This is by far the worst zoo I have visited. We went this past Saturday for their 130th Anniversary. We were very disappointed with the sheer absence of animals. Didn't see Elephant, Lion, Zebra, etc... I would say that about 75% of the animals were absent. Gift shop service was horrible. Food was cold (1/2 hour after the zoo opened!) I would never ever recommend this zoo. If you want a good zoo in the area, GO TO NATIONAL!

The Baltimore Zoo is alright--it's a fairly large zoo, with some hills (definately need confortable shoes). They have an excellent exhibit of Maryland's habitats, with a neat tree slide and giant plastic lily pads for children to cross. Their barnyard area (for children) has a petting zoo full of goats, and on the side of the chicken barn, you can watch the incubation of little baby chicks. For adults, their Africa section is pretty neat, and they've got a huge pool full of penguins. They feature Keeper Encounters on scheduled times for certain animals, where they talk about the aniamls and their habitats (and sometimes feed the animals right there). The favorite animal of the zoo is Magnet the Polar Bear; he likes to do laps around his pool, he's very playful. (He is also rated America's favorite zoo animal by Microsoft's Zoo Tycoon game, where he is specially featured in the game). Admission is fair ($11/adult, $7.00/children), Parking is alright, the Kiddie rides aren't that interesting (I've heard their complaints), Food Services are, well, good for a snack, at least. I know all this because I've had a season pass and went every week for a summer; if you're planning on going multiple times, or are planning to go to multiple zoos (most if not all zoos in the US honor the season pass), it might be worth getting the season pass. Enjoy! (P.S.--Primate House is located behind the Giraffe House somewhere, they house the smaller monkeys inside and they have an exhibit for the larger primates right outside the exit--it's hard to find, but caution, the air is pretty stagnant in there). UPDATE: Sadly, the Baltimore Zoo is facing serious financial difficulties; they are cutting back on over 500 animals, including getting rid of their reptile house in order to cut back on costs. They are also cutting back on much-needed staff. Poor decision making in the past several years is driving the zoo farther into the ground. They think changing the name from the Baltimore Zoo to the Maryland Zoo in Baltimore is going to make a difference. These are dark days for the Baltimore Zoo, and it seems like it's getting worse. UPDATE: Unfortunately, after my visit yesterday, I'll have to drop this one down by yet another star. The revamped Maryland Zoo in Baltimore is a huge setback, and a sad representation of what it used to be. They've taken out so many animals that half of their exibits seem to be just birds. That's it. The new Polar Bear exhibit doesn't have a pool large enough for Magnet to do his favorite thing; he used to do long back-and-forth laps in his old enclosure. Now, while the pool is deep, it's not very long. It's very sad. The only improvement that I've seen is the little walk-in parakeet room, where visitors can get up-close and personal with little parakeets (if you purchase a stick with a scant bit of seed attached to it for a buck, that is). Plus, the admission price is MUCH higher now. Though I love the polar bears dearly, I would recommend going to the National Zoo in nearby DC instead.

Besides the Washington zoo, this is the best. It has great scenery and you can barely tell that there are cages

An excellent zoo. Knowledgeable, friendly staff and volunteers and a wide variety of animals. One drawback is there is NO primate section at all, hence I deducted a star.

A decent Zoo, with a reptile house and all. They even have reindeer for X-Mas.