Brew at the Zoo
Saturday, June 23 5:30-8pm
Bring the kids or leave them with the sitter while you enjoy a relaxing date night including music, cold beer and great food! Kombucha Trio will be providing the musical entertainment, and there will be a selection of beer from Ballast Point Brewing Company. The onsite food truck will be Star City Pig Out.
Advance tickets: $15 for members and $20 for non-members
Tickets at the gate: $20 for members and $25 for non-members
$5 for children (17 and under)
Visit our Square Store for advance tickets!
Summer Camp
Mill Mountain Zoo’s popular summer camps are a terrific way to introduce your child to the animal kingdom or to foster an existing interest in the feathered, furry and scaly critters we share the planet with. Each 3 day camp is designed to encourage a child’s respect and enthusiasm for the natural world through hands-on, fun and educational activities. Besides shadowing and assisting keepers, campers will experience up-close animal encounters, arts and crafts, scavenger hunts, scientific explorations and OH, SO MUCH MORE! There are camps available for ages 8-13.
Special Notes!
- All camps are outdoors and go rain or shine so students must dress appropriately. Tennis shoes are best. No flip flops, sandals or crocs please!
- All camps are from 9am-3:30pm, although there is After Camp Care available.
- Campers will need to bring a lunch. The zoo will provide water and juice.
- Space in all camps is limited. Registration is required one full week prior to the start date of the camp.
- The Emergency Medical Form and the Liability Form will be emailed to you upon receipt of your registration form. Please return forms by the start date of camp.
- No refunds unless zoo cancels camp.
Registration
To register, fill out the attached form and return to the zoo with full payment. Registration may be faxed, emailed, mailed or dropped off at the zoo. Please call or email Bambi Godkin with any additional questions at (540) 343-3241 ext. 23 or education@mmzoo.org. Click here for downloadable registration form.
Cost
All Camps: $160 Zoo Member $180 Non-Member
Camp Schedule
Camp for ages 6-8
June 26-28 Animal Mythbusters
When it comes to the animal kingdom, we have come to believe in many myths and sayings. Do elephants really have perfect memories? Do crocodiles really cry? Are bats really blind? Can groundhogs really predict the arrival of spring? Campers will explore these myths and old sayings and many others as they separate fact from fiction.
Camps for ages 8-10
July 10-12 Zoo Keeper 101
Just what does a zookeeper do? Campers will get to explore the various animal husbandry techniques it takes to care for the many birds, mammals and reptiles that make up Mill Mountain Zoo’s collection. The importance of animal enrichment for an animal’s well-being will also be explored.
July 24-26 Zoo Keeper 101
Just what does a zookeeper do? Campers will get to explore the various animal husbandry techniques it takes to care for the many birds, mammals and reptiles that make up Mill Mountain Zoo’s collection. The importance of animal enrichment for an animal’s well-being will also be explored.
Camp for ages 10-13
August 7-9 Junior Zoo Keepers
Junior Zookeepers builds on the information that campers learned in Zookeeper 101. Campers will delve further into how animals are cared for at the zoo as they assist keeper staff with some of their daily duties. Be ready to get dirty!
Requirements for Junior Zoo Keepers:
It is preferred that campers have taken Zookeeper 101 this summer or a previous summer. Campers also need to submit a letter stating why they think they would be a good Junior Zookeeper
Animal Enrichment Fun!
Tuesday, June 26 10-12pm/Ages 8-12
Thursday, July 12 2-4pm/Ages 12-16
Tuesday, July 31 10-12pm/Ages 8-12
Tuesday, August 14 2-4pm/Ages 12-16
A lot goes into taking good care of the animals at the zoo. Besides feeding and cleaning, keepers also need to find creative ways to entertain the zoo’s residents. This is called enrichment, and if you sign up for this class, you can help create some! Not only that, you’ll get to see the animals enjoy their enrichments at the end of the program.
Member: $15
Non-Member: $20
Visit our Square Store to sign up today!
Art Gone Wild
Friday, June 29 10-12pm/Ages 8-12
Thursday, July 19 from 10-12pm/Ages 6-9
Friday, July 27 from 2-4pm/Ages 8-12
Thursday, August 16 from 10-12pm/Ages 6-9
Does your child like animals? Does your child also like art? Why not combine the two together?!? This 2 hour class will give children the opportunity to use the zoo’s residents as inspiration for fun, colorful and unique art projects. Painting, 3-dimensional work and multi-media projects are just a few of the possible, critter-themed activities children will have a chance to participate in.
Member: $15
Non-Member: $20
Visit our Square Store to sign up today!
Birthday Bash
Saturday, July 7 10-5pm
Come up and celebrate Mill Mountain Zoo’s birthday! Admission will be half off all day! We will have birthday cake (while supplies last) and live music from Joy Tru during the afternoon. The Wake and Bacon food truck and Deb’s Lemonade will also be onsite.
Where in the World?!?
Tuesday, July 17 1-3pm
Saturday, July 21 from 11-1pm
Travel the world using the animals at Mill Mountain Zoo! Child and caregiver will follow clues on a scavenger hunt around the zoo as they learn fun facts about the animals, including where they come from. As parent and child travel the globe, they can stamp each country they visit in a special passport they make at the start of the program.
This program is for 4-6 year olds to attend with a caregiver.
Member: $15 for one child and one caregiver
Non-Member: $20 for one child and one caregiver
$5 for each child attending with caregiver
Visit our Square Store to sign up today!
Storybook Safari
Tuesday, July 24 from 10-12pm
Saturday, August 18 from 11-1pm
In this fun program, child and caregiver will get to hear an animal themed children’s book and meet some of Mill Mountain Zoo’s education animals! Participants will also have a mini-tour of the zoo and ride the train.
This program is for 4-6 year olds to attend with a caregiver.
Member: $15 for one child and one caregiver
Non-Member: $20 for one child and one caregiver
$5 for each child attending with caregiver
Visit our Square Store to sign up today!
Breakfast with the Animals
Join us at the Mill Mountain Zoo every 3rd Saturday at 8:30am, May-October for a unique opportunity to have breakfast with the animals. Guests will be treated to a light breakfast buffet and the chance to meet one of the zoo’s education outreach animals. This will be immediately followed by a special chat with zookeepers as they amaze our guests with more fun and educational facts about our animal residents. This intimate experience will allow zoo visitors to learn more about various animals’ diets, behavior and personalities. Following the chat, there will be a child-focused and parent-assisted project and activity sheet that will be designed to further foster excitement and knowledge about the featured animals.
Cost per breakfast:
$15/non-member adult $12/member adult
$12/non-member child $9/member child
$45/non-member family of 4 $35/member family of 4
Click here for downloadable registration form.
Saturday, July 21-Scarf with the Scaly
Have breakfast, and then get engaged in a keeper chat about our scaly reptile residents, their diets and other remarkable information about them. Once the chat is over, children will be able to design a colorful and 3-dimensional Wax Works reptile to take home, followed by a fun reptile themed activity sheet.
Saturday, August 18-Partake with the Predators
Many animals get their food by hunting, catching and eating other animals. Have a nice breakfast at the zoo, and then hear about how some of the zoo’s animals are perfectly adapted to be effective predators. After the chat, children will create a Model Magic sculpture of their favorite predator and do a similarly themed activity sheet to explore even more!
Saturday, September 15-Munch with the Mammals
Eat breakfast and then experience a chat with zoo keepers as they share information about some of our mammals’ diets and other fascinating information. Once the chat is complete, children will get to do easy foam block print of their favorite mammal and then complete an activity sheet that will get the whole family exploring the zoo.
Saturday, October 20-Ruminate with the Raptors
How would you like to have the keen eyesight of a bird of prey? Learn about this and a lot of other great information about raptors. Visit for breakfast, and then hear about some of the zoo’s resident birds of prey. After the keeper chat, children will design a collage of their favorite raptor and an activity sheet inspired by the zoo’s birds of prey.
Zoo Boo
Saturday, October 27 from 11-4pm
Are you looking for a great, safe place to bring your family for some howling Halloween fun? Spend your Halloween holiday at Mill Mountain Zoo’s annual Zoo Boo! From trick-or-treating, to costume contests, to performances and “spooktacular” art activities, Zoo Boo is a fun-filled day for the whole family! Plus, you get to enjoy it all in the beautiful outdoor setting of Mill Mountain Zoo. Even better, all of these activities are FREE with Zoo admission! So for a “terrorably” good time, come and celebrate Halloween 2018 with the animals and staff of Mill Mountain Zoo.