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    Busch Wildlife Sanctuary

    4.7 (152 reviews)
    Closed 10:00 am - 4:30 pm

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    Deer
    Rachel H.

    The new location for the incredible Bush Wildlife Sanctuary in Jupiter, FL. This new location is incredible !!!! It's huge, and clean. I love the layout of the path. They have so many animals to see. The entrance is donation based, card or cash. So many different animals to see up close. From bears ... to a bobcat. The main building has education for all ages. There's even a "stage" where they do daily shows of the animals for education purposes. They also have a second building, exclusive to animal rehab. It's not open to the public to view. This building is meant to bring in wild life in need of immediate rehab. The buildings are clearly labeled. Be sure to bring an umbrella or wear some sunscreen! The path is outdoors with little to no shade. Bring water to stay hydrated :-) Perfect for all ages and is accessible for all. I hope you go and enjoy!

    Nadiezhda M.

    The entrance is free of charge you are welcome to donate money to any of the animals you want. They do have information about all the animals they had rescued. The service is excellent and the quality of service is phenomenal! Service request for you to be respectful with the animals and the surroundings.

    Tahmahlah resting after painting
    Kim P.

    Looking for a fun activity that also helps the animals at the Busch Wildlife Sanctuary? Try painting with a panther, otter or bobcat. It's a great experience for both you and the "painter" ... and you get to keep the one-of-a-kind piece of art. We painted with Tahmahlah, the resident cougar (related to the panther family), who was rescued from the California wildfires several years ago. The process involved guiding Tahmahlah across the paint on the floor and stepping onto the canvas, creating a Jason Pollack-style abstract artwork. It provides an enrichment exercise for him while simultaneously creating a delightful experience for us. The trainer kept things very safe for all, and educated us about the Busch Wildlife Sanctuary operation. She offered Tahmahlah pieces of fish as rewards throughout the painting process. And she even demonstrated her training skills a by having Tahmahlah sit and then stand on his hind legs. Anyone who owns a cat knows how difficult it is to train them to do any tricks. Amazing! While you wait for your artwork to dry, you can walk around the grounds at Busch Wildlife Sanctuary and meet the many resident animals. The facility offers presentations throughout the day. We enjoyed a short lecture about the resident black bears. Lesson: don't let them feed on garbage in your neighborhood! They need to remain safely away from people and forage for appropriate food. Now that we've "bonded" with Tahmahlah over our shared painting effort, we look forward to seeing him and the other animals at the new Busch Wildlife Sanctuary facility in the fall after they move. This is a great organization that does amazing work to rehabilitate and care for sick and injured animals. We should all support them!

    Ariel W.

    The Busch Wildlife Sanctuary is a non profit dedicated to protecting and conserving Florida's wildlife. Formerly located on the grounds of the Loxahatchee River District water treatment facility, they have moved to this new location down the street from Riverbend Park. This organization relies completely on donations and fund raising. In Florida there are no government funded wildlife rehabilitation centers. If you find a sick or injured animal you must find a non profit center to help you. Since there are only a handful of such organizations in the state it is up to us to contribute so that they can keep on providing aid to wild animals. In 1983, it was founded as the Wildlife Rehabilitation and Environmental Education Center to care for and rehabilitate sick, injured, and orphaned animals. In 1994, the sanctuary joined with the Peter W. Busch Family Foundation. Busch owns Southern Eagle Distributing, the local Anheuser-Busch distributor. With the foundations support, a facility was created to bring wildlife and people together while fostering community awareness of Florida's natural resources in order to promote wildlife and habitat conservation. Today the sanctuary provides free medical and rehabilitative care to over 5,000 wild animal patients each year with the focus on being able to release them back into the wild. Today is the grand opening of the Busch Wildlife Sanctuary's new home in Jupiter. Admission to the event is free. There are food trucks and activities for the family. Wildlife on display includes river otters, black bears, reptiles, birds, small mammals, and bobcats. There is an animal hospital on site where the public can bring in injured wildlife. As you exit, there is a cute gift shop selling toys, ornaments, clothing and other gift items. Your purchases help support the animals rehabilitated here. I liked how the Loxahatchee location had a more woodsy feel with trails but this location is very close to the Turnpike. There was no shade here today and it was a feel like temperature of 100 degrees. I had to walk a mile in and out with the crowds although they had a Molly Trolly making sporadic trips to the overflow parking. I plan on coming back when it is cooler out. I wish them much success with their new center.

    Bald eagle at Busch wildlife center.
    Amy E.

    This is a great place to visit. Whenever I have friends in from out of town I try to make a visit. It's a great place to see local animals most native to the area. They have many variety. They even offer little info classes at different times through out the week and bring the animals out to talk about them and sometimes hold. This is a MUST see when in the area. They do great work for local injured wildlife. Entry is donation based.

    Lisa C.

    Busch Wildlife Sanctuary is a non-profit organization so any to all donations are super appreciated here. There is no entry fee and parking is free also but be a decent human being and donate when entering the place. (Or buy something from the gift shop. There's neat stuff in there!) It's a decent sized area where you see bears, panther, birds, gator and bobcat. Staff are super friendly and helpful and the whole place is just a true fun experience. I would come back for sure to support them and to see the cute animals.

    Don't get this close to an alligator unless there's glass between the two of you!
    Kathryn C.

    It's great to be able to see incredible Florida wildlife up close, rest assured that the animals are being rehabilitated. There's no set fee for entry, but is easy to choose what to donate on the way in. From alligators to otters to foxes and so many birds, our family group was thrilled to not only see the animals but to learn more about them. This place is great for all ages. One thing I wish we had done was to make an effort to see the show where a handler introduced the audience to live animals. We caught the last ten seconds of it, but even that was enough to tell that the handler was incredibly knowledgeable and enthusiastic. By the way, they even have a nice gift shop. I had forgotten to bring some small earrings on my trip, so I bought some there which I was later complimented on. They also sell art made by otters, which is really cool but otters aren't very talented artists so I didn't buy any. I didn't want it to be confused with my own art.

    Cute opossum
    Chris G.

    This was an easy, neat and close place to visit. Free admission (they ask for donations and run exclusively on donations) and offer story times for the little ones and wildlife presentations for those little and not so little. Kids got to see an alligator sunning itself, bald eagles, a panther, bears, snakes, owls and a neat presentation of a baby gator, an opossum and a barn owl. Great quick place to take the kids. And They have a gift shop. I recommend going!

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    5 years ago

    fantastic zoo, love it. went here a lot as a kid and love all they do for animals around jupiter

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    12 years ago

    Cool place for an early day walk on the wild side. Great assortment of birds. Nice staff. Free.

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    10 years ago

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    13 years ago

    Great way to kill an hour or two. Just me and my wife. Seems very rustic but right near by to jupiter center.

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    10 years ago

    Better than the zoo, and it's free, and they have great kids programs and do wonderful things to help injured wildlife.

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    Page 4 of 4

    Ask the Community - Busch Wildlife Sanctuary

    Review Highlights - Busch Wildlife Sanctuary

    Fun for the family, tons of cool critters to see (all of whom are greatly taken care of) and it's all donation based!

    Mentioned in 21 reviews

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    Lion Country Safari

    Lion Country Safari

    4.4
    (627 reviews)

    Had the best time at Lion Country Safari for my birthday! It can truly be an all day event, just…read moreneed to plan ahead for it. Lots to do eat and see and they are okay with outside food with lots of picnic areas. We did the giraffe painting premium experience which was worth it since it also includes admission into the park. We ordered salads and burgers from their inside restaurant connected to the gift shop. Ordering from their kiosk is very easy and the food rang on a buzzer in good time. We loved the lorikeet area and paid $3 for the juice to feed the lorikeets (card only, no cash). There is a nice water park area for the kids. The best time to see all the animals is in the morning when they open, that's when they get fed and you're most likely going to have an animal walk in front of your car, so cool!

    We came back to do the safari. You are able to drive through slowly. You are told not to open…read morewindows and doors as it's not safe to do so with wild animals. The animals are super hot and they are resting in the shade. They have a giraffe interaction area. There's also a little splash area for kids and a merry go round. Rates to enter the park are $55 pp and no senior discounts. The animals always have the right of way. After the safari there is quite a bit of walking. You may want to bring a wheelchair for older ones. You can visit the food area and gift shop to take home a stuffed animal and the area has air conditioning to help you cool down.

    Palm Beach Zoo

    Palm Beach Zoo

    3.6
    (335 reviews)

    I visited the Palm Beach Zoo today, July 20, 2026, and had a great experience. I have been a Palm…read moreBeach Zoo member since 2021. I usually compliment staff directly or mention it to other employees when someone does a great job, but today I was told to use Yelp to share my experience. The zoo was beautiful and the staff were very pleasant. I will say I wish we had been told at the entrance that part of the zoo was closed due to construction, but we still had a nice visit. I especially want to mention the young lady working at the Dippin' Dots stand. I don't remember her name, but she had dark hair and was wearing a green Palm Beach Zoo shirt. I had three kids with me, and my grandson was having a tantrum and threw his ice cream. She came out, brought him a new one, and took the time to talk to him and help calm him down. She was very sweet and patient, and she made our day better.

    We've been to Palm Beach Zoo many times, and it's still one of our favorite family-friendly places…read morein South Florida. It's not a huge zoo, which actually makes it perfect for families with young kids--you can comfortably see everything without feeling rushed. If you're planning a visit this summer, don't miss the Kids Free promotion (available through August 10), where up to four children can enter free with a paid adult admission. It's a great way for families to save. One of my biggest recommendations is to rent a Safari Wagon if you have two kids. It costs $10 for the entire day and makes the visit so much easier. Just be sure to arrive early! We came right when the zoo opened on a Saturday, and there were only about 4-5 wagons available. A few helpful tips: * Bring swimsuits and towels for the kids because there's a splash area where they can cool off. * The water pump at the playground has been repaired, and it's a huge hit with children. During our visit, some areas were temporarily closed for renovations, including the flamingo exhibit, part of the bridge area, and the lion viewing area. Hopefully everything will reopen soon. The only disappointment was the restrooms. They were noticeably dirty, with cobwebs, leaves on the floor, and an unpleasant smell. It looked like they hadn't been cleaned in quite some time, which was surprising considering how well the rest of the zoo is maintained. Overall, we still had a wonderful day and will definitely keep coming back. It's a lovely zoo that's perfect for a relaxing family outing.

    Panther Ridge Conservation Center

    Panther Ridge Conservation Center

    5.0
    (120 reviews)

    We had the best time here for our 11am standard guided tour. We drove 1.5hr south from Jensen Beach…read morefor this tour and it was so worth it. We had no issue finding the location, just know that you are to park along the road next to the fence. They will come open the gate to greet you are your appointment time. The restrooms are halfway through the tour, so go before if you can. It was just four of us on the tour, my husband and I and another couple. You get walked through their grounds, escorted by staff as they feed the cats. Some are hand fed, some with tongs. You are kept behind the perimeter fence(mostly 3-4ft behind the cage), understandable with children to prevent fingers from entering chomp territory. By attending on a hot day mid May I'd say we saw 60-70% of the cats up close by the fence, some of them were not interested in coming out of their cool spots with their fans blowing on them - completely understandable. In fact, if going on a hot sunny day, wear sunscreen and prepare to be in a lot of direct sunlight. I was not prepared and got burnt. For $50/person this tour is so worth it. We had so much fun and our guide did a terrific job sharing her knowledge of the cats and all the fun facts. She said she was fairly new, but you could tell the cats already trusted her. As adults my husband and I had an amazing time, I can't even imagine how much kids would love this place. The gift shop was great too, we made sure to get our souvenirs including tshirts and hats. Come support this wonderful NPO - not only do that have great tours but you can tell these cats are incredibly healthy and very loved. Their cages were so unbelievably clean I was so impressed.

    This was a wonderful experience that I would highly recommend. We had a private tour with a very…read moreknowledgeable staff member who gave us the backgrounds on all of the different cats they have on site. We went in the hottest part of the day. It would be better to go when it's cooler. The cats would be more active.

    Animal EDventure Park & Safari

    Animal EDventure Park & Safari

    4.7
    (220 reviews)

    This is a great experience for animal lovers. You get a lot of time with the otters and kangaroos…read morespecifically, which I loved. The otters are hilarious and they untied my shoes while I wasn't looking at my feet. The tour guides really care about the animals and explain how all of them ended up here. A lot of them were pets that people abandoned/couldn't handle, which was sad to hear but I'm so glad this place exists for them. I also want to give a shoutout to Albert the albino porcupine. They got him for Lola, the black porcupine, but she won't mate with him because she sees his white color as weak. Albino porcupines are mostly blind, so she keeps rejecting him because she wants strong offspring. Poor Albert!!! I hope he finds love soon.

    5/5 experience at Animal Edventure! We originally came for the otter experience, but were…read morepleasantly surprised by all the other things we got to do while we were there. The staff was very knowledgeable and made the whole experience even more enjoyable. Hope and Sam were especially great -- friendly, helpful, and clearly passionate about the animals. You can tell the animals are well cared for and loved. I also appreciated that the staff took their safety policies seriously. There was a young boy in our group who was not old enough for one of the experiences, and even though the parents weren't thrilled, the staff still followed their rules and did not allow him to participate. I respect them for prioritizing the safety of both the child and the animals. Such a fun and memorable experience overall!

    Flamingo Gardens

    Flamingo Gardens

    4.4
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    Flamingo Gardens is one of our favorite places in South Florida. Honestly, I'd even call it a…read morepeacock garden because there are so many of them wandering freely throughout the property. I especially love visiting during the winter months when the weather is cooler. It's the perfect time to slow down, enjoy the beautiful scenery, and have a little picnic with the kids. There are plenty of peaceful spots to sit, relax, and watch the peacocks walking around. The grounds are always clean, and the staff is friendly and welcoming. When you buy your tickets, you can also purchase bird food. We fed both the flamingos and the peacocks, and while it was a fun experience, here's my little tip--don't feed the peacocks from your hand unless you're ready for a pretty strong peck! I learned that one the hard way. There is also a small café, guided tram tours, and on weekends they often have live music, especially in the evenings or during holiday events. Around Christmas, the gardens are beautifully decorated with lights, making the whole place feel even more magical. If you're looking for a relaxing day surrounded by nature, Flamingo Gardens is definitely worth a visit.

    Got there around 10 and was able to secure a scooter for my mother who recently had knee surgery…read more They said it was their last working one. We couldn't have done this park without it. The tram runs every thirty mins, definitely suggest taking that- learned all about the park via tour guide. Upon checking in, there are bags of animal food for purchase. So fun for the kids to engage with the flamingos etc. The animals who are roaming free aren't actually part of the garden, they are wild. So get ready to see some amazing ducks, flamingos and peacocks roaming around. We loved seeing all the different birds, alligators etc.

    Jungle Island

    Jungle Island

    3.2
    (558 reviews)

    What's firstly amazing about Jungle Island is how missable it is after driving by it on this island…read moreFOR YEARS. Just makes finally having visiting this venue so much more special with how incredible it is. Secondly, amazing is how big it feels despite its size and location (granted, I visited at night for a special event, so your mileage may vary) - though I admit, the exhibits seem too small for some of their fauna inhabitants. Third and finally, visiting it for said special event, Luminosa, was ABSOLUTELY wondrous. Made the visit absolutely worth it (even if my bus almost missed the stop). Plus, the staff is so kind and accommodating. We as a society need to invest and support spaces and places like this that not only offer incredible experiences, but also give back to all its visitors and urban spaces they inhabit - even if they're on a small, missable island (jajaja).

    I spent $20 on parking, $200 on tickets, and 45 minutes signing waivers just to walk into the…read moresaddest, most depressing animal facility I've ever seen. They promised an 11:30 "show" and even texted me to be on time. The show was a skunk that immediately ran away three times, and a snake that looked dead and never moved. The conditions were shocking: birds crammed into tiny cages stacked next to each other, kangaroos trapped in small empty pens, and the largest tortoise I've ever seen stuck in an enclosure the size of my living room -- with another tortoise. Every animal looked stressed, sad, or neglected. My kids were so upset we left early. I'm ashamed I spent money here, but I'm glad I saw it so I can warn others. This place is cruel, depressing, and should not be allowed to operate.

    Busch Wildlife Sanctuary - zoos - Updated August 2026

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