About
The Central Florida Zoo and Botanical Gardens is a 116-acre zoo and botanical garden located north of Orlando, Florida in Sanford. As a not-for-profit organization, it is a leader in conservation, providing experiences that inspire actions on behalf of wildlife.
About Central Florida Zoo & Botanical Gardens
We visited the Asian Lantern Festival at the Central Florida Zoo & Botanical Gardens in early December, and it was absolutely beautiful. The weather was perfect, which made the entire experience even more enjoyable. The lantern displays were stunning, ranging from small, intricate designs to extra-extra-large installations that were truly impressive. Every turn had something new to look at, and the attention to detail was amazing. There were so many attractions throughout the walk-through, and it felt engaging from start to finish. The entire experience took us about 45 minutes to an hour at a relaxed pace, which was the perfect length to enjoy everything without feeling rushed. It was a wonderful event for all ages and truly a perfect place for the entire family. We would definitely go again! ✨
It's a small zoo. We got there at 11:30am on a Sunday and we were done at 2:30. We did the whole zoo, and we saw it all. The splash section is super small but does the trick for toddlers. Nice to see but not to go out of your way .
Pros: Giraffe feeding is great, because, duh, you get to feed a Giraffe. Even though it costs $6 for 3 pieces of lettuce, they do allow you to split that between guests instead of having to pay per person. Great photo op, but you cannot pet the Giraffe. There is a splash pad for kids, fantastic to stretch your time spent here and entertain your kids. Rhino was right up close to us when we were there, so it was awesome having a great view. Rare. There is a train, we didnt ride, but it seems like a long ride and totally would have if my party was not too hot and tired. $5 per person. The otter enclosure was great! They are so active and cute and you get multiple angles to view them above and below water line. One of the monkey enclosures was also very entertaining as they were swinging and doing acrobatics all around and right up close to the glass. The reptile house was A LOT of snakes. This is good or bad depending if you like snakes or not lol but at least its air conditioned. There is also a barn animal petting/feeding area, which was mostly empty pens and closed when we were there so I do not know the prices. Cons: Its a small zoo, we spent less than 2.5 hours here. There were only 3 food locations open that we noticed, 1 actual food, 1 ice cream, and 1 snacks. Some enclosures are very small you can tell the animal was stressed, like the fossa, they were pacing back and forth and it upset my child. Amphibian house was mostly insects, which was confusing and disappointing. Overall its good for what it is, but it isn't a big, all day experience. Value, idk, you decide, we spent $120 for 3 tickets, 3 Giraffe feedings, and 3 ice creams and only 2.5 hours to walk and sit to eat and take our time. It was clean. And ticket price is cheaper online than it is at the gate even with the processing fee, just fyi.
I appreciated the effort and educational aspects of the Central Florida Zoo, but as an animal lover, I honestly left feeling a little disappointed. Some of the enclosures felt small and gave more of a ‘caged’ feeling than a natural habitat environment, and several animals didn’t seem very active or enriched during my visit. The zoo also has fewer large animals than I expected. In my opinion, it’s probably best suited for younger children and families looking for a smaller, simple zoo experience. The staff was friendly and the grounds were fairly clean, but I personally hoped for more spacious habitats and a stronger focus on animal enrichment and overall atmosphere.
We attended the Asian Lantern Festival light show at the CF zoo. What a wonderful display! So many colorful experiences. Parking was free. I heard a worker explain that it took over 30 days to set it up.