Closest you'll ever get to wild animals. An absolutely great experience. Highly recommend as a family outing.

Clean nice sanctuary with a lot of exotic animals Great for kids Not crowded Check out the shelter next door for adoptions read more

A nice size zoo that my family and I enjoyed over mdw. I love how the animals are rescued and (hopefully) being well cared for. It sure does look like they're cared for properly compared to other places I've visited! We enjoyed seeing the lions and tigers and bears, oh my! I hear you used to be able to feed the animals popcorn which they don't do anymore but that's ok! We will be back. read more

Such a wonderful place. Not a fancy place with snacks, rides, etc - but amazing to see animals. Really enjoyable visit read more

The employees take care of their animals and the visits go to donation. Such a fun day! Only took us about 45 minutes to go through but not all of the animals were out so probably about an hour of fun! read more

Cute little excursion with the kids. Fair prices and great staff. Great cause as well. Offer various animals up close from peacocks, tigers, lions, parrots, lama, donkeys, lizards, and more. Going through some construction right now, so the entrance is around the side in the interim. We had a rainy day, but still had a lot of fun. There are overviews on each animal and some roam more free. Great interaction for the kids and adults. read more

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I haven't been here in over 1 year but it was very nice to see how the lions and tigers walk around in the Zoo. I also was a peacock that had large beautiful feathers that were spread out. I didn't want to add a picture of my brother to this review. read more

I love animals more than people, it's just the truth and the fact that this "zoo" is full of rescued babies that would not survive otherwise is wonderful. Sure, their enclosures are a bit small and they could use a lot more things for the animals, however I have no doubt that they run primarly off donations and what they are doing for these animals, some from horrific situations, is amazing. It's not expensive to get in at all and you are able to see many of these animals at a very close range. My little nephew enjoyed it as it was his first time seeing these wild animals in person and I'm sure he and his parents will be going back the older he gets. I also really enjoyed hearing the people working there talk, from the person giving a guided tour, to the guy who was in cleaning one of the bear's enclosures, they all just seemed so passionate about these animals. It was well worth the hour drive while my husband and I were in town over the holidays visiting family! read more

FORKED RIVER: another day, another wonderful Santa Claus! Popcorn Park Animal Refuge hosted a cute photo shoot on 12/5 and all proceeds help support the animal refuge and Associated Human Society! There was also a winter wonderland with hot cocoa and vendors to buy food and gifts! Although the zoo itself is not pet friendly, follow them for more events that may allow dogs! read more

Popcorn Park Zoo - Zoos Near Me - Forked River, New Jersey

Went to zoo, didn't get in - said they stopped selling tickets at 3:30pm, it was 3:38pm SATURDAY. Website states park closes at 5pm, we drove 45minutes to find it and left extremely disappointed with crying children. Website should STATE, "no tickets sold after 3:30pm" if that is really procedure??? If no admission after 3:30pm, then say it, don't mislead people..........not going back, will go to Johnson's Farm instead!! read more

Zoo staff are now working on the new exhibit at the zoo in New Jersey to help raise awareness for animals read more

Popcorn Park Zoo - Monkey station - Zoos Near Me - Forked River, New Jersey

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We went there on a 50-degree February Sunday afternoon in 2024. We were happy with our visit. There are a variety of animals, all in good health. Many of the animals are recused; for example, a huge boa was found in the balcony of a building in New York before it was rescued and brought to this zoo. The most attractive animals were the beautiful peacocks that were roaming free everywhere and the lions and tigers that we could see from a very close distance. The whole zoo took about an hour, which is just right for us. The entry fee is very reasonable as well. read more

We came back to the zoo and it's been about 4 years. It's 10$ now for adults to visit and 5$ for children. They no longer offer popcorn to feed to the animals. It was honestly disappointing. It was nice to visit on a weekday where it wasn't busy but barely any animals even came out. Last time we visited All the animals came out for the food but I guess now no food so they wanna sleep and be left alone. Overall just was dreary and I feel bad for the animals they all seem sad. Not sure if we will go back again. read more

Friendliness of the staff. Courtesy, manners. Just be nice and talk TO people--not AT them

This isn't the typical NYC zoo we're used to. But this one is inexpensive and you're allowed to feed all the animals! Surprised these animals enjoy popcorn and peanuts but they'll eat them up. From birds to bears to even tigers, this zoo will keep the children occupied for an hour. Try not to come here on such a hot day like I did . read more

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A very nice zoo made up of mostly rehab or rescue animals. Lots of beautiful peacocks roam the grounds. The primates are full of personality and fun to watch. It's a nice stop if you're in the area, but it won't take very long to see it all. read more

First ... I am a believer in great zoo's and a harsh critic of those institutions where animals are left in unhappiness. However, I am also a believer that in light of the actions of our nation to destroy the environment that zoo's may be the only places that preserve some animal life for future generations. If you didn't know the story of the POPCORN Zoo you might look at their facilities and cry foul!! Yes, those are cages made out of steel that house some of the animals but pause to consider that the non-profit operating this loving caring "zoo" have provided home to animals who have been abused and abandoned. POPCORN survives on donations. The POPCORN ZOO survives on love and on this perfect summer day just a few miles inland from the Jersey Shore we had to park across the street because lots of people believed that a visit to see the animals was worth it. Popcorn and peanuts are on sale to feed to the animals. Don't make the mistake of sampling the popcorn because it is dried out with no butter nor salt. Experience the sharing of love when you toss some popcorn to these human conditioned animals (*Please note that the operators do feed quality foods to their animals and that these animals have an amazingly long life was residents of this Lacey Township care center.). The tiger siblings still act like siblings as they move around their comfortable cage. The King of the Beasts sits royally glancing to see who is in his kingdom. The White Tiger still is majestic but the Black Bears still get me smiling as do the goats, the deer, and all the other animals in the zoo. And., if you are looking for a friend for your home Animal Rescue has cats, dogs, and rabbits ready for adoption. Watching the one tortoise stretched out in the sun told the story ... comfort and safety exists for these animals for the rest of their lives thanks to the POPCORN ZOO! WE had a good time ... read more

Popcorn Park Zoo - Zoos Near Me - Forked River, New Jersey

Update from my original review: I just got done visiting the zoo again today. I read some other reviews and saw someone was upset with how they were treated by the staff here. Unfortunately after my visit today I can relate to them. I had arrived at the zoo a little bit after 4 and I went into it knowing closing time was 5 so me and my girlfriend would have to quickly walk around and get out to respect the closing time. When we walked into the entrance to the ticket booth we were met by a woman who didn't speak one word to us. I said I was going to purchase the tickets and my girlfriend would purchase the popcorn. I asked for 2 adult tickets and she did it quickly. Afterwards she didn't say thank you or anything instead just looked at my girlfriend and awkwardly stared at her and I could tell it made her uncomfortable. She then purchased one box of popcorn and then we thanked her and walked into the park. No thank you or an enjoy your time at all. We then went through the park and had a good time until about 3 quarters of the way a woman said to us, "you know we close at 5 o'clock right." I then replied, "yeah I know we're just wrapping it up." She then replied, "well the park exit in just ahead the same way you came in." Obviously insinuating that she wanted us to leave. I then replied, "I know thank you." It's one thing to simply let us know that the park was closing soon, but the way she came off was definitely rude. The saving Grace was one of the zoo keepers that was working on doing some maintenance on the enclosures. We were looking at the tigers and he had walked by and the tigers instantly put their attention to him. We said out loud, "oh they know it's time to eat." And he told us a little story about how they love interacting with the staff, but they aren't fond of kids. It was very saddening to be treated like this at a zoo that has such a great cause. I still will support this place because of its main cause, but you'd think people working for a good cause would have a work environment with higher morale. Especially since this place runs solely off of park entries and donations. read more

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We really enjoyed this place. My 4 yo LOVED feeding the animals. I was very surprised that they had lions and tigers and bears(oh my!). Who knew bears liked popcorn? It's a small zoo, so it's not too far for little legs to walk. You can also get pretty close to the animals and get a good view. The prices are reasonable. The parking is small. I wish they had real bathrooms instead of portapotties. I wish some of the animals had more space- some of them looked very bored. read more

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We were so lucky to go in a cool winter day with lots of sunshine. All the animals were out sunbathing. The big cats were amazing. It was such a great feeling knowing these broken and sometimes neglected animals have found their forever homes. read more

Popcorn Park Zoo - Blind but so beautiful white Tiger xo - Zoos Near Me - Forked River, New Jersey

Love this place , too bad y can't feed the animals anymore , highly recommend for animal lovers

A reasonably priced outing for families! If you are looking for a visit with animals, PPZ is a great place to go. For $19 two adults and one child got 2 containers of popcorn and entrance into the zoo. It was a perfect time for my 4 year old. It's nice knowing that your entrance fee is helping to support animals that might otherwise not be cared for. From pigs to bears, chickens to monkeys--- there is something for everyone! Did you know you can feed deer ?? That was a big hit with my little one! read more

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I'm so torn when writing this review.. I did read a lot about the animals on the cages & it is sad.. it is also sad to see them in the cages. I know the Zoo is helping the animals by giving them a place to live. My families favorites were the monkeys, goats, turtles& peacocks. You can feed the bears and monkeys peanuts .. if you can throw in them through 2 cages.. the farm animals really like the popcorn. My advice.. buy 1 bag of popcorn *2 bags of peanuts. Peanuts are $1.50& popcorn is$2.50 for large. Wear sneakers, get there at 11 and relax and enjoy your environment Im trying not to let the stories on the cages bother me. My favorites are the owls, turtles and peacocks! My kids are 10&9 and they had a nice time We explained to them about non profit, volunteering& having illegal animals as pets. read more

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A really fun day for the family & also a chance to support the animals that they care for there. A really good place to make you feel terrific being with all the different animals. read more

This is a cute little zoo that's easily accessible and fun for kids. They seem to take pretty good care of the animals besides one macaw who didn't have a single toy in its cage. A large parrot that is intelligent without any toys or anything to shred to keep his mind occupied is pure torture. That's the equivalent of putting a two year old in a room without a single toy. Toys don't have to cost much give it all toilet paper rolls newspapers etc. loved the park besides this. read more

Popcorn Park Zoo - Macaw without a single toy. This is like placing a two year old child in a room without any toys. Pure torture - Zoos Near Me - Forked River, New Jersey

Great place to spend a few hours. It not very big. But there are lots of rescue animals and they have signs with the name of the animal and it own person story, which I liked. Little kids will like this place. But make sure if you are bringing a stroller make sure it has the large wheels as the ground is soft and sandy. There are some animals you can pet like the deer. Parking is ok but you may need to park across the street if the lot is full. read more

This is not your typical zoo and as long as you understand this walking in you'll enjoy your visit. All of the animals here have been surrendered or rescued. There are no research or breeding programs. The zoo is just a safe haven for these exotic and domesticated animals. The zoo is very small and easily walkable. You can easily walk it very slowly in under 2 hours. Admission is very reasonable and goes towards the animals care. Adults are $5 and kids 3-11 are $4. Popcorn and peanuts are sold ($2.50 and $1.50) to feed the animals. Although it's small you can see lions, tigers, bears, sheep, cows and a lot of other animals. I think because it's such a simple zoo my kids LOVE it even more. Where else can you get close to black bears and throw them peanuts! There is no glitz here whatsoever. Not even a snack bar. They advertise ice cream but I've never actually seen anyone with it. Bathrooms are located outside the main entrance. Parking lots are small but there is plenty of parking all around. Make sure you visit the animal shelter next door! The location is easily accessible not far off the GSP. read more

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I like the idea behind this park; a place where displaced and abused animals could live in peace. Oh and also you can feed (or mindlessly throw) popcorn at them. Being a bleeding heart animal lover I was determined to see this place one day. The admission is very reasonable, but keep in mind the park is somewhat small. At this point many of the animals beg for popcorn, and if they see the red and white box in your hands they'll be your best friend for a few moments. Despite a diet of corn most of the animals look healthy and well cared for. However, there's typically two fences separating you from any given animal for safety reasons, but this makes it difficult to feed them. It's hard to aim when you're throwing fistfuls of light weight popcorn. Kids will love this place regardless and have lots of fun trying to feed the animals. A cute little park, and I appreciate the work they do here. It could just use a bit more funding and a bit better of an enclosure system. read more

Popcorn Park Zoo - A cute (but probably ferocious) bear - Zoos Near Me - Forked River, New Jersey

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Maybe I'm spoiled after living in Arizona for 8 years & working with several rescues there, as well as being a donor for the Tucson Desert Museum (a place for animal rehabilitation, with a very similar goal) but the condition of this supposed refuge was somewhat appalling. The animals were bored and dirty. The horses and farm animals never get brushed, their fur is NOT supposed to look like that and I know it. The poor little pigs were covered in TICKS. Your staff is lazy. Do better. Just because these animals came from near death situations doesn't mean keeping them in a sub-par existence is okay either. While we had a nice day, it was a little disturbing to watch a bunch of snotty loud 5 year Olds chucking popcorn and peanuts at the saddest, most lonely, board tiger in a low rent enclosure. It gets old pretty quick. read more

Went here just to get out of the house. Haven't been here in years. It's a relatively inexpensive day trip. Lots of rescue animals and while I don't support zoos, this is different although it was sad to see a tiger with no water to play in. The biggest issue I had is that there were no staff monitoring people. There were many kids chasing geese and/or peacocks and there should have been staff telling them to not do that since this parents didn't. Aside from some obnoxious families like that, it was a nice outing. read more

Place is great for the kids and such a great price for a family outing! Not to mention they have a huge dog/cat rescue attached if you're looking for a furry friend! read more

Great place animals are happy the ground s are clean and they have animal rescue attached. The wild peacock s are Beautiful.

Great place that does a lot for abused animals without a home. It gets crowded and at times the weight is very long. Stay away from Sunday's. read more

How could you go wrong going here !!!!Support this place they take in wayward animals of all kinds Always a great time love the monkeys, horses, pigs ,lions all of them you can take your time going through and feed the animals awesome fun for young and old read more

The zoo is awesome! It's so heartwarming to know that all of these beautiful animals are so well taken care of, and have found their forever sanctuary, despite such hard lives for many of them! read more

The zoo is not worth the money to get in it's not good at all also they say they have animals for adoption where the place is bad

Great zoo! Clean and well managed. We enjoyed all of the animals and especially the stories posted outside most of their areas. Great spot and wonderful staff. read more

I was somewhat Disappointed with this zoo!! It's a very small, not much parking, if there are alot of vehicles. And you can buy popcorn to feed the animals. But the issue with that are their are fences on top of another fences, so when you throw the popcorn the animals can't get to it. So basically it's a waste of money. The best experience was the adoption center so many cute kittens and alot of dogs. To see and buy. And if you need to use the restroom you need to walk out of the zoo and walk past the adoption center and you will see the restroom, unfortunately that's the only one available.. I don't think I would go back again. There many other zoo's that are much bigger to see many animals... read more

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wow what a great zoo very up close to the many different species you will come across liins tigers and bears oh my?well not to sure about bears but I am sure the popcorn zoo is a win win with the family. Explore on your own too !it's all what you want in a special zoo.& don't forget to feed the animals they . thier treats. read more

Popcorn Park Zoo - Zoos Near Me - Forked River, New Jersey

What a great time we had at the popcorn zoo! The monkeys were our favorite. They were engaging and funny and had us laughing nonstop. The popcorn and peanuts were inexpensive. I would recommend 2 bags of peanuts and 1 large popcorn per person. The lady at the register was so sweet and helpful. We loved all the little stories that went along with each animal as it made the visit even more meaningful. The staff is around the grounds but are cleaning, feeding or working and don't really engage, which we like. We went to the shelter after our walk and I wish I had known they had a wish list because I would definitely have brought some of the items! read more

Popcorn Park Zoo - Zoos Near Me - Forked River, New Jersey