San Diego Zoo in Balboa Park

By alantvuong on April 29, 2020

I have visited many zoos around the world and when I was visited San Diego back in May 2014 with a buddy, San Diego Zoo was a must visit for us. San Diego Zoo opened in 1916 and has since expanded to 100 acres of Balboa Park featuring over 3700 animals of more than 650 different species and subspecies. It is one of the largest zoos in the world and at about 3.5 million visitors every year, it is the most visited zoo in the US. The day after we arrived in San Diego, we decided to visit the zoo and also meet up with my other friend Kiersten who is a travel blogger too.

map of San Diego Zoo

Getting There

We stayed at The Sofia Hotel downtown and decided to take a 10 minute taxi ride to San Diego Zoo. We just took a regular taxi and my buddy transferred me to the back seat and put my collapsed wheelchair in the trunk. When we got to the zoo, we were a bit earlier than Kiersten so we just hung out at the entrance while waiting for her.

we stayed at The Sofia Hotel

San Diego Zoo does offer a free companion pass for those who are in a wheelchair who buys a ticket and require help from a companion. Me and my buddy bought a 2-Visit Pass because we wanted to visit San Diego Zoo Safari Park the next day and it was cheaper to buy the combo pass. Kiersten was only able to join us for San Diego Zoo because she was busy the next day.

in a cab ready for the zoo

Exhibits

Exhibits at San Diego include: Discovery Outpost, Lost Forest, Asian Passage, Panda Canyon (closed in 2019 as pandas went back to China), Northern Frontier, Elephant Odyssey, Urban Jungle, Australian Outback, and Africa Rocks.

at the entrance of the zoo

We started with the Australian Outback exhibit to see koalas and tasmanian devil, then went to Urban Jungle to see giraffes and other animals along the way. Next we went by Africa Rocks to see meerkats and other animals before heading to Elephant Odyssey to see the elephants and camels. At Northern Frontier there were some cool polar bears and the Skyfari Aerial Tram located right beside that area.

koalas at Australian Outback

giraffes at Urban Jungle

elephant at Elephant Odyssey

The Skyfari was not wheelchair accessible as there is no room to get inside the gondola with a wheelchair or ramp. My buddy transferred me to a seat and collapsed my wheelchair to stow my chair inside the gondola for the ride. All 3 of us still managed to have enough room to sit comfortably. I just had to sit close to my buddy and used my arm to hook onto one side of the seat. It was amazing to see the spectacular views of the zoo, the animals and the surrounding areas. It is now under renovations as of January 2020, so hopefully when it reopens, they will have some of the gondolas wheelchair accessible.

getting on Skyfari Aerial Tram

view from above

We then ate our picnic lunch Kiersten brought and headed to Discovery Post to see turtles, snakes and reptiles. Lost Forest was next to see gorillas and baboons and then we went to Asian Passage to Panda Canyon to see the 3 giant pandas: Xiao Liwu and parents Bai Yun and Gao Gao. I think spending at least 4 to 5 hours at San Diego Zoo would give enough time to check out everything at this massive world famous zoo. We didn’t get a chance to see any of the animal talks or shows that are held at the zoo this visit but will try to see one next time.

food from Trader Joes

panda at Panda Canyon

Accessibility

San Diego Zoo had pretty good wheelchair accessibility overall. There were paved pathways everywhere and mostly were flat. The were a few steep inclines but my buddy is strong enough to help me up them. Three years since we visited, Canopy Bridge was opened linking the front and the back of the zoo eliminating a much longer route through hills and ramps that is challenging for disabled guests. There are also accessible tour buses that take you around the zoo but we never used them.

gorilla in the back

there are a few steep hills around the zoo

Balboa Park

Kiersten then took us for a tour of Balboa Park after we were done with the zoo. Balboa Park is 1200 acres and besides being home to the San Diego Zoo, there are many wide open public spaces, gardens, pathways, theaters, museums, shops and restaurants located here. It is a free park and it was great to look around at some of the historic buildings and the lush green beautiful gardens. The park was pretty wheelchair accessible and we spent about 2 hours exploring as much as we could before getting hungry for food.

Botanical Building at Balboa Park

Casa Del Prado Theater

Food

We were wanting to have some local Mexican food and Kiersten drove us in her car to Sombreros just a few minutes away. The burritos were amazing as we got to choose our own toppings and sauces. Portions were quite reasonable as it is always great to eat at some small local place to really have some authentic food at a great price. The restaurant itself was pretty wheelchair accessible and we had no issues getting in or around it.

on the hunt for Mexican food

we found Sombrero

Visiting San Diego Zoo is a definite must visit if you are ever in the city. With the zoo being so large, plan to be there for at least half a day and be prepared for some steep hills and hot weather. There are accessible bus tours to take you around the zoo and a newly opened Canopy Bridge to make getting around easier too. Skyfari Aerial Tram wasn’t wheelchair accessible when we went but it’s getting renovations done right now so maybe it will be better when it reopens. Also, make sure to check out the rest of Balboa Park to really get the full experience like we did.