Great place to visit, convenient parking, healthy looking animals. Funniest bobcats, playful bears, curios wolfs. Nice place to spend time with kids.

We had a great time at the Zoo, although fairly small and missing a few animals. It was a perfect trip for us, with a toddler. Not too big where she lost interest, but enough going on that she had fun. The tortoise was her favorite, and we were happy to stop by the gift shop to buy an inexpensive memento. Will definitely go again.

1 and 3 year old loved it. Just the right size with playground at the end. Well maintained

Very nice small zoo! The care of the animals shows and makes it even more enjoyable. Once this covid stuff clears up this will be even better. They are using this slow time to make many improvements.

We had an excellent time at the Henson Robinson Zoo. I have 3 little kids and it took us about an hour to do a complete walkabout. That was about perfect as far as timing is concerned. The exhibits were clean and tidy. The animals all seemed to be in good health and had decent sized enclosures. I will be taking the family back again soon!

For a small zoo it was fun. very clean the animals look well cared for.

Zoo is closed momentarily, but if you want a beautiful spot to park you can still see some of the animals from your car while enjoying takeout food

Great little zoo. Cougars, otters, wolves. Nice gift shop. Zoolie Ghoulie is always fun.

The kids loved this fun zoo. Its shady and pleasant for us and the animals. Loved the penguins and impressed by all the improvements.

Easily managed in a few hours, this small city zoo has a good variety of healthy-looking animals who were surprisingly active when we visited on a mild spring afternoon. Its an older facility, which certainly shows in some of the exhibits and structures, but has some nice modern touches — like interactive educational placards and a well-stocked Little Free Library. We just peeked in, but theres also a nice little gift shop. And admission wont set you back too much: $4.50 for kids age 3-12, $4.75 for seniors, $6.50 for other adults.

Zoolie Ghoulie is ALWAYS great with Capitol Radio Group! The public spaces in the zoo were clean & the COVID-19 compliance w/ masks & social distancing was excellent. My biggest concern is so many empty exhibits.

Perfect for small kids. Not too many animals but just enough to walk through. Kids enjoyed. Cute little gift shop.

This place was better than expected actually. Friend of mine said it was terrible but I thought it was actually quite nice and clean.

The guy showed me a snake and seemed very knowledgeable about the snake in question. 10/10 would recommend off of snakes alone. May the snake gods be praised.

Very cute little zoo. I have a 2 year old and he walked the whole thing and we got to see all the animals, only took about an hour to get thru. We got there when they opened on a Thursday, so we were the only ones there.

This is a great zoo! Its never too over packed! Our family enjoys not being in the bigger crowds. Although I wish the zoo got more attention, I know when we go there its never to chaotic to let my kids run ahead of me a little bit and not worry about them getting lost.They also have a play ground inside the zoo!

Great place to go. They follow the covid-19 rules.

I absolutely loved this zoo! You can walk right up to the enclosures and the animals all see very active and happy. They have a lovely little gift shop and their train rides are the best! Its only $2 a person and goes around the entire park. Their $5 stroller rentals are worth every penny! We had a 5 year old and a 3 year old and they loved it. I cant wait to take the kiddos back again.

New otter exhibit was very nice. Went early and had a semi private tour of the zoo.

Great staff and customer service, animals are well kept and grounds kept clean

This is a fun place to spend an hour or two and its only $7 per person which makes the visit really reasonable. Quite enjoyable to visit!

Small zoo great for littles! Minimal walking, all loops back to the front!

I liked this place alot but my son wasnt really interested in the animals...they were timid and it was kind of quiet for a zoo because the animals were so far away

A nice small zoo. If you have young children and dont want to spend a lot of money and not too much time, then this is a place to go. Dont expect to see a lot of animals in the winter time because they bring them inside for the season. An inside place would be nice! They do have river otters and they are so cute!

Had a great time at zoolie gouhlie

Small but worth a look. Has a sloth, monkeys, and penguins and more! A couple of the exhibits were under construction.

Love it keep it up the family had so much fun

This place is great! I bring my family here for the Christmas lights every year!! Such a great display and very friendly staff! I should have rated this 5 stars the first time!!

Las good as it gets for a mirco zoo will definitely be going back.

Great Christmas decorations and fun atmosphere to take the grandkids

Had a wonderful time exploring the grounds, staff was friendly and shared information about some of the animals. Restrooms were clean. A few exhibits were empty, due to the season, but still plenty to see!

Small town zoo which is entertaining when the animals are out and a nice stroll when they are not. Has various large birds, like bald eagle, hawk, owls and vultures. Has petting zoo with goats. Big cats are bobcats and cougar. Asian brown bear, sloth, artic fox, penguins, various lemurs, Galapagos tortoise, wolverine and penguins are exhibited.

Good zoo awesome shade for little ones.

Great place my kid loved it

Its a great zoo! I was impressed that it was clean, nicely laid out in a circular fashion and there was a nice variety of animals. We came to live in Springfield from larger communities that had no zoo, so I think some of the critical commenters should consider some perspective! Also, theres lots of activities for families with children to get involved in. Thats another nice thing about this cute zoo! Ill be back for sure!

Its very small, very few animals and the enclosures look so empty and sad and poorly maintained. The playset was nice. We spent a little over an hour but only because we let out 4 year old play on the playset for a long time.

Nice zoo but also small zoo but lucky it didnt cost that much

Great zoo to take young children, especially if it is their first time. Small but worth it.

Super impressed with how darling this zoo is! There is a wide variety of animals available to see and their areas seem well taken care of

Nice visit calm good for kids. Take a look at the little African penguins

Small zoo. Very run down. There was a dead bird on the ground. Spider webs every where. The animals just look sad.

A small, but very nice, zoo located at Lake Springfield on the far edge of town. With around 100 different species, it has plenty to keep the interest of anyone, even all the severely ADHD children and adults in our party. Henson Robinson Zoo is well maintained, offers opportunities to speak with zoo keepers, feed some of the animals, and even pet the snakes.

I have enjoyed going to this zoo since I was a kid. Very friendly and helpful staff. Love all the events that they have every year and have since I was a child. Now I take my three girls of my own there and watch their eyes light up with excitement of seeing all the different species of animals that they have there. Have always recommended for people to definitely visit there if they have never been.

This was an amazing experience for my two year old granddaughter. After four hours, she still didnt want to leave. The exhibits were amazing, clean, plenty of water and food for the animals. The staff was so nice and told us the donkey is Jasper and one of the horses is named Liberty. My granddaughter made fast friends at the playground, which was fantastic. Thank you Henson Robinson Zoo for making the a very memorable event for my granddaughter!

Great small family places

Great place to take the family, had a blast!!

Fun little zoo, the grandkids enjoyed it.

Nice zoo for its size & very nice employees

We had a great trip to Henson Robinson Zoo! It was a relaxed enjoyable time, without the overwhelming crowds and longer drive. We are very fortunate to have such a clean, well run zoo so close to home. Please support these places. You wont regret it.

The Kids love this place.

Great place to take the family!And Rainier the Wolverine is awesome! I could stand there and watch him all day long. Hes such a fun and beautiful critter!

Went right after the kids got out of school. Best time to go. Got to see many animals get fed. They were really active. The kids had a blast.

Nice, clean, and easy to view the animals.

A very nice smaller scale zoo. It is filled with all kinds of interesting and unique animals.

I have been deciding how I want to word this review. I went to the Henson Robinson Zoo a couple weeks ago on a Sunday and was absolutely mortified by the conditions. It truly broke my heart to see the animals living in the conditions they are in. Most exhibits had very little, if any, shade, drinking water in several exhibits was green and some of the animals seemed to be in distress. The areas for these animals was smaller than an area Id feel comfortable keeping my dog (hes a Pomeranian). There was nothing for the animals to do but lay and bake in the hot sun. There were no toys or anything for the animals to do but lay around and pant. The day I went was mid May and not very hot at all but with all the fur these animals have plus no shade some seemed to be in distress. I did see a couple workers riding around on golf carts without a care in the world. I did not approach any of them because it seemed obvious they were OK with the living conditions of the animals. The exhibit with two large cats was smaller than my living and dining rooms combined. The vulture enclosure did not allow the animal to do anything more than stretch its wings. Something needs to be done at this zoo. I am seriously considering contacting an official agency/society to report this. I took many pictures but am not going to include them here as I dont feel it would make a difference to any Zoo staff. I certainly will not return and would discourage anyone else from going here. Please, Please Zoo Staff DO SOMETHING POSITIVE FOR THESE ANIMALS!! Even if that means sending them to a zoo that will properly care for them!!

The zoo has been around for years and its perfect for smaller children learning about animals

What a cute little zoo! Look, its a small local zoo but theyve done a lovely job with it. Great place to spend an hour or two with little ones, and theres a picnic area and playground.

Fun to bring my kids to the same zoo that I grew up coming to when I was young. Unfortunately we missed several animals due to the colder weather we have had. All around great experience, enjoyed watching the otters getting some training too.

So tiny and quaint!!

This was a wonderful experience for me and my son ... He has autism and it can be difficult to bring him to different places ...We found this zoo to be a very nice and friendly place to come ...

Well worth the drive

Im surprised they havent been shut down honestly. They charge you money to walk around, basically someones backyard, and see animals that are in tiny cages. Also you cant pet the horse, its a horse what do you mean? I can feed the goats but not the horse. Also the pins for the horse and goat have no grass. Its just dirt and rocks. And a tiny pinned in area in front of the barn. Im not sure you can even consider it a zoo. Dont take your kids here, waste of money for a 5 min walk around a yard. Which adds up to about a dollar a min your paying. To see coyotes, bobcats, a horse, some goats, owls and hawks. All stuff you can see at night for free naturally in the wild. No charge, no regrets.

This is a very nice zoo that fits well in Springfield. It’s not a big city zoo, but you sense that the people who work here care about the animals and the property.

Small but nice, good for small kids. Weds in summer are free so it is a great deal! Three kids also loved the large playground.

I felt bad for the animals and for my wallet. Some animals are kept in small cages, whereas some of them dont even have the right equipment. There were incorrect labels and could not find them at all as they were not where they should be.As for the $6 admission fee, my wife and I could see everything in just about 30 minutes. Upside was that there were very few people.If youre looking for a proper zoo, check the one in St Louis rather.

A nice zoo for it being land locked, but its time for it to grow up.

We first literally stumbled across this jewel when the kids were still at home.Even in the late 1970s before anyone thought of the animals conditions & needs, all the workers seemed to care.When 1 young worker noticed all of our interedt in an otters unusual behavior, he took the time to explain, so that even our kids understood & were fasanated, about false pregnancy & that female otters were quite a handful.I have always been an avid, born to it gardener.Right awsy I smell several herbs & off I go!.I hope there is, has been & several people from area will remember them in their wills! Normally over the years I shudder at the mere thought of zoos, but this, at least then, seemed more like simply a home where people & various fellow creatures coinhabitated..

We love taking the girls here. Its fairly cheap family entertainment and the little ones always learn something new.

Small zoo but great experience .... animals are out and visible unlike some other zoos.

Wonderful family friendly place, always something new happening

Very nice Zoo. Animals looked healthy and you could get close to see them. Very fair price. We will come again.

The Zoo was wonderful we were celebrating rejoining 2 sisters back together after 50 years and The Henson Robinson Zoo....was a must stop as we used the Capitol City as a meeting point. In our company we had a service dog in which we were given a personal zoo associate whom accompanied us filling us with viable information on all the animals. ...And to this I thank youKeith Jewsbury

Great way to spend an afternoon. Plenty of shade and places to sit. Pretty good selection of animals, and friendly staff.

Amazing Christmas lights, and the zoo is second to none in central Illinois

For being on the Capitol...I expected more...but it was a nice Zoo...should be free admission with option to donate however.

The animal so cool, and quite a few gentle. Loved the huge tortuous turtle, bald eagle the other animals. Go day trip. Will go again

Small, but if you have children and an hour or two to kill its definitely worth stopping at. For the price and selection its worth it! Also the staff is quite friendly and professional.

This was my favorite zoo visit this summer. Reasonable admission prices as well.

I like this Zoo. its a nice Zoo to visit but I do think they need to groom the property a little bit better its not very appealing to the eye and I think more people would want to go there if there was a little bit more to look at other than just the animals its all about presentation that brings the people in maybe one day theyll realize that

We went during the zoo lights event. If that is what you are going for it is worth the price. It was fun walking around the zoo looking at all the lights and the occasional animal that is still there.

Very small zoo, animals are well kept, and the program that I was involved with was fun!

Just an amazing place

I used to be a yearly member. We have had alot of fun at this zoo. I am glad to see they are giving the pengins a new home. They have lost alot of animals. The poor black bear rn is still alone. Poor guy. There are many missing animals. The pond is coverged oin alge and the peacocks are gone. The aligators are gone. The chetas are gone. It is very sad. The prices went up and there is less to see. They do have more red wolves. The one with the hurt ear is gone. Thank goodness my favorite the otters are still here. The souvineer stand is pretty empty. The soda machine is broke. They have a new director. Hopefully he gets it together.

It is small but its really nice. The animals all have space and seem well taken care if.

Small zoo, but nice and good for the admission price.

Honestly very disappointed. We arrived right as they opened the parking spaces were very few and there was no signs for any additional parking. We had to leave and park at the street next to the zoo. Once inside we were sad to see many animals in small cages, lack of toys, many places needed to be updated. Some of the animals were not able to be seen as one cage was just being cleaned as everyone arrived. Several animals were put away for winter and not brought out to enjoy the warm day. Another animal was in severe distress as a keeper weed wacked near by I dont understand why they were not put away to cause less stress. The black bears broke our heart while they had more space them some others it was all mud and had very few toys.

I really wish the zoo had better signage. I would love to see them include things like how old the animals are, their names, favorite enrichment activities, how they came to the zoo, and so on.

Simple. Great workers. Relaxed atmosphere

They are making so many improvements and bringing in new animals. They are also partnering with local businesses for fun events like Tatzoo Day. If you havent been in awhile, its worth a revisit!

A great small zoo in this area. Only complaint was that all the animals werent out yet (usually out by April 1st)

Big thanks to Henson Robinson zoo for great food and fun at appreciation night.

Had a great day with my sisters. It was just a small stop to kill some time between drs visits but we had a good time.

Love going to the zoo. Too cold for some of the animals but a good time!

Beautiful Zoo. A lot of different animals that Scovill Zoo doesnt have

I love rhe zoo my favorite was the pegun and bears the bears fought it was cute but sad when the mean one wouldnt let the little one get a drink when he was thristy

From a big city so used to more but this 1 was okay.

Small family friendly zoo for kids 12 and under

We had a wonderful time. Its not huge but our 4 year old and 1 year old could walk it and they realy got to take their time and enjoy it all!

We came early. Only animal not out was the wolverine. New train is great for little ones. Wish there were more goats and animals but a nice little zoo!

Really enjoyed the bears, chasing each other and playing in the water!