In 2014 we made a $60 purchase that forever changed our lives. Although at the time it was just a membership to a small zoo in hopes of saving a few bucks, little did we know that this AZA-affiliated membership would open our eyes to possibilities we hadn’t thought of, and would change the habits of our family for years to come. Ever heard of a Zoocation? Let me explain…
Where it all started
Since we live in the suburbs of Chicago we have been members of Brookfield Zoo since we had our first daughter. We enjoyed the zoo very much, but being 45 minutes from our home and our daughters (we had a second in 2014) being very little, we wanted something closer and more geared toward toddlers. So we journeyed to the neighboring town of Wheaton, and purchased a membership for the Cosley Zoo. Now the zoo isn’t much – you might call it a glorified farm. But it allows the kids to interact with the animals and get up close to them. For us it was worth it, even before we knew about the additional benefits.
Along with our new membership cards came some reading materials about the zoo, a license plate holder, and a packet of information on the AZA – also known as the Association of Zoos and Aquariums. In that packet was a list of all the AZA zoos (by state) across the country, along with the discount we could now receive as an AZA member. Jackpot! I’m not sure if it was my interest in saving money or our desire to see how other zoos recreate animal habitats and enclosures, but immediately that day we decided we needed to utilize this membership for all that it offered us.
The First Zoocation
So in October of 2014, we ventured out on our first ever “Zoocation”. To my knowledge we made that word up…but I’m not entirely certain. But to us, a Zoocation is a vacation where your primary goal is to visit new zoos. A Zoocation must include at least 3 zoos, and ideally doesn’t have any other marquee attractions included on the trip.
Although we’ve now embarked on many Zoo-cations, our first is memorable to us and will long be our favorite. We visited three zoos – Fort Wayne Indiana, Columbus, Ohio, and Cincinnati, Ohio. I would say now that the collection of those three zoos rivals almost any three others across the country that you could fit into a three-day driving trip. Our eyes were opened to the idea of seeing animals together on a savannah, walking amongst kangaroos, and having more lorikeets land on you than you could have imagined. Rather than feeling bored by seeing the same animals day after day, we were intrigued at the different ways each zoo created the habitat, entertained by the displays of enrichment, and overjoyed to interact with and feed some of the animals.
On top of learning about animals and having a full day of family fun for less than half the cost of an average hotel room, the quality time we spent together on the road and in the zoos was priceless. We knew that we had inadvertently started something that we would continue throughout our children’s childhoods.
The Future
We’ve currently taken five Zoocations, and visited 48 zoos. Our upcoming Zoocation will put us over our milestone of having visited 50 zoos! Here’s a quick look at our Zoo lineup for the next trip.
- Potter Park Zoo
- Detroit Zoo
- Cleveland Metroparks Zoo
- Pittsburgh Zoo & Aquarium
- National Aviary
- The Wilds
- Columbus Zoo
- Cincinnati Zoo
- Columbian Park Zoo
In closing, I strongly encourage you to not just a visit a zoo, but take a Zoocation! Pick a direction you want to go, or maybe even a Zoo you’d like to visit, and I guarantee you can find 2-3 others within a couple hours of it. It’s a trip that I hope can bring as much joy to your family as it does to hours.
If you’re unable to take a Zoocation, or maybe I haven’t convinced you yet – please keep reading to hear more about our experiences. I hope I can convince you to get out there – and Zoo With Us!
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