I like the Philly Expo Center; it has some of the greatest event and the biggest flops. I went for the Kids fun Day and event was a mess. There was a long line outdoors, and then when you got into the doors, there was a line if you want to call it. There was no one guiding the guest and forming a real line. if someone was there or at lease if there was rope or something to guide it would have speeded up the process 10 x faster. While in line the kid had to use the bathroom which was behind the entrance, the lady at the stand was unfriendly and rude to allow a 3 year to enter to use the bathroom, just move the booth back 3 ft and people could get to the bathroom. The line for the elephant/camel ride was out of control, over 1 1/2 wait, there was 2 elephant and one camel. I didn't see them take a break for the animals. They did have straw, water and allowed them to use the bathroom, with customer on them and walking. The kid had fun petting the animals, and playing on rides. It was something to get the kids out of the house, but I think this event should be more organized. read more

Please don't visit this place, I beg you all not to take your money here. This is a disgusting place! They have a poor elephant and giraffe living in total solitude, sleeping on concrete, exhibiting clear signs of stress and loneliness while the USDA continues to pass their inspections. The other two elephants have died leaving only one female elephants that has lived on concrete for over 45 years! These are social and intelligent creatures being treated like garbage just because they can make the owners a few bucks.This is no way to treat animals! A place being run by the worst of humanity, I beg of you all please don't patronize them. They need to retire these animals to a sanctuary where they can live the lives they were born to live. read more

The animals looked so sad. It was obvious that they never got to leave their pens. Baby animals laying in filth. No workers monitoring what was going on so anyone could walk up and potentially injure one of these poor creatures. Pony dressed up to take pictures that was unable to move. Probably hasn't moved all day. Probably never gets to take a break. Could see in his poor little eyes that he was broken . Incredibly expensive to walk in the door, once you get in everything costs more money. Not worth it. read more

I almost didn't write a review because it's all been said already. However, it was such an awful experience that I just had to write something. We went on January 17, 2016. We got free kids tickets from a local business and figured that since we were going to a Providence Bruins game next door we'd give it a shot. It's everything you'd expect from a really low end carnival or local fair. Dirty carnies, overpriced rickety rides, crappy games, and crappy expensive food. What makes it worse is that adults have to pay $15 each to get in, and the crowds are out of control. 1 hour wait to ride the potato sack slide. 20 minutes for the kiddie train, etc. just absolute garbage. But what's worse is the animal situation. It's already been mentioned, but the treatment and condition of the animals is pretty disgusting. Absolutely not humane. They are in pens that are too small (can't escape being touched if they need a break), they sit in their own filth, and they look incredibly defeated (I wouldn't be surprised if they were sedated), and the stench in the convention center could not have been healthy. The elephant is a sad, sad sight. A goat got its head stuck in a rickety wooden fence and instead of breaking a piece of the fence to get it freed, the carney pushed its head (it wouldn't fit back) with his hands and feet as the goat whimpered. I didn't stick around to see what happened but this continued for 10+ minutes as we waited for a ride. It was still stuck and whimpering as we walked away. We lasted 45 minutes maybe. Ended up handing tickets off to a family walking in. Yeah, they cost $30, but the best use of our time and money was to leave. It's a train wreck. read more

I came here to write a review about how terrible the Commerford Zoo and Kids Fun Fair was at the Rhode Island Convention Center but Lauren M's review pretty much describes everything I was going to write myself. $28 for admittance (for myself, husband and 2 yr old daughter). Once you get inside you find out you have to buy "tickets" to be able to ride any of the rides and the tickets are NOT cheap. The kiddie slide was 2 tickets and each ticket was $1.25. That is $2.50 for our 2 year old to crawl through a tunnel to go down a 6 foot covered slide. Are you kidding me? It was a complete and total rip off. The "zoo" was nothing more than a bunch of morose, dirty, over-weight, unkempt animals is dirty cages. These animals clearly never get to see the light of day or breath fresh air never mind the opportunity to walk around on real grass. The animals all stare into space like their souls are just totally gone. I'm sure they've all gone bat crazy from day after day of boredom being stuck in tiny cages being pocked and prodded by little kids day in and day out. One of the Macaws rocks back and forth, back and forth, which is sign of mental distress. You pay an outrageous amount of money to get into the event and then get to pay for the privilege of feeding the animals too and I'm quite sure that those pellets being fed to the animals are the only food they are getting. Quite the deal for the people who run this racket! There were a handful of old, beat-up rides like a carousel and tilt-o-whirl. There was a giant carnival slide, elephant rides and pony rides. The lines to these attractions were so long that the lines were literally queued from the back of the event to the front. The line for the elephant ride alone was almost an hour long. 20 min wait for the carousel and a good 30 min wait for the pony rides. Who wants to wait in line for 30 mins with a toddler for a 2 min pony ride? No thanks. The event was packed and I mean PACKED full of people. To the point where walking from one area to another was difficult because of all the people. My husband and I kept losing each other because I had such a hard time getting through the crowds with the baby stroller. I was seriously concerned that if I took my eyes off my daughter for one split second she'd get lost in the crowd. It is sad because all these people are giving this company money which clearly isn't being used to properly care for the animals in its care. At one point I said to my husband that this was a total waste of money and we had people around us speaking up and agreeing with us. If you are considering going to this event if it comes to your city don't bother. Take the money and do something else with your kids instead. They will have a better time elsewhere and your money won't go to these swindlers. read more

We went to the Kid's Fun Fair put on by Commerford & Sons (www.commerfordzoo.com) at the Erie County Fairgounds Event Center in Hamburg, NY on 2/9/2014. Several of the animals appeared in terrible condition, including Sulcata Tortoises with horrendous shell pyramiding (which happens due to poor nutrition). There was also a single Zebra, who was filthy, and standing dead still in the middle of his pen, appearing absolutely terrified. He also appeared to have something wrong with one of his feet/legs, as he was holding one foot up and not putting weight on it. The worst though was the camel rides. The camels looked to be in terrible condition - dirty, skinny, etc. They kept trying to stop to eat, but were forced to keep walking around. A child was starting to get on one of the camels, when it tried to walk away. The child was on the camel's back, but not secured at all, and the ride operator was trying to get the camel to back up. When it didn't cooperate, he punched the camel in the face and throat with a closed fist a couple of times - while this child was still on the camel and not even strapped in at all. Google shows that this company has been sited by the USDA multiple times over many years, but they're still in business somehow. Please, DO NOT reward the despicable practices of this company by patronizing their "fairs" or other events. read more

ABUSE / CRUELTY My son received free passes from his Kindergarten to what was billed as a family friendly traveling zoo in MA. The company is called Commerford Zoo. The event was dirty to say the least. Old noisy rides and games crammed into the DCU center along with many animals that clearly weren't being treated properly. There were camels and elephants,(giving rides),exotic monkeys, a kangaroo, etc who all were set up in steel fence enclosures, looking miserable on concrete flooring with some hay on top. The monkeys were covered in their feces, as were their toys...the kangaroo had a sign that said "Shhhhh, I'm sleeping", and I looked in confusion as the animal lay on his side up against steel, barely moving. "Shhhhh"???? Really??? The place was so loud and filthy. Poor thing. The goats and ponys all seemed slow moving until they saw food, (pellets for sale), and then they ran and fought each other for the chance at something to eat. (hungry??) The whole scence felt wrong to me, and we will not be supporting this event ever again. I myself am no activist. I'm not a vegetarian, I on occasion wear my grandmother's mink coat which was passed down, my boots are sometimes leather, etc etc...this being said, I do like animals, (my family rescued a cat from a shelter recently, and we will go this route for any and all animals our family chooses to love in our home moving forward...very special and a great lesson for our little boy). This circus/zoo in my opinion needs to be reported. I'm so sorry if this makes me a hypocrite in anyone's eyes, but I wanted to do something. My 6 year old son loved seeing the animals, but even commented that some of their toys had poop all over them. I contacted PETA, and they're well-aware of this abuse and it has been confirmed and documented hundreds of times. AWFUL...had to YELP. read more

If I could give negative stars I would...Worst experience ever!!! Stay away!!! They charge $16 at door $10 online/in advance and everything cost $$ to ride or eat. Animals are poorly treated. People who own this company should be embarrassed. XL Center should not allow company to use facility. Save your money and stay away. read more

I feel sick that I attended this show with my 5 and 3 year old yesterday. My mother in law had gotten free tickets for the kids, so we went. As others have said, the animals looks sad, sedated, and are contained mostly to small pens. The miniature horse that was forced to just stand for hours while hundreds of kids went on and off her back for photos was heart breaking. The XL Center was so loud and chaotic I could hardly imagine any animal being comfortable in that environment for any long period of time. Old, dirty, tired rides with long lines. I couldn't even go near the elephants because I knew I'd cry. From what I saw, this traveling zoo is low end, abusive to animals, and not something you should support with your money. I'm disappointed my city booked this event, and I'm disappointed in myself for giving them my money. read more

I wanted my children to get close and personal with the elephant as for a 2 and 4 year old I thought this would be exciting. My 4 year old said the elephant looked sad. I couldn't agree more! He was made to walk in a SMALL circle and was uneasy on his feet as if he was sedated. He grasped at any straw or hay he could find along the way and when didn't keep moving was poked with the bullhook. So sad. His tusks were short and cut on an angle. The guy on the platform running the ride said that they only cut them when the elephant misbehaves. He then showed me the holes in the side of their truck where he said the elephant rammed into the truck. Seriously? And I had my young children on this elephant?? Then I asked about the skin condition that was EXTREMELY obvious...he asked me if the elephant looked unhappy...of course I answered, yes he does...and he said, how can you tell, elephants don't smile or anything. He then was just aloof and rude to me the rest of the time my children were on the ride. So very sad and obvious that the owners/handlers have no patience or compassion!!! read more

Most of the other reviewers here have already touched upon the deplorable conditions of the poor animals in the "care" of this awful company. I agree wholeheartedly that these animals were miserable and on those grounds alone this racket needs to be shut down. But since others have detailed the animal issues already, I'll focus on the ripoff side of this company. We attended the "kids fun fair" in providence in January 2016. First clue that this was a major ripoff was that they charged $15 per adult to even enter the place. Keep in mind that there is not one single adult-oriented activity, so you are basically paying to look at miserable, sad animals while supervising your kids. Kids get in free. But every activity or ride costs tickets, and tickets are outrageously overpriced at $1.50 each. Your child wants to ride three laps in a broken down nasty metal car in a circular track with ten feet diameter? No problem, that will be $3. What's that? Your kid wants to ride an old, suffering elephant for eighteen seconds (a lap around a pen the size of an above-ground pool? Sure, just as long as your willing to fork over eight dollars. And that's after you wait in line for thirty minutes, all the while being treated to the aroma of urine and feces from all the pathetic animals forced to stand in hay-covered concrete pens. The ride operators are the stereotypical "carnies". Showers and teeth are optional. The place reeks of filth and greed. How the people that run and own this operation sleep at night is beyond me. I'm guessing they sleep tightly wrapped in layers of slime and scum, using all the money they ripped off the poor, duped families to buy their next six pack of Natty Light. Disgusting, deplorable, abominable. If I could give zero stars I would. read more

Went to the Kid's Fun Fair with my 4 year old at the XL Center this past Saturday (3/19.) Got a ticket online for $10 (kids free), and was another $10 to park (chose the actual XL center lot, and basically a 50 yard walk from our car to the entrance of the venue, so considering the preschooler with me, probably worth it.) My thoughts: 1. Aside from petting a few select animals (goats and I believe 2 ponies), there is absolutely zero to do for free. 2. Speaking of animals, I was surprised there was really zero supervision or attendants near any of them (save the camels, ponies, and elephants who were giving rides.) Some of the goats seemed pretty aggressive; my daughter wanted to feed the goats using the .25 feed machine and the machine was so close to the pens she barely got the food out of the shoot before being bumrushed of her entire handful. 3. The animals themselves by and large looked...off. I think an earlier reviewer suspected they may have been sedated, and they appeared somewhere between that or dare I say, depressed. Aside from the goats who acted like they hadn't been fed, the animals out of petting reach (kangaroo, camels, birds) pretty much stood in place the entire time we were there. A zebra (which was kept in the center of the goat pen in its own small cage) started straight ahead without movement like a statue. 4. This place leaves absolutely no money on the table. Again, everything costs money, and the ticket prices (even at the higher tiers) ran around $1.25 per ticket. I'm sure it's not cheap to put on the event, and I came knowing the score, but you'd think that $35 worth of tickets would buy you more than 90 minutes' entertainment (and that was including waiting 20 minutes for an elephant ride, 10 minutes looking at the animals, and a trip to the bathroom.) Want a digital picture of your family riding the elephant? $15, please. They even had a booth set up, charging $15 for a 4X6 picture of your child on top of a pony(inexplicably, there was quite a line for this. Odd at best, since for 4 tickets your kid could ride a pony themselves and you could take all the pictures you wanted.) 5. For all the money they take in, they certainly don't appear to put it back in their equipment. A thin layer of straw was all separating the animals from the concrete. I didn't get close enough to see the rides aimed at bigger kids, but I could see patches on the sun blasted bounce house, and the see-through portion of the big slide was so cloudy, it was like watching my daughter through a panel of decades old Tupperware. 6. We did go on the elephant ride, and got to see a rare three way lapse in judgement. They were jamming the top of the elephant to it's full capacity, and the operator said they had room on this particular trip for a single rider. Someone nominated their grade school daughter (I'd venture to guess she was around 7 or 8.) Inexplicably, the operator had the dad of the 4-member family currently on the ride back up, placing this girl directly in front of him. Why the dad went along with it, why the ride operator thought this was a good idea, and why the parent of the girl was cool with this remains a mystery to me, but this would've gone down a lot differently if someone attempted to place my daughter in the lap of a strange adult male. During our turn on the elephant, going slowly in a ridiculously small circle considering the animal's side, our "chariot," decided nature was calling, and unleashed a smell I wish I could forget. In fact, the distinct aroma of animals doing their "business," permeated nearly the entire place the majority of our stay. In fairness, my daughter did say the day was "awesome," but my wallet and sense of compassion for the animals wasn't so sure. For the same (or less) money, ride quality, and petting zoo, you're better off sticking with the county fair when it comes to town. read more