ABQ BioPark, Albuquerque

There wasn't much I disliked about this place. A lot of cities can't do a zoo/botanical garden/aquarium right but this was a really good one. For 12 bucks you got the whole enchilada; all the parks and the train ride up and down the river to each. The zoo was pretty good, the garden's were beautiful even though most things were dead as it was January, and the aquarium was sort of small but still worth it.

The zoo, Aquarium and Gardens always have a pleasant atmosphere that make them fun places to visit. A open train runs between all the parks with a guided tour. Membership is a great value!

I really enjoyed all the sea animals, the theatre that gives people an insight about the rio grande, the easy access to the bitanical garden, which was so beautiful to explore.

The bio park consists of: 1 The aquarium, 2 The botanic gardens, 3 The zoo, 4 Tingly park, 5 A little passenger train connecting them all. The aquarium and botanic gardens are right next to each other and share a parking lot. I think the admission price always includes both of them. The botanic gardens are really great if you like walking and looking at plants. It's got grass, a lake, the child-fantasy garden, two big glass conservatories, formal gardens, and a farm in the back that just opened (fall 2005). In the summer they have concert/picnics on the grass in the evening. There's always lots of room so it's OK to show up ten minutes before the conert starts. Around xmas they decorate the place with billions of lights in the "Festival of Lights". The aquarium is small but very nice. It is dark and cool, which is very nice after spending a few summer days in the botanic gardens next door. It has a so-so resturant. The zoo is clean and well run. It's not vast like San Diego - it's a nice regional zoo. It's on local streets and kind of hard to find. In the summer they have concert/picnics on the grass like at the botanical garden. Personally, I like the botanical concerts better. I've never been to Tingly park because it's been closed for a few years. I think it is opening again around January 2006. I think it's just a nice park with shade and a big pool, mostly for locals. The little train in the zoo will also run to Tingly and the botanic gardens starting around January 2006. It will run thru the bosque - the wild lands next to the river.