“Get Closer” than ever before!
This unique experience offers an up-close-and-personal interactive opportunity and a chance to talk one on one with a zookeeper. Choose between meeting our lions, Galapagos tortoises, goats, animal ambassadors, grizzly bears or red panda, plus enjoy admission to the zoo following your experience.
Now booking spring 2025 dates!
NEW - River Otters
Get ready for an otterly unforgettable experience at Akron Zoo! Come meet our playful otters, Molly and Stratton, up close and personal. In this exclusive Get Closer experience, you'll have the chance to feed these adorable otters and learn all about their wild ways, how we care for them and how we conserve their local waterways. But that’s not all! Take a special tour of their indoor space and see where they live, swim, and play. And for the grand finale? Watch Molly and Stratton chow down on their favorite treat: a delicious fish-sicle! It’s a truly otterly magical experience that you won’t want to miss.
- $150 per person
Offered Fridays at 1:30 p.m.
up to 2 guests – ages 5+ (May - October)
Available May - October*
Tickets on sale soon.
Grizzly Bears
Meet Cheyenne and Jackson, our grizzly bears, and enjoy the once-in-a-lifetime experience of feeding them some of their favorite treats! During this Get Closer, guests will have the opportunity tour Cheyenne and Jackson’s Grizzly Ridge home, which includes our grizzly bear bedrooms, our deluxe keeper kitchen and a special behind the scenes night yard. Guests will also enjoy a training session and hear some amazing memorable stories about our bear siblings!
- $150 per person
Offered Saturday or Monday at 1:30 p.m.
2 to 6 guests – ages 5+ (January - November)
Available January - November*
Purchase Grizzly Bear Get Closer
Galapagos Tortoise
During this experience, you’ll have special access to our Galapagos tortoise habitat, learning about our gentle giants Pagos and Boxie. This unique experience includes the opportunity to interact with them by giving them a nice tortoise rub down and feeding them their favorite foods.
- $75 per person
Offered Friday, Saturday or Sunday at 3:15
2 to 4 guests – ages 5+
Available January - November*
Purchase Galapagos tortoise Get Closer
Animal Ambassadors
Interact and have fun with 3 of our education animal ambassadors, like Dasy the armadillo, Forest the porcupine, Chloe the kinkajou and many more animals!
- $55 per person
Offered Friday, Saturday, Sunday or Monday at 10:30 a.m. (Offered Saturday & Sunday ONLY in August)
2 to 6 guests – ages 5+
Available year-round
Purchase Animal Ambassador Get Closer
Goats
Learn from our keepers as you interact with the goats, discover what they like to eat and do and get to know them personally. Don’t miss the chance to pose for a photo with your favorite goat!
- $55 per person
Offered Wednesday at 10 a.m.
2 to 6 guests – ages 5+
Available January - November*
PURCHASE GOAT GET CLOSER
Red Panda
Meet our red panda, Lulu, and enjoy a private training session where you will be able to tong-feed our red panda some of their favorite snacks! During this amazing experience, guests will learn why red pandas are endangered, tour our indoor red panda habitat and hear some fun stories about our panda’s playful personality!
- $150 per person
Offered Friday or Sunday at 1:30 p.m.
2 guests – ages 5+
Available March 29 - April 27
*Get Closer experiences are not available from Thanksgiving - New Year's Day.
For questions about Get Closer Experiences, please contact programs@akronzoo.org or call 330-375-2550 ext. 8973. All Unique Experiences must be scheduled two weeks or more in advance.