Before we went, I tried to get an idea of what the Safari Park would be like.  I looked at satellite views on Google Maps and read the website extensively, trying to guess if it would be a good stop for our family, and how much time we would need there.  Much of the guessing I did was wrong.

It’s hard to get a feel for the Safari Park from a map because the terrain is quite varied, and also because much of the park’s expanse is not in publicly-accessible areas.  The vastness of the park that scared me when looking at the map was really not so much to worry about.

I had read that the Safari Park is extensive and the terrain quite hilly, so I was concerned that my already-troubled feet wouldn’t be able to take it, especially after several days in amusement parks.  While it’s true that one does a lot of walking at the Safari Park, the only part that I thought was really steep was down into the tiger area.  The other zone where there’s a big hill is near the cheetah and lion area, but there’s an elevator available at that location.

We arrived at the Safari Park just before it opened and parked very near the entrance.  The ticket line was slow-moving but the agent was knowledgeable and helpful when it came to our turn.  At $42 for adults and $32 for children, the Africa Safari is the most basic ticket available.  There are many other ticket options available that include extras like Segway and zipline tours or behind-the-scenes options, all at increased prices.  In fact, there are upsells throughout the park itself, including $5 to have a better view for the cheetah run.  The San Diego Zoo and Safari Park do not participate in the AZA reciprocal program, and adult memberships are only available to southern California residents, so there isn’t a good way to get reduced admission.  Visitors to southern California who want to save a few dollars should take a look at the Koala Club for kids, use their AAA card for a discount, look at the Go San Diego card*, or look at the multi-park/multi-visit options if visiting both the Zoo and the Safari Park.

The Africa tram is a 25-minute open-air ride that is included with the most basic admission ticket.  During the tram tour, visitors are taken to areas of the park that are otherwise inaccessible by the public.  Narration provides information about the various animals in this zone, many of which are severely endangered.  Since the Africa tram tour is included with admission, it’s worth the time for visitors, especially those who are there for the first time.

After the tram tour, we wandered around the rest of the Safari Park.  I was pleasantly surprised at the number of paths that were shady, lined with beautiful plants.

The walking was not nearly as difficult as I had envisioned.  Paths and trails and specific exhibits were well-marked, making it easy to navigate to the areas we wanted to visit.

Because the animal areas at the Safari Park are often large, it’s not always easy to see the animals.  After trekking down the tiger path, we learned that the tigers were not in a visible area at that time, and I had a disappointed six-year-old to lead back up the hill.

Food is available at several locations in the park.  The $7.49 kids meal included two small chicken fingers, a bag of Pirate’s Booty, raisins, animal crackers, and a child-sized soda (with $1 in-park refills).  While milk and chocolate milk could be purchased for $1.49, an adult soda (refillable for a charge) carried the price tag of $4.99.  In my opinion, the food was high-priced and mediocre, and I’d recommend packing a picnic lunch if you can.

Our kids enjoyed an interactive screen show featuring Robert, the zebra from Madagascar, in an amphitheater, and begged to spend time in the splash area and play & climb zone in the park that give kids a chance to run and play.  The carousel was also a hit with the kids.

We spent four hours at the San Diego Zoo Safari Park.  In the future, if I had to choose either the San Diego Zoo or the Safari Park, I’d go back to the zoo, where more animals were easily seen and more programs were available.  Benefits of the Safari Park, however, included easier parking and a less-crowded atmosphere.  I was surprised at the amount of duplication of animals between the two, and on future visits to San Diego, I would likely choose one or the other, but not go to both.

For my Minnesota readers who may be interested in visiting the Safari Park, I found it to be very similar to the Minnesota Zoo, and in fact, many of the animals are the same (tigers, takin, meerkat).  The tram ride is similar in scope to the Minnesota Zoo’s monorail, and the terrain and amount of walking we did seemed very much like that of the Minnesota Zoo.

The San Diego Zoo and its Safari Park are known as some of the best zoos in the world, giving visitors to San Diego good options for a zoo experience while in California.

Disclosure:  The San Diego Zoo gave us four free passes so we could check out the Zoo and Safari Park.
* Affiliate link

As we were planning our trip to California, most people who heard we were going to San Diego asked, “Are you going to the zoo?”  Indeed, the San Diego Zoo is one of the most famous attractions in the city, and is loved by locals and tourists alike.  Find a list of the best zoos in America, and the San Diego Zoo will likely be near the top of the list.

But I still wasn’t sure we were going to go.  After all, we’ve been to zoos — a lot of zoos — and after awhile, they can all start to look alike.  Plus, the San Diego Zoo is not cheap to visit, at $42 for adults and $32 for children, and they don’t offer reciprocal membership discounts like many U.S. zoos do.  Our vacation philosophy is to do things we can’t do at home, and I wasn’t sure the zoo would be different enough to warrant spending a good chunk of our time and money there.

When the San Diego Zoo sent us four media passes in order to give the zoo a try, I decided that we could buy the additional two tickets we’d need for our family and penciled it into our last remaining time slot, from 9 till noon on the last day of our vacation, just before heading to the airport for our flight home.

And even with a minimal investment in time and money, I was pretty sure I wouldn’t be impressed.

I was wrong.

We arrived in San Diego’s Balboa Park bright and early on a February Monday morning, which also happened to be President’s Day.  We wandered around the park a bit before returning to the zoo a few minutes before it opened to secure our tickets.  While it had been peaceful and tranquil and uncrowded in the park, as the 9 a.m. opening of the zoo approached, so did the crowds at the entrance gate, making me even more apprehensive about our visit, as crowds and I do not belong in the same place.

After getting a map of the zoo, we wandered around for a few minutes without a plan in place as we got the lay of the land.  We considered the narrated bus tour near the entrance, but the lines there were already becoming long.  We walked to the Skyfari entrance, only to discover that it didn’t open until an hour after the zoo.  So we hastily moved on to Plan C: find the tigers.

We’d been to the Safari Park a few days earlier and were disappointed that the tigers were not visible when we went to see them in their large Safari Park habitat.  After winding through the cool and shady trail at the zoo, however, we had our first pleasant surprise of the day:  the tigers were not only visible, but close to the glass and easy to see from more than one vantage point.  Score one for the zoo.

Next up:  see the pandas, as the San Diego Zoo is one of only four locations in the United States to have pandas.  We followed the paths around to Panda Canyon and were delighted to see the pandas eating their morning snack.  Zoo score, round two.

Because we knew our time was limited, we had a pretty small to-do list, and we’d already covered two items.  Next up, Skyfari.  We had to look a bit, but we found the set of long escalators that would take us up the hill to the Skyfari West station, and got there just as the sky ride opened at 10 a.m.  With a minimal wait as the first passengers were loaded into their cage-on-wire cars, we climbed aboard the aerial shortcut back to the entrance.

Despite my dislike of heights or scary things, I found the Skyfari ride to be smooth and easy (in distinct contrast to, for example, the swinging car on Mickey’s Fun Wheel at Disney’s California Adventure).  For a few minutes, we enjoyed the view from above the animals, peeks of Balboa Park, and the San Diego Skyline, and when we reached Skyfari East, we found a long line of people waiting to board.  Score one for a bit of serendipity in avoiding long lines, and for a nice mode of transportation across the zoo.

Keeping an eye on the time, we decided the bus tour should be our next priority.  The line was still quite long, but it moved quickly.  After 15-20 minutes, we boarded the bus for a 40-minute guided tour of the zoo.  At first, I thought my seat on the driver’s side was a poor choice, as all the animals seemed to be on the right, but as the tour progressed, it evened out so that I had some excellent views of the animals right out my open-air window.  As our tour guide pointed out the various animals, I found myself wishing we had enough time to walk back and take a closer look at many of them.  The bus tour gave a good overview of the zoo and allowed us to see many of the animals in a short window of time.

Sadly, after the bus tour our time at the San Diego Zoo was drawing to a close.  We’d seen only a small portion of the zoo, and hadn’t attended any of the keeper talks or activity booths or animal encounters or shows or other special activities that were included with our zoo admission.  The zoo was open until 5:00 the day we visited, and had it not been for a plane to catch, we could have easily spent the rest of the day there without seeing it all.

Yes, the San Diego Zoo is expensive.  But it is also home to many unique animals.  It’s an accredited botanical garden, so walking the paths allows the opportunity to explore beautiful plants as well as animals.  It’s huge, and there’s a lot going on.  And despite the fact that people were still streaming in the gates as we left at noon, it did not seem crowded.

I’ve changed my mind completely on the notion that the San Diego Zoo is “just another zoo.”  It’s one of the places from our vacation that I wish we’d had much more time to explore.

Tips for Visiting the San Diego Zoo:

1. Get there as soon as it opens so you can make the most of your time there.
2. To avoid Skyfari lines, make your way to the far (Skyfari West) station just as it opens and ride back to the east station by air.
3. Some of the shows and talks are presented only once or twice a day.  Check the schedule and plan around those you want to see.
4. The zoo is very large with some steep hills on the trails.  If you have trouble with the terrain, find the elevators and escalators to help with the biggest elevation changes, or spring for an Express Bus pass to move you from one area to another within the zoo.
5. Food is pricey, with kids’ meals being more expensive than at the amusement parks we visited.  You can bring your own food into the zoo; if you have a large cooler you can eat in the picnic area outside the zoo gates.
6. To save money on admission, consider one of the multi-day or multi-park tickets for San Diego area attractions, or show your AAA card for a 10% discount.  Zoo memberships are also a good option, but some are only available to southern California residents.

Have you been to the San Diego Zoo?  How did it compare to other zoos you’ve visited?

Additional photos:

My first good sign was that the zoo was well-marked with a sign on ND Highway 13, the primary thoroughfare in Wahpeton.  Since I hadn’t planned ahead enough to get directions, I appreciated the well-marked route to the zoo.

Admission is $8 for adults and $4 for kids 4-12, but we enjoyed free admission through our membership at another zoo that participates in the AZA reciprocity program.  Then we were off to explore the zoo.

At first glance the zoo didn’t look big, but as we followed the pathways, we found more and more animals.  From snakes to birds to monkeys to turtles, we wandered the trails and watched the animals.  Bison and tigers and bears, leopards and Dall sheep and black swans greeted us.  There was also a petting zoo / feeding area with farm animals; remember quarters if you want to buy feed as I didn’t see a change machine in the vicinity.

We spent an hour at the zoo, and could have spent more time there if my kids hadn’t been eager to get to Grandma’s house.  The grounds are well-kept, with many shaded areas and benches for rest breaks.

After leaving the zoo, we crossed the parking lot to the Prairie Rose Carousel.  For $1.50/ride, visitors can enjoy a few spins on the restored 1926 carousel, which has been lovingly restored and hand-painted.  Around the edges of the carousel are exhibit cases that tell of the carousel’s history and restoration.

Chahinkapa Park’s campground is right next to the carousel, and the rest of the large city park offers a pool and other recreation areas.

Judging by the number of school buses from Moorhead and other schools, Chahinkapa Zoo is a popular destination for field trips, and I was pleased with it as a family outing.  Don’t let the fact that Wahpeton is a small town deter you from visiting Chahinkapa Zoo.  If you’re passing through the area, it’s a worthwhile stop.

Sioux Falls is one of our family’s favorite weekend getaway spots.  Not much more of a drive than the Twin Cities, there’s a lot packed into a small space.  There are plenty of restaurants, a better-than-decent mall for running a few errands, and lots of family-friendly things to do.  We have yet to visit Sioux Falls in the summer, when there are even more things open, so my list is based on winter and spring activities.

1. Kirby Science Discovery Center.  Located in Washington Pavilion, a repurposed school building, this is one of our family’s top 5 hands-on museums, and we’ve been to a lot.  Each family member has a favorite at this museum: the rock-climbing wall, the earthquake simulator, the water area, the Mars rover.  This was our fourth visit to the museum, and the kids to go back for a second day before we left for home.  There’s something for all ages here.
2. Sertoma Butterfly House.  Where better to escape from a cold winter day than a butterfly garden?  If the sun is shining, the butterflies are especially active.  Maybe you’ll get lucky and see one come out of its chrysalis.
3. Great Plains Zoo and Delbridge Museum.  Our January walk through the zoo was brisk, but seeing the stuffed animals in the museum indoors was a good alternative method of learning about habitats.
4. Falls of the Big Sioux River.  The green grass and roaring falls belied the near-freezing temperatures, so we pulled our hoods up to wander around Falls Park.  The waterfalls that give the city their name are beautiful and plentiful, and seeing the Queen Bee Mill Ruins and mill race give an interesting perspective to the history of the area.
5. Falls Park Viewing Tower.  After seeing the waterfalls up close, we climbed the tower to see a panoramic view of the area.  The women manning the visitor center were friendly and welcoming.
6. Sculptures and Fountains.  Downtown and in Falls Park, as well as other parts of the city, sculptures are featured.  Sculpture tour information can be found in Sioux Falls visitor information.  There are also a number of waterfall-like fountains throughout town.  Our kids loved being the first to spot a new fountain.
7. Vintage signs.  Driving down 12th Street especially, but in other areas of town as well, time seems forgotten as signs from days gone by are still advertising businesses that are local fixtures.  It’s refreshing to see signs like this that haven’t been updated every few years.  We played a game of “spot the old signs” while driving around Sioux Falls.
8. Splashtacular Waterpark.  The Ramkota Hotel has a waterpark that’s just right for families with young children.
9. Visual Arts Center at Washington Pavilion.  On your way out of the science museum, head to the other end of the building to see the Visual Arts Center.  Check out the artwork, and then let the kids have some time in the children’s workshop area.
10. USS South Dakota Memorial.  No, it’s not an entire battleship, but there’s enough of an outline and a few pieces from the ship that you can get a good idea of the scope of this historical ship.
11. Downtown.  Stop for a cup of coffee at Michelle’s, where there are games and children’s books available to keep them busy while you relax.  Chedd’s, a gourmet grilled-cheese shop, looked mighty tasty.  There are enough unique shops downtown that I told my husband that my next trip to Sioux Falls will be a girlfriends shopping trip.

There’s more to see and do in Sioux Falls. On our to-see list next time we’re in the area are the Outdoor Campus and the Museum of Visual Materials, and maybe a stop at the EROS center just outside of town.  In the summertime, even more activities and attractions are open.  For a great Midwest getaway, I highly recommend Sioux Falls, South Dakota.

The “11 Things” series is designed to give tips for traveling families to destinations well-known or off the beaten path.  Learn how to share 11 Things about your favorite destination, or read other 11 Things posts.

Zoos seem to be popular with kids of all ages.  The first zoo I remember visiting was in Mayville, North Dakota; we went there on a school field trip.  It wasn’t very big, as I remember, and I don’t think it’s even there any more, but it was worthy of a visit by busloads of kids from 60 miles away.  When I was in high school, classmates would come back from visits to the Twin Cities with tales of visiting the newly opened Minnesota Zoo.

My kids have been to a lot more zoos in their short lives than I visited in my entire pre-mom life.  And while in some ways it seems that zoos are all the same, my kids are always eager to visit a new one, or revisit a favorite.

Zoos are good for learning about wildlife, for spending time outdoors, and for enjoying time together.  Some are small spaces and in others you can walk for miles.  Some are quiet and some rival amusement parks with their activities and attractions.  Some have a hefty entrance fee while others are free.

These are some of the zoos we’ve visited, and the things about them we liked the best:

Minnesota Zoo, Apple Valley, Minnesota

Our kids love the bird show during summer visits, and visiting the Wells Fargo Family Farm.  Be sure to go in the barn and watch the milking demonstration–you’ll learn a lot about where your milk comes from.  Kids will enjoy playing in the “grain elevator” at the entrance to the farm.  The monorail and aquarium shows are also popular.

Como Zoo, St. Paul, Minnesota

It’s free! (A small donation is requested, but not required.)  This zoo is smaller in scale and excellent for young children who can’t take an entire day of walking.  The conservatory is worth a walk-through to see the beautiful flowers, and don’t miss the special kids’ room near the conservatory entrance.  My kids love to watch the polar bears, and if the antique carousel is running a ride is a must-do before we leave.  Kids will also enjoy the Como Town amusement park if parents are willing to spend the money on rides.

Columbus Zoo, Columbus, Ohio

We visited the Columbus Zoo on New Year’s Day and were in for a treat with the Zoo Lights program, where the zoo is lit up and a lights-and-music show is presented on the pond.  The carousel here was also popular with the kids, as was the model train display and hot chocolate for the special festivities.

Dakota Zoo, Bismarck, North Dakota

You may not think of zoos when you think of North Dakota, but this one’s a delight (as are many other things in the Bismarck-Mandan area).  I loved how peaceful it was, with many shaded paths.  The kids loved the tram ride and playground inside the zoo.  The park surrounding the zoo has plenty of space for family fun as well.

Roosevelt Zoo, Minot, North Dakota

Don’t let the small size fool you; our kids also enjoyed this one, which affords good views of many animals.  In the summertime, a train ride around the adjacent Roosevelt Park will delight young railroad fans.

Henry Vilas Zoo, Madison, Wisconsin

Another free zoo that’s just the right size.  As usual, the carousel and play areas were popular with our kids.

Great Plains Zoo and Delbridge Museum, Sioux Falls, South Dakota

I’ll admit that we did a pretty quick run-through of this zoo when we visited on a cold January day, but we spent more time indoors at the attached Delbridge Museum of natural history.

You may have noticed that I don’t talk much about the animals in the zoos because, well, there are animals at every zoo.  The more zoos you visit, the more animals you’ll see.  If you want an excellent zoo guide that describes quality zoos and tells you where to find particular zoos, check out America’s Best Zoos.

Do you have a favorite zoo?  Which one is it, and why do you like it?

Como Zoo is always free (although a donation is appreciated), and the special zoobilee activities are free as well.  This zoo is a perennial favorite with families, and these special events will make it even more fun this weekend.

For all the details and a schedule of events, see the Como Park Zoo website.

Amaze'n Farmyard

We first visited the Amaze’n Farmyard several years ago and have returned annually since then.  This “agritainment” venue has a little of something for everyone, and adds something new or different each year.

The primary draw may be the lattice-wall maze, which is changed up occasionally so that visitors aren’t too confident in getting through it quickly.  A variety of barnyard and exotic animals are available for petting and feeding, and the area also includes activities such as a giant slide, miniature golf, a bounce house, butterfly garden, playground, and more.  It’s one of our kids’ favorite summertime places to visit.

I first wrote about the Amaze’n Farmyard in 2007, and then again when we returned the following year.  The Amaze’n Farmyard is about a 30-minute drive from St. Cloud, and a little over an hour from the Twin Cities.  It’s a unique, family-friendly place to visit.

Minnesota’s Mall of America has a host of family-friendly activities, including the Nickelodeon Universe theme park, a miniature golf course, and  Lego area.  Also included in the ranks of family things to do at MOA is Underwater Adventures Aquarium.

Underwater Adventures features a walk through a tunnel, with fish (including sharks) swimming around and above you as you move through the aquarium.  (Sometimes a moving walkway is in use so you hop on and enjoy the ride; on our latest visit the walkway was turned off so that we could stop and go as we pleased.)

Today is the grand opening of a new feature at Underwater Adventures:  Jellyfish Discovery.  Billed as the world’s jellyfish collection, there are several different species of jellyfish on display, as well as walls with all sorts of jellyfish facts.  (Did you know that a group of jellyfish is called a smack?)  There are blue jellyfish and spotted jellyfish and clear jellyfish in the various jellyfish aquariums.

Just over a year ago, Underwater Adventures introduced its Seahorse Kingdom, and my girls were happy to see how the seahorses had grown.

After viewing the sea creatures in the aquarium, there are two hands-on areas where visitors can touch starfish or crabs.

If you haven’t been to Underwater Adventures for a while, Seahorse Kingdom and Jellyfish Discovery might make a return trip worthwhile.  Although admission to the aquarium isn’t cheap, wristbands are good for the whole day, so it can be a good diversion for kids from the shop-till-you-drop day at the mall.  Membership is priced fairly; for our family of six it is actually cheaper than paying full-price admission.  Discounts and promotions are available on the Underwater Adventures website, and the mascot Sharky can often be found around Mall of America handing out coupons.

Disclosure: We received complimentary admission to see the new jellyfish exhibit.

We started at the National Eagle Center in Wabasha, where we saw four bald eagles that have been rehabilitated after accidents but can no longer live in the wild. Personnel at the center present programs about the eagles throughout the day, and are available to answer visitors’ questions about eagles. My kids liked the educational exhibits, from the coloring station to seeing if they have an “eagle eye.” The ranger programs filled up quickly on the busy Saturday that we were there.

From Wabasha, we drove to Red Wing‘s Colville Park, a prime location for viewing bald eagles in the wild. We spotted some far off in trees, but it wasn’t until we happened to detour to Barn Bluff and wound our way back toward the water treatment plant that an eagle soared alongside us and stopped in a nearby tree, affording us a closer look.

The National Eagle Center and surrounding eagle habitats provide the opportunity to see and learn about this symbol of our nation.

With discount tickets in hand, however, I took the kids on a trip to the mall and we went down to see the sharks.

Billed as the world’s largest underwater aquarium, Underwater Adventures features a Minnesota wildlife habitat area followed by a moving walkway that goes through a tunnel with water and sea creatures surrounding visitors. It’s interesting to see the undersides of sharks and other fish, and my two-year-old loved the big turtle.

The moving walkway is intended to keep people moving at a steady pace through the aquarium, and it would have worked very well if everyone had known this. Because I had a stroller along, however, I had to hold it to the side, off the moving part, and it kept getting in the way of people who wanted to move faster or go back through the aquarium.

At the end of the aquarium section, there’s a pool where you can touch a shark under the guidance of an employee. You can also get your picture taken or buy things in the gift shop.

After finally visiting Underwater Adventures, I realized I hadn’t been missing much. Their “world’s largest” claim is pretty narrow; after all, how many underwater aquariums are there in the world? There’s more to do in the aquarium area of the Minnesota Zoo, at a cheaper cost. My kids enjoyed the aquarium, but weren’t as excited about it as many other places we’ve been.

It’s convenient to have Underwater Adventures right at MOA, and it can provide a respite from shopping for kids and adults alike. If you do go, be sure to look for discount tickets; you should at least be able to find some that offer a free child’s admission with purchase of an adult ticket.

Note (2011): Underwater Adventures is now SeaLife Aquarium.  I have not been there to see what changes have been made.

• 903 Tenth Street SW, south of Lead and Coal and north of Bridge Blvd.
• www.cabq.gov/biopark/zoo
• 9:00am-5:00pm daily, except January 1, Thanksgiving Day (11/27/08), and December 25. Ticket booths close one half-hour before closing and no one will be admitted after this time.
• Adults $7, Children $3, Kids under 3 are free.  $12 for adults if you get a pass that includes the Rio Grande Aquarium and Botanic Gardens.
• Great stroller and wheelchair accessibility.

This is a really good zoo.  It’s got all the typical stuff you’d expect plus a few added, interactive bonus exhibits.  The enclosures are big enough that you don’t get too depressed about the animals being caged up (except for the big cats), but they’re still close enough that you can really see them.  The layout is easy and intuitive and it’s big enough that it didn’t feel super crowded, even on a Saturday.

One of the cool extras at this zoo is getting to feed the Lorikeets (African Parrots).

They are gorgeous birds and a tad aggressive.  As fun as it was be warned that young kids should not be allowed to hold the nectar cups unless they are really okay with having these birds ALL OVER THEM.  They are not tiny and their talons can be a it uncomfortable.  Also, some of them..well, nibble…like, on you.  Most kids will probably have a better time watching a parent feed the birds so they can get a close up look without the birds actually ON them.  The staff is pretty good about warning you of these things when you go in.

You can also feed the giraffes at this zoo.

It’s really amazing to get so close to these animals (longest tongues EVER!) and though they don’t like for you to pet them, they are very gentle about taking the leaves from you.  Nectar for the birds and leaves for the giraffes are each an extra $1.50.  We could have had a camel ride too, but Huck just wasn’t into it and, being big and pregnant, I wasn’t very into it either.  And, of course, there are several zookeeper led events throughout the day:  seals feeding, nature theatre show, etc

We didn’t eat at the zoo but there did seem to be plenty of options of the snack bar variety–no chain restuarants in the zoo that I saw.  There’s also a bandshell and spaciou Cottonwood Park inside the zoo  where you can spread out a picnic lunch.  I saw lots of people pulling coolers.  The other nice feature is a big maze-like playground near the mid-point of the zoo.

This zoo also boasts 2 trains.  A small one that just runs inside the zoo and a larger one that goes to the Botanic Gardens & Aquarium.  If you plan a full day at the Rio Grande BioPark, get the package deal with the big train ride for only $12 for adults.

As far as zoos go, this is a very good one.  Maybe not quite as good as the Fort Worth Zoo, in my opinion, but still very nice.

• 2155 County Road 2008, Glen Rose, Texas 76043
• For more information call 254-897-2960 ext 213 or 1-888-346-6282, or visit www.fossilrim.org
• Open daily.  March through October from 8:30am-5:30pm, November through February from 8:30am-3:30pm
• Visit website for detail.  Admissions vary depending on Weekend, Weekday and peak season from $12.20 to around $20 per adults.  Lower pricing for seniors and kids under 12 and Wednesdays are discount days.
• There’s no walking necessary; you visit this park in your car.  The petting zoo area has dirt trails but no stairs so accessibility is fine.  Anybody remember Lion Country Safari?  We had them when I grew up in Texas and my family went often.  You rode around in an open jeep painted like a zebra and fed animals in a kind of open zoo.  I loved it as a child.  On our big, month-long, family trip to Texas this past spring we got to visit a similar kind of park in Glen Rose, Texas.  Much more conservation minded and animal-focused (as opposed to visitor-focused), The Fossil Rim Wildlife Park was really a fun.

You start off at the visitor center where you buy tickets, get a map and buy a paper bag of “food” (some sort of compressed pellet) to feed the animals out of your car window.  A bag of food costs $7.95 and we got by with just one.  A family with multiple kids would do well to buy at least 2 bags to cut down on backseat squabbling .

There are about 40 species of exotic, threatened and endangered animals roaming freely over the 1,800 acres of the park.  I’d say at least half of those are various varieties of hooved, deer-type creatures.  Besides those, the park also has giraffes, zebras, Cheetahs (enclosed), cranes, rhinos, oryx, emus, ostriches & wolves (also enclosed).

Because the animals have mostly free-range of the entire conservancy, you don’t identify them by a map in a certain order like at a zoo.  With older kids, that makes identification of different species a real challenge and learning experience.  Make sure everyone in your party gets their very own Animal Identification Guide from the Visitor Center.  The drive is only about 10 miles but they suggest 2-3 hours.  It took us about 2 hours to do the whole park with one toddler.

If you have a larger party, it might also be worth it to you to do a Guided tour instead of self-guided in your own car.  There are special roads open only to guided tours that go closer to graving areas, plus I’m sure you get lots of interesting information about each species.  We definitely saw some guided tours getting to feed the animals much closer (I think they may have had better food too!) than we were able to get.  At the Children’s Animal Center in the middle of the park, there’s a petting zoo where the kids can brush goats, and touch giant tortoises.  This mid-point also included picnic tables and a small cafe.  It’s a great stop to break up the drive, let everyone stretch their legs and visit the restroom.  It’s also where the wolf and oryx enclosures are located.

Once we had our little break it was back in the car for more animals.  For the most part, feeding the animals consists of tossing the pellets out toward the animals until they more a little closer.  Some of them get the concept of where the food is coming from faster than others.  The deer came closer than anything else, until we got to the end and saw the ostriches.  BE WARNED:  THE OSTRICHES ARE AGGRESSIVE EATERS!  They will stick their heads right in your car and peck.  Just roll up the windows as soon as you see them and start from there to your own comfort level.  I have no pictures of the ostriches because they put us in such a defensive position.  It was just a scramble to get the windows up fast enough without getting pecked.  Still, it was funny and exciting.  And remember, as with zoos, the animals will be more active in the morning than in the full heat of the day.

This was an all around fun family trip and though we didn’t do this ourselves you should also hit the Glen Rose Dinosaur Valley State Park for lots of cool geologic features and dinosaur footprints.

They’re open for a few more weekends this fall, so if you need a day trip from St. Cloud, the Twin Cities, or elsewhere, keep them in mind.  There are so many different things to do that everyone can find something they enjoy.

For all the details, read my previous post on The Amaze’n Farmyard on this site, or see my new post on The Amaze’n Farmyard at Uptake.com.

Minnesota parents–Are you doing anything fun with your kids while they’re off school Thursday and Friday?  Parents in other states–What’s your favorite thing to do with your kids when they have a fall break from school?

You might also like: The Amaze’n Farmyard (Again!)

Thanks for sharing your trip, Kate!

We live in Central Florida –the #1 family tourist destination in the world and home to Mickey Mouse himself. Many families with young children will make the pilgrimage to this theme park Mecca and will open up their wallets to one of the most expensive and commercial places in the world. When you get here you’ll discover that if you don’t stay on Disney property, you’ll probably end up staying in a nearby town called Kissimmee. There is not much to do in Kissimmee besides sleep, eat and visit outlet malls, but there is a small haven for families that’s buried in a nice little corner of the city that’s well-worth the visit if you want to leave Mickey behind for a day.

Green Meadows Petting Farm is one of Central Florida’s best-kept secrets. I’m not sure if they intend to be a secret, but their lackluster website doesn’t exactly send out an inviting message. When you get there it’s a different story. This 40-acre farm is run with the smooth effortless charm that you’d expect at a major attraction, down to parking attendants who guide you into the next available space. We went there this past weekend with my two and four-year-old sons for a friend’s birthday party.

When you get there you’ll see vintage tractors everywhere for kids to jump on and pose for photos.

As soon as you step inside you’ll see a collection of little red wagons ready for your toddlers to ride in. They are $3 to rent for the day, or you can bring your own. It’s a long walk around the park in the Florida heat and humidity, so it’s worth the $3 to toss a kid and a cooler in for the day.

This petting zoo isn’t like a typical petting zoo. You don’t just go in and walk around from pen to pen. Instead you are assigned to a tour group with a tour guide for a two-hour tour. These small groups are led around the park with constant narration from your tour guide. They’ll tell you interesting facts about each animal, like the fact that only male ducks quack and that their bison was rescued from someone’s basement. This works out great because each group stops at the animal pens at different times, so you don’t have to worry about your child not getting a chance to catch a chicken or feed a goat. Your group gets sole access to a pen and plenty of time for each child and parent to pet the animals.

Dotted throughout the farm are great little playgrounds for the kids who need a break. There are enormous sand pits full of dump trucks, play houses, plastic dinosaurs, shovels and buckets. There are larger play sets for older children and smaller play sets with bucket swings for younger children and babies.

Families are encouraged to bring a picnic lunch. The tour guide will show you to some park benches so you can eat and let the kids play and roll about in the sand. It is hot, so I’d suggest getting there at around 10 a.m. so lunchtime falls at the end of the tour.

Every animal pen has a hand sanitizing station, but a few were empty when we visited this time. I’d advise parents to pack a bottle of hand sanitizer, just incase. The bathrooms are easy to access and are clean and kid-friendly.

They have all the regular petting zoo players like chickens and goats, but also have some unusual animals like a very sweaty water buffalo and a zorse (half zebra/half horse). With over 300 animals, my boys seem to like the baby chicks and ducklings the best. Every animal seemed very well-looked after and the grounds and pens were very clean.

Along with petting the animals your admission price also gets you a fun mini-train ride, the opportunity to milk a cow, ride a pony, and at the end of the tour you get a tractor-pulled hayride. In October every entrant gets to go to the pumpkin patch and get a free pumpkin too, although my friends up north tell me that dumping a few hundred pumpkins on the ground next to some palm trees isn’t what a real up-north pumpkin patch looks like. I guess I’ve lived in Florida so long that I don’t know any better.

When you go check out their website first for a coupon and enjoy your day away from the crowds and lines at the theme parks.

http://www.greenmeadowsfarm.com/

Green Meadows Farm
1368 South Poinciana Blvd.
Kissimmee, FL 34746

Phone: (407) 846-0770

• 2601 Central Ave. NW at the intersection of Central and New York Avenues, just east of the Central Avenue bridge over the Rio Grande.
• 311 locally or (505) 768-2000
• 9:00am-5:00pm daily, except January 1, Thanksgiving Day and December 25. Ticket booths close one half-hour before closing and no one will be admitted after this time.
• Adults $7 for both attractions, kids $3, and children under 3 get in free.  For an extra $5 you can also get admission to the Albuquerque Zoo and a train ride.
• Stroller & wheelchair friendly, but a few paths are cinder and it’s a little harder than normal to push.

I began our visit to the Rio Grande Botanic Gardens & Albuquerque Aquarium thinking I would love the gardens but my 2 1/2 year old would be bored silly.  I thought we wouldn’t stay very long.  Boy, was I wrong.  He ended up loving it so much we went back again 2 days later.

The first thing you see when you enter the garden is a giant castle.

This is the start of the adventure–the Childrens Fantasy Garden.  I’d say we spent 75% of our time in this area.  It’s a wonderful labyrinthine world that begins when you walk under the curling tail of a dragon with smoke puffing out of his nostrils and over a moat.  Inside the castle walls are fruit and flowering trees and a tower with a sand floor, perfect for sitting and digging in.

In the next section of the fantasy garden you seem to have been magically shrunk down to the size of a bug.  Everything is huge–the vegetables and tools in the garden, the ants and bees, the pinecones.  It’s truly as if you’ve gone through the looking glass.  There’s also a giant pumpkin to climb inside with a spongy gym floor perfect for tumbling.

Slides through logs, mazes, hidden caves and hidey holes can all be found throughout.  And of course, all along the way there are real plants, flowers and bugs to stop and examine.

Back outside the castle grounds you move on to a model train village that winds though the trees.  The train wasn’t running when we were there but we had just as much fun looking at all the little houses and farms in the village.  Then it was on to a big duck pond.

The second major highlight of the garden is the butterfly enclosure.

It’s just beautiful and amazing.  Your not supposed to touch the butterflies but that doesn’t mean they can’t touch you!  I recommend wearing bright clothing if you want to attract them.  A woman with a silk flower in her hair got the most attention, but with my red hair, I had a little halo of them as well.  We used the charts on the wall to identify a few of them and my son had a great time yelling out the few varieties he learned when he spotted them.  There’s also a display where you can watch butterflies hatch out of their chrysalis.  It’s amazing.

Though the fantasy garden and butterfly enclosure were easily the highlights we also enjoyed the rose garden, the herb garden (both great for little kids who like to sniff), the koi pond in the Japanese garden, and farm with its chickens, apple orchard and towering sunflowers.

If junk food isn’t your bag, skip the snack stand and bring your own lunch.  There’s a wonderful open lawn in the middle of the garden with plenty of shade for a picnic and enough room for a great game of chase.

Now I’ve spent all this time talking about the Botanic Gardens and you’re probably wondering about the Aquarium.  I have to say, I thought it was kind of lame.  It’s small.  It does have a couple of large tanks, one with sharks.  It also has a very cool jelly fish display.  But for the most part, we liked it mainly as an opportunity to get out of the heat at the end of our visit to the garden.  Kids very into fish will still like it, but I think I’ve been ruined by the amazing Aquariums I’ve been to in Dallas & New York.

If you live in this area and have small children, it’s well worth the cost to invest in a yearly pass just for the garden and the zoo (post on that to come…).  Can you tell how much I loved this place?

• Minnesota Zoo
  13000 Zoo Boulevard
  Apple Valley, MN 55124
  phone: 952.431.9200
• www.mnzoo.com
• Stroller accessible.  Food available.  Restrooms with changing tables in several locations.

We had a great day at the Minnesota Zoo.  Since our last visit a year ago, there were three new areas to explore:  The Minnesota Trail, the butterfly garden, and Russia’s Grizzly Coast.  These attractions, in addition to the existing zoo exhibits, made for a fun day at the zoo.

At first, I wasn’t sure tackling the zoo alone with four kids was such a good idea.  The new Russia’s Grizzly Coast exhibit is full of twists and turns and appears to be very popular, judging by the tangle of strollers in the area.  The kids were excited to see a bear and a sea otter, however.

Once we got through the Grizzly Coast mess, the foot traffic thinned out considerably on the wider paths.  We saw a tiger and several takins, as well as bison and camels and prairie dogs, before getting to the play area.  After a rest/play break, we continued on to the Family Farm area.  While we waited for the wagon to arrive, the kids played in the “grain elevator.”

The Family Farm is great for kids who love animals.  My boys can’t wait to pet and comb the goats and see the other animals.  My girls, however, were terrified of most of the animals, although they did think the 3-day-old piglets were cute.

When we returned to the play area with its nearby picnic grounds, I realized that the snacks I had packed were safely stowed in the car.  Instead of traipsing halfway through the zoo and out to the parking lot, I opted for pizza and a sandwich for us to share.  I was pleasantly surprised that the food prices weren’t outrageous, so we got a decent lunch and refilled our water bottles, which I had remembered to bring in.

Then we were off to the bird show, where the highlight for all of us was the bald eagle.  After that, we rode the monorail and walked through the Tropics Trail and Minnesota Trail and saw the fish in the aquarium before seeing the dolphin show.

Altogether, we were at the zoo for six hours and we were all exhausted by the end of the day.

If you go to the Minnesota Zoo, I have these tips:

• Wear good walking shoes.  There’s a lot of ground to cover.
• If you have a child of questionable walking ability or stamina, bring the stroller.  My three youngest (ages 5, 4, and 2) alternated between the seats in the double stroller.
• Wear a hat and sunscreen.  You won’t regret it!
• Bring refillable water bottles.  There are lots of water fountains around the zoo where you can refill them.
• There are restrooms in many locations, but if you have a stroller, avoid the ones in the main building.  It’s much easier to navigate some of the others.  There’s a family restroom with changing table at the back of the granary in the Family Farm area.  (There are also family restrooms in a hallway in the middle of the granary, but they don’t have changing tables.)
• If you want to avoid the heat of the day, walk around the outdoor exhibits in the morning and then do the indoor trails, aquarium, and monorail in the afternoon.

See also:  A previous trip to the Minnesota Zoo

First I just want to say hi to all the Travels with Children readers!  Our recent trip to Texas was filled with Adventures and I’m thrilled to share a few of them with you.  Thanks Minnemom!

I grew up going to the Fort Worth Zoo, back when the animals were crammed into tiny cages and no one thought there was anything wrong with that.  Now, the 99-year-old Fort Worth Zoo is considered one of the top zoos in the country.  I have to agree.  The habitats are large and beautiful, the paths are wide and the education program is extensive.

Besides all the usual zoo features–hippos, zebras, giraffes (including a new baby!), a primate house, herpetarium, and big cats–the Fort Worth Zoo also has an area called Texas Wild! with animals native to the region and a replica of an old Texas town.  It would be a nice addition to a homeschooling section on Texas or natural history.  There are plenty of interactive features at many of the exhibits, especially at the herpetarium.  Kids gets to guess which snakes are venmous and which are non-venomous.  It’s a feature I fondly remember from childhood and was happy to see they’ve kept.

The highlight of the zoo for us was The Bird House.  It’s a big aviary filled with day-glow blue, green and yellow cockatiels and parakeets.  For $1 you can purchase little popcicle stick that’s been dipped in nectar and rolled in birdseed.  My toddler absolutely loved hand feeding the birds and so close to the action.  Be forewarned that the aviary is closed in the winter months.

There’s also an old fashioned carousel and 2 trains.  The Yellow Rose express runs back and forth from the north end to the south end of the zoo with stops along the way.  You can get a ticket for the carousel and a one-way on the train (in case your kids poop out at the far end and you need the quickest way back to the entrance) for $2.  The Forrest Park Mini-Train is a much longer ride (45 minutes) and circles the outside of the zoo and botanical gardens.  It’s a blast.

In general: The zoo boasts being open 365 days a year (10am-5pm).  We went in January and it was both lovely weather and we had the entire park to ourselves.  When we went again in April the place was packed with school kids on field trips.  It was still a wonderful visit just a little more difficult to keep up with a roaming toddler in the sea of people.  You can get detailed admission info and driving direction atwww.fortworthzoo.com.  The quick breakdown is that adults are $10.50, kids 3-12 are $8 and 2 and under are free but if you purchase tickets in advance from any Albertson’s grocery store you can get $1 off each ticket.  If your child is stroller age, bring your own.  I didn’t like the strollers and thought the rentals were expensive at $7 a pop for a single and $9 for a double.  Eateries include Pizza Hut, Dickey’s Barbeque, Ranch Grill, Grandy’s, an Ice Cream Parlor with Bluebell Ice Cream and a food court with Tex-Mex and Burger King.  It’s hard to eat healthy here so if you’re info that, pack your own snacks and sack lunch. There are plenty of shady spots to picnic.

13000 Zoo Blvd, Apple Valley, MN.  800-366-7811.  www.mnzoo.com
Zoo only (IMAX additional):  Free 0-2, $8 3-12, $14 13-64, $9 Seniors 65+.  AZA membership reciprocity.  Parking $5.  Stroller accessible.  Restrooms with changing tables.  Cafe on-site.

If you go to the Minnesota Zoo, wear your walking shoes and bring your easiest-to-push stroller, because you’ll be putting on a lot of miles.  The zoo is spread out in an effort to provide a more natural habitat for the animals.  So while there are  bison, takin, tigers, and camels in the outdoor areas, you won’t see elephants, zebras, or giraffes.

One of our favorite parts of the Minnesota Zoo is the Family Farm exhibit.  Even though we live on a farm, the kids still like being able to feed the goats and see the cows and horses up close.  Along the way to the family farm exhibit, there’s a playground, restrooms, and concessions, which makes a nice little break if needed.

The kids also love riding the monorail around the zoo.  There is an additional charge for this, but it’s worth it for the narrated slow-speed tour of the zoo’s outdoor areas.

Even in the winter, there’s plenty to do at the zoo.  Indoors, there’s an aquarium exhibit that’s popular with the younger kids, and a large tropics area where you can spot various birds and other animals.

Several shows, depending on the season, allow some time to sit down and learn something about the animals.  This past summer, we were all excited to see a bald eagle at the bird show.

There is also an Imax theater on the premises, a cafe area, and a workshop area that sometimes offers special programs for kids.

We’ve been to the Minnesota Zoo several times and we always find something new to see or do.

It was like there were 152 animals.  There were tons of them.  I liked the monkeys.

I really liked the Minnesota Zoo because I liked the monorail.

Sertoma Butterfly House

4320 S Oxbow Ave, Sioux Falls, SD.  605-334-9466.  www.sertomabutterflyhouse.org
$6 adults, $4.50 seniors 60+, $4 ages 4-19, 3 and under free.   Free parking.  Best to leave stroller behind.  Restrooms available.

When we were in Sioux Falls for a meeting, my mother-in-law treated the kids and me to a stop at the Sertoma Butterfly House, which she had visited previously.  We entered the butterfly area through double doors designed to keep the butterflies from escaping their home.  Inside, we could see many different varieties of butterflies, being careful not to step on any that might have stopped on the path.  Feeding stations allowed us to watch the butterflies as they ate, and we could see various cocoons with butterflies in different stages of emergence.

Although we didn’t spend a lot of time at the butterfly house, we all enjoyed the stop, and each of us had a favorite butterfly by the time we left.

I really liked looking for butterflies.

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Lincoln Park Zoo

2001 N. Clark St., Chicago, IL.  312-742-2000.  www.lpzoo.org
Free.  Various parking options available in vicinity; we were fortunate to find a free on-street parking spot.  Stroller accessible.  Restrooms available.  Concessions on premises.

We spent an entire day in the Lincoln Park area of Chicago, visiting the Notebaert Nature Center, the Chicago History Museum, and the Lake Michigan beach before meandering through the zoo on our way back to the car.

The great thing about the Lincoln Park Zoo is that it’s free.  There’s also a very nice (albeit somewhat expensive) carousel that we enjoyed riding.  But as far as animals go, well, we really didn’t see many.  There are several entrances and exits to the zoo, but once you’re inside, the signage isn’t very helpful.  We’d see a sign or a banner with an animal on it and assume that we’d find that animal nearby, but this method really didn’t work very well.  It was also quite warm the day we were there, not terribly hot, but apparently warm enough that many of the animals were in hiding in their areas, according to various signs.  Halfway through the zoo, we wondered if we would see more than rabbits and squirrels, but finally we found a lion, which was quite magnificent, a rhinocerous, which was the favorite of our 3-year-old, and some monkeys.

Mind you, since we’d already walked 2 or 3 miles that day, we weren’t exactly looking to find every nook and cranny of the zoo, and it was an enjoyable shortcut back to our car.  But for the number of animals that we actually saw, we were really, really glad that the admission was free.

I really liked seeing the lion there.

16th and Kiwanis Ave., Sioux Falls, SD.  605-367-7003.  www.gpzoo.org
Adults $6.80, 3-12 $3.80, Seniors 60+ $6.00, 2 and under free.  Free parking.  Stroller accessible.  Restrooms available.

A zoo in the winter in the northern states isn’t always a great idea, but the zoo in Sioux Falls has the benefit of having a museum attached, so even if you can’t brave the cold for long, you can learn something indoors.  We visited on a quiet January day and had the place nearly to ourselves.

The Delbridge Museum consists of mounted animals in varying habitats; the kids liked going from the tundra to the desert and seeing the different animals that live in the different continents.

Then we headed outside to the zoo, where there weren’t a lot of animals in view due to the weather.  We did make the rounds to see a few animals, but most were not on display because of the cold.

The zoo and museum were a nice stop to get the wiggles out of the kids before a long car ride, but it would have been a lot more fun in the summertime when more animals are there to see.

Related Posts:

• Kirby Science Discovery Center in Sioux Falls, SD
• America’s Best Zoos
• National Eagle Center
• Rio Grande Zoo

Great Lakes Aquarium

353 Harbor Drive, Duluth, MN. 218-740-3474. www.glaquarium.org
$12.95 adults, $6.95 ages 3-11, Seniors 62+ $9.95, Under 3 Free. Parking $4.00. Stroller accessible. Restrooms available.

Let me start by saying that this was definitely not one of our bargain stops. Even with two children free, this is more than I usually pay for admission. But, when in Duluth, one should see what’s in Duluth, so to the aquarium we went. Located in Duluth’s Canal Park area, it’s easy to find and convenient to restaurants and hotels.

The staff and volunteers were very friendly and pointed out things we’d want to see, like the stingray feeding and other things on the daily schedule. They were happy to talk about the aquarium and Duluth in general, including our questions about the Aerial Lift Bridge.

The kids enjoyed watching the stingray feeding, seeing the many fishtanks, and, of course, playing in the water tables. I really liked the turtles, and the views of the bridge and harbor.

Although the aquarium itself is a big place and was interesting to see, I’m not sure that it worth the price of admission for the amount of time we spent there. Perhaps with older kids, it would be more worthwhile, but with little ones who have short attention spans, we didn’t spend a lot of time there. Still, we enjoyed our visit, and it was a nice afternoon activity on a chilly Duluth winter day.

I really liked feeding the stingray.

Related Posts:

• Underwater Adventures Aquarium
• Albuquerque Aquarium
• Minnesota Zoo

1225 Estabrook Drive (in Como Park), St. Paul, MN. 651-487-8200. www.comozooconservatory.org/
Free (but donation of $2 adult/$1 child suggested). Free parking. Stroller accessible. Restrooms available, family restroom in main building. Cafe on-site, concessions available.

We’ve been to a few zoos in the past few years, and we’ve noticed that there are two types: big ones, where you walk for miles to see animals in their “natural” habitats, and smaller zoos where the animals each have their own little area. St. Paul’s Como Zoo is of the latter type, making it fun for kids without being exhausting for stroller pushers.

One of the nice things about Como Zoo is that you can see all of the typical “zoo” animals–lions and tigers and (polar) bears, plus zebras and giraffes. We’ve been to zoos where we walked and walked looking for the lions, only to learn that they didn’t have any. Something else nice is that if you get lost, or if your kids want to dart from one exhibit area to another, it’s all in close proximity, so you really can let the kids lead you if that’s what you choose to do. All of the buildings are stroller-accessible, but a few have stairs on one side and a ramp on the other, so you can’t just file in one door and out the other.

Favorites of the kids this time around were the polar bear and the lions (since we’d recently watched the Lion King). Inside the new visitor center is a “tropical encounters” exhibit where we could see tropical plants and birds.

The zoo is open year-round, and we have learned that it’s a lot quieter there on a chilly November day than on a warm August day. Parking was difficult to find; both of the zoo lots and the nearby park lots were full so we ended up parking along the street and walking quite a way.

Also accessible through the visitor center is the Marjorie McNeely conservatory, which we did not visit this time.

We did take a ride on the historic Cafesjian’s Carousel, however, and it was a real treat! A restored antique carousel, all of the horses are hand-carved. My older three rode on horses, and I sat in a chariot with my toddler. It was one of the fastest and longest carousel rides I’ve been on.

Also, be aware that there is an amusement park called Como Town adjacent to and visible from the zoo, so if you’re not interested in spending extra money on fair-type rides, you can prepare your “no” answers ahead of time.

Como Zoo is one of those classic zoos that is a delight to visit with young children.

I really liked looking at the lion and I liked going on the carousel, too.

Related Posts:

• Rio Grande Zoo
• Minnesota Zoo
• Fort Worth Zoo

57649 MN Highway 55, Eden Valley, MN. 320-453-6901. http://www.amazenfarmyard.com/
$5.95 ages 3 to adult, 2 and under free. Free parking. Stroller accessible. Restrooms available, with changing tables. Concessions available on-site.

We first visited the A Maze’n Farmyard two years ago and have made it an annual trek since then, and each year there’s more fun. When we first visited, the animals in the barn and outdoors, plus the permanent maze, were the main attractions. Last year, mini-golf and a giant slide had been added, and this year there were barrel train rides and carnival games. More new things are in the works for next year.

We’ve been to the farmyard in spring and fall, on busy days and quiet, and always have a good time. We start out in the barn, where our oldest loves to hold the kittens and puppies, and those children brave enough will feed the goats. Outside, you can see llamas and camels and go through the huts of chickens, birds, and other animals. The namesake of the place is the maze, made of wooden lattice walls. If you’re lucky enough to find your way through, you can have a card punched at each of five stations within the maze. If you get too lost, there are emergency exits. And if you’re not up for the big maze, there’s a kiddie maze where you can get a taste of it.

If you want to try the giant slide, grab a burlap sack and climb up the stairs. (This mom didn’t try the slide, although a dad and a grandma were happy to go down with the kids.) Afterward, let the kids go on a pony ride or play carnival games in the upper level of the barn.

When the kids need to let off some steam, let them jump in one of the inflated jumpers, play on the modern playground or in the sandbox, or play a round of mini golf. Pose for a picture at a photo spot or catch a ride behind a tractor or on a barrel train. There are two covered picnic shelters as well as a snack bar and nice gift shop in the main building.

This is a place that’s spread out nicely, so even if the parking lot is crowded, you still have plenty of space to wander around. Let the kids lead you to what they want to do–there’s such a variety that it’s hard to guess what they’ll want to do next.

The farmyard is on a hill, so on cooler windy days it can feel cold; on the other hand, the wind is nonexistent in the center of the maze so it’s sweltering in midsummer heat (although a well-placed vending machine can help cool you down). Being aware of the weather can help you dress appropriately for your trip.

This is one of the few places our kids ask for year after year, and they each have their favorite part. The staff are helpful and the entire place is very family-friendly. It’s a definite thumbs-up from this mom.

The Amaze’n Farmyard was amazing! It had two mazes, one big, one little. My most favorite was the big one because we got to punch holes in our cards. I liked the park and also I liked the jumping things.

I really liked looking at the animals and holding the kitties.

Related Post:

The Amaze’n Farmyard (Again)