Plan Your Visit

Hours & Location

The zoo is located off Lake Shore Drive, just minutes north of downtown Chicago. Hours vary by season.

Accessibility

The zoo is for everyone. Learn about how people with disabilities can make the most of their trip.

Visitor FAQs

The answers to all your zoo-related questions.

Zoo Map

An interactive map to help you maximize your experience.

Shopping & Dining

Snag a souvenir at the Gift Shop and grab a bite at The Patio at Café Brauer, Bird’s Eye Bar & Grill, or Park Place Café.

Guest Guidelines

Creating a safe, welcoming space for all is a responsibility for everyone.

Things to Do

Everyday activities and experiences to make your visit that much better.

Calendar & Events

Go beyond the everyday zoo experience during one of our many special events. Each is unique, with one thing in common: the wildest backdrop in the city.

View Upcoming Events
Guests at a night event
Landmark Cafe

Choose Your Own Adventure

Pick a self-guided tour to experience the zoo your way. All tours start and end at the Gift Shop near the center of the zoo. For a less hectic visit, we recommend visiting early in the morning, on weekdays, and during the fall and winter seasons.

Must-See Highlights Tour

Get an overview of what Lincoln Park Zoo has to offer with a tour that showcases the most popular habitats, spaces, and attractions.

2 Hours

Tour Highlights

  • AT&T Endangered Species Carousel
  • Polar Bears
  • Chilean Flamingos
  • Hoffman’s Two-toed Sloths
  • Giraffes
  • African Penguins
  • Western Lowland Gorillas

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Big & Furry Tour

See some of the zoo’s most popular animals: nature’s “charismatic megafauna.”

2 Hours

Tour Highlights

  • Giraffes
  • Hoffman’s Two-toed Sloth
  • Polar Bear
  • Eastern Black Rhinoceros
  • Harbor Seal
  • Western Lowland Gorilla
  • American Black Bear

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Weird & Wonderful Tour

Choose the trail less traveled and explore the more fascinating characters at the zoo, including arachnids and reptiles.

2 Hours

Tour Highlights

  • Meerkat
  • Golden Silk Spider
  • Cinereous Vulture
  • Crowned Lemur
  • West African Gaboon Viper
  • Egyptian Fruit Bat
  • Naked Mole Rat

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Green & Leafy Tour

Get some shade as you visit some of the trees—some very old, all very beautiful—that helped earn Lincoln Park Zoo arboretum accreditation.

2 Hours

Tour Highlights

  • Bur Oak
  • Flowering Dogwood
  • Golden Rain Tree
  • Redbud
  • Weeping Purple European Beech
  • Tulip Poplar
  • Ginkgo

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Little Explorers Tour

Take in the world of wildlife with experiences designed for families with children.

2 Hours

Tour Highlights

  • Lionel Train Adventure
  • Wild Sapling Play Forest
  • Tree Canopy Climbing Adventure
  • Farm-In-the-Zoo
  • AT&T Endangered Species Carousel
  • Pritzker Family Children’s Zoo
  • South Lawn

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