I really try hard to make sure that all of my reviews are fair and balanced. The main reason that I…read morewrite on Yelp is to try and help other people. Normally I would take off stars when things merit that, but because my overall experience here was so good and the joy I felt definitely seems to outweigh all the negatives, I just can't give the Cascades Raptor Center aything less than five stars. Let me go through the negatives with you first though because there are a few: Parking can be ... an adventure . The center sits at the top of the hill with a very small steep road leading up to a tiny parking lot. As many of the other reviews have noted, if you have anything larger than a midsized vehicle, I would not recommend attempting to use their parking lot. We tried originally and realized immediately that was a mistake, then turned around and parked at the trailhead across the street. We had to walk across a busy street and make it up that steep steep hill. I'm not going to lie, I was dying by the time I reached the entrance . But to be fair, I think most people are in better shape than I am :) so hopefully you'll be fine. They also have a very strict no dogs rule which I completely understand based on the venue. However, that means you cannot have even the smallest dog in the car or anywhere on the premises. Even the sight or sound of a dog can be stressful for the birds. So it totally makes sense to me that they're putting the animals first, but as someone who travels with her dog, it's important for you to know before coming . Lastly, I think the price is absolutely worth it. We paid $32 for two adults and I feel I got my money's worth but cost is important to a lot of people so I do feel the need to mention it. Having got all that out of the way, we had an amazing time here! We spent around an hour here at closing time and honestly I could have stayed a lot longer. Staff were very sweet and said that we could keep wandering around even after close if we wanted to because it takes them a while to get everything shut down and many of them are volunteers. There is no way I would have done that because I value people's time, but it is sweet of them to offer and they really seem to love and care for these animals deeply. I enjoyed speaking to many of them and they were all kind and informative. One of the things I appreciated most was learning about each resident and why they are there. These animals aren't on display for entertainment. They are ambassadors helping people understand and appreciate birds of prey. This organization rehabilities injured raprors, cares for many birds that to cannot be in the wild any longer and help utilize themto educate the public. The absolute sweetheart of my visit was Lethe, a turkey vulture who casually walked right up to us like we were old friends. I never expected one of my favorite interactions to be with a turkey vulture, but he absolutely stole my heart. Hans, the Eurasian eagle owl, was breathtaking. His enormous orange eyes were mesmerizing and I could have stood there watching him for hours. He is a stunning bird and to see him up close was incredible. I was also very excited to see Francis the magpie. My husband loves owls and that is why we came here, but magpies are my favorite birds so imagine my surprise when I saw her. Francis is actually not a raptor, she's a corvid, but she is a rescue and as the centers only non-rafter resident ,they also use her as an education ambassador. It was a challenge to try and get any good photos of any of the birds so although I'm attaching photos as always, you should understand that they don't do justice to actually being there. Because it was hard to get good photos and because of all of the other challenges that I have listed, if I was reviewing the raptor center completely objectively, I would probably give it three stars, maybee less honestly, but there is an element of community and learning and magic and hope and beauty here that just cannot be boiled down to an unequivocal rating. I would come here again every time, and all the time, and I highly recommend this stop if you're in the area and at all interested in birds or any kind of animal rescue and rehabilitation. .

My wife and I stopped by during the Eugene Marathon weekend. Being over 30, we understand that…read morebirds are cool. There were 31 birds with their own exhibits. Admission was $16/person, but well worth it for the experience. There are informative displays about each species and also each individual bird.

I went here today for drop in skating with friends. We got a court to ourselves and got to skate…read morefor as long as we wanted. There were a lot of kids there but that's to be expected during winter break. The bathrooms were big and clean, as was the rest of the place. The front desk staff were super friendly and showed us where to go and set up a divider for us. There's a ton of parking and a traffic light next to the center so it's easy to get in and out of. I would definitely go back again during a quieter time of day.

Great place for a volleyball tournament for the kids Lots of space…read more Parking was easy Families had fun

Good local neighborhood park. Two separate play structures (2-5 yr and 5+) Swings, Sandbox, Benches…read moreand a few picnic tables. The only downsides are there are no restrooms and the swings are a bit too low to the ground. My 5 year olds feet kept dragging on the ground as she was swinging. Overall, nice clean park we'll visit again.

they were very disrespectful to me, my gf and my friends. they accused my gift making faces at…read morethem when she was making them at me. they tried to separate us because of PDA. I was giving her a piggy back ride to read the rule board. not PDA. sorry I can't read far away without my glasses. we tried to tell them but they refused to listen. we were also harassed by a middle aged woman, but they did nothing about it. prices are great, but nighttime lifeguards do not take their job seriously. they chose to laugh around and play on their phones. I did not get any names so I cannot tell you who it was. there was one dude with short blonde hair and slightly heavier.

Rating based on price changes, not on facility quality…read more Facility would be 4 strong stars. The price changes that are pushing for people to buy their all access pass is cost prohibitive. I would think that there would be some emphasis on trying to encourage parents to swim with their children. Instead, they're catering to the folks who can afford an elite pool membership. They need to provide an unlimited single pool access pass for parents and children. How is acting like an exclusive, for profit club working towards community building? Their new price scheme is exclusive, to say the least. I just want to teach my children to swim, but they're charging over $20 a visit for my two children and me to swim.