St. Louis Zoo in Missouri: The Perfect Place for Family Fun and Exercise

St. Louis, Missouri, has the ideal place for kids this summer: the St. Louis Zoo, downtown, is a perfect place for family fun and exercise.

Not only is this zoo free, but the attractions are very cheap. The children's zoo located inside the St. Louis Zoo is free for the first hour that the zoo is open each day, after that time admission is $4 per person. The carousel is free for the first hour and $3 per person after that. The railroad train rides are $5 dollars per person round trip. You can get off the train and then reboard after viewing the animals in that area. The motion simulator and 3-D movie is each $3 per person. Children ages 2 and under get free admission to the children's zoo and carousel all day long. Your best bet is to get a Safari Pass for the day. $10 per individual gets you admission to the Sea Lion show, carousel, motion simulator, and children's zoo all day.

Parking is $11 per vehicle or you can park on the side streets for free. The St. Louis Zoo is located at 1 Government Drive, St. Louis, MO 63110 inside Forest Park. Summer hours (May 22-September 7) are as follows:

Friday-Sunday 8 am - 7 pm

Monday-Thursday 8 am - 5 pm

Holidays and special events will cause hours to change. Check the St. Louis Zoo website for this information or call them at 1-314-781-0900 or toll free 1-800-966-8877.

Don't know what to do and see in this vast zoo? Grab a color map that the zoo offers. They are usually around zoo entrances and major attractions. Some things to do in the zoo is to visit the river's edge, the wild discovery corner, historic hill, red rocks, and lakeside crossing. Each place in the zoo offers its own unique attractions to visitors. See lions and tigers in the red rocks. Take a walk through the 1920s style area of the zoo, historic hill, where you can view birds and reptiles in their habitats. Walk through the butterfly house and watch butterflies mating and feeding.

The penguin and puffin coast exhibit is a sure fire way to cool off. Go from the outside temperature of 91 degrees to a chilling environment where penguins and puffins live and swim in icy waters. Learn about 7 different types of penguins and puffers. Take a walk in the veterinarian's shoes at our St. Louis Zoo. The Endangered Species Research Center and Veterinary Hospital lets you see what it takes to do there job in the STLZOO magazine. http://www.stlzoo.org/animals/veterinaryhospital/thedoctorisin.htm

So if you do nothing else this summer but go to the zoo you will be getting culture, obtaining new knowledge of animals, exercising, spending time with your kids, and having a great time. You can't go wrong with that! See you there.

http://www.stlzoo.org/