The Minnesota Zoo (Minnesota Zoo) in Apple Valley, MN opened its doors on May 22, 1978 to great fanfare as a new concept in how they display animals.
Throughout the years it has gone numerous renovations and expansions so that it now houses 2,700 animals across 449 different species.
The Zoo is divided into 6 main sections (Wikipedia – MN Zoo Details) -
- Minnesota Trail, featuring animals native to Minnesota
- Northern Trail, featuring animals of the north (above the 45th parallel)
- Tropics Trail, an indoor walking trail featuring animals from the tropics
- Discovery Bay, an activity area themed around marine wildlife
- Russia’s Grizzly Coast, (brand new in 2009) a part-indoor, part-outdoor new multi-million exhibit featuring animals from Russia’s Far East and the Kamchatka Peninsula.
- Family Farm, a petting zoo themed around farm animals
Many Dakota County families find great value in getting a Household Membership which allows multiple trips without feeling you need to do the whole thing each time - Membership Info This works well too as their are many changes ongoing at the Zoo. For example, today’s Star Tribune points out that a batch of new dolphins will be here temporarily – Dolphins Visiting Zoo
Finally, the Minnesota Zoo is also home to a great IMAX Theater which hosts many unique shows on it’s huge screen & high-end audio system as well as 3D shows – Great Clips IMAX Theater
