City: Portland, OR

Category: Tours & Attractions

Telephone: (503) 226-1561

Address: 4001 Southwest Canyon Rd.

Insider Pick:

Description: The Oregon Zoo is the newest name for a zoo originally established in 1887 with the gift to the city of an animal collection from a wealthy and idiosyncratic Portland pharmacist, Richard Knight. The Oregon Zoo has evolved from a hodgepodge of animals kept at the back of a pharmacy into a world-class research facility, offering a constantly changing mix of exhibits and other amusements. It’s an internationally recognized and respected center for breeding Asian elephants, and it features an imaginative re-creation of the African rain forest. It also is highly committed to educating visitors about the animals of the Pacific Northwest. The Oregon Zoo continues to make a serious effort to improve the animal habitats. As if in response to a homier atmosphere, the zoo’s animal population is remarkably fertile, and the nursery is one of the most popular exhibits with adults, children, and the Portland media. This well-liked attraction, second only to Multnomah Falls in the number of visitors it receives each year, offers a variety of other diversions that do not focus on animals. The Zoo Railway is a narrow-gauge railroad running two trains, including a replica of the 1960s streamlined Aerostar, along a route through part of the zoo, into Washington Park and the Rose Gardens. The zoo railroad has the only surviving railway post office in the country and you can amuse your friends back home by sending them mail with its unusual postmark. During Halloween and the Christmas season, the Oregon Zoo hosts many special events in which the train plays a role, such as a festival of lights, which is best seen from the train (see the Festivals and Annual Events chapter). As you might predict, the zoo has a terrific gift shop and several restaurants and refreshment stands, including the AfriCafe, a restaurant that suggests huts found in a traditional African village. During the summer the zoo hosts a series of concerts on a stage surrounded by terraced lawns. Many of these concerts are free with zoo admission; others cost more. The mild evenings, popular artists, and availability of catered food, regional wines and beer, and coffee combine to make these concerts into events that express the very essence of Portland. Many people bring a picnic (you can bring anything edible except alcohol into the zoo) and sprawl on blankets in the late afternoon sunshine before the music begins. Spontaneous outbursts of dancing will occur in front of the stage. It’s a fine thing to see people of all ages and ways of life come together at these events; everyone loves to sit on the big lawns listening to great music under the lovely skies at twilight with friends and families. The Oregon Zoo is open every day except Christmas Day. Gates are open from 8 a.m. until 6 p.m. from May 15 through Sept 15 and 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. from Sept 16 through Apr 14. There is a $2 fee for parking. The zoo stays open for an hour after the gates close, unless you’re attending a special event or concert, when you can stay longer. Admission is $4 for everyone (except children 2 and under, who are always admitted free of charge) on the second Tues of each month. The zoo also features special rides and exhibitions that may incur a separate small fee, and the Zoo Railway has a separate charge of $3 to $5, depending on the loop and your membership status. By car, the zoo is best reached by a well-marked exit from westbound US 26 as it leaves downtown Portland. There is a light-rail station at the zoo, and ART the Cultural Bus also stops at the zoo. On summer weekends and during many concerts, parking can be particularly scarce, so light rail may be the least frustrating way to get here—plus you get $1 off your admission (See the Portland’s Parks chapter for more information on the zoo.)