Mrs.BurtonRW and I “collect” zoos. We’re up to a total of 40 zoos in 19 states and 2 countries/continents.

We’ll be in Minneapolis for the first time next weekend and plan on taking the opportunity to add to our list, so… for anyone knowledgeable on the topic:

Do we want to visit the Minnesota Zoo or Como Park? Or can we do both in a day? It can be surprisingly difficult to tell certain things from park maps and TripAdvisor reviews, so any qualified opinions or observations are most appreciated.

-Rob

I wouldn’t try and do both in one day. They both have their pluses and minuses..

Como felt more like an adventure for kids to me. Definitely smaller scale back in the day.

The Minnesota zoo is definitely worth visiting, too. I will say that it’s habitats are more geared towards animal care than public viewing.. I.e. the exhibits have a lot of cover to ease their stress and it’s not always easy to see some of the bigger animals (from what I recall). It’s been a few years since I’ve been to either, and if I had to choose one, I would choose the Minnesota zoo. I think they are both AZA accredited, and I know the Minnesota zoo has some pretty cool SSP for some of the rarer species.
Have a great time!

I think it would be difficult to do both in a single day without rushing through.


Como zoo is smaller (17 acres), has the Marjorie McNeely Conservatory and a Japanese garden. My daughter and I used to go there when she was young and I didn't have a lot of extra cash (free parking, free admission to the zoo and a small suggested donation for the conservatory). It can get quite busy, especially on the weekends. Finding parking can be challenging, go early in the day. Don't leave anything of value in plain view in your vehicle. From memory, I'd say we'd typically spend about 3+ hours there during the summer months.


I haven't been to the MN zoo in several years. It is quite a bit larger (485 acres), nicer/newer facilities and was always an enjoyable (all) day-trip for us.


I don't think you could go wrong with either.


Hopefully the nice weather holds, supposed to be highs in the low to mid 70s this weekend - perfect weather for the MN Garlic Festival


Enjoy your visit!

Thanks, guys. We were probably going MN Zoo anyway, but I feel better about it now (vs. all of the negative “I didn’t see any animals” garbage on TA). And we’ll actually be there on Friday, so hopefully the showers I see in the forecast will be negligible or non-existent, but whatever. We’re waterproof.

-Rob

I prefer the MN zoo - larger and more numerous exhibits, however the Como zoo does have the Conservatory which is a large plant/flower exhibit that has a lot of variety - including a Corpse Plant which bloomed recently.

Perhaps you could give us a list of, in your experience, best / worst to visit?

I grew up in Apple Valley where the Minnesota zoo is located-my brother and folks still live there. A new feature they have told me about is the conversion of the monorail to an elevated path. I need to get back home to walk it myself.