The Ultimate Guide to The Maryland Zoo In Baltimore
The Ultimate Guide to The Maryland Zoo In Baltimore
The Maryland Zoo in Baltimore is one of the best zoos for kids in the United States! Check out this ultimate guide to the zoo and learn all the tips!
The Maryland Zoo in Baltimore is seriously one of our favorite places to visit, not just in Maryland, but ever! This relatively small zoo is packed full of fun. It’s perfect for kids because you can get close to the animals… really close. Plus there are some fantastic animals experiences that many larger zoos don’t have!
The zoo is incredibly walkable and there are numerous play features your kids will love too! Check out this Ultimate Guide to The Maryland Zoo in Baltimore will show you all the reasons you will want to visit with your family too!
Main Entrance Area/Shaefer Plaza
Once you go through the ticket area, you will see the gift store on your right. Go ahead and skip that for now. Ha! But there is also a stroller rental area next to the gift store in case you need it.
If you arrive in the morning, have your kids sit on the iron lions now…. they will likely be too hot to sit on later!
And go potty. There is a nice restroom in this area.
Prairie Dogs
These prairie dogs are adorable. It’s an entire group (called a coterie) of dogs and depending on when you visit, you can see all the new prairie dog babies too!
There isn’t a bad time to see the prairie dogs… we typically check them out while everyone is going to the bathroom at the beginning or end of the trip.
Before COVID, from here you could hop on the tram and ride to the main zoo. Or, you could walk. It now appear the tram has returned but to a different spot just past the Celebration Hill playground. Note: The walk down to the main zoo is very pleasant.. and downhill. You might want to walk to the main zoo, and take the tram back.
Northern Passage
Bears!
I am so sad that the Polar Bears have left the Maryland Zoo. Like.. apoplectic sad. I really hope they return someday. In the meantime though, the brown bear sisters, Nova and Nita, are super fun to see! They are often playing with each other, swimming and more!
In the same area as the bears, you can also see a bald eagle, arctic fox, and raven. Post-pandemic, the Tundra Buggy will reopen. When it does, definitely climb aboard for a bird’s eye view of the bears playing!
Penguins
One of the first animal exhibits visitors can experience are the African Penguins. These super playful birds are so cute. Catch them at feeding time (1030-1045am or 330-345pm) for a fun show! You will also see the pelican’s in this habitat too!
Clearly, you will want to watch the penguins from outside, but go inside the penguin habitat too! There are floor to ceiling windows where you can see the penguins swim underwater… and if you are lucky, they will play with you.
There is also an area where water gushes out like a waterfall… it’s pretty thrilling for kids.
African Journey
The largest area of the zoo (and the one with the most animals) is the African Journey. As you exit the Penguin building, just head into Africa!
Flamingos
The flamingos and sitatunga are the first animals you will see. Sometimes the flamingos are just hanging out. But sometimes there are squawking and flapping their wings. When this happens it’s hilarious!
Zebra/Rhino/Ostrich
After the Sitatunga you can either turn left for the Chimpanzees or veer right/go straight. I would recommend going straight.
On your right you will see the giant tortoise. But on the left there is quite the show! This habitat has giant ostriches, white rhinoceros, and zebras! And yes, you can typically see all three of them at the same time!
Keep walking along the edge of the habitat to get the best view of the animals.
On your right there is a really nice aviary as well. You can enter at the beginning or the end of the zebra/rhino habitat.
Leopard and Cheetah
After the zebra habitat and aviary, spend some time with the leopard and cheetah! Also, the antelope are in this area and usually pretty active. The leopard and cheetah are more elusive. Pro tip: time your visit for when these cats will either a) get fed or b) receive an enrichment. The zoo does a great job of positioning these things to draw out the cats.
For the cheetah in particular, you can watch from a glass window that’s right in front of their favorite lounging rock!
Lions!
In 2019 The Maryland Zoo unveiled the most amazing zoo overhaul ever! Basically they completely renovated the lion, giraffe, and elephant habitats. Let me just tell you.. it’s incredible!
Not only can you see the lions from a huge glass plate window viewing area, but the original viewing areas are still around. We rarely visit the zoo now and don’t see the lions up close. It’s phenomenal!
Giraffes
One of the best parts of the renovations is the Giraffe habitat viewing area. Now you can see the lions on one side and the giraffes on the other. The viewing area is raised, so you can get a great view of the giraffes.
Feeding the giraffes is a truly epic experience that won’t break the bank! It’s only $4/members and $5/non-members. April-October giraffe feeding is daily from 1030-1230 and 130-3pm. November-March it’s Friday-Sunday with the same hours.
Elephants
The Elephant habitat has always been great. However, with the renovations their habitat was basically tripled in size! There are now multiple viewing areas and you can get a great view of the elephant enrichment and watering hole areas.
Chimpanzee Forest
Once you see the lions, giraffes, and elephants, walk around the Giraffe House to Lemur Lane and the Chimpanzee Forest. There are so many great animals to see here!
Lemurs, Colobus Monkey, Panamanian Golden Frogs, Crocodiles… and of course, all the Chimpanzees!
There are plenty of chimpanzee viewing areas inside and outside. The chimps really put on a show too. Sometimes they get really close to the observation windows, sometimes they are more aloof, and sometimes they are irritable. We have visited multiple times when they body slam the windows… it’s really cool to see, if not a bit jarring.
Look for all the baby chimps that have been born in the last few years too!
Maryland Wilderness
The other major animal area of the Maryland Zoo is the Maryland Wilderness. There aren’t as many animals here, but the ones they have a great. And there are loads of other fun play features. You can enter this area from the main entrance near the penguins, or from the Farmyard.
Farmyard and Goat Corral
The Farmyard is a kid favorite area. First off, yes.. you can actually brush the goats! It’s awesome.. and so relaxing for kids and adults (and the goats). lol.
There are loads of other farm animals here too. Donkey’s, Alpacas, Pig, Sheep, and more! There are even beautiful swans!
In addition to brushing the goats there are other hands on experiences too. Ride the saddle, see how tall you are compared to a horse, and slide down the barn shoot slide!
Bobcat and Otters
There are other animal habitats inside the Maryland Wilderness. If you are lucky you can see the Bobcat. The otters are definitely more playful and there are numerous vantage points to see them. You can also explore the bat cave and see other animals that are indigenous to Maryland too!
Giant Tree Slide
The Maryland Wilderness has a ton of interactive play features your kids will love. The most popular is this Giant Tree Slide. It’s so fast!
Kids can pretend to be a giant tortoise. They can also pretend to be a prairie dog and stick their heads up in a prairie dog field.
Marsh Aviary
There is a second aviary inside Maryland Wilderness. It’s definitely worth a stop, if for no other reason than to jump on these giant Lilypads!
And every kid will want to hop inside this eagle nest play feature!
Rides and Attractions
The Maryland Zoo has two rides you can pay extra for.. and they are both super fun.
We never pass up the opportunity to ride this animal-themed carousel. It’s gorgeous and rides are $4/member; $5/non-member.
The Jones Falls Zephyr Train Ride is also a lot of fun; especially for younger kids. It is a 10 minute ride and costs the same as the carousel.
Special Events
The Maryland Zoo has some really fantastic special events. One we LOVE is Breakfast With the Animals. These events tend to sell out fast so if you are interested get your tickets early. A few times a year, the zoo offers a catered breakfast and special animal enrichments for penguins, chimps, elephants, lions, giraffes, and Africa. One added benefit is after breakfast you get early access to the zoo before the rest of the zoo guests can enter! That’s almost worth the cost in and of itself!
Other special events include Brew at the Zoo, Zoo Bop Kids Music Festival, Twilight Family Strolls, Zoo Booo, Bunny Bonanzoo, Zoo Snooze, Zoolights, and more!
When you are at the zoo, don’t miss the pop up animal encounters. These encounters really are pop ups and you can typically pet or get really really close to the animals. We have enjoyed encounters with snakes, birds, hedgehogs, and more!
Know Before You Go
- Parking: There are two parking areas. the one in front of the zoo is probably more convenient. But, if you have a stroller, the ‘pavement’ is more a grass/stone area that is murder on stroller wheels. I would highly recommend parking at Parking Lot C if this is you.
- Admission: For non-members the cost is $20 for kids, $21 for seniors, and $24 for adults. Note: For the foreseeable future, you have to reserve timed entry tickets online for weekends.
- Hours: Regular Season Daily 10am-4pm. Winter Season (January and February) Friday-Monday 10am-4pm.
- Address: One Safari Place, Baltimore, MD 21217. Google Map Directions here!
