Kansas City Zoo

An experience you won't fur-get

What makes it fun

1,700 animals from over 200 different species call the Kansas City Zoo home. A world-class aquarium will enhance the visitor experience while also opening up new avenues for ocean conservation and education. At Helzberg Penguin Plaza, you'll see penguins like you've never seen them before. At Stingray Bay, dip your hands into a shallow pool to experience the peculiar texture of stingrays and bamboo sharks. Visit the Polar Bear Passage to see our polar bears. Swing into the Orangutan Canopy to get up close and personal with these orange apes. Take a stroll among a swarm of kangaroos. The African Sky Safari provides a bird's-eye perspective of zebras, giraffes, and rhinos. See animals from all across the world. At the Kansas City Zoo, every day is a new adventure!

Google Reviews

Kansas City Zoo

4.6

Based on 18955 reviews

Carolyn Rogers

03:11 29 Jul 24

A Bryan

00:38 29 Jul 24

Rodney Tatum

22:46 28 Jul 24

I want to love the KC zoo. I really do. But it is terrible. You walk for miles (5 by my watch) with very few animals. Topeka zoo is much better

Kylan McBeth

21:44 28 Jul 24

Lexi Winterbower

20:32 28 Jul 24

I have been to tons of Zoo's, mostly all paid admission. I've also been to free admission Zoo's. Out of every zoo both paid and free, the KC Zoo was by FAR the worst I have ever experienced.The "habitats" for the animals are not habitats at all, more like holding spaces. The orangutans are in a cinder block room, there are birds without flying room or any room for the matter that are SUPPOSED to fly 300+ miles a day, there is a polar bear with a depressingly small pool and a few rocks in some grass. It doesn't take much to see how depressed and lifeless the animals were. There are multiple experiences where the public can touch animals. If felt horrible. There was a Tiger who would non-stop pace by a hole in its enclosure where an endless amount of visitors would go and "say hi" to it. There was a gorilla laying FACE DOWN in a corner of a concrete wall. Tortoises who were so thirsty, that 4 were crowding around a small pool of water that wasn't dried up yet in their enclosure. There were sheep who looked horrible, all dirty and crusted and lifeless, stood standing in a makeshift "barn" enclosure. The fish tanks were small, and a large ball python had MAYBE 40 gallons to move around. There's a bridge with a small "river" you can walk over that houses hundreds of turtles, various kinds of fish, and any other wildlife streams house. Tons of patrons would throw food into the river; popcorn, bread, candy, etc... Turtles would quickly eat these things, but this doesn't really seem to strike a chord of concern within the Kansas City Zoo.This Zoo charges around $20 for each adult general admission ticket. With at least 200+ visitors a day, one would assume enough revenue is generated to give these animals the proper habitats and resources they need. But this is not observable. I honestly won't recommend this space to anyone I know, and I hope this review is found helpful. I am sure the staff they have tries their best to care for their animals as observed in the Zoo's previously formatted response, but the organization itself needs to be serious. Run a conducive and reparative sanctuary where wild animals can be saved and helped.

Ricki Marie Sidorov

02:55 04 Aug 23

Large zoo with some animals I've never seen at other zoos across the country. Plenty to see that you could spend a full day here. It was pretty incredible seeing a polar bear appear content on a hot day. Definitely worth visiting at least once.

Tim Reneau

07:07 26 Jul 23

Pack some water if you plan to take the hike down to Africa, if you do it will be worth it! There are a lot of ways to take shortcuts through the zoo: trains, boats, a tram, the sky safari and the carousel... although that last one just took me in a circle.The zoo is absolutely fantastic and I can't wait for the aquarium to be opened. We were able to see most every animal while we were there and got some great photos.

Traveling Triceratop

22:38 03 Jul 23

I always love going to the zoo! It is really cool to me that they have some enclosures set up with natural trees and lots of open space for the animals. The kangaroos being out of an enclosure is also really nice too! I just think there are some places that could use updating and the polar bear definitely needs the changes to come first, that polar bear never looks happy and I really hope something is done to make it better for that animal. Overall, hope to be back soon! Thank you for a great experience at the KC zoo!

Maryann Barbon

03:43 13 May 23

What a fun zoo! A family member told me they'd visited prior and didn't see everything with the time they'd given themselves because there is so much. They suggested I visit earlier in the day and I am so glad I listened. This is definitely a zoo to spend the whole day at! I was impressed with how clean it was despite how many guests were visiting. There were some exhibits with a sign that mentioned some animals might not be in view but we were actually able to see everything (with the exception of the few that were off exhibit). There is a great variety of species and some cool experiences like the stingray touch area and aviaries. We got the unlimited ride passes and it was worth the money. My daughter got to enjoy the carousel and transport rides several times. While there were a lot other guests visiting, we never had to wait in line for rides or transportation. We did spend a good amount of time waiting for Dippin' Dots and to enter the stingray building though.*Be prepared to walk for parking. It fills up fast!

Brian Kong

04:26 03 Jan 23

Glo Wild was majestic! It was a great way to visit the zoo at night and have a great time with family and friends. The route is not too long for toddlers and they even have hot chocolate/snacks midway through. A great little stop if you are visiting on a cold night. Definitely will be going again if it returns next year!

Eric

15:51 26 Oct 22

What a fun zoo! We stopped here on a whim on a Wednesday morning after a concert the previous day, because we figured it would be fairly empty during the middle of the week. Ended up being a great idea, as it wasn't crowded at all, and we even got a couple small tours to ourselves from the friendly and knowledgeable employees.Tons of great animal exhibits, including gorillas, tigers, elephants, and even polar bears. Probably nearly a thousand different animals, if I had to guess. We thought we'd only spend a few hours there, and almost stayed until closing time, as there was so much to see. It's not so big that it's overwhelming, but plenty large enough to get a lot of walking in, and see a ton of exhibits. What amazed me is even though it was a very hot day (in the 90's), almost every animal was active and easy to observe from the viewing areas.Had a great time, and the zoo was very clean as well. Keep up the great work!

Abby John

14:39 27 Sep 22

We had an amazing time! Since we went on Sunday, not everything was open, but that’s okay!The Staff was all so friendly and informative! That was very appreciated! The Train and Tram operators we very crowd pleasing. I am in a wheelchair and they had the ramp down, ready for me to load up, as soon as they send me headed that way!My biggest complaint, as is with most places like this, the price of a bottle of Water was well over $3 for a 20 oz bottle. There were 19 of us in total, 7 being kids. More affordable would have been nice. There were stations to fill the bottles, but the water was lukewarm, at best.The giant Flowers, and other crafted statues made things look so fun! We, of course, loved all the animals and how clean their habitats were.We’re already planning our trip for after Labor Day next year to be able to go to the new aquarium.

Christopher Graves

15:45 05 Jul 22

This was my first time here and I spent 3.5 hours visiting on a Friday. There are many enjoyable attractions for the whole family. The zoo is large so I would recommend wearing comfortable shoes, lightweight clothing and to bring a water bottle. There are water fountains where you can refill your bottles which is great. Misting stations allow you to walk through water mist to cool down, important since there's a lot of hot concrete and a lot of walking involved. If you're a KC resident, the zoo sends out free admission coupons a few times a year. I highly recommend visiting!

Michael Montgomery

06:27 01 Mar 22

Kansas City Zoo is pretty incredible. The sheer size of the zoo makes for a great time that can last for hours. The layout is done very well and the ability to travel either on foot or with the tram or sky ride is very convenient. The exhibits are spacious and always seem to have great enrichment for the animals to enjoy. You can tell that Kansas City Zoo truly cares about the wildlife they take care of. The staff and docents are very knowledgeable and helpful and the merchandise is very fun and unique. I can’t say enough great things about this zoo!