Seneca Park Zoo

They’ve made some great improvements to the place! The animals seem to be well cared for, the staff was ever-​present with helpful tidbits of information. Nearly everything seemed to be maintained and in good shape.

It’s been around 8 years since the last time I came to the zoo. They’ve made some great improvements to the place! The animals seem to be well cared for, the staff was ever-​present with helpful tidbits of information. Nearly everything seemed to be maintained and in good shape. We will be back!

The zoo is nice. Lots of great animals, most of them visible. Just don’t go on a Friday in Spring! There must have been 10 – 15 school buses there.

Very small zoo and I mean very small. They are making strides to improve the habitats but some enclosures are kind of heart breaking. $ 12 adult admission lots of areas to have your lunch and plenty of free parking.

Awesome zoo that really cares about animals & conservation. They are always updating to make the enclosures more comfortable for the animals, while still keeping the visitor’s experience in mind.
There are classes for 2, 3, 4 & 5 year olds. The classes involve an encounter with at least 1 animal, a story, craft, & snack. They also have camps for older kids during school breaks & in the summer. My kids have really enjoyed both the classes & camps.
They also have a unique program for teens called «Zoo Teens.» It teaches teens about leadership, animals, conservation & working as a team. Great volunteer opportunity. Teens give tours, assist with birthday parties & interact with the public like a docent.

Born and raised in Rochester, this is obviously a place I have been coming for a while. I like that they have a little bit of everything. I recently came here for Zoo Brew which was well, a zoo. Very crowded and the line for brews is crazy! It was fun to see a lot of people but I wouldn’t go to that more than once a year. On the other end of the spectrum, though, I visited the zoo on a Sunday morning for an actual visit and had the best time. It’s always fun to go to the zoo, no matter how old you are. This zoo is small but they have a lot to offer. I watched them bathe Chana the elephant and she was loving being sprayed down with the hose, it was too cool. The baby orangutan was adorable! You can get a good look at all of the animals within a 2 hour time span for sure. A fun trip for the day.

I can’t say enough good things about this zoo. We got there soon after opening for the day and it was amazing. Elephants are my fave and this zoo has African elephants. The cool thing is they have a building area where you can watch the elephants take baths and I even watched one paint. Great thing too is there was an employee there to answer questions about the elephants as well. The rest of the zoo was great too got to see a sea lion show and there was various other activities during the day. My only gripe would be the gift shop was sold out of mostly everything and they had no overstock. I would also say it got crowded with camp kids but we started at the back of the zoo and worked our way to the front to avoid most crowds. At least here there was alot of supervision and the zoo employees stepped in when the kids were getting to rowdy

Good little zoo. Nice exhibits with a decent selection of animals on site considering the size of the zoo. Lots of walking up and down hills. Favorite was the orangutan family with a tiny baby who was just two years old. Nice place to take the kids for a few hours.

It was depressingly small for a zoo and the animals that were there seemed more bummed out than at any other zoo I’ve ever visited. The only highlight was the baby orangutan, who was probably the most excited creature in the entire zoo that day, including the visitors.

It has been ages since we were at the zoo and in this case we were there for the Zoo Brew. Drinking beer and watching the animals with a couple thousand other people. Wow this is one crowded event (come early to avoid walking a long distance since parking is limited). Despite it being very cold for late May the event itself was good with three bands and plenty of beer stands but they should really bring in some food trucks for a better selection of eats.
The zoo itself is much better than I remember with the Africa addition — the lions and elephants were quite active and entertaining in there relatively roomy digs. Still many of the areas for the animals are old school cages and not up to snuff with many other modern zoos.

This zoo is really a gem in Rochester, I think.
It is not the biggest zoo, with the largest selection of animals (partly due to their smaller stature) but I feel what they lack in your typical animals — hippos, giraffes, etc, they make up for in animal enrichment programs and educational info for the patrons. Painting a jungle scene behind the orangutan exhibit is nice for the zoo visitors, but doesn’t do anything for the animal — instead they focus their time and budget on providing fun things for the animals to do and experience in their exhibits, and I can totally respect that.
The zoo is sort of blocked into different themes in some spots — the eco center has river-​y animals and smaller critters. Otters, sturgeon, salamanders. Then there’s the rocky coast with sea lions and the polar bears (who are usually not out. Maybe they get out in the early AM before the zoo opens? Not sure). Africa is probably the coolest part, and the newest. Africa boasts baboons, lions, elephants and lots of interactive educational stuff for the kiddos. If you get there during feeding time you get to watch the lions tear into some oxtail.
The food is expensive, but you’re a captive audience once you’re in there, so I think that’s to be expected. There are lots of seating options at each of the food areas. There are also a lot of trashcans AND recycling bins in the shape of bottles. Make sure you don’t stuff you trash in the wrong one ;-) bring your own lunches to save a little cash while you’re here.
If you live close by and have animal-​loving tykes I’d say that a membership is well worth it. You get free admission all year and member express Check-​In, which is key for those nice days when there’s a line of 80 people and you have wiggly kid. You get in 30 minutes earlier than everyone else (9:30 AM) and you can get discounts on other zoo events I’m pretty sure.
Many, many bathrooms too. I love this because it removes the nightmare of having to sprint ¼ mile to the closest bathroom when you have a toddler that NEEDS TO GO, OR ELSE.
The zoo also organizes/​throws a lot of events that are fun. They do 5Ks, they have Zoobilation, and ZooBrew (my favorite!). I’d say if you have to pick one absolutely give zoo brew a try. Beers and animal watching and a band makes for pretty fun time. The proceeds from the beer sold go to funding for the zoo.
I’d say this is a ⁴⁄₅ experience because it can get old for the kids after they’ve been 300 times. Otherwise it’s great!

I visited the Seneca Park Zoo for the very first time yesterday. It has probably been 2 decades since I last went to a zoo. Normally the zoo would not go be my go-​to place for fun, but when I heard about ZooBrew — an opportunity to combine alcoholic beverages, live music and animals in a large outdoor venue — I was sold.
It’s definitely not the biggest zoo, but what it lacks in size, it makes up for in intimacy (TWSS). I found the layout of the zoo to be very nice. Walking through the gates initially, there is a distinct path that opens up to the rest of the zoo. You are not forced to choose one out of many arrows hoping that you’ve chosen wisely.
There was a variety of animals ranging from meerkats to large animals such as polar bears and rhinoceros. The cutest thing was seeing a mother orangutan with her 4 month old baby. I was a little disappointed not to see any penguins or pandas though.
Some of the interactive stations were not working. I am not sure if this was because it was after hours for the ZooBrew and they shut it down to save on electricity or whether they were simply malfunctioning. A minor point, but I could see how this would be annoying for some visitors. The Seneca Park Zoo, like most others, is very kid-​friendly. There are many little play areas and programs available for children.
The normal zoo hours are from 10 am — 4 pm with admission being around $ 10 for adults. On certain days, purchasing an adult admission gets you one youth admission free. Otherwise, kids aged between 3 – 11 get in for around $ 7 bucks and children 2 and under get in free.
ZooBrew is a monthly event during the summer, when the Seneca Park Zoo opens its gates after hours to host a 21 and older happy hour with alcohol and live music. I attended the final ZooBrew event of the summer and it did not disappoint. It was a much larger-​scale than I had imagined.
Hundreds of people attended and the $ 4 beers flew off the tables quickly. Although «local beer» was advertised, I only saw Budweiser, Brooklyn Oktoberfest and Shock Top beer. They also served frozen margaritas in a Capri Sun-​like packaging and wine. They had two musical guests. One did acoustic covers and the other was a full band that played blues/​rock. It was fun to see a few couples slow-​dancing to the music.
Overall ZooBrew is a fun place to spend time with friends in an outdoor setting on a nice summer day. Drinking and seeing these animals in person beats drinking at home while watching the Discovery Channel. Just beware of the odors that you may encounter. You may want to finish your beer before walking into some of the exhibits. Another tip is to carpool, since parking gets a little iffy if you’re running late.

The perfect size zoo for a half day venture. Living nearby with a 3 year old makes a membership here a no-​brainer, though the regular admission isn’t overly expensive. That is, for a 3 year old. My father-​in-​law was asking him what animals he saw at the zoo and started listing off things like Kangaroos, giraffes, zebras… nope, nope, and not really — just a creepy fake zebra the lions get treats from… So it was in this recent conversation that I realized the zoo does not have a great selection of animals on exhibit. For the size, it does well enough to entertain a small family but repeated visits have been a bit … boring. Not for the 3 year old, which is what matters to me, but it’s definitely losing the special outing feel.
Where this zoo does well is the various activity centers throughout. Indoor and outdoor options, varying from a traditional playground to a fake animal hospital, none of them ever seem overly busy. Older kids don’t seem as interested in many of the stations, but kids ages 2 – 6 or so would probably spend the whole day playing vet to the various stuffed animals if their parents let them. A story time is hosted in the fake animal hospital’s building during the colder months (October through March I think). The archeologist training site (a fancy sandbox) is a favorite of kids (whose moms packed wet wipes), but you have to make it to the end of the zoo. Which brings me to…
The grounds are long. I’ve been to larger zoos and walked less because the layout is more circular. Seneca Park Zoo… long. This results in back tracking and excessive walking. Not a big deal unless you have 3 year old legs that get tired by the polar bear but are desperate to see every.single.animal. For us, this means going *very* slowly and taking breaks often. It’s hard to visit just the safari animals (lions, elephants, chimps, and… goats?) since its at the end, so it’s lucky our favorites are the rhinoceros and the polar bear. It’s not a large zoo, so regardless of the layout the walk isn’t really bad.
Overall, this zoo is fine. We have more than used up the cost of the membership after only a few months, and thanks to the many indoor buildings and activities I’m sure we’ll be visiting throughout the winter months, too. I do wish they had more animals, though.

While not much to look at up front, this zoo has a couple of hidden gems. My son LOVED the play areas located through out the zoo, especially the playground with the giant spider net and climbing wall/​staircase and the interactive animal hospital exhibit. I loved the Into Africa exhibit best, I thought the safari bus was a nice touch and liked that you could pet the goats.
I did remove one star for size and a few closed exhibits, but overall it’s enjoyable and we will definitely visit again!

I have been to may zoo’s so I am a little critical because I feel they should all be the most amazing zoo in the world. This zoo is okay. I have been here a few times and a couple of them have been for work picnics. I am always happy with the area, very clean and a lot of bathrooms.
I like that they are expanding and hope they continue to do so.
The food isn’t that great, so maybe plan on eating before or after your trip.
All three times I have been there, I have never seen the polar bears. Where are they? Where do they go? I never see them in the underwater part either. So sad.
This latest work picnic we got to have an animal experience. We chose to have a tiger experience. The zoologist was amazing. He was so knowledgeable in the area and was feeding us great information and answering all of our questions. He even got some fish and got the tiger to stand up so we could all see her belly and how tall she really is.
Overall, this is an okay zoo. I have seen better but for the area that we are in this zoo is perfectly fine. Now I just have to make it out for a Zoobrew.

Came here last Friday for ZooBrew! Parking was limited, so be prepared to walk a bit from the back parking area to the front gates.
Admission was $ 10 and the beers were $ 4 (they also had some margarita mixes). The zoo is on the smaller side compared to some of the other zoos I’ve been to (SD Zoo and Safari Park), but we got to see some lions, elephants, and baboons while drinking some beer. It was a nice way to enjoy the end of the week!

I have only been here for Zoobrews, but I have enjoyed them. The zoo is on the smaller side, and during the big Zoobrew events, it pretty much is bursting at the seams. Parking can be a nightmare, and the security people are usually on crazy power trips with where you can and cannot park.
The exhibits and nice, but a bit tiny. Workers have all been extremely friendly, and they seem to do quite a few animal enrichment events during the week for interested people. Zoobrews itself are very fun, but they kick you out at 9 which seems a little early for a nice summer night. Granted, I know the animals are not accustomed to this, but I don’t see why they cannot extend the hours to 10 at least.
Alas, I’d like to be back during a regular visit, since it seems nice and well maintained! It is very affordable as well!

How is it I haven’t been to the zoo since I was a child? Major fail on my part, considering they do fun events like zoo brew during the summer!
When a friend suggested we head over to the zoo yesterday afternoon, I jumped at the suggestion. They’ve made some really great improvements since I had been last (at least ten/​twelve years). Our zoo is definitely on the smaller side, but they’ve done really nice job of making the animal’s «homes» as natural feeling as possible. I’ve been to other zoos where they are in pretty bare cages which makes me so sad, so it’s great to see that our zoo has made the living quarters comfortable and close to what they would experience in the wild.
The zoo is tucked away in Seneca Park, and once you’re inside, you forget that you’re a stone’s throw away from downtown! It’s wooded and lush with trees and plenty of shaded areas. It also has a really nice layout which encourages you to explore the zoo in a certain path, and has clearly labeled signs for different exhibits. As it was a near perfect day yesterday, it was busy, but around 3pm, most animals were relaxed or snoozing out in the sun.
For the size of the zoo, they have a great variety of animals: don’t miss the African Penguins, the Rhinos, the Lynx, and of course my personal favorite, the Golden Lion Tamarins (so cute!!). As a lover of the environment, I like that along with the info of the animal, you can see if it is on the threatened/​endangered species list, and what type of conversation efforts are going on (specifically for the animal or it’s environment).
I’m sorry that it took me so long to visit the zoo again, but I had such a good time, that I’ll be back again for sure! Parking is also plentiful. :)

I love going to the zoo, any zoo. I have since I was a kid. Many zoos are just flat open spaces with cages that they try to make into natural looking habitats. Our zoo is smaller, but it is tucked in a wooded area which can’t be seen from the road, had a lot of different types of animals including African penguins.
The bald eagle is awesome and almost always out, the lions have a plexi glass area where they live to hang out and often will stand up and claw at the glass. The rhinos are awesome also.
A great place to spend and afternoon, or even better head out to a zoo brew and check out the zoo at night.

An overdue zoo review. The zoo stands out as one of those places I remember very well after moving to Rochester as a kid so it’s nice to visit and recall the days when I was small enough to crawl up that rope spiderweb in the playground. Now, most of my visits are related to the Zoo Brew events. I don’t have kids and don’t overwhelming love animals so it’s a once-​or-​twice-​a-​season trip for me.
In relation to some of the other zoos I’ve been too (the one that stands out is the Brookfield Zoo), Seneca Park is quite small. I’ll opt for the quaint, cozy vibe as it’s a solid representation of the animals, but on a much smaller scale than other zoos. It’s also manageable to walk through in an afternoon and get a glimpse at everything or even visit your favorite animal again. It’s also rarely packed to the brim so you can get a closeup view of the tiger, when he’s not sleeping.
At the last zoo brew we had a great time, the beers were plentiful and it was a solid crew. I recommend arriving early to get the best views of the animals. The only downside is that in the evening, most of them are lounging and you can’t always get a great view. I was so bummed to have missed the baboons. Although, the lions, polar bears, elephants, sea lions, otters, and wolves were awesome! Some showing off too — the baby sea lion was the cutest trying to get a comfy spot laying nearly on top of her mom. Awww. The best part of the night was seeing the creepy tamarin who quite literally looked like a mini-​creature from a sci-​fi movie that would attack you. I kept my eye on him. He knows what’s up. …just look at the photo…