The Lincoln Park Zoo has no answer for the Brookfield Zoo’s herd of bison. Point, Brookfield.
There’s a fierce war going on between Chicago’s two major zoos. The Lincoln Park Zoo and the Brookfield Zoo absolutely despise each other and they’re battling for your business.* Which one should you visit in the Windy City? Let’s see how they stack up.
(*Disclaimer: Reference to a “war” may have been completely made up for the sake of creating fictional drama.)
The giraffes in Lincoln Park can wander indoors or outside depending on their mood.
LOCATION
The Lincoln Park Zoo is just off Lake Michigan in the happenin’ hood of Lincoln Park. Parking is a nightmare, but no sane person would drive there when you can take public transportation or bike over. The Brookfield Zoo is way out in the burbs, which is inconvenient unless you happen to live in that area, and at last check, they charged $9 (yikes!) for parking. (I would never advocate bending the law, but you could probably stealthily park for free at the nearby Brookfield Woods lot if you wanted.)
Edge: Lincoln Park Zoo
The muddy rhino is a great sight any time of year in Lincoln Park.
VARIETY OF ANIMALS
The Lincoln Park Zoo has pretty much all the animals you’d expect from a big zoo – lions, tigers, rhinos, bears, giraffes, penguins, gorillas. But usually just 1 or 2 of each. It’s like they’re re-creating Noah’s Ark or something.
Getting an up-close look at the solitary polar bear at the Lincoln Park Zoo.
The Brookfield Zoo is a lot bigger, with a massive primate room and a big outdoor field with bison. And a desert room with meerkats. Who doesn’t love meerkats? They have aardvarks, camels, alligators, bald eagles and lizards. Plus, they house a handful of endangered Mexican gray wolves, which you can see up close when they run past the observation window. The wolves put Brookfield over the top on this one.
Edge: Brookfield Zoo
Kids love the Brookfield Zoo dolphin shows.
TYPE OF CROWD
Brookfield is totally made for kids. Every sign is colorful and cartoonish. It’s a really fun atmosphere. There’s a petting zoo and merry-go-round for the youngsters. And, they have special dolphin shows. For an extra $4, you can watch the trained dolphins perform tricks and fly out of the air to the tune of Van Halen’s “Jump.” If you don’t have kids, though, stick with Lincoln Park, which has a slightly more mature crowd.
Edge: Depends on your scene – Brookfield Zoo for kids, Lincoln Park Zoo for adults
I’m not sure why you’d want to bring a newborn to a zoo, but Brookfield has a busy “stroller parking” area.
COST
The Lincoln Park Zoo is free, so you can’t beat that. The Brookfield Zoo runs more than $13 per adult and $9 per child. That’s more than $50 if you take the entire family. Ouch! Then again, if they don’t get enough financial support, they might not have enough dough to continue to take care of those wolves, and they would have to get rid of them, and you wouldn’t want that on your conscience, would you?
Edge: Lincoln Park Zoo
Seeing eye to eye with a small alligator at the Lincoln Park Zoo.
VERDICT
The Brookfield Zoo isn’t bad, but it’s hard to beat the Lincoln Park Zoo. It’s cool to be smack in the middle of an urban paradise and see animals from all over the world. If you’re into animals at all, you should plan to swing by while you’re in Chicago.
Here’s a brief glimpse of the Brookfield Zoo in moving pictures.
I would have to totally disagree with your assessment of the zoos. Brookfield Zoo is one of the best in the nation, maybe the world, while LIncoln Park Zoo is just a collection of animals located in a very nice part of Chicago. Granted, there are some things better at Lincoln Park Zoo like the gorillas have an outdoor yard and they do have chimpanzees which Brookfield does not. But Tropic World at BZ is heads and shoulders above anything Lincoln Park Zoo has to Offer. BZ the Dolphin show and LPZ has none. Even their Sea Lion pool pales in comparison to the naturalistic Sea Lion/Harbor Seal/Gray Seal pools that BZ has. Lincoln Park Zoo has a better Children’s Zoo while BZ’s is more a farm in the zoo but BZ has the Hamill Family Play Zoo which LPZ does not. Though the exhibit that houses the African animals is very nice, BZ’s Giraffe House and yard is great and the adjoining African Wild Dog yard is great with Klipspringers and small African mammals and reptiles inside. I could go on and on but I think you get the point, BZ has other wonderful exhibits like their Penguin exhibit, Great Bear Wilderness, Indian Lake, the Habitat Africa Forest with Okapis, Australia House the Pachyderm House, etc…. Even if I wasn’t a member, the admisison fee for BZ is well worth the price. Plus you can’t beat the summertime exhibits such as Butterflies, Stingrays an alternating Dinosaurs with Insect exhibits.Don’t forget about the Swamp!
Thanks for pointing out some of the other highlights at the Brookfield Zoo. As I noted, Brookfield has the advantage when it comes to the animals. But location and price are important factors as well, which is where Lincoln Park comes out ahead.
Fun post! I assume that if I ever make it to Chicago (and I hope I will), it’ll be easier for me to get to the Lincoln Zoo – plus they have a polar bear. I would love to see the herd of bison, yet bears have hardly any competition in my opinion. AND they have penguins, and penguins…. Well, who can resist a penguin and go look elsewhere?
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Yes, the Lincoln Park Zoo is the main zoo for tourists. And it’s right by the lake!