flickr photo by biggernoise shared under a Creative Commons (BY) license
The Dallas World Aquarium is both an aquarium and a zoo. One of the most visited tourist attractions in the metroplex, it’s a tropical paradise with both aquatic life and rainforest animals. DFW has a few more animal attractions, both large and small, if you care to check them out.
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Bonus Fun Stuff: Best DFW Used Bookstores for Your Wallet.
Fort Worth Zoo
Opened in 1909, the Fort Worth Zoo is the oldest continuous zoo site in Texas. With more than 7,000 animals, this zoo welcomes about a million visitors a year. It’s the only zoo in the U.S. that hosts gorillas, orangutans, chimpanzees and bonobos – all four of the Great Ape species. Texas Wild, one of twelve current zoo exhibits, is an 8-acre complex that houses seven exhibits of its own.
LOCATION
1989 Colonial Parkway
Ft Worth, TX | Route Map
TURF: Ft Worth
WHAT MAKES IT FUN?
Texas Wild features a domestic animal petting area, a swinging swamp bridge, a carousel, and lots more entertainment. Safari Splash is an onsite water park (additional fee applies.)
Categories: Fun Places
Dallas Zoo
Trunks up. Cheers from our two-and-a-half-week-old. #ellieboy pic.twitter.com/r81QooJAOZ
— Dallas Zoo (@DallasZoo) June 2, 2016
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Two deer and two mountain lions housed in City Park in 1888 constituted the entirety of what would later become the Dallas Zoo. In 2015, more than a million guests came through what is now Texas’ largest zoo. It was the first in North America to combine multiple African wild animals of multiple species in one natural habitat exhibit.
In the spring of 2016, the Dallas zoo partnered with other zoos to rescue and relocate 17 African elephants from drought-stricken Swaziland. One of them, Mililo, whose home is now the Dallas Zoo, gave birth to a baby boy calf on May 14, 2016.
LOCATION
650 South R L Thornton Freeway
Dallas, TX | Route Map
TURF: South Dallas
WHAT MAKES IT FUN?
Safari Nights, a series of live music concerts on Saturday nights (through July) keeps visitors entertained for extended hours (til 9PM.) Ride a monorail (extra fee applies) through the Wilds of Africa exhibit.
Categories: Fun Places
Children’s Aquarium at Fair Park
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Originally opened as a part of the 1936 Texas Centennial, the Children’s Aquarium is housed in one of Fair Park’s historic art deco buildings. Fully refurbished and reopened in 2010, this small aquarium makes for a great family visit with kids-eye-level and interactive exhibits. A coastal touch pool and an outdoor pavilion pool let kiddos get hands-on with a variety of sea creatures.
LOCATION
1462 First Ave
Dallas, TX | Route Map
TURF: South Dallas (Fair Park)
WHAT MAKES IT FUN?
MJ, the blue-eyed loggerhead turtle makes her home here now after being rescued in South Padre Island. A Giant Pacific octopus, electric eels, and an albino alligator are fascinating too.
Categories: Fun Places
Sea Life Grapevine Aquarium
Get your tentacles over to @SEALIFEgrpevine! https://t.co/dPTFURZgzW pic.twitter.com/CDyv3R4z07
— HWS Grapevine, TX (@HomewoodSuiteGV) July 27, 2015
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At the Sea Life Aquarium in Grapevine, visitors can walk through an “underwater” tunnel surrounded by aquatic creatures all around. Interactive play for kids and a touch pool with starfish and more make this a fine family outing.
LOCATION
3000 Grapevine Mills Parkway
Grapevine, TX | Route Map
TURF: Grapevine Mills Mall
WHAT MAKES IT FUN?
Stroll the mall before or after your visit. Families with kids may can get a combination ticket with LegoLand for the day or for the year.
Categories: Fun Places
In-Sync Exotics
Lions and tigers and cheetahs, oh my! Plus ocelots, and bobcats and lynxes besides. This very special place in Wylie is not a zoo – it’s a wildlife rescue and educational center where the big cats will steal your heart. Open on weekends for self-guided tours, In-Sync Exotics also offers guided group tours by appointment seven days a week. Admission fees and donations support the rescue and rehoming of neglected, abused and unwanted exotic felines
LOCATION
3430 Skyview Drive
Wylie, TX | Route Map
TURF: Wylie (Northeast Outlying Suburbs)
WHAT MAKES IT FUN?
A coatamundi named Nugget is considered an “honorary” cat. He loves to entertain with acrobatics, and thinks earthworms aren’t so bad either (to eat.)
Categories: Fun Places
Sharkarosa Wildlife Ranch
Also not a zoo, this 126 acre park offers educational programs and close-up encounters with rare and endangered exotic wildlife. Open to the public on Saturdays and Sundays, this ranch is home to over a hundred animals including kangaroos and wallabies, zebras and emus, lemurs and monkeys, and many more. Animal presentations, a Safari tram ride, a bucket train, a petting zoo, and kangaroo habitat tours are all included in a fun day here.
LOCATION
11670 Massey Road
Pilot Point, TX | Route Map
TURF: Pilot Point, Northeast of Denton
WHAT MAKES IT FUN?
Private animal encounters (and pony rides) are available for an extra charge. Gourmet pizza at the Bears Den is a nice treat too.
Categories: Fun Places
Frank Buck Zoo
Feeding giraffes is fun! This small but lushly landscaped zoo is wildly popular for its public giraffe feedings (10:30 AM daily, fee applies for food) and very special private parties. A very low per-guest cost includes giraffe feeding, a small animal encounter, use of the party deck, and all day admission for each guest. Bring your own cake or refreshments for a truly unique (and budget-friendly) celebration.
LOCATION
1000 W. California St
Gainesville, TX | Route Map
TURF: Gainesville (North of Denton)
WHAT MAKES IT FUN?
A miniature replica steam engine offers around the zoo and through its home at Leonard Park. Several area attractions make this drive to Gainesville a worthy day trip.
Categories: Fun Places
Have you visited any of these? What are your favorite animal exhibits in DFW? Let us know in the comments below.
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