Visiting the North Carolina Zoo felt like a mini safari adventure. The animal enclosures are well-maintained. If you're planning a visit, make sure to allocate plenty of time because there's so much to see. I recommend bringing some comfortable walking shoes, as you'll cover quite a bit of ground.

Wonderful way to see the animals in their natural habits. They were drawn to the large viewing windows and fences so the adults and babies had great views of them. Use the free tram to get between sections because it’s very spread out. And prepare to walk a lot, including rolling hill paths. Staff were friendly and helpful. The gift stores have an extensive selection and we bought hats for both babies and adults there because it was sunny. The restaurant food is hit or miss. The double patty melt was delicious and served two adults. The chicken sandwich was just ok and the club sandwich was awful. The peppermint cocoa was delicious too. We visited on a sunny day in mid November and there were few people there. We’ll definitely return to see more. The entry price is very reasonable

The zoo is a favorite of ours, but would not recommend going when it is cold. Very few animals around. Most were inside where it was warm. Also a lot of work going on as they build Asia. Might go back in a couple years when that if done.

Nice zoo but a lot of the animals weren't out. We were not able to see any of the bears or the Avian center. There were enough other animals to satisfy my nine year old granddaughter, however. Wear comfortable shoes and arrive early as the parking lot can fill up. There's lots of overpriced food for purchase and gift shops with lots of inventory. They're building a new Asia exhibit (to open in 2026). There's playgrounds for kids in case looking at animals bore them. I'm glad we went but probably wouldn't go back.

Wonderful experience with our 2 year old. We aimed for the bigger animals- giraffes, zebras, elephants, polar bear, gorillas. It was great to see the larger animals with more room to move in most cases. It does mean being a bit farther away than if they were in cages, but seems better for them. Of course 1-2 miles is nothing compared to migration in the wild. It was great to see the native plants and trees on display as well! Tips: Go in the spring before it gets too hot. Go earlier in the day. Figure our what you want to see so you don't get too tired. We probably saw 10% of what they had.

We went with our 3 year old son and had a great time! We brought our own wagon which was really a necessity. I wish the zoofari was available 7 days a week- we defiantly would have done it. Our favorites included the alligators, dessert dome, and gorillas. The kids play area appeared closed. The aviary was closed. The bees were closed for the season. It was definitely worth the 5 hr trip though.