The zoo in general I give 3/5 stars: Parking and concessions are overpriced. The zoo itself is one of the oldest in America and it shows. Its desperate for updating. Other than the rainforest and Artic area, I'm not impressed with anything, especially VS other zoos. I've never seen a single person or zookeeper around welcoming guests or talking about the animals. Its almost always dirty and smells. No tech, nothing interactive. I get it, its a zoo. Healthy animals are the point and star of the show. And im sure the budget is skin tight. But the zoo shouldn't resemble the 1800's anymore. Other than the updated Artic exhibit, this place is exactly the same from when I was child in the 90's. I strongly urge to you check their schedule to see if any free events are going on to enhance your experience. Zoomagination (annual lantern fest) on the other hand gets a 5/5 rating and bumps this review. Its as close to Disneyworld as you can get in Buffalo. The lantern statues are stunning in the darkness. And the late summer vibes are immaculate. read more

The Buffalo Zoo - Zoos Near Me - Buffalo, New York

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The zoo is a classic buffalo attraction, a great place for the whole family to visit. Sone great new options to eat here, burgers, pizza slices and fantastic educational opportunities for all ages! read more

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The Buffalo Zoo celebrates it's 150th birthday this year and had, thanks to M&T bank some free days this year. We took advantage of it last Thursday. The zoo was disappointing. Many cages seemed to be empty. We never got to the giraffes, because the route the signage pointed us to was closed off. The zoo is slowly making improvements from the old fashioned cages to more natural habitats. The Tropical Rainforest building is a good example. More needs to be done to make it interesting to go back. read more

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Great fall day for a visit to the Zoo the 3rd Thursday is a free day and had many people there without being crowded. We went around noon little chilly but warmed up. Animals were taking naps but the sea lions were swimming around their tank. Got to take a picture with my favorite the polar bear of course he was sleeping! They had some decorations for fall and Halloween they have a booze and country night on Friday and the next 2 Saturday having things planned for kids for Halloween looks like fun. They had a burger place opened my daughter got a cheeseburger with cheese, lettuce,tomato she said it was good I forgot to take a picture but did look good! Nice afternoon at the Zoo! read more

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The Buffalo Zoo is just a shadow of itself. Today was the last free day to visit. There were lots of families and school groups, but there is a lot of space at the zoo, so it was never crowded at any exhibit we were trying to see. The elephant house is currently empty as it is being retrofitted for the black rhino. The elephants have gone to a sanctuary to spend the rest of their days. The long building that housed reptiles in one section, lions and tigers in another and three gorillas and other primates in another is no longer a continuous "path". One used to be able to start at one end on the long building and walk through to the other end, looking at many different critters. Now sections are closed necessitating going in one building, then out, then in another as though these building are now all separate structures. The mountain goat island has very few goats. The hyena seems to be alone in its enclosure. Ditto for several other species. There are two polar bears, although they were each napping at opposite sides of their enclosure. We never found the lions and tigers. The arrow pointing to the path to see the giraffes was blocked off. There are two American Bald Eagles and two vultures. I saw only geese in the aviary. Most of the birds and animals that were supposed to be in the Rainforest building were not there. No brightly colored birds. It is not inexpensive to go to the Zoo; I wish there were more animals to see. read more

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The Buffalo Zoo is great for the family. The cleanliness is descent but I feel it could be a bit better. The animals are great and always doing something different whenever I go. Be sure to visit the Zoo and check out the animals. I personally love the hyenas and the Aardvark. Enjoy your time. read more

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Honestly, it was a good visit for the most part, and we had a great weather day. I love the Zoo-magination lantern festival overlay that is on during the summer. It brings a lot more to do and look at. When it's not up, it sometimes seems very empty and like it's missing something. But I understand it's a park setting with animals on exhibit so that makes sense. Even with it being a smaller zoo, there is still a good amount to look at and do. Most of the exhibits are good and the animals seem to have a good space to move around. There is a fun new dog show happening there which was nice to see. We saw a lot of animals out and that is always a hit with kids especially being able to see all the animals. Luna the polar bear was the most social animal and my son really loved seeing her out at the big glass wall. So much so, we even got him a stuffed polar bear at the gift shop. Food was good and came out hot and fresh. They do a great job having a nice menu here with something for everyone. The gift shop was very nice and air conditioned which felt great on a hot day. Overall, it was a great day at the zoo. Can't wait to see what new things they bring in next. read more

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We took the grandchildren to the Buffalo zoo over the weekend, and they enjoyed the experience. The zoo has found an innovative way to fill the vacant animal exhibits with exotic silk fabric sculptures which are illuminated at night. The status of the Buffalo zoo has fallen off sharply in the last few years as the major large animal exhibits have been removed from the zoo. Be sure to bring snacks and beverages with you when you visit, otherwise you may need to take out a mortgage to buy a 6 ounce solo cup full of pretzels for eight dollars read more

The Buffalo Zoo - Zoos Near Me - Buffalo, New York

I have been to the Buffalo Zoo twice this summer with my husband and one year old granddaughter. We purchased a membership. Honestly I was disappointed...the carousel ride for $5 was ridiculous. I understand that there has to be fees as there are costs to maintain and care for the animals but the disappointed look on a child's face when Mom and Dad have to say NO you can't ride the carousel is very sad. The food options were also over priced...if you go to the zoo for a visit be prepared to return with a much lighter wallet...not very family friendly!!! read more

This has been my favorite part of buffalo for my whole life. When I was younger they had a program called cub club that was an amazing opportunity for kinds to learn about animals and make friends. I have also experienced a school field trip there in the past when the staff was so kind and accommodating to all of the kinds running around. When I was younger I spent summers going to there camp that was so informational and gave me so much information about zoos and caring for animals. This zoo takes so much time to make shire there animals are well cared for and have the best life they could ever want. Their breeding program is so amazing also they have tried so hard to bread polar bears and red pandas. The food is pretty decent. The prices are a little high but the food is good. A lot of summers they have a lights show which is very pretty but just note that if you go to there night lights show the animals are not out and if you come early there is no animals to see. There is also a lot of people on weekends for that so I would suggest going on a week day. The zoo is such a good place to bring kids and to learn I would highly recommend. read more

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Beautiful zoo, well laid out, clean, active animals with close up viewing. Love the informational screens throughout the zoo. Ready to read and learn a bit. Plenty of animal exhibits with a red panda, lions, tigers and polar bears. The reptile house has been greatly improved since the last time I was there... Fantastic viewing options of exotic colorful frogs, lizards and snakes. Most of the animals were outdoors and moving around... It was great. A wonderful zoo where you can enjoy a full day of animal watching. read more

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Pretty average zoo I would say one and done for me here. Just wasn't too impressed on our visit to this Zoo. read more

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where to even start with this one.... the buffalo zoo? More like buffalo poo!! I love animals but the care here is obviously mediocre at best. Their enclosures were clearly not big enough to suit their needs. The gorilla shown here was eating and regurgitating its food for over an hour just to keep itself entertained. What else is there to say? Do better. read more

The Buffalo Zoo - Zoos Near Me - Buffalo, New York

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I went to the zoo all the time with the children I nannied in Buffalo 15 years ago but it was so nice to bring my own son and see it all updated. We went on a blustery Wednesday in October and it wasn't super busy. We saw a lot of animals and the fall decor was beautiful. The new enclosures are great and we loved hanging out with the red panda. Of course going on a weekday we missed out on the carousel and train but if we lived in Buffalo, we would be there all the time! read more

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This is another local gem in Buffalo, New York. I always buy a membership to Support them and went to zoomagination again this year with my family. If you haven't been to this wonderful yearly event, you definitely should! Every year it's a different theme, just beautiful, especially at night fun for the kids and adults too! read more

The Buffalo Zoo - Polar bear - Zoos Near Me - Buffalo, New York

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This was our first time going to Buffalo ,so we ended up going to the zoo . The first animal we saw was the Polar Bear, we were very happy to see one . Okay-- my young son wrote that. He loved this zoo! It was small and we saw it all fast. I would say it was worth a visit! read more

Love my Buffalo zoo! It may be small and sometimes our animals are on loan to other zoos, but it's an awesome place for children! It's just the right size to take little ones with plenty for them to see and do. My granddaughter is in love with the place and squeals with excitement when we pull up! I have seen this zoo in many stages and it's definitely on the way up! All of the keepers and docents are so friendly and willing to talk about the animals, they love their jobs and it shows! We've been members for at least 30 years and will continue to give support so our zoo can continue to grow. read more

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When my kids were little, we were Zoo Members and I thought it was an OK zoo worth the membership. Fast-forward a few years and I recently went to the zoo paid $27 a person. I've been to 30 Zoos all over the US and Buffalo is the worst, by far I was completely disappointed in the Buffalo Zoo. It's run like a environmentalist feel good place. They got rid of the Elephant's, ok I guess I understand they need more room to move. Then I noticed they got rid of the bears exhibit and only have polor bears, getting rid of the brown bear and a black bear.. Then I noticed the grass and weed not trimmed and it was looking like shit, to be honest . One employee was rude basically not saying excuse me just the words "move", but I excepted that from a place run by a moron. Half the exhibit were empty or not filled with half the animals that used to be there. The rainforest exhibit used to be a pretty cool place, NOPE they screwed that up too. One 1 type of bird, no anteaters, no thing else in the waters .... complete disgrace. So to top it all off some person in charge decided to put up these non realistic artistic ridiculous dinosaurs displays all over the zoo, between that and that lack of trimming bushing and cutting the lawn. Being a life long Buffalo resident I a ashamed of our Zoo. It's a disgrace. read more

What a sad and dreadful experience. Not just sad as in disappointing but sad emotionally. To begin--We went on a day that so happened to be school field trip day--first mistake. Was more like bringing the zoo to the animals than the people to the zoo. Truly--I was appalled by the chaotic nature of it all. Let's just say there are children that make you want to have kids and then there are those remind you why you don't. The animals themselves were cowering in fear over the constant screaming. And the animals that we managed to sneak a look at--in some secluded scream-free corner--had the saddest eyes. From the lone polar bear repeating his same rhythmic back strokes to pass the time to the motionless birds inside who never get to see real sunlight, it was all just very sad. The enclosures look very poorly kept and make it look like you're visiting an animal prison instead of a home. $20 tickets for that? Hard pass. read more

The Buffalo Zoo - Zoos Near Me - Buffalo, New York

The zoo is great a nice size for young kids! The activities are fun and the animals are well cared for. I really love the dog agility show it is excellent! My nephew has autism and the zoo was very accommodating for a child with special needs. read more

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I couldn't believe how run down the zoo is. Very disappointing. I'd rather take the 2 hour trip to Toronto. read more

We came for the Trick or Treat event this year. While seeing the Sanderson sisters and getting free carousel rides was great, for the price we paid for our two year old to participate, we were very disappointed in the amount of candy. He seriously got one tiny piece of candy at 12 stations. Totally not worth the money. The zoo itself did have some cool animals, like an anteater and a rainforest area, but it seemed like a lot of animals weren't out. I would stop here again if I was in the area, but wouldn't go out of my way. read more

The Buffalo Zoo - Anteater - Zoos Near Me - Buffalo, New York

The buffalo zoo is the best part of Buffalo with so many animals,but sadly the gorilla exhibit is very sad. I think they said they might get them outside but I don't think so. read more

This zoo was a lot bigger than I expected. For like $18 you get a good size zoo that you can walk around for a few hours or more. Plenty of animals were out. I took off a star because that parking is horrendous. It took us awhile to find a parking spot and it wasn't even close to the entrance. I still recommend coming here though. read more

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It was the polar bears for me, so fun!! The lions also, put on a great little show of play!! We had a very nice time!

Great fun for everyone. Good way to spend the day. Walking and talking making memories.

Particularly fun place during Zoomagination. Last year was incredible. Went there today with a 2year old who wants to walk everywhere. While he was attracted to everything he could climb on and wasn't interested in the animals at all, we filled two hours with walking around and getting ice cream. The carousel and train were big hits, and it was great to see all of the animals out and about today. read more

We visited the zoo yesterday. It was our first visit in a long time and I was a bit disappointed. It could have been a combination of new COVID restrictions and the weather but access was limited to many buildings and exhibits. We had printed a map at home since they no longer give them out (COVID?) but some pathways were blocked. Also, it just didn't seem that we saw many animal. There was 1 gorilla, 2 spider monkeys, 1 tiger, and I lion. I thought there used to be more in both the ape and cat families. No bears besides the polar bear and no elephants, though I do totally agree with that decision since elephants definitely need more space. That all being said I still think it's a good place to bring a family. You can see the excitement on the kids faces when spotting different animals. One of the favorite spots is actually the farm area. There's nice play areas though unfortunately they're all currently closed. Highlight is definitely the polar bear exhibit. I'll have to check out the rest of the zoo again in the summer when the weather is better and hopefully covid restrictions are less. 2021-40 read more

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This Zoo needs some work. Hopefully, with the price hike that will help. A lot of empty exhibits, cracked cement, weeds. It's just not a good look and the animals look so bored. They have nothing to do. read more

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We went Buffalo Zoo today (5/23/2025) to purchase a gift from the gift shop along with a gift certificate. First 15 minutes of parking was free. It took us 35 minutes to walk to gift shop and ticket booth. We got charged $6.00 for parking. As a born and raised WNYer, now living in PA, I find this a bad advertisement for the zoo!!! read more

I haven't been here in about 20 years. 20 years ago, not so great compared to other zoos. I decided to bring my 2 1/2 year old granddaughter today (5/20/25) for her first-ever zoo visit. Many of the animal exhibits were closed for construction - which seems to be everywhere. The elephants, monkeys - gone. I guess they've been gone for a few years now. They have a lot of reptiles (couldn't find the alligators either) and an awful lot of goats and sheep. 70% of the animals were not out or were sleeping. I understand that I shouldn't expect to see some animals as they are not on display for our pleasure. But, most of them? This is by far the worst zoo I have ever been to. I dropped $50 by the time I paid for entrance, parking and 1 lunch for my granddaughter. They should have at least offered a discounted admission due to many animals not in their habitat. I will NEVER support this zoo again. It should be closed. They should have moved years ago to accommodate more animals. It's just not worth the price of admission read more

I really love this zoo. I know people previous reviews said it was sad etc but I guess they never visited neighbor zoo Seneca zoo. This zoo is very big and have many nice animals and exhibits. They lay out of the zoo is really nice. It's worth the admittance fee. We came here today for the Halloween event. We got a late start to getting here and the parking lot was full. We found an alternative parking spot which was a small walk. Even though the zoo parking lot was full the event itself didn't feel crowded. People kept their space and things went very smoothly. The event was wonderful. The animals were very well taken care of and exhibits very clean. Coming from Rochester and our zoo.. but all the animals were very active. The staff at the zoo were very nice and friendly. It was a beautiful day at the zoo and the Halloween event was a lot of fun for my son. read more

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This is a must everytime we come to town. Just the perfect size zoo for a fun afternoon. I love the old stone buildings that they have used for years. Zoo could use some tlc as it's being to look a little run down. But the silk and iron that is put up right now is gorgeous and I'm sure spectacular at night lit up. read more

The Buffalo Zoo - Entrance - Zoos Near Me - Buffalo, New York

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I'm like Goldilocks. I've been to the biggest zoos (St Louis, Los Angeles, etc) and the smallest. This one is just my size. It is also beloved by my 2, 5, and 7 year olds. We can see all of the animals in one trip, both big and small. Want to come face-to-face with a gorilla, polar bear, giraffe, lion, tiger, or rhino? This zoo can give you that in less than an hour. Feeling like hanging with the meerkats, reptiles, and capybara? They got you. For an added bonus, talk to zoo staff or follow them on Instagram and you'll quickly know the names of the animals. My 5 year old son believes that Mindy, the sea otter who comes to the glass to play with him each visit, is his soulmate. read more

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I grew up going to the Buffalo Zoo and try to visit anytime I'm back home. This time was such a disappointment. If it wasn't for the pretty decorations for some night time light event it would have been a one star. I'm not sure if it's because of funding or lack of help but many of the animal habitats have fallen into disrepair. So sad because I really felt a few years ago it was really making progress in updating. Maybe this is a direct result of the pandemic and drop in attendance-I don't know. The lion and tiger habitats were some of the worst along with the rainforest. I felt so bad for the poor animals. No animal enrichment in any of areas. Even the gorillas looked bored. So, so sad. read more

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Went here recently for the Zoomagination event. It was much better than I expected! I enjoyed watching the lights. They where really interesting. I enjoyed the parrots and the peacock the best. They where really neatly animated. There where some really cool walk ways. Most of the gifts are really over priced. There where some cool aluminum crafts for sale. I got a near looking rose. Drinks and snacks are pretty over priced and the selection is very slim. Overall it was a nice but slightly overpriced experience read more

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This is a great family activity or couple/single activity. This Zoo seams to provide good spaces for their animals and genuinely seams to care about the wellbeing of each resident read more

I liked all the animals and the reptiles and the Komodo dragon. -reviewed by a 6 year old read more

The Buffalo Zoo - Zoos Near Me - Buffalo, New York

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Normally, I absolutely love going to this zoo. BUT, this year, I was very disappointed . The price per person went up. I paid $43 for me & my 2 kids to get in. The cost of an icee & a medium sized pretzel was ridiculous. But the most disappointing thing was, the lack of animals. We walked around for over 3 hours & so many of the animals that we used to see, we're gone. So many cages,glass display cases ,etc.., were empty. Elephants are completely gone. The only bear now is 1 polar bear. The Bisons are gone, Most of the wild cats were gone, there was only 1 snow leopard there. No more Lynx,no cougars,nothing ! No tigers , Hardly any snakes are left, the cool alligator is gone The only very cool thing there this time around was the mana rhino & her adorable baby boy. The male rhino was also playing with these 2 little kids , which was something I have never seen before & it was simply adorable. Other than that, it was pretty lame & definitely not even close to worth the money. Very disappointing & sad ,because our zoo used to be amazing & so much fun. Now, it is so not !!!! read more

The Buffalo Zoo - Zoos Near Me - Buffalo, New York

This isn't the biggest zoo and it's not the best zoo... but given it's size, I think it hits all of the things you'd want from a zoo. Animals from all over the world, check. Indoor and outdoor exhibits, check. Play areas for the kids, check. Food stands, check. Etc., etc., etc. I like our little zoo and try to make a trip once a year. I prefer the winter, because there are less people which allows me to take pictures at a more relaxed pace. It also makes me appreciate the warmth of the rainforest area that much more. read more

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