Caitlyn Zier peeks out from inside a shell at Kids' Zone.
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IF YOU GO
Location: 5400 N. Pearl St., Tacoma
Hours: 9:30 a.m. - 5 p.m. daily
Admission: Free with zoo admission, which is $11 for adults, $10 for seniors, $9 for youth ages 5 to 12, $5 for tots ages 3 and 4, free for children 2 and under; Pierce County residents receive a discount.
Of all the major renovations to Point Defiance Zoo & Aquarium in the last decade, the one that makes parents with young children most happy is the Kids’ Zone. Geared toward 3 to 8 year olds, this kid’s paradise has climbing toys, a spray fountain, slides, animal exhibits and volunteers on hand to engage the little ones in activities.
Kids’ Zone is a blast of color and was thoughtfully designed with children in mind. Everything is at their level for optimal playing and viewing. The space is divided into three major areas for exploration: Contact Junction, Magical Movement and the newest addition, Animal Avenue, which opened in May.
My family started out at Contact Junction, where the kids were delighted to hand-feed the enthusiastic goats. There are a few interactive stations here to help children find out how the zoo cares for animals, the highlight of which was the opportunity to dress up like a veterinarian. This space also hosts the daily “Kids’ Zone Encounter,” a chance to learn about one of the animals or insects on site. On our visit, we got up close and– thankfully – not too personal with a Madagascar Hissing Cockroach.
As we headed over to Magical Movement, the kids took a few trips down the otter slides and then divided up. My 2-year-old daughter wanted to splash around with the other young kids in the lily pad spray fountain (if you have a water lover, don’t forget a change of clothes). My 4-year-old son took off for the play structure, akin to an obstacle or ropes course, and worked on his gravity-defying feats with the older kids. This area is covered with spongy flooring, which helps when gravity wins.
The enormous plastic hippopotamus and alligator were also popular. In the spirit of movement, active verbs like “Wiggle!” “Creep!” and “Hop!” are printed everywhere on the walls and floor. It is easy to help children make the movement connection as they view the animals in this section – wallabies, millipedes, frogs and stingrays.
In Animal Avenue, meerkats, lemurs, mole rats and more than a dozen other new species to the zoo are exhibited. The kids marveled at the lemurs’ jungle gym, a smaller version of what they have to play on in Magical Movement. My daughter took a particular liking to the meerkats, which, if not huddled in a cute little bunch, were running right up to check her out on the other side of the glass. The fun continued indoors with tortoises, frogs and spiders, including an Antilles Pink-toed Tree Spider that was unfortunately hiding from our view in its tubular web.
Animal Avenue features an outdoor play area as well, with a giant spider web and spongy toys for climbing, and a large sandbox for digging that looks like an endangered turtle nest. There are more viewing cases here with fish, toads and even a boa and python. Hands-on activities, both self-service and guided by volunteers, help children examine animal families, homes and communities. Both of my kids enjoyed participating in a build-your-own-habitat activity, with miniature logs, branches and moss. Older children seemed to like the scavenger hunt.
I recommend visiting Kids’ Zone any time the kids get antsy or need to let off some energy. It is a boundless exploratory experience that adds to the wonderful exhibits elsewhere at the zoo. After my children wondered at the enormous walruses and beluga whales, and gazed at the sleeping polar bears, they were happy to engage in some unstructured playtime.
Taryn Zier is a Lake Forest Park writer and mother of two.
