I am visiting the San Diego zoo this weekend. I'm assuming that someone here has been to this zoo. What were your thoughts? Considering the zoo covers 100 acres, how long did it take you to walk the whole zoo? It is $34 for a one-day pass and $40 for a two-day pass. I am prepared to use both Saturday and Sunday to walk the zoo if that is what it takes. Just want to be prepared. Any insight any of you could provide would be very helpful. I'm looking for first-hand experiences.
I went when I was younger. I don't remember shiet except that it was rainbow pride day. Hope that helps.
Pretty obvious you've never been to the San Diego Zoo. I went when I was younger , like 6-7 and was amazed by the place. I am not a huge Zoo person, but I thought it was awesome. I think it is considered the best Zoo in the world. I would say $34 for one of, if not the, best Zoos in the world...especially when you consider how much it costs to go to a crap hole like Disneyworld. As for personal experience, don't they have some sort of separate park that is a Wildlife themed park? Seems like I remember two different parks and liking that a lot as well..maybe better than the more traditional part of the Zoo.
Get lots of rest the day before is all I can say. I didn't get a really good sleep before and we drove there from LA. By the time we got there, I was just so tired and the place is soo big. It does feel like any other zoo, just that it's a little bigger, with a monorail and has Pandas. Overall I was a little disappointed because I was expecting so much more, and didn't have a chance to explore the rest of San Diego. Nonetheless it is a famous zoo, so you can always say you've been!
They have a wild animal park thats separate from the zoo, where you can go up various animals and feed/pet them. This was 15-16 years ago and the only animal I remember there was a llama or something. I hear its around a $100 or so to go there these days, so either inflation is worst then I thought it was or they upgraded something.
I went here a year ago and was only mildly impressed. Just like a regular zoo but bigger, as others have said. A day is enough. I also went to the Wild Animal Park two months ago, which is a separate park that is out in the wild (of course), so you can see the animals in a more natural environment. Pretty good. If you want to do that too then it's a separate day and more money - I would recommend the zoo if you had to pick one.
I've been a couple times, but even my first time, I see no reason to spend more than 1 day there to be honest. Spend your time elsewhere in San Diego the next day. There are so many things to do.
$34??? i was there December 06 and it was only $26. honestly, it's a zoo. you can only enjoy watching animals sleeping in cages for so long. half way through, i got pretty bored. i think the day is best spent elsewhere.
I went to SD Zoo in 2002, it was pretty awesome. I tried to hit on a mildly attractive zookeeper (unsuccessfully) who was feeding meerkats. True. That's all I got for you.
The San Diego Zoo is supposed to be the best in the country, have fun! It's a place I've never been to but would like to someday. The price seems fair for size and quality of it. The Omaha Zoo (suposedly the second best) is one of my favorite places to visit. I can't wait to take my son there.
Should be the best you can see in the US. I went as a kid, and hope to take mine soon. I remember it vaguely, but hey, I was 3. I know this, if you are a Costco member, you can get a SoCal City Pass that combines SD Zoo, Seaworld, Disneyland and Universal all on one ticket for around $200 or so... If you're a socal resident it's even less... food for thought
Go to the zoo and sea world. I love the zoo, you'll enjoy yourself, just walk around and look at everything and take pics!!
My wife and I went a couple of years ago and, while it was big, I don't remember it to be terribly modern and was a little disappointed. It was nice, though and the weather was great (that's So. Cal for you). Balboa park where the zoo is situated, however, was very cool. Lots of neat buildings, other museums, a rose garden (that probably won't look that great this time of year) and stuff... We really enjoyed wandering around that park after we left the zoo for a few hours. I have a Spaces page with some photos of the park and zoo that you can check out if you want: Southern California pics The first few are from LA but the rest are from San Diego and are labeled.
San Diego thinks a lot of itself. I have some friends from there and that's all the effing talk about- how it's SOOO much better than anything in Texas. I was irritated about the price of a chicken salad here once ($14), and my buddy comments how 'that's nothing in San Diego!'...like that's a good thing? Anyway, I have no problem giving zoos cash. They're offering a great product. But it's probably $34 because the cost of living in San Diego is so high.
Highly recommend the polar bear exhibit. The hippo exhibit, if the hippos are not sleeping (during the heat of the day?), is also cool. They are also known for their Panda exhibit which usually has the longest lines in the park; I was a bit underwhelmed. Things to do in San Diego besides The Zoo Balboa Park Sea Word Scripps Aquarium (La Jolla) San Diego Zoo Wild Live Park (30 minutes north of San Diego) Lego Land (perfect if you got kids 5-10 years old)
Are you going with kids? As someone said, Sea World is nice from what I hear (I've not been to the one here though). Walking around Balboa Park and and seeing the museums there is pretty cool and you could spend a lot of time there. There's also things like Lego Land that are not that far away, and all the amusment parks in LA are less than an hour away. Skiing is not far away (1.5 hours). If you like hiking, there are some cool places to hike in the mountains.
