The Maryland Zoo in Baltimore

1 Safari Place, Baltimore, MD 21217, USA

Address:	1 Safari Place, Baltimore, MD 21217, USA
Phone:	+1 410-396-7102
Site:	marylandzoo.org
Rating:	4.2
Working:	9:30AM–4PM 9:30AM–4PM 9:30AM–4PM 9:30AM–4PM 9:30AM–4PM 9:30AM–4PM 9:30AM–4PM

Location

Photos 100

Reviews 5

Jerod Osterhout

My family and I were on vacation and wanted to take our kids to the zoo, we had a rough morning driving around Baltimore. Seeing how the Zoo closes at 4 on Saturdays and we werent going to make it there until 3 my wife called and asked what time the last admittance would be they told us 4, she then asked so if we get there at 3 will we still be able to see the animals, they told us yes. So we got there at 2:50 walked up to buy our tickets and the lady behind the desk says "well we close at 4 and all the animals will be put away in about 1/2 hour". Really they are going to put the animals away before the zoo even closes and we called and asked if we would be able to see the animals if we got there at that time! We decided to go in anyways because really where are they going to put the animals.. in a cage so they cant run free, we didnt think so. We were able to see most of the animals as we ran through making sure we could get there in time. (I wasnt about to tell our 6 year old we werent going to the zoo after being in the car for 3 hours) As we checked out the map they provide we couldnt figure out where we were and where we were going because the map is not accurate at all! We came across the camel they were the only friendly people in the entire place! Even though it was 4:00 we asked them if they were still doing rides they told us absolutely! Then the park patrol came around trying to make us leave the zoo (we were not the only guests at the zoo) the camel people told us and the zoo patrol they were told to give rides until 4:30 so we were able to get a ride on the camel. Overall the zoo was nice and the people were rude (except the camel people).

Nate Maze

This zoo is a waste of time and money! I went to this zoo on 7/6/12 and half the exhibits were shut down, blocked off, and most of the animals were not outside. The maps do not clearly illustrate how long you have to walk to get to your destination which makes getting to places in a timely matter difficult especially since this zoo closes at 4:00 pm. I agree with another reviewer that this time is absurd since most animals will come outside when the weather starts to cool down in the early evening and night hours. In addition to this, they do NOT offer military discount at the gate as you have to go to Fort Meade which is the closest military destination for us. For the amount that this zoo costs and have half of the exhibits closed without military discount is disheartening. Furthermore, I was appalled at the camel guy who charges $5 for a 10 second camel ride. My son wanted to ride the camel so badly and since the zoo was such a disappointment early on, I agreed. I paid the camel guy and heard him yell at my son "Are you listening to me?!" I was disgusted by his behavior since the zoo caters to both children and adults and couldnt believe at the behavior of this older gentlemen. But since my son was adamant on riding the camel, I didnt say anything to the man about his inappropriate attitude. When I sat down to watch my son ride, it literally was over within 10 seconds. It was a complete waste of money just as much as this zoo trip, cost of admission, and quality of the zoo. I highly recommend going somewhere else to spend your day and not waste it at this place like this.

Nicole G

I visited yesterday. Half the exhibits were closed and there was tons of construction, but that didnt really bother me. The one sight that ruined the whole visit for me was the male elephant. I believe his name is Tuffy. He stood in one location swaying his head side to side endlessly, his trunk dragging on the ground. His small enclosure was separate from the other elephants. He had defecated multiple times in the spot he was standing, as he had been standing there for quite a while. I asked a staff member by the penguin exhibit why this elephant was behaving this way, she dismissed it as breeding behavior. But that is BS, this is the behavior of an intelligent animal deprived of space, stimulation, social interaction, etc. I have found other accounts of this happening to elephants in captivity, this swaying behavior is never seen in the wild (and certainly not associated with breeding). I have read complaints from as far back as 2011 of other visitors noticing this depressed, neurotic behavior in Tuffy. I posted on the Zoos FB page, inquiring what their plan is to help this poor elephant, but have received no response. They are ignoring me just like they are ignoring the elephant. Heartbreaking and infuriating at the same time. I have no power to help this elephant, they do. But they dont and wont. Please do not support this institution.

A Private User

Way overpriced and closes too early. I cannot believe this zoo closes at 4 PM in the summer. The whole day is very hot and when the weather starts cooling and getting nicer, the animals are locked up and the zoo attendants run around trying to kick you out. I took my 1 year old daughter today. Had to wait until her afternoon nap was over, so didnt get there till 2 PM. The people at door were too happy to charge us $16.50/person (total $50 for 3 adults), but did not tell us the zoo closes at 4 PM. Any other civilized place would charge you half price if you come in within 2 hours of closing time. Once inside, instead of seeing the animals, we wasted time riding the tram, riding a carousel (not free), and eating. Hardly saw the polar bears, leopards, ostriches and a few more animals before we were kicked out. The baby was just starting to get excited, and then elephants? missing. Giraffes? missing. Chimpanzees? missing. Lions? locked up. I enjoyed it before when I came in on a free guest pass by myself (no kids), but when you have to pay so much to get in and have to spend a good amount of time taking baby in and out of stroller and feeding it, they owe us to open the zoo for longer than 4 PM. DC Zoo next time.

Kenny Fahnestock

When talking to somebody about volunteering probably got the worst person to talk to you very nasty very short I felt like I was bothering her asking her information about their volunteering program. Explained that I was an animal trainer in an enrichment expert and I wanted to volunteer my time at the zoo to help the keepers and the animals basically the answer I got was hope sorry you missed dates for applications nothing I can do for you at this time very unfriendly so I called the National Zoo and spoke to someone there they were much more friendlier and when I told her in my experience working with animals she immediately put my name on the list even though they just had their open house. I would like to volunteer at the Maryland Zoo to help their animals who had no enrichment whatsoever maybe one little item clearly not enough to keep them occupied most of their animals are walking around in circles in boredom. I usually dont like writing reviews but the person I spoke to at the Maryland Zoo could not have been more unfriendly then it makes me wonder if there is on friendly with people calling them I went up there is unfriendly with their animals just a thought