Kids love animals, and a visit to the zoo is fun and educational for both children and adults. Living in northeast Ohio, we are blessed to have several within a two-hour drive, including Cleveland, Pittsburgh, Erie, and Akron. This year, we decided to become members once again.
As a child, I remember visiting both the Cleveland and Pittsburgh Zoos. Pittsburgh Zoo was up on a high hill; visitors had to take an escalator to the top, building anticipation as you climbed. Cleveland’s Zoo was flatter, but full of the types of animals kids love: elephants, giraffes, monkeys, and more. We visited the big zoos–not often, just once every few years, but enough to keep our interest. However, we didn’t visit the one in Akron. My first visit was just a few weeks ago when I became a member.
When the kids were younger, we were members at the Toledo Zoo. Membership comes with perks like free parking and reciprocal agreements. My kids loved the zoo. In fact, Meghan was only nine days old on her first visit. Now that we have three toddlers in the family, we took the plunge and became Akron Zoo members. Okay, Aubree decided to join, and I just added myself as a member. The funny part is that I became a member before I’d even set foot through the gate.
Zoo Membership comes with several perks.
*Free unlimited admission for the ENTIRE year–Compared to many things in life, zoos are a relatively cheap attraction. Admission for children ages 2-14 costs $9 a day; adults are $12. Seniors ages 62 and older are $10. For a family with two adults and two children, admission for a day at the zoo is $42–about the cost of seeing a movie in the theater. However, a family membership is only $80. With the membership, they could come every single day of the year for less than the cost of two individual days.
*Free parking–members save $3 on parking each visit.
* Discounted admission to zoos in Ohio and nationwide–The list is huge. In Ohio alone, it includes 50% off admission to the Cincinnati Zoo and Botanical Garden, the Cleveland Metroparks Zoo, the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium, The Wilds, the Boonshoft Museum of Discovery, the African Safari Wildlife Park, and the Toledo Zoo.
*Discounts on special programsincluding birthday parties and educational events.
*Gift shop discounts and more!
Memberships start at $55 for an individual. The one Aubree and Jeremy purchased was $100 and included two named adult, one unnamed adult, and up to ten dependent children or grandchildren. They were able to add me as a third named adult for an additional $30. We opted to buy a second card, as well, for $5.
The beauty of having an unnamed adult on the membership is that you can take anyone. I can take Krystal or Dennis or anyone I choose. Adding that option to the regular family option was $20–paid for after two visits. The membership we actually ended up with after the upgrades was the Family Deluxe membership.
Akron Zoo will allow you to apply the price of your tickets to a membership within a certain time frame (two weeks), so save your receipts. If you think you might come back within the year, it’s well worth the upgrade.
That way, when your two-year-old asks in her sweet little voice, “I go zoo today?” you can reply, “Absolutely!”
To learn about other ways we entertain the little ones in our family, click here.
To visit our family farm, click here.
We are into our second year of having a zoo membership and we love it. We don’t use it in the colder weather but use it a lot during the nice weather. We even took our baby when he was a few months old and he did great. Our toddler thinks it’s the best thing ever.
I personally don’t like the concept of zoos and animal captivity however, as a child it definitely was a magical experience for me!
I understand. Zoos have come a long way in last fifty years. There are species that are now extinct in the wild due to poaching and loss of habitat that are still in existence because of zoos.
One of the fun things about a zoo membership is that you can often use it to visit other zoos when you travel! Enjoy!
Sounds like a lot of fun! We live in Utah and we still have to visit the Zoo here… but when we lived in California we visited the LA zoo often. 🙂
We have a zoo membership as well & love it!! Enjoy!!
We don’t have a zoo close by, but my son loves going to one. we would definitely get a membership if we had one.