Come along with us to a special summer event that is happening once a month at the Central Florida Zoo & Botanical Gardens through September!
There is so much to do in Orlando! I know lots of people come to the area to check out Disney World and Universal, and maybe stop by SeaWorld while they are here. However, I have been so amazed and impressed by the amount of attractions and activities you can take advantage of outside of the theme park bubble. It is one of the reasons I started this blog and why I am so passionate about seeking out areas outside of the parks. I love me a good day at the theme park, but I also love exploring all that Orlando has to offer. And earlier this week, I had the chance to head out to the Central Florida Zoo & Botanical Gardens for their Sunset at the Zoo event. Fair warning, that the zoo can be a bit of a hike from Downtown Orlando and the tourist areas.
This past Friday was their first event of the summer, but it will continue to happen once a month through September. You can head to the zoo on the fourth Friday of the month for only $6! The event starts at 5pm and runs through sunset. Not only can you explore all that the zoo has to offer, but each month also has a specific theme. The theme for May was Asian & Pacific American Heritage. There are also a few vendors and a couple of booths with family friendly activities set up. Additionally, you can stop by a selection of food trucks and hang out on the dance floor with a DJ.
The zoo has a free parking lot and you can enter beginning at 5pm. The zoo is a bit out of Orlando and is located in the Sanford area, so be aware that you may hit a fair amount of traffic on a Friday night around 5pm. However, you can enter until 7:30pm, so you do not have to be there right at 5pm. It was a well-organized event and we were able to easily get it with our tickets we purchased online. Once inside, you were free to roam the zoo and check out all the exhibits. Food and drink stations were also open inside the zoo, and you could stop by booths throughout that had different activities themed to Asian & Pacific American Heritage Month. There were three options for food trucks outside the entrance: Asia Kitchen, Snowie, and Boba Tea.
We spent most of our evening walking around and taking a peek at all the animal exhibits. We passed by a few activity booths: one was a game, one had coloring, and one had origami making. The kids were loving the activity booths and playing in the playground and splash pad areas! We were surprised that almost all of the animals were out in their habitat. We were a bit worried that with the event being later and after the zoo usually closes that we wouldn’t be able to see very much. However, it was quite the opposite, and we were able to spot almost every animal. I personally loved the spider monkeys, and my boyfriend loved getting to feed the giraffes (an extra $6).
A few habitats were under construction while we were there including the black bear and porcupine habitats. These exhibits are closed even outside of the Sunset at the Zoo event, it was not only during the event. That definitely didn’t stop us from having lots of fun though! In addition to the animals, you can also enjoy the various gardens. The Central Florida Zoo & Botanical Gardens have quite a few collections including a Butterfly Garden, Health and Wellness Garden, and more.
Overall, we really enjoyed our evening at the Sunset at the Zoo at Central Florida Zoo. We thought that the $6 (plus a $2 convenience fee per order) was the perfect price for the evening. We only spent about an hour and a half at the zoo and we were able to see everything we wanted. If you have kids that want to play on the playground or do the activity booths, you may find that you spend longer. Parking was easy, although it was getting more crowded when we left. However, there were still plenty of spots. We were able to see almost all of the animals out and about, and restaurants inside of the zoo were still open. There wasn’t a huge selection of food trucks. Only one served meals, and then there was a boba tea and a snow cone truck. I would probably recommend eating before or after the event, and maybe getting a snack during the event. We had a wonderful evening and it is definitely a great event if you are hoping to check out the Central Florida Zoo & Botanical Gardens!
Here is a list of the upcoming dates and themes for the event:
- June 28th – LGBTQ+ Pride
- July 26th – Black & African American Heritage
- August 23rd – Native American & Alaska Native Heritage
- September 27th – Hispanic Heritage
You can find even more information about the event and purchase tickets right here.
Have you been to the Central Florida Zoo & Botanical Gardens before? Let me know in the comments! Happy travels! ~Colette
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