Reviews of Point Defiance Zoo & Aquarium (Zoo)

D C (Fluffs Adventures)

Reservation recommended

Benjamin Velasquez

How lucky are we to have a local zoo so close to us. We got there nice and early and plenty of parking. Some of the animals were shy and hiding but lots of them made an appearance. Brought our own lunch in with us, main grill/restaurant was open but other than ice cream the side vendors were closed. Lots of bathrooms all around the zoo, and easy ADA walking paths and elevators where needed. Had a great day exploring with my son, a fun summer activity to get out and about to do together.

Jen Procick

Weekday

100% Dead

Weekend

Ganesh Kumar

Yes

Jedediah Seltzer

Wait time

Nagaraju Rajuri

Visited on

Sandhya Iyengar

$21–30

Kelsie Nativo

Visited on

Walter Cribbe

Yes

Angelique Connell

Wait time

Nihal Shah

Reservation recommended

Faith Chambers

$11–15

Lisa Einarson

Wait time

Tiffany Wixom

No

Caleb Spring

We had the best time checking out the animals. My son even made a new friend. The people were very friendly. We did not have to wait in a long line. It is not far to walk 2 to 3 minutes from the parking. Parking is free. Sanitation stations was nice to see. The play area to let the kids run around while the parents can relax a little. Great food to eat there.

Anna Werkun

Price for adult entry

Rebecca Chappell

Price for adult entry

I M

Arrived at 9:30. Took us a half a day to complete the different loops. Animals were out and about. Very clean. No big crowds on a Saturday Morning. We were able to feed goats, and touch sting rays, horseshoe crabs, and starfish. The kid zone was open and clean.

Brooke Bobbitt

Public holiday

Pushkar Pahare

Such a fun zoo! We bought ice cream halfway through. Just wish more of the animals had been out. It seems like there were a lot of empty or single occupied exhibits (such as the elephant enclosure). You can touch a lot of the sea creatures. Overall it was well worth it. Pay online for a discount. There are strollers and wheelchairs to rent. Also a carousel to ride in the rental area.

Enjoy Life

Reservation recommended

Kobe Hersel

Yes

Izzy Marquez

Visited on

Casey Carr

No wait

Tammy Mulkey

No wait

Abraham England

It was alot of fun! They only had like one or two of each animal but the aquariums were amazing! You can pet the stingrays and horseshoe crabs! They have two nice parks for all ages. Definitely going back!

AMG

Visited on

David Lee

Visited on

Maxim Flemdan

Yes

Michael Cox

Price for adult entry

Anastashia King

Weekday

Barely Alive

Absolutely our favorite zoo and aquarium! The kids and adults had a blast. We were fortunate enough to go close to Halloween, so there were cute Halloween add ins if you were looking! Loved it.

Lucki Clover

Great little zoo and aquarium. It is not large but the exhibits are all done very well. The aquariums I need especially the one with hammerhead sharks and manta rays. The ground themselves are kind of like a nice garden and there are lots of spots for picnicking. They currently have timed tickets (Writing this as of August 1, 2021) Also the parking lot. Throughout the day so morning is best

Malinda Yim

Love that the zoo is with an aquarium. Although it seems that it was more quiet now that before all the changes, the fun and experience was still there for kids. It was great to be back. Staff were helpful. Love the take your photo section, but the photos didn’t make it to our emails.

Rui Rodriguez

Overall a nice experience. Good sized zoo, lots of different types of animals. Parking lot was full but it didn’t feel packed as we were there. Some of the enclosures seem too small for the size of the animal. The big cats were pacing constantly which means they are stressed. That was disheartening to see.

Joe W

Visited on

Karmic Debt

Yes

Maiko Kuroki

No wait

Arling vasquez

Wait time

Valerie Pflughoeft

Wait time

Abhishek Wason

Very fun! I will say that I think my family and I went at the wrong time. I think 12pm was too late too show up. Most of the animals were having their noon nap. Definitely still worth it! Very clean and beautiful!

Scott T

Reservation recommended

Pam Davidson

We attended Zoo lights for the first time ever. Our party included my husband, myself, our daughter and her husband and their two little girls, age 3 and 16 months. The 16-month-old was in a stroller. It was raining lightly, so we got a little wet but not drenched. We very much enjoyed the walk and the lights. It wasn't terribly crowded; we went at 4:30 on a Tuesday evening. The 3-year-old's favorite stop was the little goat barn and feeding and petting the goats. Everyone we saw was masked as required, and there were a few places where you could get hand sanitizer, the goat barn being one of them. My photos turned out surprisingly well for it being dark. All those holiday lights brightened up the place. Most of the animals were not out for viewing but we did see penguins in their pool, and a few small animals in their glass in habitats. In one building we were lucky to see a tiger in his giant glass in home and he was sleeping so soundly was like giant house cat.

Raymond Pidgeon (MegaMauserMan)

Wait time

Jimmy Jammerz

Pretty big place and lots of ups and down to see the exhibits. Be prepared to walk quite a bit on uneven terrain. Places are wheelchair friendly. Lots of animals and aquarium for just $20 is actually worth it. Bring own food to save money. Long lines at cafe and ice cream shop on weekends. My fav was spotted eagle rays and shark. Enjoyed my outing.

Erik Sarvela

Nice little zoo. Great winter exercise. Nice exhibits, although many animals were not out. Will try to come back someday during spring or summer.

Melissa Saunders

Price for adult entry

Jennifer Cochran

No wait

Sarah Santos

Visited on

Aaron Dubey

Always a fun afternoon. Very educational and the keepers are great to speak to when you can catch them! A lot of diversity in the species you can see on a given day but also not overwhelmingly huge. Lots of families and is usually moderately busy but the crowds ebb and flow so you can get some excellent viewing! It does seem like there are less options right now as far as dining and activities due to the off season and probably Covid too. Definitely check out the otters ????, polar bear ????‍❄️, elephants ???? and lemurs! What am I saying?! Check out all of them! They’re all cool from the boas and scorpions to armadillos and (fan fav) tigers. Learn and take notes on conservation and how you can help keep these amazing creatures around for the future generations! ❤️

J Mac

What a wonderful zoo. Get there early and avoid the crowds. We have been coming for years and the additions, like the new aquarium, are fantastic. My kids have grown up visiting this zoo and it’s still one of our favorite family activities. It seems like the staff really do care for the well being and protection of the animals. Consider a membership if your local. It pays for itself very quickly!

Sam Harrison

Yes

David Schexnayder

Took a weekend trip here with friends! Although it was rainy we got to see many of the animals in their cozy dens. Staff takes great care of the animals and are extremely knowledgeable.

Darlene Stewart

Free

Kimhieu Tran

$11–15

T

Weekday

Caps Gal

1 hr+

scot white

I went here as a kid when there were belugas. The whales are gone but a lot is familiar. The park is built on the side of a hill, so there’s a lot of walking up and down hills. There are many staples of zoos, from elephants to meerkats. Often you won’t see anything in the exhibits, but they are live animals and can sleep or hide as they please. There is a kids zone to play in which is great when you don’t want to venture deep into the park. There are some animals there and a goat petting area. Near the exit there is an inexpensive carousel that has a short ride for $2 (less for members). The worst part of the zoo is parking. If you aren’t there early, expect to roam the lots for awhile. We went one day at near to closing and spent 20 minutes looking for a spot, though on a weekday around 11 we found a spot immediately (but lot was still nearly full). I would recommend buying the yearly family membership. It varies in price but we purchased a combo family pass which was $365 for a year. It includes two adults and any kids in home, plus membership to Northwest Trek, a nearby wild animal park in Eatonville. To venture to either park as a nonmember can get costly quickly if you ever intend to go back. We covered the value of our membership in three visits between the two parks.

Tensie Petersen

Wait time

Savanna Keith

Visited on

Jessie

This whole area is beautiful. From the parks to the zoo, everything is very well laid out. There is a road that is called the 5 mile drive and the whole road stays pretty scenic. I saw deer, birds, raccoons, squirrels in the short time I visited. Definitely worth a visit

Husenbhai Dudhiyawala

Love this place! Great for the little ones. Super kid friendly and there's a playground that's spaced out and a little bit for all of them. There's a food court but it's not the greatest. Suggest bringing in your food or eat prior or after the zoo. Otherwise, everyone was super friendly, patient and welcoming!

Sherry Oliveri

Weekday

Graham Reeve

Nice and neat zoo+aquarium. Very satisfied with an expectation that it is not a huge place. Visited on weekday, only plaza cafe was opened, offering burgers, fries, pizza, ice cream, and popcorn. The training demo at the wild wonders outdoor theater had different animals at different show time.

Mark Ruprecht

Reservation recommended

Alison Cavanaugh

Weekend

Amy Churchill

No wait

Makayla

Wait time

Jennifer Holm

It was my first time coming here and I was amazed. The aquarium was really big and I loved how dark it was in some places. It made me feel like I was in the ocean. I felt bad for some of the animals though. They were cute and all but watching them pace back and forth made me feel bad for them. Other than that, this zoo is a great place for any age group.

Joy Veney

Reservation recommended

Norinda Yancey

SO COOL, lots more animals and happier looking environments and enclosures than places like the Seattle zoo. PLEASE COME HERE AND DONATE ON YOUR WAY OUT. These animals and owners deserve it

Eric Duvall's Student Leadership Reprots for TESC

Weekday

Eric V

Price for adult entry

Pei-Chin Wu

No wait

Wendy Paull

My family and I always have a great time at the zoo. Today we could only go for a couple hours but it was so worth it, just to get out for a bit. We have our membership with the zoo (which I highly recommend) so even if we don't see everything in one day we can go back the next week-end without worrying about an entrance fee.

L H

$16–20

beverly ryng

Reservation recommended

Rebecca Sheldon

No wait

Google User

We went on Saturday, December 11 at 11 until about 3. Unfortunately I happened to pick a day where there was a wind and rain storm, so there was a good amount of animals that weren’t visible or wanted to mainly stay in their warm den. But that’s no fault of the zoo! That’s just how it is sometimes. We got angus burgers and waffle fries from the food place, it was delicious. At 12, we made our way to the Wild Wonders Outdoor theater for the Animal Close Encounter, which I highly recommend! We got to see pouched rats run across a bridge, a really cool African bird take flight, a beaver swim in a pool, and an Eagle Owl fly over the audience. We were only able to view one aquarium as the other one is under construction but the aquarium we did see was AMAZING! At the end they even had an area where you can touch tide pool animals like sea urchins. The kids zone was nice and big and had a bunch of cool animals surrounding it. My kids also enjoyed riding the carousel. Even with the bad weather we still had a great experience. We definitely want to try and go back so we can see animals that we weren’t able to.