What A Amazing Free Zoo, That’s Correct It’s 2022 And There Is Still Something That’s Fun To Do And Free🤘You Can Do The Right Thing And Donate Anything You Can Afford To Give - They Still Enjoy Giving Extra Care To Their Animals!! So Many Different Animals In Such A Beautiful Layout!! Keep Up The Great Carr And The Great Work Of Running Such A Beautiful Zoo!! I Went Multiple Times As A Kid And Now I’ve Taken My Kids To This Zoo!! Great Place To Spend The Day Or Days!! There Is A Lake Near By You Can Enjoy As Well!! Give Those Donations To Them Please And Thank You, This Is What Keeps Them Going!!

We love coming to this zoo. It's the perfect size for little kids to be able to walk and not get too worn out. It's nice in the winter too, if you bundle up and it's not too cold you can still have a great experience. The lions are often active and roaring. The polar bear is very active and likes to swim. There is a family of 5 otters to see too. We miss being able to go into the monkey and reptile area that has been closed to the public since COVID started. In the summer time the playground is open and is a great place to run around and play.

The zoo is FREE & parking is FREE and anyone who gives it less than five stars is a hater. They had more animals than I expected. Still had informational & educational signs. Yes, there are restrictions due to COVID19 but did I mention it was free? Of course they take donations. I also made purchase at gift shop. This zoo made my day!

This zoo is great. Plenty large but manageable in a few hours. So many of the animals we all love to see. Free entry (but a donation is accepted). A huge beautiful park near the water is right next to the zoo. We had a great time and I recommend seeing the zoo if you are in the Madison area.

I love this little zoo!! It's on the smaller side, but there are plenty of animals to visit. The updates and expansions they've done over the past few years to the enclosures have been great to see. It's a free zoo, but always still plan to bring a donation, because of course taking care of all these beautiful creatures is not free!

Having traveled all over the USA, coming back to Madison has showed me how great this zoo really is. Not only is it free, but it is clean, friendly, and fun for the family. The animals all look happy, healthy, and taken care of with clean enclosures. For a free zoo… this zoo is a must see when you come to Madison!

This zoo is great! It's easy to see everything in a few hours, most of the animals are easy to see, and it's free! The bathrooms are plentiful and nice, there's a small restaurant and ice cream shop, there's a very small train and carousel ($3 each), and there is a cool playground (currently closed) and goat feeding area (also closed). Parking is free in their small lot, but if the lot is full, it can sometimes be tricky to find street parking. (Might be due to other events in town.) I would like to see larger enclosures for some of the animals (lion and tiger). Hopefully they will use their donations and concession stand revenue to continue to make improvements to this wonderful zoo. :)

Nice place to visit during weekend. Lots of animals. Kids will enjoy for sure. There is no entry fee. But you can donate at the entrance for your visit. Rhino, giraffe, tiger and lion were very active during our visit.

Covid: Masks are required and there is one-way traffic. There are hand sanitizer stations around the zoo. Even with the indoor exhibits closed, there are still many things to see. Definitely come here after covid. I really love it here! It is the closest I have ever gotten to a lion, tiger, and polar bear. When covid ends you really need to go back here! The indoor exhibits are great and you can interact with birds. Its also a free admission and with a donation is also awesome.

Awesome zoo! I was shocked in the amount of animals I seen. I wasn't expecting to see a good amount of animals coming from a free zoo. Some of the animals were pretty lazy and not very energy driven. We still had fun and had a great time. Love the polar bear show. We donated some money to help fund the zoo. Shocked to see food stands. A good amount of people and everyone was friendly.

Great that it’s free. However, most of the main animals were not in their enclosures. My kids were pretty disappointed. All interior buildings are closed, I guess because of “Covid”. However, we have been to several zoos in the last couple years and they are usually all open and just requiring masks indoors. I wouldn’t waste my time visiting here again until things are back to normal.

Such a wonderful gem in Madison. The park is clean and the volunteers/workers are friendly. The animals are always fun to see and the fact that it's free still blows my mind. Nothing better than a nice stroll through the zoo on a sunny day with some Chocolate Shoppe ice cream too!

This place is great!! I was honestly skeptical at first because we heard it was free and thought it wasn't going to be much. However to my surprise it had so many different animals there and a playground for kids!!this place is great to take the little ones or if you are just looking to walk around and explore for a bit.

Really nice zoo. We went on a weekday and it wasn't too crowded. If recommend going early in order to find parking. The animals seemed well cared for and appeared to have appropriate enrichment and good conditions, as well as places to escape the crowds. I would definitely visit again and enjoyed this zoo significantly more than many of the highly recommended commercialized zoos in the country. The zoo staff were friendly and knowledgeable as well.

Very cool little Zoo to visit. Because it's not too large, you can see all of the exhibits without having to spend all day there. The best part about this Zoo is that it is Free. They have clean facilities, an Ice Cream Shoppe and a small Grille for eating. There is also a play area for the Children.

Henry Villas Zoo is definitely one of the best zoos in Wisconsin. First of all, it's FREE. Yes, you read that correctly. There's no cover charge. The exhibits are well laid out and there are some pretty unique and amazing creatures here. Our favorites are the orangutan family (and a baby orangutan, she's so adorable!!), Tiger, lions, rhinoceros, giraffe, polar bear, otters, anaconda, and MORE! The park isn't excessively large & is well laid out. There's an amazing kids plaza area (seriously, it's incredible). The store is a must see and definitely purchase some stuff to help them keep up the park and superb animal care.

My family and I travel quite a bit and have been to many zoo's, with that being said I didn't have high expectations for this zoo - especially since it's free. I was seriously so impressed, it is one of the cleanest zoos I have been to! It's not huge, but it's a perfect size for my kiddos to manage without being exhausted. There's a good variety of animals and all enclosures are well maintained and clean. We had a wonderful time and I would highly recommend it!

What an amazing zoo! There was a great variety of animals and they had sanitization stations all over the place. We were lucky enough to hear the lions roar (incredible!) and watch a polar bear dive off the boulder and then play with the other. Would definitely go back. I did notice that the zoo was getting pretty full by the time we left (11:00am?) and there were lots of cars parked on the streets. May be good to get there early if you can.

Beautiful, small zoo, family friendly and FREE!! Unfortunately there aren't very many animals and they weren't at all active. Were unable to visit different inside houses due to virus. Train and carousel rides were also closed. There were many people visiting. Enjoyed a picnic lunch by lake, was a beautiful day. We will hopefully go again and will be able to see more animals. Then a 5 star review would be given.

We love coming here... Its free and we always give donations to help..

We really enjoyed visiting this zoo. At some zoo's, the animals seem sick and depressed but that was not the case here. All the animals were walking around and would come right up to the glass and say hi.

I've been to this zoo numerous times since I was a child. I've only seen improvements over the years, I mean, who doesn't remember the old monkey enclosure and shudder silently. I have always loved this zoo and they staff is top notch. When I was living in Madison, whenever I had a day off or some free time on the weekend, I always made a point to visit this zoo.

I honestly didn't expect much from a small free zoo. However, this is perhaps the best zoo I have ever been to. We have seen more in quantity and more interesting animals than I've seen almost anywhere else. The facilities are clean and neat, there's a plane crash for children, their concessions, and an indoor carousel. The highly recommended place.

I hadn't been here since I was probably 6 or 8 years old, and it's still just as wonderful! Very well maintained, excellent staff, and even with the buildings closed due to covid, still well worth the trip. Lions, tigers, and bears (oh my). Otters, seals, bison, and an orangutan gathering parts to build some sort of devious device, probably to try to take over the world. I think it might have been some kind of mechanized orangutan suit being driven by two lab mice, but I didn't get any proof, so it's just speculation as of right now. We had a really great time, and look forward to returning again someday. Many Pokestops and several gyms for the Go players.

Nice place lots of animals, lots of shade, FREE, ice cream helps support it, flamingos, lion, gairaffe, bears, buffalo, penguins. Tiger. Clean. A nice place for friends and family, easy parking.

(Translated by Google) Beautiful place!!! incredible!!! 100% recommended, for sure! They have all the precautions so that one can enjoy social distance, cleanliness, and care for animals! love to hear the lions are immensely divine !! repeat it as soon as possible !!! ♥ ️ (Original) Hermoso lugar!!! increible!!! 100% recomendado, seguro! tienen todas las precauciones para que uno pueda disfrutar se mantiene la distancia social, la limpieza, el cuidado en los animales! ame escuchar a los leones son inmensamente divinos!! repetirlo lo mas pronto posible!!! ♥️

It was a cute experience for my Grandson. However, as the adult that paid for the food/donations/train ride, I feel that the city of Madison could spend a bit of money INVESTING in a hidden gem. Exhibits empty/ animals w/not enough stimulation/by themselves/hungry goats, not enough interactive exhibits, this was probably a really nice place at one time.

We always love coming to Vilas zoo. The morning is the best time to visit because the animals are up and moving around. You can go in the afternoon but most animals will be napping. There are lots of benches and a covered area with picnic tables for snacks or lunch. There are new, clean bathroom facilities that include a separate mother's room and family restroom. The monkey, reptile, and tropical houses are still closed due to covid but there is plenty to see outside. There is a whimsical playground with a giant tree and kangaroo. For $3 you can ride the carousel or train. This is a fantastic place for little kids!!

It is free entrance, they have Lions, polar bears, otters, reptiles, rhinoceros, flamingos, petting area for certain animals close to the children's side with play area. They have sanitize stations all around the zoo outside almost every exhibit. I saw about 2 bathroom areas and 2 family bathrooms. They also have a train and carousel ride which cost a small fee. The gift stores are a bit expensive but when everything else about is free I would expect that. Lastly the concession stands and food courts are also a bit pricey but the cost of water was only $1.00 so remember to stay hydrated on those hot days. . Not to mention there is a park right outside with benches and playgrounds perfect for a afternoon picnic and a beach on the other side. Overall we are definitely visiting here again. Kids and I had a blast.

After 10 months living in Madison, my son and I finally made it to the wonderful zoo! Free admission and a large number of animals to visit!! The zoo is laid out perfectly! Great place to spend an hour or an afternoon!! Will definitely come back and enjoy our time!!

If you want to have a nice little walk around a beautiful park with the family and see some animals while doing so this is a great place to go. It's small but quaint with a nice variety of animals and plenty of fun things for your little ones to do. Entrance is free which is another plus. Only issue was parking which is why I gave it a 4 star rating.

Henry Vilas Zoo is pretty cool! The animals seem closer to you than other places. The zoo is smaller but has the same animals that you will see a bigger zoos. You can easily get through the zoo in 1hr. It could be 1.5-2 hrs if you straddle along reading all the signs. Their was a staff lady that stopped and answered our questions about the bears. She was very informative about the bears and their history. She actually seemed to enjoy sharing this information which made the experience even better. The zoo is free of charge and free parking. They are really appreciative of donations and you can donate throughout the zoo.

We always enjoy visiting the zoo when we come to Madison. There are two different entrances, one near the lake with the children’s zoo to the left when you enter, and one at the top of the zoo near the Tigers and orangutans. I typically find there are more spaces available in the entrance near the children’s zoo. My kids love the playground area and the carousel and train. Since the zoo is free, we like to support by going on the rides. There are some adorable baby orangutans. My kids really enjoyed the rhino, polar bears, and river otters.

We had a great time at the zoo! There’s so much to see and do and the animals were very active. I took my daughter here for a girls day and we loved it. It’s free to enter but would be worth the admission fee if there was one! They had someone stamping hands when you enter and my daughter thought it was so cool to choose her own stamp. We went to see the tigers first and the tiger was eating which was cool to watch. We then went to the primate exhibit and they were all so active and entertaining. There were 3 orangutans, one being a baby. Mama carried her baby to the top of her habitat and it was so cool to watch her teach baby how to climb. We watched for quite some time! We were there from open (9:30am) to about 2:30pm and we got to see every exhibit and stop for lunch and ice cream. Our favorites were the orangutans and the bats. It was so cool to see the bats be so active and up close. We would go again and again! The female lion was pretty vocal which was cool to hear. Also, the food in the Glacier Grille is delicious also and you can see into the polar bear exhibit. The polar bear did come out and roll around in the grass for a bit while we ate! You definitely won’t be bored at this zoo!

Very nice layout and decent amount of animals that we saw for the zoo's size. Wished the avian flu outbreak wasn't around which quarantined all their birds but we did get a glimpse of the Flamingos. Recommend for all ages.

I loved the animals but the COVID stuff made it so that we didn't get to see the red pandas and the aviary and reptile house.

First time at Zoo Lights and it was so fun! Gorgeous displays that were elegant and cute, not gaudy. Fun for folks of all ages.

Great free zoo. Love to see all of the animals and the special events always are a treat. Please donate so it can stay a awesome and free place though.

I can't believe this is free! I have never gotten this close to a Rhino, Lion and Polar Bear! Great experience even with COVID limits.

It had beautiful lights. One way traffic. Option to buy food and drink. Nice music. Saw flamingos and a seal.

A very nice zoo, and it's free. Outdoor exhibits are open. Indoor exhibits are closed due to COVID-19.

We love the zoo! It is a diamond that every city should wish to have!

Beautiful.

Social distancing guidelines were being followed but unfortunately most animals were unable to be seen during our visit. Thankfully it was free.

My wife takes our3 year grandson there often. He loves it. Ive been going there since was his age. Wonderful zoo. No admittance fee.

Did the Christmas lights tour,,was amazing

Great Zoo!

I went to this zoo over the Summer with some of my colleagues. It was a nice zoo.

(Translated by Google) Excellent zoo. Everything is great... (Original) Excelente zoológico. Todo esta muy bien...

Great little zoo. Love the awesome polar bear enclosure. Staff are always so nice.

Loved it even though you can go only one way but I understand it for social distancing

Along with the park, a wonderful place for everyone.

Events have too long of a line, few masks, and no social distancing. Chaotic good people are going to catch Covid. It will be great next year but for now it is scary.

Usually a great free zoo. Now it's about a 15 min walk with about 10 animals in view.

Very nice and it's free

Great place

Love it! Such a happy place (even though sometimes zoos can be sad) Henry Vilas does everything possible to keep the animals and visitors entertained! Felt very comfortable during covid too, the staff have put a lot of hard work in to keep people safe.

Great night for the zoo lights.

The best zoo in Madison haha! Honestly though, a fantastic place to bring your kids

Nice little zoo with free admission

Not a lot of animals or people. But we enjoyed the tiger and the lion.

Been there b4. Covid restrictions make it not as personal but they're doing a good job to make still enjoyable. Admission is free but donation is accepted.

We love this small free zoo. Unfortunately, with the covid restrictions and the cooler weather we were quite limited, but my kids still enjoy seeing what they can.

Covid 19 has really put a hurt on any type of outing , but this was by far the shortest time I've ever spent at a zoo ! The walk was short and not many animals were there left to see. I expected ALOT more ,but like I said COVID-19 ....

Inside buildings were closed so we went through pretty quickly, enjoyable just the same. Nice outing

Yet the animals were ready to eat

We love the free zoo! It's small but well maintained and always a joy for our son.

(Translated by Google) monke:] (Original) monke :]

Beautiful place!!

Nice little zoo. Alot of the animals were not out but still loved the walk thru

When being outside, in the sun and exercise is what is needed now. Very disappointing. With 80+% of the Zoo closed or off limits, and what was viewable was sparsely populated and unkempt at best.

Loved this BOUTIQUE small zoo with very nice collection and display!!!

Very COVID safe. Indoor exhibits are closes but still good to get out and see the animals.

Always a good time. Free safe fun for the kids to come here the lady at the front , however, was super rude and let other people pass us to get in ...

Sad that we couldn't see all of the animals due to covid restrictions but still well worth the trip

This was a great zoo to visit! We can't wit to go in the summer!! The polar bears were so active! We wish we had 2 at the Milwaukee zoo

Safety measures in place. Clean. Nice exhibits. It's the end of February,so still chilly and many animals are inside yet. Lions,Tigers, seals, bison, badger, camel and more were out and visible though. Must wear mask unless eating or drinking.

This zoo is free and open to the public and is situated at an excellent cross roads near downtown Madison. I do not know what more could be asked for. The landscape of the exhibits is inspired and fun to traverse and in particular the Badger exhibit is an excellent rescue omage to Bucky and Wisconsin's whole story as a mascot and a mining state. I didn't expect that level of historical learning, but Herny Vilas Zoo is just that great.

Very well spaced out for Covid. About half of the animals were out. A great place for an afternoon stroll. For free!

Cute little zoo. We went in early spring, so not all entrances were open. I little far to enter, but it was a beautiful day so no big deal. The parking lot had some major pot holes so be careful.

Great free zoo. Weren't sure what would be out in the winter but the lions and tigers were. It was much easier to see them without all the vegetation. The zoo was also not crowded.

I loved it here! I went here during covid but still had a great time. I hope I can come again soon when covid is over. I loved the polar and grizzly bears. I also remember the monkey when I first walked in. It made me laugh :)

Wonderful little Zoo. Only thing I wishes they had elephants. But hey it's a free zoo and wonderful for little kids. Because it's free you should always make sure to donate at least a couple dollars.

Free zoo. Nuff said.

Nice free zoo :)

No indoor exhibits open, but it was nice to walk around and see some outdoor animals.

Great place to have a picnic and dodge goose poop.

With covid all the building are shut down. Great free zoo when everything is open.

Even in winter, the zoo is a great place for all ages to take a walk to see the cutest critters!

It is small, but has unique animals. We went in winter so perfect size for the cold days.

Amazing zoo..the animals look happy and cared for.. Nice layout.. And free to get in.. I was very impressed with it and how helpful the staff is..

One of the few FREE public things you can do that is worthwhile is coming to the Henry Vilas Zoo, limited parking but worth the walk to come in and see some polar bears, grizzly bears, lion, giraffe, birds and goats among other sights, small zoo but plenty of walking to be done, friendly staff with behind the zoo animal interactions with donations, highly recommended for a break from the usual

We loved it! I didn't realize free zoos even existed and I was more than happy to donate to them. It was well landscaped and had a good selection of animals, some that I've never seen in a zoo before. Would definitely recommend to anyone living in or visiting Madison

A beautiful place to stroll on a nice day. We are so lucky to have this wonderful place in Madison. Try to visit before weather gets too chilly. It is Free, but put something in the contributions bin if you can to help keep this treasure supported by our community.

Always a great visit!! Disappointed the houses are closed due to covid but that doesn't stop us from enjoying the zoo 😀 my daughter looks forward to coming weekly

I Love this Zoo plus it's free admission but they do have donation boxes around the Zoo.

We love the zoo. We go as much as we can. Our only complaint was the all the buildings were closed. I am guessing for the winter but it doesn't stop us at all :)

Fun little zoo, the property and facilities were mostly very clean. The seal enclosure looked to need a bit of a cleaning. We didn't see many staff members, but also didn't need to. Zoo is free to enter but they take donation to help maintain it.

Went here with family. Was on the first Badger home game. Drove around to find a parking spot. Hadn't been here in decades. Very nicely updated. Nice time

The animals look healthy and active. We all enjoyed the zoo. Free to public, amazing! Make sure you take some cash and donate if you want.

Love Henry Vilas Zoo. Their Zoo Lights were amazing this year, even in the rain. This is a wonderful place to support. If you spend time in Madison, this is a definite place to visit, year round.

Went for the zoo lights this year and they were great! Not many animals out of course, but we did see the sweet, sleeping polar bears.

Great zoo any time of year. Admission is free but you should donate. Parking (which is also free) does get tight on weekends and during the summer. You can park on the residential side streets though. They have a lot of animals and the flamingos, seal and bear exhibits are especially cool. They also have have restaurants, drinks and ice cream for sale inside.

This was a good time for the whole family. Staff was very knowledgeable upon the up keep of the animals. Also they grow organic vegetables to feed to the animals as treats. Very cool. Property was very clean. The kids loved the carousel ride.

I was glad to see that they have more animals now, there's more places to eat/snack inside the zoo. Last time we were here(6 yrs) they were doing some construction and they didn't have a lot of animals. We all had a great time. My personal favorite was the tiger. There is no fee to enter the zoo, they just ask for a donation. The parking lot is small so I would recommend going early. You can also park on the street around the park.

This zoo is just the right size for a day trip. Very manageable to navigate and see a wide variety of animals. The only place it gets crowded is inside the reptiles exhibit. The primates building is probably the highlight especially if you are able to catch the monkeys playing. I would recommend coming through the back entrance that is on Vilas Park Drive. Much more available parking back there.

We always have an absolutely great time at this zoo. There us a wide array of animals, as well as a few buildings with other animals. Wonderful playground and children's zoo. There were lots of baby animals when we went today. Also Joe near the exit at guest services was THE NICEST person ever. My kids loved interacting with him and getting a stamp

This Zoo has a surprisingly good selection of animals and exhibits for a free to public zoo. The weather was a little cool that day, but it seemed to have been favorable to most of the animals, too. I wanted to give it 5 stars because for a free zoo (they do take donations), they do a good job overall with the animals and exhibits. The only thing that seemed it could be better was some basic maintenance here and there, especially with cleaning up the glass on some of the exotic animal exhibits. This is a great little getaway for half a day or so with the family or just anyone who appreciates the animals and nature. I'd love to see what they could do with this place should the city pump some money into the zoo. You'd think with all those taxes in the Madison area, they could put some of it to use for the public by investing in public spaces like the zoo. Overall, I definitely recommend this place, and they have some land and picnic tables out by the parking lots as well, so pack a lunch or snacks it's a great little half day or so getaway.

large variety of animals, well-kept and clean grounds, free entry, variety of food spots (including a chocolate shoppe ice cream). I have such great memories of coming here when I was a little toddler and it’s nice to see that the quality of this zoo has stayed consistent. I love how close you can see all of the animals, especially the giraffe. We ate at mickies dairy bar then spent the afternoon here. What a great day!

Very happy with the visit! I was recovering from a very recent medical concern and the fresh air and easy walk were fantastic! So many animals were out and about. Interactions with staff were all wonderful! One of our family's favorite places and we are very glad on the continued education and improvements.