Hope everyone has had a great start to the new year. Our first post this 2015 year is on a zoo we visited for the 2nd time late in 2014, the Reston Zoo.
Reston Zoo
Reston, Virginia
Date of Visit: November 2014
The Reston Zoo was just as fantastic this time as it was the last time we visited. The animals changed slightly, but it was likely due to the season and the experience was similar. If anything I would say the wagon safari was not quite as good, but the animal exhibits were better. There was a balance to this zoo. It is a small zoo which stops it from being 5 star, but it is one we love seeing. With little kids, it is a fantastic thing to experience.
Price Of Admission: The Reston Zoo has an annual zoo membership of $50 for adults and $40 for kids. If you live in Fairfax or Loudoun counties, this could be a great option for you. Reciprocal benefits will be given for Gulf Breeze Zoo in Gulf Breeze, Florida, and Virginia Safari Park in Natural Bridge, Virginia. Likewise membership to those establishments gets you into the Reston Zoo for free. You also get a 10% discount on many items the zoo offers with a membership.
However, if you are just going for one day and plan on visiting just the Reston Zoo, Prices are as follows.
Adult 12.95
Senior 11.95
Child 9.95
Child under 2 Free
2014 Zoo Hours: 9am-5pm most days
What changed from last time: No more sloths, wildebeests, and the baby pigs got older. Also the safari did not come as close to all the animals. However, now they have an Anden Condor (the bird with the largest wingspan in the world). They also have porcupines, kangaroos, a yak, really cool looking deer, and several new snakes. This is in addition to all the other animals that the zoo had before.
Pictures
The Petting Zoo was a highlight for Jr. feeding the animals.
Alpacas were in the petting zoo too.
These goats were hungry.
Fennec Fox
Camel
My boy loves owls.
Don't know if you can tell, but this is him saying owl while looking at the owl.
Andean Condor
Tortoises
Not a reindeer, but sure did look like it on the wagon ride.
There were still zebras on the safari.
I love this shot of the ostrich because you can see its feet really well and how they look so much like dinosaur feet. These birds get really close to the wagon and you can touch them.
Lemurs
This is actually not a buffalo, but a Yak!
We left this zoo at a 4.5 out of 5 elephants rating.
This zoo was perfect for its size, but due to it being a smaller zoo that you finish in less than 3 hours, it was not a 5 star zoo. It did surpass our expectations a great deal the 1st time we went and was still fantastic on our second visit. It is our favorite zoo to visit when we re visiting family in the Northern Virginia area, but we will visit a new zoo next time we are here so we can review a different zoo. That being said, this is not the last time we will visit the Reston Zoo and we recommend you check it out.
-Noland
