This cute little gem in Merced, is a defiantly must go to if you have little ones! We brought our…read moretwo grandsons ages 2.5 and 7 months old. They have carnival like rides for the littles, a little train ride and a snack bar. The staff was very nice, the place was clean and well kept. They have a unlimited wristband for $10 dollars or tickets are .50 cents each and each ride is 1 ticket. Very affordable. There is a little zoo next door, and a large park as well, with lots of shade. I am so glad we found this little place, our grandsons had a great time and we will be coming here again very soon!

They didn't let me ride the roller coaster since im too tall now im mad will not be coming backread more

Such a great petting zoo service, They set up on time and cleaned up the area after they finished,…read morethe animals were friendly and clean, thankfully. we had some children scared to approach the animals but his children helped them feel more comfortable with the animals, the pony rides were the best the kids really loved it. I will definitely use them again and will highly recommend

From the owner: We are a small local business which brings the miniature petting zoo to your special event.We also…read moreoffer a package with pony rides.

Enjoyed the zoo last week. Feeding the giraffes, spectating the bird show, watching the sea lions…read moreand seals swim, and cooling off in the reptile house were the perks of this visit. The plan is to return this week for the dinosaur and butterfly exhibits, which reopened this past weekend. Note, an extra fee to enter each is required.

We visited Fresno Chaffee Zoo over the long holiday weekend, so it was a little crowded but nothing…read moremajor or overwhelming. We've always gone to LA Zoo but decided to give Fresno Zoo a try. The zoo was much easier to navigate as it was not as spread out as LA Zoo. The highlight of our trip was definitely the giraffe feeding experience with my granddaughter. It was such a special and memorable moment! We also really enjoyed the orangutan exhibit watching them swing and chase each other was so much fun. The stingray experience was another favorite, and we were pleasantly surprised to see nurse sharks in the exhibit as well. These two experiences were an additional charge. The elephant family was absolutely adorable, especially the two little elephants. We were also pleasantly surprised by how spacious their roaming area is. Prices were a little higher than expected. Overall, it was a wonderful visit with lots of memorable experiences. We'll definitely be back!

What a blast! Dixie mobile farm came to volunteer at a free church event. They brought mini pigs,…read morebaby lambs, a lion mane bunny (cuter than cute) and silky chickens! The kids (and myself) had an absolute blast. A perfect set up, what a treat (:

Dixie's came out for our daughters's 7th birthday party this year and it was a huge hit! They were…read morewonderful with the kids and everyone had a great time! I would highly recommend them for any kids party, they made for such a fun, unique and memorable experience

Best homestyle cooking around. Great daily specials and…read moreextremely friendly staff. Logan is the best server, ever! Prices are in line with all the other restaurants but quality is superb. Im diabetic so i cant rate desserts. Ambiance is good but not great.

Our visit to Cover's Apple Ranch started as a "quick breakfast stop" and somehow turned into a…read morefull-blown farm hangout like we'd been adopted by the property. Breakfast came first. Simple, hearty, and exactly what you want before pretending you're outdoorsy. The baked goods? Dangerous. I'm pretty sure the apple pastries are laced with something addictive because suddenly I was considering buying six pies "for later" like I live in a cabin and churn butter. But the real plot twist? The animals. We came for eggs and toast, and stayed because a goat made prolonged eye contact with me like it knew my secrets. There were chickens strutting around like they run the place (honestly, they probably do), and every animal had that "you're in our house now" energy. At one point, I realized we'd been there way longer than planned, just casually hanging out with farm animals like this was part of our daily routine. City life who? Come for the breakfast, stay because a goat emotionally manipulates you into never leaving.

Storyland Fresno is such a magical place for children, our family of 4 enjoyed exploring the…read moreclassic fairytales and all the play areas! Princes and Princesses are just $8, King and Queens are $10 and Elders of the King's Court are $9! Magic Keys are $7 and you can use them throughout the land to unlock classic children's stories like Alice in Wonderland and The Tale of Peter Rabbit! The best part? You can bring them back your next visit! The collectible cards are a nice souvenir as well, we got Frog Prince! Our 8 year old helped plant a Five Spot flower in Mr. McGregor's Garden, she can check on whenever she visits! This park opened in 1962, they're located next to Fresno Chaffee zoo if you're looking for more activities to take your kiddos! We'll have to return to ride the Storyland Train that's currently in operation and our eldest wanted more time on the slides and sand area! Maybe try something from the Concession stand and catch a performance as well! *Song Credit: Magical Fairy Tale by SoundGalleryBy Site: https://pixabay.com/music/-christmas-music-magical-fairy-tale-for-children-kids-125101/

This place is soo adorable for the little ones big imagination. I love that they still use the keys…read morelike when I was little. Most places gone digital for everything so that's a memory I love from childhood that still exist. The park was pleasant, clean, they had a little snack bar where you could purchase hot dogs, nachos, ice cream, drinks, some stuff on the list they don't have and no different flavors of chips they just had BBQ lays. Alice was waking around so you could take pictures with her. I wasn't sure if she worked there or if she was with a family since she had long straight pretty hair instead of blonde but movies change over the years so maybe Alice has brown hair now. Either way she was super sweet and the baby took pics with her. They still have alot of little statues of characters that are cute to take pictures with. In the children's Chapel only 1 out of the 2 organs/piano worked. But we don't really need to hear both playing at the same time so it was still enjoyable. Over all a great visit. And brought back great childhood memories

I am always looking for some fun activities I can do with the kiddos. I have heard about this…read morehatchery for some time and been meaning to go. Since the weather lately have been tolerable to do some outdoors activities, we came here for the weekend to check it out. This was on a Saturday, and it does not look like it's manned by anyone. There are long rows of the fish holding area that you can enter through the gate. Also, there are fish food you can feed the rainbow trouts with. It is one per person so please be mindful and not go get more. It is free to share so everyone can enjoy feeding the fish. Once you are done make sure to put the cup back where it came from. The kiddos really enjoy seeing and feeding the trouts. There are different sizes of trouts there. You can see some pretty small ones in the beginning, but more towards the back of the pond area, you will see the full grown size of them and they are massive. It is pretty neat to have something like this here in Fresno to check out. It is completely free and is open to the public. They also have a restroom area for you to use. We did not get to see anything inside one of the hatchery buildings because it was really dark and was blocked off to get closer to see. Nonetheless, seeing the fish in the big pond area was neat.

A fun place to take the kids or for a cheap date. The atmosphere was quiet and tranquil. You can…read morecome and learn something about the hatchery and how they supply all the different lakes with trout. You can even feed the fish and watch them go crazy. There is a small trail for you to walk and a picnic area for you to enjoy. Looks like a place that is under utilized. It's a must visit and it's free!

BEST zoo I've ever been to. All the same animals as major zoos like SF Zoo or Oakland Zoo but a…read moremuch more private, smaller, less touristy experience. Someone in a review below called this Zoo"quaint"...I would compare going to this zoo to riding on a private jet vs taking a commercial plane. Thev had all the exotic animals you'd expect (Lions, tigers, rhinos, bears, alligators, leopards, kangaroos, zebras, cobra) and the overall venue is cleaner and smaller and much less tacky than typical big-city zoos. I can't imagine why anyone would go vet his place less than 5 stars so I looked at the reviews below...one person said they wished there were more food options. There was a snack truck and plenty of beverage machines. I didn't really mind that there weren't giant pretzels or whatever else you get at the SF zoo. Also I thought the price was fair - the woman at the front desk even pointed me towards a discounted Groupon ticket available online and immediately helped us save $5 per person. Last comment...all the animas were much closer and easier to see than at other zoos. Im not sure my photo below of the rhinos does this zoo justice.

​We spontaneously visited the Monterey Zoo and getting there right when they opened was great…read more Quiet and peaceful. We practically had the whole place to ourselves. ​The setup is great for families. It has different levels, and the walking isn't bad at all. It's stroller-friendly and accessible, which made a big difference. ​Seeing the big, well-designed enclosures and the happy-appearing animals squashed the "zoo guilt" I sometimes get. The environment felt great. ​My favorite was all the big cats. Hearing the Lions roar echo everywhere was unforgettable. We also really enjoyed the big field exhibit with the zebras, rhinos, and all the horned beasts roaming around. Even the birds and the neat little amphibian display were cool, even though I'm not usually into that stuff. ​If you want an easy-to-manage wildlife experience, hit up the Monterey Zoo first thing in the morning. It's a fantastic, accessible spot, and you can tell they are doing things right by the animals.

For years, based on the promotional photos I saw, I avoided the Gilroy Gardens (GG) family theme…read morepark. I thought it would be tacky and hyper-commercialized. Curiosity, together with my wife's desire to see the place, finally got the better of me--and I discovered that I had been wrong. GG in my opinion manages to strike the best balance that any such theme park probably can in terms of appealing to the masses while at the same time avoiding the trap of being tacky or hyper-commercialized. The varied rides and exhibits are pleasant and well-maintained. Some are even quite artistic (like the totem poles, illustrated in the image attached here) and educational (like the ecologically oriented Green Barn). If you're already familiar with GG, you don't need me to tell you about it. If you're not, here are a few tips--which might not be obvious to the uninitiated--that might help you better enjoy it: * The lines for the rides can be very long at times. You might end up waiting for an hour before it's your turn. Best to be prepared for that and plan it into your itinerary. * We noticed a small number of people who avoided the lines for all rides, being let in through the back gate/exit. When we asked about this at the Welcome Center, we learned that GG sells yellow wristbands that allow people to skip the long lines and enter through the "back door" (exit). They cost something like $85 per person for the year or about $30 per visit, in addition to the membership fee. * Even with those wristbands, you'll need more than one visit to see and do everything here. Rushing around a lot will spoil the fun. * The food everywhere, as far as we could tell, is pretty bad. You'll be ahead of the game if you pack your own, which will also avoid your waiting in another line. * The big secret, so to speak, of GG is "hidden" in plain sight--in the second word of the name itself, "Gardens." Most visitors are so preoccupied with going on the rides that they miss out on the natural beauty of the gardens. We found Camellia Garden and Claudia's Garden, in particular, to be like sheltered oases of calm and natural beauty within the hustle and bustle of the park. In our opinion, the three most obvious ways in which GG could be improved are as follows: 1. Improve the quality of the food that's offered. With all the traffic the park gets, those concession stands must be worth a small fortune. Either get them to do better or replace them with businesses that will. 2. Design a more user-friendly map. Those who already know their way around don't need a map but for those who don't, the existing map is not sufficiently clear (hint: it probably needs to be larger). 3. Do a better job of training the staff, in terms of both knowledgeability and attitude. Some are quite good (a special shout out to Nina at the Welcome Center and Sean at the Garlic Twirl ride: they exuded both warmth and professionalism) but others, who shall remain nameless, need more training. Minus one star for those deficiencies, as well as for not making it sufficiently clear at the time of the 2026 premium membership purchase that the bring-a-friend tickets that came with the membership had to be picked up almost immediately or they would not be available.

Review update for the start of 2026 season:…read more I expected the park to be refreshed and in top top shape for the start of the season. They just opened for the season! Unfortunately, I didn't find that was the case. We went during spring break on a weekday, and found it was more packed than usual. With that, it's no surprise considering local schools were on break. What was surprising to me was how dirty some of the rides (the caterpillar is an example) were. I feel like all of the attractions need a good pressure washing and clean up before busy season starts. We were also surprised to learn that they're now a cashless park. I'm not sure when they stopped accepting cash ( I usually use a card ) but wanted to highlight it for visitors to plan accordingly! Will be updating this review later into the season. Fingers crossed they just haven't checked some of the cleaning off the to do list yet!

I saw just about every single animal when visiting. The quieter you are the more you will see in my…read moreopinion. Lots of parking, seating areas, bathrooms (with a changing station), various animals, lots of information to learn and a vending machine if that's your thing. Definitely can't wait to come back!! Don't expect there to be zoo keepers in every which direction, it's a very quiet laid back soon. Better than the Merced zoo in my opinion.

We used to love going to Micke Grove zoo. We would visit every 3 weeks or so when we lived in Lodi…read more Our last visit when we lived in Lodi had half the zoo closed off for improvements. Fast forward 10 years later, and the wife and I traveled to Lodi to visit Micke Grove zoo, excited to see what improvements they have completed over those 10 years. What an utter and complete disappointment. 2/3rd's of the habitats were empty, not full of shy animals, but completely void of any animals whatsoever. The grounds were very unkempt, and a 1/3rd of what used to be animal displays, including a at one time beautiful bird rotunda have been removed and/or fenced off. Sadly, what was once a very lively, well kept, active animal exhibit now looks like it on its last legs and ready to close down all together.