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Zooamerica North American Wildlife Park
- Good for Kids:
- Yes
4 reviews for Zooamerica North American Wildlife Park
A nice zoo that accomplishes its mission well - they show off the iconic animals of North America - and they do it without being pretentious or shoving "save the planet" down your throat every five seconds.
Now, I'm all for saving the planet (and the humans along with it) but I'm here to see critters and varmints. Here, they kind of let the exhibits speak for themselves, and don't take attention away from the animals. And, in about an hour of leisurely walking, you can see: snakes, lizards, roadrunners, six kinds of owl, bats, alligators, crocodiles, bears, wolves, bobcats, prairie dogs, mountain lions, deer, turkeys, porcupines, otters, buffalo, elk, and the occasional tortoise and chipmunk. I'd sort them in order of potential tastiness but then PETA would throw blood on me.
We were there when they opened and all the animals were out and active. The two kids (6 and 3) had a blast - they especially liked the prairie dog town and the desert exhibit.
What's particularly nice about this place is that it's easy to get close to the animals, and it's not crowded. I think most people inside of the amusement park never quite make it there, and I don't think there are many folks in Hershey who go to things besides HersheyPark. They have their own (free) parking lot, and admission is very cheap (under $10 for adults).
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If it were not for "free" admission as part of the price of the Hershey Park ticket, I would say that Zoo America was not worth the visit.
While we did sort of rush through the zoo, we found the zoo to be sort of small and did not offer a lot to see. They had bears, and reptiles, elk and even a buffalo. But not what I have come to expect from a zoo -- I expect to see elephants, and perhaps giraffes and that sort of thing, which I did not here. Although we did see prairie dogs which you don't see every day. They also had at least one interesting exhibit / Q&A presentation on turtles and reptiles that my little boy enjoyed.
Worthwhile if you are in the park for a visit or in the area and need something to do with the kids -- even if you are not also going to Hershey Park, but not a zoo to go out of your way for.
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Otters. YAY!
Margay. Yay!
Wolves. yay!
Bear. yay.
Stupid birds. God daaaaaammmmiiiiittt I hate birds. Boo.
Definitely a great place to walk around and see North American wildlife at it's finest. Reasonably priced - gorgeous surroundings and you get to see otters swimming about (my favorite). Something different to do in Harrisburg/Hershey.
At Halloween they have Creatures of the Night which is pretty awesome. Yeah. I like the Zoo.
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When you mention a zoo, you usually expect acres and acres of exhibits with exotic animals that you would never see around where you live or a short trip away from your house.
When you visit Zoo America, that is exactly what you WON'T see. But the good thing is, it is cheap and there are a couple of animals worth going to see since we don't live in the wild wild west.
The Zoo is a walkthrough, kind of a super-mini National Zoo feel, if you have ever been there. They have a bunch of the usual suspects like a variety of birds, prarie dogs, wolves, etc. They also have cool ones too like huge Bison, a big black bear, cute little bobcats, and a mountain lion. Some of the usually boring animals happened to be doing cool things when we went, for instance the hawk had swooped down and devoured a mouse which was neat to see up close. Also, the elk was bucking his horns and showing off for the crowd right in front of the fence. That was a sight.
Overall this zoo won't compete for any worldwide recognition, but it is a nice, quick outing you can visit to keep the kids amazed and occupied and cheap alternative to blowing a paycheck on Hershey Park itself. You could really spend anywhere from 1 hour to the whole day here. Adult tickets are only $8.50 if you go to it without going to Hershey Park (there is free parking in their own lot!) which I thought was a great value. You can't expect the world when you are going to a zoo in Hershey, PA. Go in with that mindset and you will be pleasantly surprised.
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