louis after the new expansion to Rivers Edge opens and then Cincinnati after their Africa exhibit opens. SO many African exhibits!

Phantom Gaur, thanks for the tip on Bronx! I am actually going to New York for a separate event in October, but I would assume by then most of the outdoor animals would be indoors. It sounds like a gamble to go in the summer.

David Brown, thanks for the input. I can wait a couple years for Omaha.

Snow Leopard, do you think Memphis, Birmingham, Georgia Aquarium and Nashville would be plausible? Again, thanks for all your input!!!!
 
Birmingham has baby Kori Bustard, Giant Otter, Pallas Cat, Spectacled Langur, and a large collection of birds you won't see many places. If you like African exhibits Birmingham incorporates - Rhino, Hippo, Bull African Elephants, Giraffes, Zebra, Lion, Wild Dog, Ostrich, Red River Hog, Grant's Gazelle, Cranes, Storks, Bustards, Vultures, Guineafowl, and African Song Birds into the Trails of Africa complex.
 
zoolover123 said:
Snow Leopard, do you think Memphis, Birmingham, Georgia Aquarium and Nashville would be plausible? Again, thanks for all your input!!!!
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I love zoo planning and I have an upcoming trip of 54 zoos in 20 days...yikes! In regards to the 4 facilities that you mentioned, none of them are huge and none of them will take all day. In fact, 3-4 hours is enough time for 3 of the attractions and Memphis Zoo is probably the largest at about 5 hours. Georgia Aquarium is directly next to the World of Coca-Cola and I would highly recommend that you walk the few feet and tour both establishments on the same day.
 
zoolover123 said:
Phantom Gaur, thanks for the tip on Bronx! I am actually going to New York for a separate event in October, but I would assume by then most of the outdoor animals would be indoors. It sounds like a gamble to go in the summer.
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It depends on what the weather is like this October. I visited in mid-October once, and nearly every outdoor animal was outside, minus the Okapis. But if it's cooler this October, then many African animals will be indoors. If your event is in early to mid-October, I'd say it's certainly worth going, as the African animals will be outside and the monorail should be open. I also recommend a Total Experience Ticket, to skip lines at Congo Gorilla Forest, Monorail, etc.
 
I think that's going to be my only chance to go to the Bronx this year. If you get the total experience ticket do you get to skip lines?
 
zoolover123 said:
I think that's going to be my only chance to go to the Bronx this year. If you get the total experience ticket do you get to skip lines?
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I was able to easily bypass the monorail and JungleWorld lines with a total experience ticket, so you get to skip lines.
 
Just curious, the monorail and Jungle world. What animals are part of each? The animals on the monorail, can they only be seen from the monorail?
 
The monorail has the best animals at the zoo, in my opinion, but it usually does not stop so you may or may not see certain animals out there. The animals on the monorail path are only seen by monorail, which I've always hoped they would change someday. The monorail has:
Gaur
P. Horses
Asian Elephants
Nilgai
Red Panda
Babirusa
Barasingha deer
Hog Deer
Tufted Deer
Tiger
Chital Deer
Indian Rhino
Himalayan Tahr

There might be some other deer that I can't remember but that is most of the ride.
 
Phantom Gaur said:
The monorail has the best animals at the zoo, in my opinion, but it usually does not stop so you may or may not see certain animals out there. The animals on the monorail path are only seen by monorail, which I've always hoped they would change someday. The monorail has:
Gaur
P. Horses
Asian Elephants
Nilgai
Red Panda
Babirusa
Barasingha deer
Hog Deer
Tufted Deer
Tiger
Chital Deer
Indian Rhino
Himalayan Tahr

There might be some other deer that I can't remember but that is most of the ride.
Click to expand...
Others include Brow Antler Deer , Sambar Deer, Indian Peafowl, and Blackbuck.

As for Jungleworld species include Ebony Langurs, Black Panther, Malayan Tapir, Asian Small Clawed Otters, Tree Kangaroos, Gibbons,and many fish reptiles small mammals and birds on exhibit. Their May also be Dinosaur Safari by Ford Ham Parking.
 
That's too bad that so many of the rarer animals I have never seen on the monorail. I would love to get pics but it is what it is. I am going to roll the dice and go to the Bronx in October.
 
You've received a lot of good advice, but having lived in the South my whole life and in Atlanta for 10 years of that, I'd like to offer two additional considerations if you choose to go south.

1. If you go through Chattanooga, it would be criminal not to go to the Tennessee Aquarium. Of the 17 aquariums I've been to, it's by far my favorite. (Note that I have not been to Shedd or Monterey.)

2. Since your trip is in July, remember that Alabama and to a lesser extent Georgia and Tennessee are HOT and HUMID. While there are a lot of great zoos in the South, July is not the best time to visit them. Even if you are rugged enough to handle it, you will mostly see animals sleeping in the shade.
 
I thought about the Tennessee Aquarium but because of time constraints and my own likes I decided to skip it. My parents went last year and loved it also.

I knew about the heat, it is usually in the upper 90s with high humidity in Louisville also. I know it's not as south as Alabama but it can still be miserable. The problem is timing. There just is never a good time to do this!
 
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