Out Of Africa Wildlife Park in Camp Verde, Arizona!

 

I absolutely love animals & always enjoy visiting different animal spots. On one of the days of our recent weekend trip up north, we stopped by Out Of Africa Wildlife Park in Camp Verde, Arizona. I actually went to this zoo several times as a child when it was located near Fountain Hills, but they moved everything up north further to Camp Verde. Which actually works out better for the animals, as it is typically a bit cooler for them there than the previous location. While it was 85+ degrees down where we live, it was a nice cool 68 degrees with some wind on the day we visited. 

The biggest part of this wildlife park that I love is how huge the enclosures are for all of the animals. You'll get lucky and a lot of the animals will be in their favorite spots to lounge within view, and others will be kind of like a safari hunt where you'll need to look for them through out the enclosure. This sanctuary was originally started in 1988 by husband and wife Dean & Prayeri Harrison and their love of animals shows through out the park. Sadly Dean has passed away, but Prayeri is still a huge part of every day operations at the park! In fact she was at the park the day we were there greeting guests, helping answer questions and talk to everyone while they waited in line to buy tickets. Tickets might seem a bit pricey compared to other zoos/animal parks as they are almost $50 per adult, however this is a privately owned park and they have a lot of big cats, bears, etc to provide food to, so that is where the money goes along with the typical cost of operations. 

Another big plus about this wildlife park is that the safari ride is included in admission! A lot of other zoos we've been to charge extra for a safari tour, use of shuttles, etc. When you are on the safari you will be right up close to Zebras, Giraffes, and more. If you are lucky one of the two giraffes will come over and take a treat from your hand, or if you are brave enough to put the food in your mouth, they will give you a big kiss. 

As I mentioned before, the enclosures are quite large which makes the wildlife park a bit spread out. If you'd prefer not to walk the whole thing & want to get to the back section where a lot of the smaller enclosures are (lizards, snakes, birds, etc) there is a free shuttle that will take you back to the main area. You can also stop at one of four shuttle stops to be picked up to go back to the front gates when you area ready to head home. 

Out Of Africa has a large amount of big cats, you'll see quite a few lions, leopards, and wolves. You will also come across bears, porcupines, lemurs and more. All the staff are very knowledgeable about the animals & are happy to talk about them or answer any questions you have. They also feature a tiger splash show,  where you'll be able to see some of the trainers interreacting with one of their tigers playing with toys and jumping into a giant pool. Plus for an extra $5 you can feed one of the tigers (safely of course), the tigers looked like they were loving it! You can tell by the healthy coat and of course the little extra pouch under their bellies that they are well fed and well taken care of. All of the animals seemed content and happy. It was also nice to see that aside from one or two of the animals, that all of the enclosures had more than one in it which is great for socializing. 

They have extras you can add onto your experience as well, such as an extra tour, ziplining over the park, and animal encounters. This wildlife park is in Arizona & like much of the desert there isn't a ton of shade so remember to bring your sunscreen + a hat and possibly an umbrella along with water of course. All of the pathways are dirt and a bit rocky, some strollers will have no issue getting around but other strollers with the tiny wheels may have issues getting through the park. Wheelchair wise, I would say it is easier if you have an electric scooter vs a regular wheelchair. 

Stop by my Instagram or Tiktok page to see a short compilation of clips I took of the animals during our visit. 

🌵 If you live in Arizona check out the "Things to do in Arizona" section of my blog to find entertainment, restaurants, vacation spots & more. (Click on the name or locate it on the right-hand side of my page).

🟊 This is not a sponsored post, we paid for this ourselves. I just enjoy sharing awesome spots with my readers. 

San Diego Zoo Review!

 

I love animals so any chance I get to visit a new zoo or animal spot, I am up for the adventure! For the fourth of July weekend we took a short vacation to San Diego to enjoy a beach day and made plans to visit the San Diego Zoo. They also have the San Diego Safari park which is a sister park to the zoo & is located within an hour drive from the zoo, we plan on visiting that one in the future. We arrived to the park just before opening, so we were lucky to snag a parking spot up from and we were able to get our tickets quickly. The Zoo puts on a small opening ceremony where they bring out a big box full of large parrots that they raise up above all the zoo guests & open it to let all the birds fly out. It was fun to see the assortment of colored parrots. Tickets into the zoo are a bit high compared to other zoos we've explore coming in at $74 for ages 12+ and $64 for ages 3-11, however that is mainly due to the size & number of animals they have at this zoo. The San Diego Zoo is one of the twelve largest zoos in the US.

This zoo is huge! When visiting you should schedule out several hours if not most of the day to explore everything they have to offer and to really take your time seeing the animals. One of the cool things about this zoo is they have several animals that few zoos in the US have such as the polar bears & the newest inhabitents that will be on display soon are the new Panda bears that just moved in. If you would like to leave the zoo to eat lunch at your car or simply go somewhere such as back to your hotel to take a break the zoo does all you to get your hand stamped & you can come back later in the day to show your stamp + ticket to get back into the zoo. This is actually something we took advantage of as it was very humid the day we went so after seeing half the zoo we needed a break, so we went to get lunch and cool down at the hotel for a bit before heading back to check out the other half of the zoo. 

The San Diego Zoo has a few enclosures that are the biggest I've seen at a zoo, such as the Elephant enclosure and the Baboons who had massive areas to live an explore. When we were looking at the Elephants, I also noticed that they have many more enrichment toys then other zoos I've been to. Each area of the zoo is set up to reflect a theme such as the reptile walk, or Asian passage. A few of the bird aviaries are also quite large, one of them towered above you with several levels to explore - we couldn't even figure out how to get to the lowest level. I loved the number of birds, waterfalls, exotic plants and spots to sit they have throughout the bird areas. 

While on your adventure around the zoo, you'll also find plenty of areas with souvenirs and spots to grab food + drinks. They have a souvenir cup you can purchase that comes with free refills all day; you just need to show them the receipt when you get a refill. They are $15 each, however if you buy more than one you will get a discount on all of them. We thought the cups were worth it, we were able to get a few lemonades and a few times I asked for just ice so I could get water & you get to keep the cup to take home which is a bonus. The zoo itself had lots of shady spots, plenty of benches and was over all a very clean park. They also have a small splash zone where kids can play and cool off, when it isn't super-hot out there is also a play area. 

We had a great time at the San Diego Zoo, it was quite the adventure! We spent a total of around six to six and a half hours exploring the zoo. I was very happy with the photos and videos I was able to get as well, I will of course be adding quite a few of them to my nature photography accounts on Instagram & Tiktok - So if you love seeing wildlife and nature content and don't follow me yet, please head over and follow my pages. We can't wait to visit the safari park the next time we are in this area of California. 

★ This is not a sponsored post, we paid for this on our own. I enjoy sharing new places we explore with my followers.

Los Angeles Zoo Trip!

 

I've always loved animals since I was small, so it is always exciting getting the chance to visit a new zoo, farm or animal sanctuary & it is something my family loves doing as well. We recently went on vacation to California to visit Universal and on the way back home we decided to stop & check out the Los Angeles Zoo before leaving Los Angeles. When we first arrived, there was a small market popping up in the parking lot of the zoo, there were vendors selling food along with some things like stuffed animals and hats. It was neat to see as our zoos do not do that, it is also a good way to get some of the tourists to stop and buy things.

We arrived just before they opened & it was crazy to see just how many people were already in line to get into the zoo. Thankfully it didn't take long to purchase tickets & get into the gates, once you are in the actual zoo there is plenty of space, so it doesn't feel overly crowded. The only spot that was slightly backed up with traffic was the reptile house just because it is indoors & there is only so much space. I feel like the current layout of the zoo had a lot of back tracking to get around from one section to another plus there was a bit of construction going on that added to it, so be prepared for a lot of walking when you visit. If you want a cheap souvenir that is also functional, I highly suggest stopping by one of their concessions stands & buying a refillable souvenir cup. We paid $8.99 for a cup that came with cheap refills, if I remember correctly the refills were a dollar or two and the cup itself is a nice thick plastic that comes with a lid and reusable straw. 

The animal enclosures themselves we enjoyed viewing, some of the enclosures were massive such as the gorilla area which had four different areas to view the gorillas from. They had a few animals on display that we do not have at our local zoo, so that was exciting. I have never seen an echidna so close before, it was adorable watching their little waddling bodies moving around the enclosure alongside some adorable wallabies. I love their small bird aviary, the waterfall they built in it was lovely to watch and hear. 

I think they did a fantastic job at constructing the enclosures to where the animals have plenty of shelter & areas, they can feel more secluded while still remaining visible to the public. I especially liked how they did the gorilla & chimpanzee enclosures. The L.A Zoo isn't nearly as big as the public zoo we have here, but it was still nice to visit with my family. If you are in the area, it makes a great short stop if you are looking for extra activities to do. We visited the day after Thanksgiving, so we were able to see some of the cool animal sculptures they had up for their nighttime zoolights.

Want a freebie for yourself or your kids? On your way into the zoo look for a small stand that has small blue booklets. After grabbing one you will look for several stands throughout the park that have clues of which circles to scratch off in the booklet you picked up. Once the book is finished & you are ready to leave stop by one either the blue umbrella next to customer service or the giftshop on the left-hand side (as you are looking at the zoo entrance). An employee will verify that your booklet is complete & give you a freebie, we received a cute pair of mini binoculars & yes, they actually work. This is a great way to keep small kids entertained & engaged while exploring the zoo.

If you are planning a trip to southern California & are looking for other activities to do feel free to type in "Things to do in California" in the search bar of my blog so you can find some other great activities in California. This was not a sponsored review, we paid to get into the zoo ourselves. I enjoy being able to share spots like this with my readers who may not be able to visit in person but are still interested in learning more about these spots, or for anyone planning vacations in the area. 

🌵 If you live in Arizona check out the "Things to do in Arizona" (Click or locate it on the right-hand side of my page) section of my blog to find entertainment, restaurants, vacation spots & more. 

The Phoenix Zoo Lights are back for the 2023 Holiday season!

 

It's that time of the year again! The stores are decked in holiday decorations & goodies, Christmas music is starting to play and several of my neighbors are putting up their holiday decorations outdoors. I personally love seeing all of the holiday lights during this time of year. Speaking of holiday light displays, the Phoenix Zoo has brought back their Zoo Lights this year. It doesn't officially start until November 22nd, however I was able to visit early during an event so I have shared a reel over on my Instagram of a peek at this years event & will share some photos below. This is not a sponsored post, we paid for discount tickets as part of an event that was put on by the zoo. 

The event runs from November 22nd until Jan 14th & cost $35 per person at the gate or $30 a person if you buy tickets ahead of time online. Depending on how fast you walk & how many photos you stop to take, expect to be at the zoo for anywhere from an hour to two hours. Their merchandise booths & food/drink areas stay open during this event so you can purchase hot chocolate, kettle corn & more to enjoy on your walk.

This year they added some new displays & more of the wildlife lanterns which are my favorite part! I love how they look and want to get some to show off in my yard. We also haven't been to the zoo since last year so even though it was dark we were able to see the newest section of the zoo that we hadn't seen before. 

The walk itself is very easy, they have everything set up to keep the flow of traffic moving along while still being able to go at your own pace. There were tons of people at the event we went to but we didn't feel crowded while looking at all the lights. There is a lot of walking & some areas with hills so you will get a small workout as you go along looking at everything. The zoolights event is wheelchair, motor scooter & baby stroller friendly.  

Be sure to keep an eye on what time they will do the main show on the giant floating tree in the middle of the lake! Good spots tend to fill up fast so if you arrive to a viewing spot slightly early you'll be able to view the show without anyone blocking your view. My family & I always enjoy visiting the zoo lights, it is nice to stroll through the zoo while the weather is cooled down and see what they do differently each year. 

Have you ever been to a Zoolights event at your local zoo? If not, does it look like an event you would want to attend? Drop a comment below and let me know. 

🌵 If you live in Arizona check out the "Things to do in Arizona" (Click or locate it on the right-hand side of my page) section of my blog to find entertainment, restaurants, vacation spots & more. 

A must see destination in Arizona, the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum!

I recently found my favorite museum that I've ever visited & I wish I lived closer so I could buy a yearly membership to it because I would visit all the time. My family & I wanted to go on a small vacation for the holidays instead of doing a bunch of gifts so I planned a mini vacation to a city in our state that had several attractions we'd never been to before, one of those spots is the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum. It is so much more than just a museum it is a 98-acre zoo, aquarium, botanical garden, natural history museum & art gallery. It is located at 2021 N Kinney Rd Tucson, AZ 85743.

It is a popular tourist type spot so I highly recommend getting there early to get a parking spot closer to the entrance, or if you don't mind a short hike there are parking lots a bit further back. We arrived shortly after they opened & the parking lot was already pretty full with a decent line at the ticket window. The line moved quickly & the staff were all very friendly, the place is big enough that even with the number of people visiting you didn't feel crowded or overwhelmed which is nice. It also helps in spots like this when everyone takes their turn to look at exhibits, etc. without cutting in front of others so that made everything run smoothly. The website states it takes about 2-3 hours to see everything & it is quite true, depending on how much time you spend at each stop you might be there for even longer. A large majority of the museum is outdoors so if you aren't a fan of the heat the best time to visit is in the winter/spring months to avoid the Arizona summer heat. We visited on a beautiful slightly cloudy winter morning & the weather was perfect for visiting. 

The aquarium didn't open for another ten minutes after we arrived so our first stop was to the reptile house where we were able to see a large assortment of snakes, scorpions, frog/toads and more. We even had a chance to see one of the staff members feeding the toads which is always neat. My favorite enclosure in the reptile house were the walking sticks (or stick bugs), I haven't seen one out in the wild since I was a kid & I love how they look so getting to see a bunch of them up close was fantastic. After exiting we went straight for the aquarium & got lucky because the only other person in it was a staff member doing a bit of maintenance on one of the tanks so we had the whole place to ourselves. There was an assortment of fish both native to Arizona & non-native species such as seahorses to watch swim. No matter what aquarium I visit, I always enjoy spending a few minutes in front of the seahorses, it is so cute to watch them float around & grab onto the seaweed/plants with their tails. 

Shortly after we left the aquarium it was about time for the birds of prey show they host almost daily, but we decided to use that time to check out a few of the other exhibits since could see that 90% of the visitors there that day were headed to the show. We walked around the cactus botanical garden a little bit & I snapped some photos of the wild birds along with the cactus on display. They have multiple gardens around the museum, you can grab a map before heading into the museum that will show you where everything is & label it so you know where you are. Next I wanted to visit the hummingbird aviary, you actually get to go inside & be in an indoor garden with the hummingbirds flying right next to your head. I've been in bird aviaries before, none of which have had hummingbirds and I love them so I was overly excited. We spent quite a bit of time inside of it watching the hummingbirds, relaxing on the benches talking a little & of course I was snapping photos the whole time. 

Right next to the hummingbird aviary is an art galley, the art work was gorgeous & most of it featured native wildlife or scenery and everything is available for purchase. There was also a small section with trinkets like postcards, 3D printed items & more. The restaurant they had there smelled amazing, so if you get hungry while there stop in for a bite to eat or visit their café for a snack + coffee. They have an underground animal area where you actually head underground to check out a few small enclosures to see critters that you don't typically get to see. Then we explored a bit more of the gardens & went to the bird aviary that has bigger birds such as cardinals, quail & more which of course I loved and we spent time at some of the benches just watching the different birds. 

In total you will go on a hike that is about two miles long, while viewing wildlife habitats set up along the way with animals such as javelina, bobcats, bears, wolves and more. They also have another underground section that takes you into a cave area & a mine where they have minerals on display. Just writing about the Sonora desert museum makes me want to go back again! There was so much to do & so much to see, it was quite the adventure. If we lived closer I would get a membership as mentioned, because it would be a great place to go for a mini hike for exercise while getting to see some neat stuff. They had some other great things to do, but if I talk about it anymore this post is going to be gigantic so if you are ever in the area you need to check this place out & enjoy it for yourself, you won't regret it. Admission is $29.95 per adult & $19.95 for kids - If you live in AZ & are a bit short on cash but still want to visit this museum they are part of the Culture Pass program through the Arizona public library system, you can visit your local libraries website to see which location has a culture pass for this zoo - the library allows you to "check out" 2 passes per family per month through their program (1 pass at a time) for free & each pass gets you two free admissions into where ever the pass is for. 

If you are looking for more adventures in Tucson type in "Things to do in Tucson" or "Things to do in Arizona" in the search bar of my blog, I have several more fantastic animal attractions and more in Tucson to share with you & when all done within a few days it makes for a action packed vacation. 

Which part of this museum do you think you would be most interested in? What would you want to see first? 

**This is not a sponsored post, my family & I decided to visit the museum while we were in the area and paid to visit the museum. I enjoy sharing some of the fun places we've been & things we've seen with my readers so they can enjoy it too if they get a chance.**

Reid Park Zoo in Tucson!

 As a family we always enjoy visiting new zoos or animal sanctuaries together so when we were in Tucson I knew I wanted to take the family to Reid Park Zoo. I had never been to this zoo before nor has my family so we were all pretty excited to visit. The park is a bit smaller than the zoos we have in Phoenix, it sits on 24 acres which also means it is cheaper to get into than other zoos, it is only $10.50 per adult & $6.50 for children ages 2-14, plus at the bottom of the post I will share two ways you can save even more on admission to this zoo. The zoo is located at 3400 Zoo Court Tucson,AZ 85716. The day we had planned to visit the zoo during our vacation it was a cloudy & rainy day, however we still had a blast at the zoo and it also meant less people were there due to the rain so we didn't feel crowded or rushed to see anything & were able to take our time at each enclosure and watch the animals play in the rain.

 The zoo was easy to self-navigate & there were plenty of animals to see, each one had their own large enclosure set up specifically for them. We thought that most of the animals might not be out due to the rain, however there were quite a few animals out playing in the rain & enjoying the weather so that was fun to see. I also loved the two different areas where you could go inside with a variety of birds, I love birds and enjoy photographing them so I could have stayed in those bird cages all day.

One of the things that was unexpected & made us laugh quite a bit was when we stopped by the bathrooms near the elephant's enclosure. My husband had needed to use the bathroom, so we stopped, my kids and I were waiting outside when I noticed a giant elephant butt sticking out of the wall near the bathrooms. I was joking around with my kids & asked my daughter if she wanted a photo next to the giant elephant butt, she laughed & said sure then went to smack the butt for the photo. When she smacked the elephant butt it made a loud startled elephant noise as if you had snuck up on a real elephant. It was unexpected especially as there were no signs we could see saying it was interactive so we had a good laugh, it is a great surprise for anyone who can't help but give the bum a pat. 

An animal or two were hiding during our visit so we didn't get to see them but we were able to see 97% of the other animals which was fantastic. Two of the spots we spent some extra time at aside from the bird aviary was at the Gibbon Monkey & the Otter both of whom were being quite vocal and seemed to be enjoying the rain. We visited shortly after Christmas so they still had some fun photo opps up around the zoo that we took advantage of while we were there. They also had two different opportunities during the day to feed a giraffe, it does cost extra but it is only $3 per person & is a neat experience if it is something you've never done before. When you get hungry they do have a small cafe that offers food along with a gift shop if you want a souvenir. If you want a souvenir but want to save some money at the same time they had a penny press in front of the gift shop, it cost $0.50 to press a penny with your choice of design that will say "Reid Park Zoo" and have an animal on it. We personally love getting pressed pennies & have a small collection of them from various places we've visited in the past. 

We really enjoyed visiting Reid Park Zoo & will visit again in the future when we are in town. We thought it was a fantastic zoo that was clean and lovely to visit. Earlier in the post I had mentioned that I would share two ways you can save money on your visit if you are going through a hard time or are trying to save a little money during vacation. The zoo participates in the Culture Pass program through the Arizona public library system, you can visit your local libraries website to see which location has a culture pass for this zoo - the library allows you to "check out" 2 passes per family per month through their program (1 pass at a time) for free & each pass gets you two free admissions into where ever the pass is for. Reid Park zoo also gives a discount price to anyone who is part of the SNAP or WIC programs, you will need to show proof along with your ID at the gate to receive $4 off per ticket. If you live in Tucson or close to it & want to visit Reid park zoo multiple times through out the year you can buy a membership for yourself or a family membership which gets you in for free every time you visit. If you ever happen to find yourself in the Tucson area, I highly recommend stopping by to visit this wonderful zoo. If you are looking for more adventures in Tucson type in "Things to do in Tucson" or "Things to do in Arizona" in the search bar of my blog, I have several more fantastic animal attractions and more in Tucson to share with you & when all done within a few days it makes for a action packed vacation. 

If you want to see more animals from this zoo along with other adorable animals I've seen on my adventures, feel free to visit & follow my Nature Photography Instagram account where I post photos & videos.

Do you think you would enjoy this zoo? What is your favorite animal? 

**This is not a sponsored post, my family & I decided to visit the zoo while we were in the area and paid to visit the zoo. I enjoy sharing some of the fun places we've been & things we've seen with my readers so they can enjoy it too if they get a chance.**