One of the more wonderful things about St. Louis is the Metropolitan Zoological Park and Museum District tax which allows for free entry into multiple attractions, including the St. Louis Zoo. We made the most of the zoo being free by parking in a nearby neighborhood and therefore avoiding paying $15 for parking, and by visiting the Children’s Zoo within the first hour that the zoo is open, when it is also free (the Children’s Zoo and other activities do cost extra).
It was raining when we first arrived, so we started out inside in the Children’s Zoo. Luckily, it later stopped raining, but remained overcast, because otherwise it would have been much too hot to walk around the zoo!
We played outside in the Children’s Zoo as well.
Next up was the Insectarium, which includes a butterfly garden.
The penguin area is cool – literally! It is 45 degrees in there! On a super hot day, that would feel wonderful.
Nearby the penguins is the polar bear, who we watched for awhile as well.
Other animals in this area were flamingos and gorillas.
The Sea Lion pool can be viewed from underneath.
Time for an ice cream break!
Next was a walk through the River’s Edge area.
And that was just the morning! Tune in next week for our afternoon adventures!