Columbia, SC

Who loves the Zoo?  I do!

When my kids were small and I was home with very little extra cash, there were times I would have gone out of my mind without  my Riverbanks Zoo membership.  We went to the Zoo year round, rain or shine.

What's that, you say?  The Zoo... in the rain?  In the cold?

Yep!  It's great!

While we love all the outdoor exhibits and have spent many hours at the little playground or riding the tram up to the Botanical Garden, when the weather's not so great we head for the Aquarium or the Bird House.   No matter what the temperature, too hot, too cold or too wet... it's always nice inside the Aquarium and the Bird House AND they are close to the entrance.  No need to slog through lots of bad weather, just walk in and head to one of the buildings.

My kids can literally spend hours watching the penguins in the bird house and if you get there early in the day, you can watch their handlers feed them!  Lots of fun.  However... not a lot of seating.  Once you are tired of standing/walking, head across the plaza to the Aquarium.

Inside the Aquarium, you can take time to look at the rivers displays, see the skinks and other lizards, check out the alligators in the big tanks and glance at the snakes in their glass boxes.  But the real destination is the huge aquarium window on the far side of the big tank... with stepped seating!  Yay!

Settle in for a while and let the kids watch the fish in the big tank- it's more fun than TV.

Other indoor locations at the Riverbanks Zoo include the Gorilla exhibit and the Koala enclosure.  There is some seating at the Gorilla exibit but usually not enough action going on to keep the kids entertained.  The Koala enclosure has no seating and is really just a walk through... the koalas are cute to look at but generally not very active or entertaining.

And that's just the stuff you can do to get out of the weather- when the weather's nice there's sooooo much more to see and do!

Your Zoo membership also gives you a family pass to the Lights Before Christmas at Riverbanks Zoo- something your whole family is sure to love.  There are also various member-only events throughout the year that you can take advantage of- some family events and some adult-only happenings.  Hey, maybe you and your spouse can even go on that date you've been talking about...

Riverbanks Zoo membership is one of the best entertainment buys in Columbia, so sign up!