Sarasota Jungle Gardens

Angelika Minaeva a month ago

If you love animals or travel with children, you will definitely like it here. The park is small, but rich. There are lemurs, crocodiles (small and large), many colored parrots, peacocks, a whole pack of flamingos, huge turtles and koi fish. You can pet and feed the goat. My children were delighted, although they are already 14 and 16 years old. You can also feed flamingos. You can buy special food at the store at the entrance to the zoo. Flamingos carefully take food from their hands and take pictures with pleasure. Goats tickle their fingers while feeding. But don't worry - there is water and soap nearby to wash your hands - the staff has provided everything for the convenience of visitors. The staff is very nice. The only downside is mosquitoes. Stock up on repellents.

Robert Turski 2 months ago

A magical, educational, and unforgettable experience – highly recommended! I planned a surprise date here for my wife to fulfill her lifelong dream of seeing flamingos, and Sarasota Jungle Gardens completely exceeded our expectations! From the very first contact, the staff took amazing care of us. A special shoutout to Alan, who gave us wonderful tips and arranged an incredible up-close experience with the animals. The park itself is a very friendly, beautifully planned space where it is just a pure pleasure to spend time and relax. As educators, we highly appreciated the live shows. You can clearly see that the trainers truly care for the animals and have a wonderful bond with them. They do a fantastic job introducing visitors to the animals' world through fascinating facts. The shows are captivating, engaging, and perfectly paced—not tiring or overwhelming at all. Feeding the free-roaming flamingos was a dream come true, but the entire park is a gem. We highly recommend this place to everyone! Thank you to Alan and the whole team for making our day so special.

Dave 2 months ago

I was in town and my 3rd gf suggested we stop by here to pass some time. We ended up really enjoying it. We did get here early so no issues with parking (free parking too). The staff were friendly too and the adult ticket price felt fair imo. It doesn't take long to go through the entire jungle garden but if you take your time with it you can spend a few hours here. We ended up feeding the flamingos — and some white ibis and even peacocks — and visited the petting zoo too. We left early so didn't get a chance to see a full show, but we did see some of it and the staff looked like they were enjoying themselves and made sure the kids were having a good time too. Very family friendly for sure. I'm having a hard time thinking of anything worth mentioning in terms of what they could have done better besides selling Dipping Dots (a guilty pleasure of mine tbh). I did read the negative reviews and I didn't see any animals not being cared for, unkempt cages, etc. Looks like they do a good job taking care of the animals here so I'm happy to stop by again either by myself to do some photography or with my other gfs.

Uwe Muegge 4 months ago

Sarasota Jungle Gardens is a charming Old Florida attraction, and we had a very enjoyable visit. The biggest highlight for us was hand-feeding the flamingos, which was a fun and memorable experience. Being able to see these beautiful birds up close was something special, and the setting made the whole visit feel relaxed and personal. We also loved seeing more than a dozen peacocks from close range. They add so much color and personality to the gardens, and it was wonderful to watch them wander through the grounds. The tropical plants, shaded paths, and peaceful atmosphere make Sarasota Jungle Gardens a pleasant place to slow down and enjoy nature. There were a couple of things that could be improved. The butterfly house was disappointing during our visit, with only four butterflies, all monarchs. We also would have appreciated the café being open, especially on a hot day when an ice cream or cold snack would have been perfect. There did not seem to be a substitute available. Even with those minor disappointments, we had a great time. Sarasota Jungle Gardens has a lot of character, and the close-up animal encounters made the visit well worth it. We would gladly recommend it, e

Ronald Plakus 5 months ago

I've seen many zoos that don't compare to the health and variety of this jungle adventure! I was seriously not expecting much before I got here. Maybe a couple of birds, probably an alligator or two, and flamingos to feed, but not expecting such extensive interaction with the animals and just an amazing variety of birds. The bird show which is just to the left when you begin through the gardens is short sweet and you learn quite a bit about parrots. Think about if you ever want to live with a five year old for 60 to 80 years, that's a parrot! The turtles and tortoises were so cool. I've never seen Galapagos tortoises up close so that was a first. I've seen alligators in the wild a lot, but I truly enjoyed their tank of 2-year-olds, but especially enjoyed the feeding show with a 20-year-old alligator. He is huge. Didn't include videos with this review because I wanted to keep it small, but this park is impossible to completely describe in words and pictures, it is a must go for Florida locals and tourists from all over the US and foreign countries.