Hello spring! It’s time to get out of the house and enjoy the coming blooms. Do you need an idea for a great spring adventure? Then let’s head to the Detroit Zoo! With its vast array of wildlife exhibits and immersive experiences, the Detroit Zoo makes for the perfect destination for animal lovers, sustainability enthusiasts, and families alike. Whether you’re interested in seeing the kangaroos of the Australian Outback Adventure, or exploring the bird sanctuary and butterfly garden, there’s something for everyone at the Detroit Zoo. In this blog post, we’ll guide you through the best ways to make the most of your visit to the Detroit Zoo this spring.

The Detroit Zoo is an animal park that uniquely merges both conservation and education, making it one of the top zoos in the country. This family attraction sits on over 100 acres of land, providing plenty of space for each animal habitat. The zoo residents receive the best possible care. With over 2,400 animals across 235 species, this is no small feat. The zoo proudly maintains its core values of conservation, education, and zoological innovation while serving more than 1.5 million visitors annually. Are you ready to plan your trip to this award-winning zoo?

Given that the zoo is so large, we recommend planning to visit for any where from handful of hours to a full day. It is also highly recommended to reserve a ticket in advance, unless you are a member. Only a certain number of general admission tickets will be available at the gate each day. And get this, best part about visiting in the spring: all of the animals were out and we had the zoo practically to ourselves.

At the zoo, you can find seven different sections on the Detroit Zoo map:

Light Green: Conservation Campus, where you can find the Butterfly Garden and Aviary, the Polk Penguin Conservation Center, The Amphibians and Wetlands Boardwalk, River Otters, Beaver, and the Reptiles.
Red: The Asian Forest where you’ll be able to spot the Red Panda, Tigers, and Camels.
Teal: The African Forest is home to the Great Apes of Harambee, Gorillas and Chimpanzees.
Orange: African Grasslands hosts African Birds, the Lion, Ring-tailed Lemurs, Japanese Macaque, Rhinoceroses, Giraffes, Zebras, Warthogs, and more.
Light Blue: Arctic Ring of Life where you can find the Polar Bear, Southern Sea Otter, Nunavut Gallery, and Arctic Outpost.
Light Red: Australian Outback where Red-necked Wallabies and Red Kangaroos can jump across your path.
Tan: American Grasslands is home to the Wolf exhibit, Bison, Bear, Bald Eagle, Wolverine, Farm animals, South American animals, and so much more.

Exhibits

If this is your first or hundredth time visiting, you are sure to be amazed when you see the wide array of creatures, beautiful landscaping, and interactive exhibits. Given that there are so many exhibits, we won’t dive into all of them. But we will list a few of our favorites for you here!

Tauber Family Railroad

Enjoy a relaxing ride through the zoo on the Tauber Family Railroad. Thanks to the Chrysler Corporation, these are two real trains donated and running on their own miniature railroad. The Admission is affordable, at $3 one way, making it the perfect way to travel straight to the back of the zoo or head straight to the front (especially if you have littles and they decided it’s time to go but you’re all the way at the back of the zoo).

Polk Penguin Conservation Center

The Penguin Conservation Center holds immersive exhibits and amazing viewing opportunities. You can walk through tunnels into the penguins’ habitat and watch as they swim around you. There is an immersive Antarctic experience where you can learn about the intense conditions early explorers faced, see videos of icebergs, and even get sprayed with some sea mist.

The Aviary & Butterfly House

The Wildlife Interpretation Center is a must-see. Even if the interior is closed for a private event, the architecture around the exterior is a stunning piece to look at. Inside, you can step through exhibits where you can watch the birds fly in the Free-Flight Aviary, witness butterflies in their tropical habitat in the Butterfly House, or learn about global weather at the Science on a Sphere. The Science on a Sphere exhibit is a 6-foot hologram of a globe that displays weather and environmental phenomenons.

Australian Outback Adventure

Hop like a kangaroo through the Australian Outback Adventure exhibit. This super fun exhibit allows you to walk right through the kangaroo and wallaby habitat! Although you can’t stray from the path, you might be able to witness them napping, snacking, or even hopping in front of you. Along the trail, you can find educational materials that might help answer questions!

Holtzman Wilflife Foundation Red Panda Forest

Climb above the Red Panda exhibit in the Zoo’s canopy walkway. This habitat features more than 14,000 square feet of naturalistic space with a flowing stream, waterfall, arboreal pathway, misting area, and nesting places. The canopy walkway extends 80 feet through the trees, providing unparalleled views of these wonderfully cute creatures.

Seasonal Events

Although the spring blooms are a wonderful time to visit, there may be some other events drawing you to the Zoo.

Detroit Zoo Boo

The Detroit Zoo Boo is a family-friendly fall event where kids can dress in costumes, find entertainers, pumpkin displays, a treat trail, and fall activities all over the zoo. In past years, they have hosted various entertainers such as aerialists, mimes, superhero reenactments, jugglers, and stilt-walkers. You can find this event held on select weekends in October.

Detroit Zoo Lights

The very popular Wild Lights, also commonly called Detroit Zoo Lights, at the Detroit Zoo is an annual holiday tradition. From mid-November through early January, the zoo is decorated with over a million LED lights. You can walk through them after dark for a super cool experience! Dress warm and you can purchase hot cocoa and other refreshments at stops along the trail.

Conservation Efforts

As we mentioned earlier, the Detroit Zoological Society’s core values are conservation, education, and zoological innovation. Through these values, they help save wildlife locally, nationally, and internationally through their comprehensive programs. Together, the Detroit Zoo and Belle Isle Nature Center care for, and rescue, animals as well as protect those critical populations to guard against extinction. They provide programs for field research and conservation projects. They also support other conservation organizations in the field. Their staff is specially trained to support emergency rescues, rehabilitations, and other events.

The Detroit Zoo is also working towards lessening their environmental impact with their unique, green roadmap called the Greenprint. This plan is constantly evolving as a guide while operations refine and improve facilities and daily practices over time. Throughout the park, you can find water bottle refill stations, water fountains, green certified restaurants, anaerobic digester, solar energy, and recycling stations. The wetlands boardwalk was constructed with recycled materials. They also have rain gardens where vegetation can absorb the rainwater from an underground pipe. A rain garden helps keep clean, fresh rainwater out of the sewer systems and reduces pollution. Many of the roofs have also become sustainable by incorporating a green roof. A green roof provides a rainwater buffer, purifies the air, reduces the ambient temperature, saves energy, and regulated indoor temperature.

Tips For Your Trip

To help you make the most of your adventure, here are a few tips:

Bring your own water bottles. Because of their sustainable practices, disposable water bottles have been removed from stores since 2013.
There are many concessions available, but you can also bring your own.
This zoo is LARGE, bring a stroller or wagon. Don’t have one? You can rent them, and wheelchairs, from the zoo!
Stay up-to-date with temporary closures here. Some habitats and exhibits will periodically close for repairs, to care for the animals, or private events.

Parking

Parking at the Detroit Zoo is currently $8 per vehicle.

You can find zoo entrances by I-96 and Woodward Ave. There are no alternative parking options, so walking over to the zoo is not advisable.

Discover the Best of the Detroit Zoo: Spring Edition