September 6, 2026. We were excited to finally see this private zoo. I had proposed the idea of seeing Nova Wild to my husband, who was elated to go & insisted on going as early as possible. I saw the zoo website a few years ago and put it on my to do list for this area. Despite some of the negative reviews we saw online, the reviews did no affect us at all. Yet I could see how the negative reviews can affect one's perception of the zoo. Tickets are $20 for adults. Children's tickets are less. Parking is free. We came to the zoo in the morning to avoid crowds and less heat from the sun. It is true that there are additional costs for food to feed the animals, rides on the camel, and to see the butterfly garden. The prices are fair though. The zoo is small yet clean, well maintained, and has many areas & animals to see. Some of the animals are shy & avoid onlookers, yet that happens in zoos. Restrooms are limited. I only saw restrooms near the entrance. When compared to the Smithsonian zoo, this zoo was less crowded and the customers had better etiquette. Nova Wild truly went beyond our greatest expectations. I saw all the animals I wanted to see there. Despite the shyness of some of the animals, most of them seemed happy. Some had good interactions with the people and children especially when it came to being fed by children or adults. There are many sitting areas throughout the zoo. The bench by the lake and willow trees is where I spent a lot of rest time at the zoo. Highlights in the Nova Wild Zoo: Clouded Leopard, Cheetah, Fennec Fox, Giant Ant Eater, the Flamingos, the Camels, African Tortoise, Owls, Emus, Cows, and Silver Cheeked Hornbill bird. There were others as well yet I didn't spend that much time around them. My favorite place and last place to explore in the zoo was the butterfly garden. There were many blue butterflies flying inside the enclosed garden as well as other types of butterflies. It was mesmerizing watching the butterflies. We spent the most time watching the butterflies. We skipped doing the drive through safari since the line was so long and it was getting too crowded at the end of the day. It was a quiet and peaceful experience at the Nova Wild Zoo. We look forward to visiting this place again. read more

See all

Reston has a zoo?!?!?!?! I love it! I'm from southern California. I've been to the LA Zoo. And I have to say that this small zoo was better! Too many animals to name. The safari is really cool. You get to pet the animals. They look happy and well cared for. Because it's a small zoo, parking is tough and it can be a maze to get through traffic. The staff here is wonderful. You can cover all ground within an hour. But it's worth the ticket price. Exotic you're local. I enjoyed my visit. I went twice so I can enjoy the safari without worrying about time. Stop by, support and check it out. Thank you for a great visit. read more

Nova Wild - Hello! - Petting Zoos Near Me - Vienna, Virginia

See all

Visited Nova Wild for the Wild Nights event! It was a cute outing the ticket includes food and drinks (salad, chicken tenders, sliders and Brussels sprouts). There was a live band and some "extra special guests" - a few snake varieties, a baby kangaroo and a lemur. During the "safari" we took a lap around the property and saw the zebras, goats, camels, llamas, more lemurs, goats, sloths, flamingoes, and the grand finale was the cheetah showing. read more

See all

It's a nice local zoo that can get a bit pricey. My toddler is currently in a phase that really enjoys butterflies so I paid extra for that experience. It was worth it since she could get up close with plenty of them and got to learn more about specific kinds from the staff. As I was walking in another family gave me a bucket of feed they didn't finish so my daughter enjoyed feeding the goats and cows. During our last visit by the time we were done walking around the line for the car safari was too long though so if you're interested in that perhaps you want to do that first thing in the morning before it gets busy. read more

I came here on a homeschooling trip, but none the less the staff was so nice. Educational generous. The they had signs to educate you everywhere you turned. Healthy live stock, and an awesome wagon wide and tours where we got to see the camel, bisons, and other animals from the safari region of Africa. After the wagon ride we took off to walk the zoo and saw a beautiful anteater, wallabies, red kangaroos, turtles, koa fish, and other animals. I definitely want to come back because they have a butterfly exhibit and I really wanted to try it. It just wasn't in our purchased packet. The butterfly exhibit is $8 per person. read more

Nova Wild - Petting Zoos Near Me - Vienna, Virginia

See all

Nova Wild (formerly know as Roers) is back with a local owner who is committed to animal welfare and conversation! It had been a minute since I visited but I was really happy to see the massive facelift on the place -- the animals looked clean and well taken care of and there was beautiful landscaping everywhere. There were lots of zookeepers around and you could tell they were very passionate about their jobs. We went on a summer morning for a field trip and lasted only two hours due to the heat but the children loved seeing the capybaras, monkeys, cheetah, buffalo, deer, goat, cows, and pigs. There is also a new butterfly enclosure! I'll have to go back with my entire family to check out all the updates. read more

While we went on a rainy day, we had the whole place to ourselves! But we had fun checking out the animals and interacting with them! We brought our sister for her birthday, so she could play with Glenn, the baby capybara (he looked more like pre-K to me than a baby) but whatever! She had fun feeding him!! She also got to hold the baby kangaroo Margo (named after the Australian actress Margo Robbie) and feed her! I think she enjoyed the interaction with Margo more than with Glenn, because Glenn was a bit skittish! The animals, particularly the capuchin monkeys, seemed very playful and attention seeking! As soon as we came up to their abode, they started swinging and talking and doing all manner of somersaults!! I felt sad when we left because they seemed to look dejected after all the attention we gave them. They are such fascinating and emotive creatures! You just fall in love with them!! The leopards and their cubs were exquisite!! I could just sit and watch them and the capuchin monkeys all day long! We saw the goats, the sloths, the bison, the deer, the kangaroos, and the very strange axolotl and mud puppies! After roaming the zoo, we hopped in our car and drove through the safari. It was pouring rain and many of the animals took shelter in the stalls. They were so cute, all lined up as if they were about to board the ark!! I don't blame them!! It was such a wet and miserable day but the animals made it worth the trek out!! Highly recommend this place rain OR shine !! The animals are so beautiful and amazing!!! read more

See all

I took my 3 kids 2 weeks ago, we last visited 5 yrs ago and we wanted to check out what changes they had made. What we liked - it's small and great for toddlers, not too busy, enough parking. What we didn't like - no staff were seen to ask questions about animals, could have been more interactive, no animal feeding times, layout was a bit confusing, not much to do for older kids they got bored, not any good food options, staff at the desk were not all that engaging. We didn't do drive through as we didn't want our car damaged, wish there was an alternative option to pay to take a bus ride, also more money making, why is there an extra fee to see the butterflies felt a bit conned. They have also removed the reptile house. read more

See all

Cool place for kids that different from the zoo. I love the feeding the animals part and the butterfly house. The different animals were very cool to see. read more

My coworkers and I brought our students here on a field trip. We enjoyed a tractor ride and were able to see a variety of animals. Our students particularly enjoyed feeding the cows! Overall it was a great experience and our students had a lot of fun! read more

See all

This was really fun. Almost all the animals came to eat out of hands! The key is to shake the bucket a bit to draw them towards you. read more

Nova Wild - This guy was aggressive. - Petting Zoos Near Me - Vienna, Virginia

I visited and supported this establishment, carefully reading about their massive improvement under new ownership and strong, explicit emphasis on humane practices. There is a reason why it is a petting zoo, sanctuary and not a "zoo." Beyond the Smithsonian National Zoo, I remain a huge skeptic of the animals well being. Being largely focused on farm animals, with the exception of the cheetah enclosure, animals seemed to be happy and in sufficient space. (I am no cheetah expert by any means, I am just not sure if they would be happier and better off in the actual wild, or had stories that they would be safer here.) The drive-thru safari is hands down the highlight of the visit. Unlike other reviewers, we had no concern with the pace, and had a reasonably well run-of-show in our convoy. Such a fun experience, which we completed with our windows rolled up, as I didn't feel ready to hand feed a buffalo! May be next time. read more

See all

I love this place but I think all these rich folks in Northern Virginia (and there is plenty of them) should kick in some money so they can enlarge the pens. Having 3 cheetas in one pen seemed cruel especially since they are the fastest animals. One more thing I would do is make the bottom of the hill another area where you can purchase more food without having to go back to the building. read more

Hi guys. We went to NoVa Wild on December 27. We booked the sloth experience. Omg! Totally worth it. We had gorgeous weather for December. And our guide was a lovely young lady. Small tour. We met two sloths, a curious African bird, and some tortoises. The sloths were absolutely charming. I am still so bemused. Charmed. Delighted. We toured the small but very nice grounds. Did the wild animal drive. What a great way to spend our day as a family. Despite my cranky teenaged (behaved) daughter, we have a really memorable day. read more

See all

The drive thru was fun and the animals are so sweet when coming up to your car. Most of the environments for the animals were pleasant and proportionate; however, a warning for animal lovers, that wasn't the case for all of them. The Emu's were in a tiny enclosure. The cheetahs were in a tiny enclosure. And the zebras along the outside of the drive thru were in a small, boring enclosure. My heart broke for those animals. I feel like they were the most unlucky that their lives were placed in a "tiny box" at this zoo. Really sad :( read more

I recently visited NOVA WILD with my family, and overall we had a great experience. We arrived later in the day (just before 3PM), which the attendant was nice and very transparent about our time crunch. We certainly appreciated the honesty/transperency. We opted to check it out (we are considering season passes). With the attendants guidance we decided to start with the car safari, which, sounded like a cool way to see the animals without leaving the car. This was a great experience and I want to do it again. However, the downside is the cars in the safari were barely moving. We were told it normally takes 20 minutes but it took us 30 minutes just to get close to the animals. Overall almost an hour to make it through the loop. At one point, a worker had to push a vehicle along to keep things moving. This car was holding everyone up. Seems length of time is very dependent on how courteous the cars are in front of you. Afterward, we made a quick stop at the zoo itself. Since we were on a bit of a time crunch, only 15 minutes before closing at this point. We opted for the "express" zoo visit, we breezed through walking quickly which allowed us to see most of the exhibits. It was definitely kid-friendly--plenty of interactive and close animal encounters--but it was also a bit crowded. Granted the attendant mentioned it was more crowded than normal. Overall, the experience was enjoyable, especially for our toddler, with lots of chances to see animals up close. I'd recommend it for families with young children looking for a fun day out, just be prepared for a little bit potential of chaos in the process! read more

See all

Took Langston to see the animals and he had the time of his life. He loved seeing the butterflies, definitely worth it. He loved feeding the animals, the llamas, goats, cows, buffaloes. Seeing the aardvark was amazing. The Safari was incredible read more

See all

I finally made it to Nova Wild, I had driven by it many times and took my kids over the Holiday and it didnt disappoint. Tickets are $20 and the animal feed was also $20. The cashier recommended we use multiple buckets because, as you may expect if you have animals at home, some can be rather aggressive. We first checked out the axolotl. I have never seen one in person, but I have seen them in minecraft while playing with my son. That was cool. Afterwards, we saw the goats and the cheetah. They have a small area of animals you can walk around and see. They also have picnic tables and comfortable outdoor seating areas to relax. The bathroom however did not have a changing table which was disappointing. After we finished here, we got in our vehicle and headed for the safari. We drove around three times feeding the animals and my family had a blast. I have never fed, or touched a buffalo or bison. So, that was my absolute favorite thing to do. The Bisons werent really aggressive, but they did have a hard time eating the food from the bucket (i think) from their big darn head. One of the massive steers with the horns, I'm pretty sure he was the one that dented my father in laws SUV. Glad we took his car instead of mine. The Llamas were all about the food, I mean, the llama had his whole head in the car. They even had an emu, which I thought were super mean but this one just hung out on their own under a tree. Other animals we saw, reindeer, happy donkeys, cows, and lastly, I saw a dromedary. Or a one hump camel. If you plan to return more than one, I'd recommend the season pass, we spent nearly $100 for our family and kids. A season pass is only $300 and its good for a year. read more

See all

This is a great little zoo! Walking through there was a good variety of animals, but of course some of our favorites were the monkeys (I think they had at least three varieties) and the goats - lots of goats that were ready for you to feed them. With a toddler who can be either captivated or bored and on the brink of a tantrum/ready to go home, that didn't matter to us. It was the perfect 1.5 hour-ish walkthrough for us, with re-visits to our favorites. At the end, we decided to do the drive through safari. It wasn't big - I would say smaller than the size of a Walmart parking lot. We didn't have someone directly ahead of us, so when we pulled in, the animals IMMEDIATELY descended upon us, ready for us to offer them snacks (which we didn't have - we were leaving and I didn't want to make a mess of the car). We spent the first ten minutes laughing hysterically as we were surrounded--and stopped. While we could have honked for help, it was fine. Once the crowd let up, we were able to proceed through slowly, laughing as the animals walked up excitedly. If you/your kids love being hands on (while in a car) definitely bring food into the drive through as they were VERY food motivated. Overall a good experience and I look forward to returning! read more

I've been to this place three times. my fist two times were fine they had more animals and more activity's for the kids. but now its expensive and have very little animals plus the animals look sad and in bad condition, their losing hair and this just make me sad. I would recommend going somewhere else. read more

We did the sloth experience and had a lot of fun. Seth, our guide, was very knowledgeable and we learned a lot about the sloths. It was very cool and fun to feed and pet the sloths. Wish there was more food so we could feed them. With the new ownership, the price has gone up. Back when they had the giraffe, a bucket of food was $5. Now it's $21.20 (with tax). In addition to paying for the sloth experience, we also had to pay for admission tickets. I think if you were buying an experience ticket the admission should be included. Admission cost $20 per adult. We went early in the morning and it was cold. Not a lot of the animals were out. We only saw the goats, cheetah, kangaroo, pig, sloths, and the animals in the drive through safari. If we didn't pay for the sloth experience, it was very hard to see the sloths from outside because they stayed in their crates. With the drive through safari, it's a go at your own risk! The bison was very aggressive with the food. When it was eating from the bucket, it pushed the bowl down and it lots of food spilled out. Then the longhorn cattle walked towards our car to get the spilled food, and then scratched our car! When we told the employee, she basically said there's nothing they can do because it's go at your own risk. Wish there was more signs that says that or have more employees towards the back of the safari to kind of prevent it. The only employees we saw on the safari was at the beginning when they asked to see our wristbands. Our experience at Nova Wild would be a 3.5 stars. The sloths made it a lot of fun, however with not that many animals out and getting a scratch on our car made it unpleasant read more

See all

10/1/23 Here we are at the Zoo in Vienna Virginia. The time is right now. Right now we are sitting and waiting to take the tour in our car to see the animals up close and personal. Little did I...we know just how all up in your business they...meaning the animals... can get. Here are some things you should take into account before going on the safari with your own personal vichele. The new owner Tara charges $20 per person and $20 for food for the animals. Kids get charged $15 per person. The costs can get up there with a family size vichele. Tara and Mike took over the ownership of this Zoo at the beginning of this year 2023. Be prepared for some animals with big horns possibly scratching your vichele accidentally. In short, your beloved car could walk away with animal fecal matter on your car's ties and undercarriage. Scratching from horns or hoovers could be placed on your car's windows. Don't be surprised if the animals are unhappy with you for not giving them food $20 worth of food to eat during your safari adventure. If you didn't buy food at the ticket counter, it might be best that you keep your window closed. It tells the animals you have no food to give, but they will still be looking at you like a cheapskate. Also, you do have the option of bypassing the safari section if you don't want your vichele collecting unwanted marks or fecal matter on your Tesla for example. If you skip the personal vichele safari, you have the option of doing on a company vichele as a group, but I am not sure if this is an extra cost. The walk around the Nova Zoo was amazing. It was plenty busy while we were there, but well worth the price of admission. Two people in a vichele buying animal feed for one person or two will be a total of $80 bucks. $60 if it is just one person buying animal food. You can ride a camel and I believe this is part of the cost of admission. You can do a massive Safari ride in a group (again if you like) and avoid getting your car tarnished unlike Mister Trask in Scent Of A Woman...okay, bad example, think Biff Howard Tannen's car only not as bad. I think you get my point. Some areas had the animal bowel movement smell, but I have smelled worse in men's public bathrooms. Ladies, I am sure you have too only in the women's restrooms. I did notice this Zoo doesn't have all the signs of the animals and what they do for you to read. I take it this is part of Tara and Mike's plan on upgrading the place. Mood Jewlery of the animals here might help bring up more profits. Possibly having a place to buy food and drink will help Bring in more clientele too. You have a very nice set up for lounging, but the lack of a place to buy food was an issue...unless you brought in your own food. Just a suggestion in case Tara or Mike read this review. I am glad we came to this Zoo and we will be sure to come here again. Oh, sign indicating where the bathroom are would be good for new people coming here. For some reason I see kids eating funnel cake, candy apples, cotton candy and hotdogs at this place. Just another idea of adding revenue to this business. read more

See all

Were driving 45 minutes from Washington, D.C. and paying $40 for an adult and four-year-old ticket worth it? No. But if I lived closer, maybe. Here's my daughter and my experience visiting Roer's Zoofari on an October Saturday afternoon: 1) Experience: After paying $40+ online, we made the trek from D.C to Vienna, Virginia. We got there right at 1 p.m. and waiting in a line for about 20 minutes to scan our tickets for the drive through "safari." Realizing feed for the animals cost extra ($7 for carrots or lettuce), we opted out, which was a mistake. After waiting in a line of cars for another 30 minutes, we finally got to the animals on the safari- llamas, deer, etc. The animals you'd expect on a real safari like zebras and ostriches were caged. Since we didn't have any food, the animals poked their heads inside our car for a split second before going to a car with food. The safari itself takes you around a tiny circle. My daughter thought it was okay, but as an adult, I say skip this entirely. The walk through experience was much better. After reading the reviews, we found the place bigger than we expected. If you stop to see all the animals, it will take you 45-60 minutes. You'll see birds, monkeys, deer, pigs, etc. There's a place for you to pay for a camel ride and a little house with reptiles and a few other caged animals inside. About a third to a half of the cages were empty. 2) Price: $25 for an adult and $15 for a four-year-old seemed steep, especially considering the National Zoo is free and includes many more animals. 3) Amenities: There are clean public restrooms, a gift shop with cheaply-made toys and a little booth that sells fried food that will give anyone a heart attack. If you live nearby and have money to spend, kids enjoy this place. However, if your child is used to the National Zoo, they may leave disappointed. As we were leaving, my daughter commented, "That place wasn't the best." read more

See all

Overall, we had a great experience. The only reason for 4 star was the amount we paid to enter as well as the animal feed. Compared to other zoos, it was a bit costly. The animals seen are limited to petting zoo animals. But they were fun to interact with. The Safari was my favorite. But just keep in mind that the animals may scratch your car from excitement, especially if they know you gave food to feed them. We made a fun friend with a llama that followed us halfway through the Safari. PS: (Don't forget to bring hand wipes and sanitizer!) read more

See all

threat of thunderstorms in the area (5 April 26) and they still don't cancel there outdoor Easter egg hunt because they are more interested in money than the safety of their customers read more

We had a great time here. The capybara encounter is why we really came. Summer was great at telling us all about them. We got to pet and take lots of pictures. We were a group of 5, which I couldn't imagine if anymore people were in the group that it would be as pleasant. As you can see from other reviews, it's a little pricey. read more

Nova Wild - Capybara - Petting Zoos Near Me - Vienna, Virginia

See all

Wow this place has really gone down hill. No more lettuce now you get dog food to feed the animals. They charge $20 for the food which is a small bucket. The gummy bears and all the toys are overpriced. The food too. $14 for three tenders and like 5 fries. This place is too expensive. Cost was over $60 for two people. One kid and one adult. Never again!!! read more

Nova Wild - Way too expensive!!! $2 for this. - Petting Zoos Near Me - Vienna, Virginia

Was a nice experience.. don't think twice to take your kids there it's just an unforgettable experience if you haven't been to too many zoos before! You need 2 to 3 hours to have full experience on both sides ( walk around and drive through). I got our ticket onile, which is way faster than getting it there.. The attached video can help you to get an idea about everything there.. enjoy read more

Poor management!!! There are 3 major problems with the new ownership and management... Rude staff: 3 cars behind me in the drive through said they didn't pay for their tickets. They were letting everyone in without any tickets. I unfortunately paid for my tickets online. When I tried to ask where to get the food to feed the animals during the drive through, the young lady literally yelled at me and scared my kids and my wife in the car. She was sooo rude and didn't care when I told her that we need to get food for the animals and that everyone in the line still didn't pay and were confused where to pay. Safety is questionable: the animals with the very long horns twice bumped into my car and found a couple of scratches. Was it worth it? Absolutely not. Chaos and non-existent organization: all the animals were gathered at the very entrance. Then for 90% of the drive through not a single animal. So naturally all visitors started slowing their cars at the entrance. While the rude staff yelling at everyone for no freaking reason. I really miss the old "safari roarers" before this terrible new management. Wasted $150 today for nothing!!!!! Got yelled at, kids had no fun, and had to deal with a very disappointed family day. read more

See all

We did the capybara experience with a zoo employee named Summer and had a great time! She was knowledgeable and let my two boys guide how they wanted the experience to go. We got to hang out with Tater, pet him and take a ton of pictures. You can't feed him, because of the sharp teeth, but it is still an up close and personal experience. If you have a capybara lover in your life... it is worth it. We thought the zoo was cute and loved the drive-through safari as well. read more

See all

This was a fun time with the family. It is clean and easy to get around. You can tell the animals are loved. The drive thru part was my favorite part, but the few attractions to walk around and see was great too. Took us maybe an hour or two, we have a toddler, and so this was a good weekend activity for the fam. Keep up the good work Nova Wild...We will be back! read more

Nova Wild - My two sons and a napping cheetah. ^^ - Petting Zoos Near Me - Vienna, Virginia

We decided to swing in with our toddler who is 2 years old. We were really excited when we saw they have a drive thru safari. The price is pretty similar to six flags where you have to pay per person, it does kinda add up but we weren't surprised of charging per person. We also decided to purchase food to feed the animals which i would recommend to get them to come up to the car. You can go around the drive thru as many times as you want which was nice. Not a huge variety of animals but it was nice for our toddler to enjoy, hopefully they get more animals in the future but we did have a good time ! They also have a walk through section but we didn't do it this time, will definitely do it in the future. read more

I remember coming here as a kid when it was under different management and have fond memories. The animals are always gentle and sweet and there are many types to meet, from mules to cows to bison and alpaca. It is a joy to experience close encounters with the animals and feed them treats. My kids loved feeding the budgies and goats the most. It was also neat to see more exotic animals from around the world including cheetahs! CONS: The carrots must be cut by samurais and imported from Japan because it's reflected in the cost. I didn't see many COVID precautions in place. Otherwise, a great outdoor activity for the family. read more

Nova Wild - How are mooooo? - Petting Zoos Near Me - Vienna, Virginia

See all

Make sure you are aware of how much they charge. There's no refund for the ticket at all even if there's mistake or their own fault. There is no way to review the purchase until you got the receipts but then it's too late. read more

We love this place and come every 2-3 weeks! My toddler is obsessed with Kevin the peacock and the goats! The animals are well cared for and friendly. We bought the annual pass and it's totally worth it if plan on going often. Only wish is that if you have a family pass, they'd offer a discount on feed! Feed is $20/generous bucket and $5/3 bird sticks to feed the budgies. Go early to feed the budgies! I really like doing that first, then feeding the goats, pigs, etc and then safari. So excited to meet the sloths! read more

Nova Wild - Petting Zoos Near Me - Vienna, Virginia

Zoo was great, many different animals to see. But we paid extra for the Sloth encounter and it was Incredible. Sydney our guide was VERY knowledgeable and friendly, she alone made it worth our while. I was with my daughter and we were able to feed and pet the 2 sloths they had. Would highly recommend this encounter. read more

Our family of six enjoyed a wonderful day at the safari. We purchased the walk-through portion as well as the drive-through part; it was a bit pricey for the size of the zoo, but our children had a fantastic time experiencing the animals come right up and eat right out of their hands on the drive-through portion (you do have to purchase food from them to feed the animals). Hands-down my favorite part; They all truly enjoyed the parakeet feeding experience and riding the camels (I can't lie, I felt awful for the camels), and we have children ranging from a one-year-old to an 11-year-old. I'm glad they had things for everyone to enjoy. I will re-experience if we revisit the area! read more

See all

Paid for tix online and couldn't go thru drive thru because line was so long to the street. It is Spring Break so maybe they could do time slots or something. the zoo part is just OK. It has the potential to be really cute and great but missing the mark big time. If maybe it was 1/2 the price I could justify a bit but it's a big no for me --not returning. Save your money and just go to the real Zoo. read more

Nova Wild was really fun and affordable! I was afraid of the animals and first but feeding them actually turned out to be safe and fun! read more

Nova Wild - Kangaroos - Petting Zoos Near Me - Vienna, Virginia

Made the mistake of coming here a second time after new ownership. $83 for a family of 3 + entrance to butterflies. Don't waste your time an $$ go to Smithsonian zoo or Natural History museum read more