Feel like a V.I.P when you book a Zoo a la Cart session.
These private Zoo tours offer you the opportunity to experience the Zoo in a new way.
Hop aboard a golf cart and experience a Zoo tour personalized for you.
“You can choose where you want to go. If there’s not really preferences in that regard, you’ll just go in the Zoo loop and stop at different locations, you may get off the golf cart to go in certain buildings,” Education Specialist Joe McDowell said. “You have that opportunity to ask questions and get information from someone who works here and get a little more info than you would just going through on your own.”
Each Zoo tour is led by an education staff member who will narrate your tour. Have you ever wanted to know the names of our lions? Or how we feed the penguins? Or what the oldest animal at the Zoo is? Our education specialists can answer all these questions and more.
You might even run into zookeepers who can tell you first-hand what it’s like working with your favorite animals.
“Everyone has different experiences and knowledge,” McDowell said. “We provide information on what animals we have, how many we have, what the feeding routine is for them, if they do meet and greets in the future.”
On occasion, you can experience a behind the scenes Zoo tour. Ride past our vet clinic, where we care for our sick animals. See the green house where horticulture works. View the commissary where we prepare all the animals’ dietary needs.
“Behind the scenes you’re seeing stuff you wouldn’t even get to see outside of maybe glimpses from our train,” McDowell said.
Each private Zoo tour can accommodate three to five people. Tickets start at $35 for members and $45 for non-members.
Zoo a la Cart runs for one hour and is always available from 9:00 a.m. until 3:30 p.m. Check the Zoo’s site for additional seasonal hours.
Tours can be booked online or by calling.
“If I’m giving a tour, I just like sharing my stories,” McDowell said. “I like being able to build that relationship with whatever guests we have here and making sure that they feel like they’re extra taken care of.”
Zoo a la Cart is a unique private Zoo tour experience that you won’t soon forget. Whether you want to learn more about your favorite animal, do the Zoo loop, or have a behind the scenes Zoo tour, Zoo a la Cart offers something for everyone.
