Columbus Zoo and Aquarium

Columbus, clear your summer calendars. 🌅🎬🎶 Adventure Nights are officially coming to the Columbus Zoo and Zoombezi Bay, and honestly? This might be one of the most fun things happening in Columbus this summer. FREE movies on Fridays. FREE live music on Saturdays. Sunset rides on the Sea Dragon roller coaster. Mini golf. Food trucks. Character Ambassador meet-and-greets. Arcade games. Late-night summer energy all across Adventure Cove. And best of all? Admission is FREE. Adventure Nights happens Friday and Saturday evenings from June 26 through July 25. Parking is $12 for non-members and free for Zoo members and Zoombezi Bay Season Pass holders. This is the kind of summer memory families talk about for years. Read the full blog, and start planning your nights: https://lnkd.in/eptBmAjk

The Jack Hanna Legacy Cup returns to Safari Golf Club on July 13, 2026, for a day filled with conversation, connection, and support for wildlife conservation! Designed for colleagues, clients, and community partners, the outing combines championship golf with the welcoming atmosphere people have long associated with the Columbus Zoo family. Gather your foursome and join us for one of Central Ohio’s favorite summer golf traditions. Register at https://lnkd.in/gS5hd8PR

The Jack Hanna Legacy Cup returns to Safari Golf Club on July 13, 2026, bringing together community leaders, partners, and longtime supporters for a crowd-favorite day on the course! From great golf to relaxed conversation and shared support for wildlife conservation, this outing reflects the welcoming spirit Jack Hanna was known for throughout our community. Foursomes are now available for one of the summer’s signature golf events. Register at https://lnkd.in/gS5hd8PR

Thanks, 614NOW! 🏆 Best Place to Take Out-of-Towners 🏆 Best Family Attraction to Spoil Your Kids See the full list of ColumBEST honorees and winners: https://lnkd.in/e-WVESkJ

For six months, orphan manatees Redrock, Rosalyn, and Erie have been at the Columbus Zoo, completing their second stage rehabilitation through the Manatee Rescue & Rehabilitation Partnership (MRP). And while staff has supported these manatees through this phase of rehabilitation, so has one special Columbus Zoo resident, manatee Stubby. For 16 years, manatee Stubby has taken orphaned calves under her flipper, totaling 39 kids and counting over the years. Most recently, she was featured by Axios for the incredible part she plays within our rehabilitation program. Learn more about manatee mom Stubby and our rehabilitation efforts by visiting https://lnkd.in/euB2krnt.

We’re honored to be recognized in CultureComp's 2025 CompScore rankings alongside many of the nation’s most respected zoological organizations! Recognition like this speaks to the connection guests feel when they visit, the strength of community support, the value of membership experiences, and the impact conservation organizations can have both locally and globally. At the Columbus Zoo, our mission of "Empowering People. Saving Wildlife." guides every story we tell, every guest experience we create, and every conservation effort we support around the world. To our members, guests, donors, volunteers, and supporters, thank you for helping make moments like this possible. Learn more about the Columbus Zoo at https://lnkd.in/gE9A-pbR

When you’re walking through the aviary in our North America Trek region, look back at the elephant building. There, you’ll see two boxes…and, if you’re lucky, you’ll see bats flying in and out of them. 🦇 Bat boxes provide safe places for bats to roost, and the two on the elephant building were recently donated by a volunteer and her husband. Read more about these interesting and vital creatures on our blog: https://lnkd.in/eWbqwziD

After selling out during its debut year, RendeZOO 2026 returns to the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium on May 30 for an unforgettable evening inspired by the magic of movies and the power of conservation. This annual fundraising event brings Central Ohio’s community leaders, businesses, creatives, and wildlife supporters together for a one-of-a-kind after-hours experience featuring your favorite local restuarants, entertainment that will stop you in your tracks, live local music, and meaningful impact for animals. Our newest blog takes you behind the scenes of this cinematic evening and shares why RendeZOO has quickly become one of the Zoo’s most anticipated nights of the year. Read the blog: https://lnkd.in/eVd-E34i RendeZOO is proudly presented by Dr Pepper (G&J Pepsi-Cola Bottlers, Inc.).

Did you know that not only does the Columbus Zoo offer educational opportunities for our guests, but we also help educate the next generation of educators themselves? In a partnership with Columbus City Schools - Ohio, our Education team has provided work-based learning opportunities for students at Columbus Downtown High School to learn more about careers in both Early Childhood Education and Education generally. Recently, students from the Columbus Teaching Academy and the Early Childhood Education programs designed hands-on activities for our Field Trip Stations and Little Explorers Base Camp at the Zoo. Through this experience, these students were able to apply their classroom learning and interact with children in a different and unique setting that expanded their teaching experience. Coming up this summer, the students will continue learning and creating engaging, age-appropriate activities as they work with our Summer Camp Program. We’re so proud of these Columbus Downtown High School students and love to see their new, innovative ideas to engage young children and Zoo guests alike in our conservation education, and we look forward to the continuation of this program this summer!

In a collaborative initiative with the Ohio Environmental Council and The Ohio State University's (OSU) Museum of Biological Diversity, the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium has been working to raise community awareness of mussels, especially in the Darby creek region, through our pop-up educational display, the Mussel Cart! Recently, we hosted the Mussel Cart here at the Columbus Zoo, helping our guests learn more about mussels and their importance, as well as the work we do to protect them through our Ohio Center for Wildlife Conservation (OCWC). The Mussel Cart features specimens from OSU’s Museum of Biological Diversity and gives guests the opportunity to engage and interact with these specimens. By building awareness of the mussels living in our backyards and their importance for water health, we can help guests and the general public understand why it’s important to protect them. Join us in celebrating this incredible collaborative partnership and be on the lookout for the Mussel Cart next at the Battelle Darby Creek Metro Park from May 18-25, 2026.