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THINGS
TO DO IN SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA |
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Santa
Ana Zoo at Prentice Park
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The
Santa Ana Zoo first opened in 1952 on land donated by
local citrus grower Joseph Prentice. He had two conditions
for the city, one that the park would be named after him
and the other that at least fifty monkeys would always
be on display.
Today the zoo still has its 50 monkeys and thousands of
visitors annually come to see them. Santa Ana Zoo displays
90 different species, in 35 exhibits and is a great place
to introduce younger children to the wonders of the zoo.
The Santa Ana zoo has lots of points of interest to keep
kids interested including elephant rides on weekends,
a miniature train ride, and the Crean family farm and
children zoo.
A visit to the Santa Ana Zoo will take about three hours
to see all of the animals and ride the train. The
Zoo at Prentice Park covers 20-acres and is just the right
size for little
kids.
If
your looking for a fun family friendly place for a day
trip the Santa Ana Zoo is definitely worth checking out.
Parking is free and admission to the zoo is very reasonably
priced.
The Santa Ana Zoo has wonderful miniature train ride called
the Zoofari Express. This train originally was stationed
at Santa’s Village, a long gone attraction in the
San Bernardino mountains of Southern California. Zoofari
Express
train ride is quite long and a fun treat for both adults
and kids. |
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Mission San Luis Obispo |
Weekends
the Santa Ana Zoo offers Carmel rides for $5.00. Elephant
rides were discontinued in at the end of 2011, after
25 years due to safety concerns. The only other place
left in California where you can ride an elephant in
an AZA-accredited zoo is Six Flags Discovery Kingdom
in Vallejo, California.
The Crean Family Farm offers a family farmyard adventure.
Kids can pet some of the animals and learn about life
on a farm. The Santa Ana Zoo is an excellent little
zoo for kids and a fun place for grown ups too.
Colors of the Amazon walk-through aviary houses a variety
of exotic birds native to South America. The birds are
free to fly around and in the large 9,000 square foot
aviary and seem as interested in the visitors
as they are in the birds.
Amazon’s Edge is the largest exhibit at the Santa
Ana Zoo and features a waterfall that can be viewed
from a wooden deck. Amazon’s Edge is home to howler
monkeys, mallards, black-necked swans and crested screamers.
If you work up an appetite while visiting the Santa
Ana Zoo Knowlwood Café serves up award-winning
hamburgers plus an assortment of other snacks.
If you’re looking for a close to home escape without
the price tag of a major Southern California attraction
check out the Santa Ana Zoo.
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Crean Family Farm |
Zoofari
Express Santa Ana Zoo |
Santa
Ana Zoo 1801 East Chestnut Avenue Santa Ana, CA 92701 The
zoo is open daily, except for Christmas Day, New Years Day
and the 4th Saturday in August. The hours of operation are
10am to 4pm daily.
During the summer, weekend hours are from 10am to 5pm. On
Resident Free Day, the second Tuesday of each month, residents
of Santa Ana can visit the Zoo for free. The Santa Ana Zoo
also is also parents favorite place to host kids birthday
parties.
Ride the train and have a birthday
party picnic at the Santa Ana Zoo. |
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Santa
Barbara Zoo
best medium size zoo Southern California.
On the coast Santa Barbara |
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San
Diego Zoo largest and most visited
zoo in California. Takes a full day to explore. |
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Los
Angeles Zoo located
in Griffith Park and is home to over nearly 1000
animals |
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