Sedgwick County Zoo, Wichita

The zoo has multiple exhibits that have glass fronts so you can get up close and personal with the animals and get great pictures. If you are a tiger lover the tiger exhibit was awesome. The tigers get right up to the glass and you feel like you could reach out and touch them. Its amazing. The bird exhibit was fabulous, they even had fruit bats out in the trees, not behind any glass enclosures or cages. Its worth the $12 admission to go. I would hold off going during the hot summer days though. They do have multiple enclosures that are air conditioned if you need to cool off. We spent about 30 minutes in the tiger exhibit and the monkey area each to cool off. Helped a lot.

I've been to over 60 zoos in the United States, and this one is definatly in my top 10. It has no bad exhibits, and is uniformly good, something not seen very often at American zoos. The reptile building was small, but had some interesting creatures and exhibits. The penguin exhibit is nicely done, but humboldt penguin exhibits are quite common nowadays. The jungle is one of the best in the U.S. The only zoos with better indoor rainforests are Bronx and Omaha of course. The North America section is incredibly complete and has some great, and very large exhibits for bison, elk, brown bear, pronghorn, and Mexican gray wolf. The South America/Australia walkthrough exhibit is incredible. The list of birds was incredible, as was the other animals in this brilliant area. The Asian Forest was nothing spectacular, but there were tons of Asian bird, including demoiselle cranes, a well as Malayan tapirs. The Tiger Trek has a great tiger exhibit and the theming is incredible. The Gorilla Forest may have been the best exhibit, with large habitats for okapis and saddle-billed storks, as well as an incredible gorilla exhibit. The pride of the Plains is a very nice kopje area with a beautiful lion exhibit. The African Veldt was the worst part of the zoo, and it was only of average quality. This is by far one of the most complete zoos. A master plan calls for a renovation of this zoo, which is already one of the best. If you're within at least 2 hours from WItchita, this is a MUST see zoo.

The SCZ is incredible! So many exhibits with rare and exotic animals. The only slightly outdated area is the Amphibian and Reptiles house, but a zookeeper told me that there is a renovation in the works! The SCZ should give Wichita a lot of pride, few zoos have as much success breeding critically endangered animals, like the Poitu Donkey foal as well as many birds and amphibians. The new exhibits are thoughtfully laid out and seek to recreate the native areas of the animals. For example, the new Slawson Tiger exhibit has areas that look and sound like a street market in India, or whichever area the tigers are from. The penguin exhibit does a good job of providing great views of the penguins. Some are dissapointed in it, but what did they expect, Happy Feet? The staff is friendly and there is obviously an "animals first" mentality that every zoo should have. Definitly worth your time; an excellent bang for your buck.

I have been to this zoo 2 times now. I love this zoo!! It is a little more expensive, but it is a very nice zoo. The animals seem happier then in most zoos i've seen. They will actually get up and walk around (well, not all the time!) Both times i've been there the gorilla would come right up to the glass and just watch you and he/she would eat a carrot!! There is a part I do recommend that you don't go into. The elephants, rhinos, and giraffes have a area where they go into when they don't want to be outside. It is VERY unpleasant smelling in there. I don't have a weak stomach and I can't walk in there without wanting to throw up. They have areas where you can see animals under water (penguins and the hippo) and that is always fun to watch them swim around! I would recommend this zoo to anyone!

I loved the children's farms with petting zoo and baby animals.The bridges and distinctive walkways made all the walking more enjoyable. I also loved the themed sections of the park. For Father's Day they had a car show and an Elvis impersonator! We had family from 1-50 in age and all 5 of us enjoyed this zoo. We were very disapointed in the concessions. Luckily, it wasn't very hot until the end of our visit. It was very understaffed and lots were not even open.It was very pricey. They advertise a tram & it was nowhere to be seen. Nice, clean & well cared for animals and that was the most important to me. I would definately travel there again even at 4.00 for a gallon of gas!

I have been to many zoos in the Midwest and would rank the SCZ as one of the best. Only rivaled by the Henry Doorly Zoo in Omaha, St Louis Zoo, and maybe edged out by the Oklahoma City Zoo, SCZ has a great balance and variety of things to see. The layout of this zoo is one of the best as there is easy walking distance from exhibit to exhibit. The zoo staff keeps things fresh from year to year by introducing exciting new exhibits although I was a bit disappointed by the new penguin exhibit. There is a new restaurant opening in the early spring of 2008 and plans for a tiger exhibit in the coming year. The South American and Australian walk through aviary is probably one of my favorite things to see time and time again. Very impressive layout and diversity of wildlife found scurrying all around while you join the animals within their exhibit. Love the wallabys and many beautiful parrots that make great photo ops for the kids. "Catch a Keeper" events are an interesting way to watch the interaction of keeper and animals and learn all the great tidbits. Elephant "yoga" is a must see. You won't be disappointed.

It was a nice way to burn an afternoon but $42 for a family to just get in, then $8 for the stroller, $2 per drink long as it was not in the souvenir cup as that one is more, and don't even add up the foods... So like most things with your family, not the most affordable. Lots of construction, I look forward to seeing it when it is finished but since moving here it is all I have seen in there. This last trip was a little disturbing and I wish a history of where the animals came from could be readily found out. I do not know how you would do that. The Mexican Grey Wolves were sunning looking so relaxed to suddenly leap up and start running in all directions frantically with their tails tucked under them. They were terrified when a golf cart was approaching their large containment opposite of the observation deck. Is this normal behavior when every other animal there does not even seem phased buy people? Did they come from an abusive environment as rescues? How long have they been there? Are they treated well there? It was just heart breaking to see such beautiful strong animals reduced to cowering pups.

The only reason I gave this 4 stars is because of the construction and if there were a few more cool off spots other then that the family loved it. Will be back again.

My family loves this zoo. Since around 2000, they have been adding on new, fun exhibits. It's the perfect size (not too spread out like the one in KC) to walk around, and has a great selection of animals. The new gorilla exhibit is very nice. Sedgwick County Zoo also gives the animals more room to roam than some zoos (see Topeka) and the animals seem well cared for. Must see: Gorilla exhibit, lion exhibit, Sea Otters

my kids and i go to the scz everytime we are in wichita, and never get tired of it. we notice something new everytime we go. super clean and very well organized. will continue to visit when the opportunity presents itself.