Living in the area my entire life, I had never been to this location until recently. When entering the area, you are greeted and asked to sign liability waivers. You can do so either via QR code or traditional pen/paper/ipad. Kids, Vets, and adults all have their own pricing. Mine was $16 to enter for an adult. There are llamas, goats, chickens, bunnies, horses, and other animals about. Coming here reminded me of when I was little going to similar farms in Modestka canyon. There are opportunities for kids to ride a train, play on a horse, feed the animals, dig sand using kiddy tractors, and search for gold. I had alot of fun watching the kids play and creating memories with my little guy and his mommy. It can get hot now that the weather is heating up, so I suggest taking into consideration when you visit, bringing water/hydrating, and snacks if needed. Bring your sunscreen and hat. There are areas where you can sit and tables. 10/10 read more

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Pretty pricey for what it is. It's a bit on the smaller side, which we were surprised with given all of the attractions listed on their webpage - it's a bit cramped. We bought tickets and signed waivers ahead of time so we were able to walk right in. In order to feed the animals, each feed plate was $6! And the plates weren't that big. Gone in 60sec. There were goats, an emu, and other animals to feed. There are also pony rides that cost more money. The kids enjoyed it. The staff were also really friendly. There is also an area to do some panning and sit on a digger. They charge for both of those. And the panning has different tiers if you want to splurge and get better rocks. One of the diggers was out of order, and the digger my son went on wasn't working properly. The guy at that station was on his phone the whole time and wasn't available to help, so that was a wasted run. Very much a cash grab. Honestly, the boutique shops and eateries around the ranch and the small park were more worth it. read more

I had no idea I needed to give my first born to watch my littles feed a pig. I (65 YO) had to complete a two page waiver just to enter this ridiculous place. JUST FOR MYSELF. Seriously? Have you been sued that much? Completely NOT WORTH IT. They created this for the tourists. NOT locals. Bleh to them. read more

Came by River Street Ranch and honestly... a bit overrated. It's a smaller spot than expected, so don't come in thinking it's a full-on big attraction. You can get through everything pretty quick. That said, it's still a nice place to check out if you're already in the area or want something easy to do with kids. The setup is clean and organized, and there's enough little things to keep it interesting for a short visit. Think more "quick stop" than "plan your whole day around it." Overall, it's decent, not a must-go destination, but not bad either. Good to add to your list if you're nearby and just want something simple to do. read more

River Street Ranch - Petting Zoos Near Me - San Juan Capistrano, California

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Parking is free for the first 45 minutes. After that it's $2 per hour, I believe. Upon approaching, there is a barcode you have to scan that will lead you to a waiver you need to sign so if anything goes down in there, you can't do anything about it. Adults are $16, children are $13 and 2 and under are free. Asian guy at the admission booth needs customer service training. No greeting, no smile, just stared at me. I had to greet HIM. Food basket to feed animals is an additional $6 each and has a few pieces of carrots, lettuce, apple, and cucumber. After paying, the guy just stared at me. I walked around and got my basket of animal feed. There's an emu, 3 pigs, several rabbits but rabbits were all asleep. There's a lot of goats and alpaca/ llamas. If the weather permits, they allow you to touch some guinea pigs. There's a little chicken coup and the chickens roam around. They have backdrops to take pictures in. Theres a playground like the one you'd find at a park. There's a picnic table and some benches. All other activities were extra. Using an excavator was $5. Panning for gems ranges from 10 to 30 dollars. Riding a tractor is $5. Riding the train is $5. Riding a pony is $10. None of these activities have anyone there so I went back the guy from the admission booth to try to pay for the train to which he told me to pay at the train area and I explained that no one was there. He rolled his eyes and walked over to the train area to tell me that my child was not able to pretty much do anything since she was under 3. At that point, I was pretty much done so I left. Overall it's a cute place but customer service is bad, it's way too expensive for something you'll do in under an hour and if you have a toddler, they're not allowed to do anything. My advice? Take your kid to the park, it's free. If you want to see animals, the Centennial Farm is free and if you want a petting zoo, the Irvine Regional Park has much more to offer without spending nearly as much. I really wouldn't recommend this to anyone. read more

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Honestly this is a cash grab ( that we didn't pay for) expect feeding...you pay entrance fee and need to sign an unccesaey waiver for everyone in your group. We even had to sign one for my 3 month old. They have a "petting zoo" which honestly is just a viewing area to feed the goats ($6 dollars for a small basket of veggies) through a fence and piglets through a caged fence. The attractios are simple and unnecessary, could've been used to have a bigger animal space. The digging for gold was ridiculous ( they give kids a pre mixed bag of sand) that they would honestly dump out in the water and not really "pan for gold". The play ground is in a small cramped area. I would save the money and take the kids next door to the Rodeo to play in the lawn or the park behind the ranch. read more

Prices are insanely expensive. A total of $51 for 2 adults and 1 kid to go in to feed about 6 animals. Most of them don't even eat because they're so full from being fed constantly. read more

River Street Ranch - Prices are insanely expensive - Petting Zoos Near Me - San Juan Capistrano, California

I saw a video about this place on social media and saved it For later, since it looked like a fun place to take my son. He is almost 6 years old, and I'm always looking for fun ideas/things we can do on weekends. We drove here from Santa Monica (about an hour). Parking is located a few minutes away from the farm. Keep moving down the trail, and you will find it. We bought tickets online, so the check-in process was easy. We purchased a veggie basket to feed the animals, and we paid some extra $$$ so my son can ride the tractor and play on the excavator. There is also a playground on site and a horse ride. It was nice, but after an hour, my son asked to leave. Younger kids will enjoy it more. It took us 1.5 hours to drive back, so we spent more time on the road than actually experiencing the farm. What I like is that there are variety of shops and restaurants around the farm, and it's cute. Boutiques to shop for jewelry, clothes, shoes, HomeGoods, all kinds of stuff, so that was really nice. read more

River Street Ranch - Petting Zoos Near Me - San Juan Capistrano, California

Perfect place for exploring playful kiddos. It was our first time and River Street Ranch and San Juan Capistrano. Such a gorgeous city! Waiver: required for each person. Complete online to save time. They will confirm that the waiver is completed using your phone number thats listed on the waiver prior to purchasing admission tickets Tickets: $16 for adults and kiddos under 3 were free. You have in and out privileges all day. So we were able to play for a few hours then walk across the alleyway to the River Street Marketplace where there was so much food options. Activities: so many to choose from but I'll start with what we experienced. Feed basket is a MUST! $6/per basket and we were able to feed all the different animals (goats Guinea pigs, rabbits, pigs, emu (Yassss an emu!!) etc. There was also "gold" mining, riding an excavator and tractor, best of all a nice playground where the kiddos can climb, slide and all that fun stuff kids love. Parking: we parked on the street with the max of 4 hours. You pay through the passport app and the space number is painted on the ground so make sure you enter the right space number. The staff was super friendly and patient especially with the younger kiddos. Overall, RSR was great and we spent all day here. Trust me the kiddos will love it!! read more

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BOYCOTT UNTIL THEY LOWER PRICES. People can complain all they want about how insanely expensive this place is, but they're not going to change anything if people keep on going and paying the astronomical rates. Children (35 months and older) are $13, adults are $16, and seniors are $13. On top of that, you have to pay a aa carte for each of the experiences: $5 for the train, $3 for the excavator, $5 for the tractor and the killer is $6 for a basket of vegetables to feed the animals that probably won't be out because of the heat. The "entry fee" should be $5 for everyone, but at least have kids and seniors pay $5 and do $10 for adults who literally just stand there and watch their kids. The sheer cost of trying to do anything cool wiith your kids that is also fun for adults is ridiculous. read more

We are 2 seniors ($13 each). My friend had residual motion sickness from our train ride, but the host went & brought some water for us. Staff very friendly. They are very strict about the temprature range for when they bring out the small animals. It had rained the night before & so the electric rides were not yet open (a bit of standing water). I was told that the owner is a lawyer, so hence the necessary detailed entrance waiver. Petting & feeding the various guinea pigs was very therapeutic. They stay in a tray next to you, not on lap. We enjoyed feeding the larger animals as well. Watching the varieties of chickens scurry about, as well as children's reactions, was amusing. Deffinately a place for small kids, & older adults as well. We stayed more than 1 hour. read more

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Came here expecting to stay for just half an hour feeding animals, but my daughter ended up staying for 1.5 hours. We came right when the open (less crowd) and bought a feeding basket ($6) which is a small basket with lettuce, apple slices, carrot sticks, and cucumber pieces. Instead of feeding animals right away, she wanted to play in the playground, which she had it all to herself since everyone was busy feeding animals. Also, the sun hadn't come out yet so the playground was cool. (It eventually becomes unbearably hot and some of the playground slides become very hot in the afternoon.) After spending all her energy the playground, we fed the chickens, Emu, Rabbits, Goats, Alpacas, and guinea pigs. I liked the guinea pig area because everyone gets a personal guinea pig assigned to them (ours was Nemo) and you get to feed them while watching them eat up close. All in all, it was time well spent with my family at the petting farm. The price for admission is Adult ($16), Children ($13), and free for infants (under 3 yrs old). read more

I really enjoyed my time at River Street Ranch with my kids--there's a great variety of animals, and the overall vibe is fun and family-friendly. That said, be prepared for a lot of à la carte pricing. The pony rides, train rides, diggers, electric cars, and gold panning are all charged separately, which means you'll end up making multiple trips back to buy more tickets. They also have a hard 4 PM closing time, with no flexibility--even on weekends. One note: while the guinea pig area is a hit with kids, it would be even better if guests could hold them, not just pet them. Still, it's a solid day out, and worth a visit--just plan ahead budget-wise. read more

River Street Ranch - Petting Zoos Near Me - San Juan Capistrano, California

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Took the kids here and they had a blast! It's not too big but they had plenty of animals and you're able to go on where the goats are. The kids really enjoyed feeding the animals and even asked to come back when we left. Definitely worth the trip. It's also a plus that there are many eateries within walking distance, an ice cream place, a well as a park. read more

River Street Ranch - Feeding goats - Petting Zoos Near Me - San Juan Capistrano, California

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Overpriced for really nothing. $16 for adults, kids ages 3-12 are $13. The entrance fee only covers seeing the animals in the pens as everything else is extra money. Animals include an emu, pigs, rabbits, alpacas, goats, sheep, guinea pigs & chickens. We spent just under an hour there. They have a playground but you can go to the free one right across the train tracks by the big parking lot. The waiver they make each adult fill out by scanning QR code asks for a ridiculous amount of info so get ready for the spam that will come along. A positive note was the young man operating the train rides & getting the guinea pigs out was very nice. read more

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Such a beautiful experience for the whole family lots of neat things to do and pets to see great restaurants nearby! read more

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We had such a magical first visit! Everyone was so friendly, and our 2-year-old had an amazing time. Edgar was especially kind and attentive, introducing us to the guinea pigs, Janis and Ginger. The entire staff, from check-in to the excavation site, was wonderful. The place is clean, fun, and you can tell the animals are truly cared for. We can't wait to come back when our daughter is 3 to ride the train and visit her friends again. Thank you for the memories! read more

I usually don't write reviews, but I need to share my experience at this place because it was unacceptable. I would give it zero stars if possible. We drove 40 minutes from Garden Grove after seeing good things on social media, hoping it would be fun for my kids. Everything seemed okay until the end. While we were having the rides, I noticed that the staff discriminated against us because we are Asian. The way he interacted with us was clearly not the same as with the American customers behind us. My husband even asked if he treats everyone the same, and the staff member said "yes," but that was clearly not true. My husband watched the whole situation, did he think we couldn't understand English? It's essential to remember that, even though we are Asian, we live here and contribute just like everyone else. We paid for our tickets and the rides, and we do not deserve to be treated this way. read more

Super expensive. Pricing includes nothing. Guinea pigs and rabbits are always gone. It's super small. If you want to pet and feed a goat and sheep & pay to ride a horse, go to the OC zoo & Irvine Park instead. read more

River Street Ranch, AKA "Zoomars" is a fun place for both young children and their relatives. With a basket of vegetables, children can feed all sorts of animals ....what fun for the kids and for those watching their enjoyment. Several kid friendly activities like a train ride on a small track and panning for "fancy rocks" are among other activities kids like. These, along with a small playground, should keep a small child's interest for well over an hour. read more

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Definitely something fun to do with the kids but like others said, the value is maybe not quite there. The fact that the entrance fee doesn't include at least one basket of feed is kind of annoying. I'm fine paying for the other "attractions" but $16 for each adult and another $6 for feed is unreasonable. You can't bring your own Staff is very friendly Tip : probably want to come earlier in the day. We got there around 1 after having lunch and all the animals were so stuffed that not many of them wanted to eat anymore. The kids in the group were 4, 2 and 1.5. The 4 yr old was into it for maybe 10 minutes and then spent the rest of the time on the playground. The 2 yr old was so afraid she only went to the playground. The 1.5 yr old enjoyed feeding but he could only do so much so we essentially paid $40-50 as entry to the playground. read more

Such a cute little spot for all ages. So many cute stores, food options, and other activities. This was my first time here and I wish I knew about this space when my son was younger. There's a petting zoo, little train to ride on, and a park. You're able to have your birthday party there as well! It was really charming and cute! read more

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This place isn't what it used to be; it was magical when it operated as "Zoomars." Now, it feels overpriced for the service provided and not worth the trouble to get in. We're thankful we had the chance to experience this magical place before it changed hands to new owners. read more

First time here! I loved exploring this place very much because there is a cool playground for kids. read more

River Street Ranch - Cows. - Petting Zoos Near Me - San Juan Capistrano, California

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Theres plenty of shops and food! Theres a playground and a zoo also! It was amazing and peaceful read more

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Overpriced and read carefully they don't put the guinea pigs out if it is hot out. Staff is rude on both of our visits. You can't even put the guinea pigs in your lap anymore. Nothing to do here without paying more if the guinea pigs aren't out. read more

Everything! First of all - what happened to the cute animal spot! So expensive for nothing- have to pay extra after paying $13-$16 to enter The staff was not friendly Waited 20 min for the employee to leisurely start the train They never took their eyes off us like we were going to do something that was not allowed Finally- who ever manages this place should be let go! read more

SCAM!!!! $16 for adults and $13 for kids and that's just to get INSIDE!! From there the money grab continues: the basket of food to feed the animals, and ALL the activities inside you gotta pay extra. Admission fee lets you pet the animals and play at the playground..nothing more. There's honestly nothing for adults to do. Glad I paid that entry fee just to watch my toddlers play. Admission + train ride for 2 and the excavator activity was $75. We were there for maybe an hour. For a family of 4 this is outrageous. Wish I had known before coming here. Would definitely not return until the prices are reasonable. read more

Great place for kids and the animals are fabulous! The staff was very helpful too! We went over to the restaurants afterwards! read more

River Street Ranch - Great for littles! - Petting Zoos Near Me - San Juan Capistrano, California

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This place is super overpriced as others have stated. There's an entry fee of $15 per adult and $12 per kid. Then, every single activity costs extra. A small feed basket with three cucumber slices, four carrots and some lettuce costs $6. A super short one lap pony ride costs $8! Kids can also ride excavators, a small train or tractors - but again, it'll cost you around $5 per ride! Expect to spend easily over $100 for kids to literally run out of food to feed the animals and activities to do within 15 minutes. Definitely save yourself the money and go elsewhere, where the experience is much longer lasting and worthwhile with more reasonable pricing! Also, the customer service is severely lacking, as the employee who checked us in at the entrance was rude and kept getting distracted to the point where we had to give him our phone numbers for the waivers we had filled out in advance multiple times. I noticed none of the employees here really seem interested in providing a good customer service experience and frankly, there were maybe only two to three employees on the entire ranch who kept rotating between the activities. All of them seemed super disinterested in kids and could barely even muster up a smile during our entire visit. Really disappointed this wasn't a great experience! I truly hope someone will read these poor reviews and implement some changes quickly because this place has a lot of potential to be more fun for families! read more

Loved petting zoo with our grandchild. Too bad restaurants are closing. We loved it. Both Vaquero and the Mest Celkar. Love Common Thread and McConnells. read more

If you're coming for a couple of hours, it's a nice place to take your younger kids. This is definitely a toddler aged place. Hosting a party here is a logistical pain. I found the website easy to plunk down a deposit but after that, the staff wasn't particularly very good at communication, parking was awful and unloading in the front was apparently a no no. A staff member got in my face about it telling me the owner was pissed and I asked him how we were supposed to set up and tear down a party in the 30 min alotted if the lot next to the venue was locked with a skidsteer parked in the way and the parking lot for the park was full. I told him to please have the owner call me and he backed down from chastising me (while my overstimulated son was having a screaming meltdown). So fun. You get 2 hours for your party and they don't offer a host or parking, nobody answers the phone when you're calling in the morning or when vendors are confused trying to deliver. It's just not worth the hassle given the costs. The pluses of this place are that it's a tiny enclosed space with different things your kids can do. That was nice to know that it's small and enclosed so your kiddo would be relatively safe running from area to area. read more

Online ticketing is horrible experience. If you sign waiver before buying ticket, it won't let you create an account using the same email to buy the actual tickets. So then youre forced to wait in their 25 minute line in sun. Whats even more frustrating is they have a dedicated line for online ticket check-ins that no one goes to because they can't buy tickets online. What a crappy operation. Also this place charges an entry fee and then addtl fees for every other activity. read more

My family and I have been coming here for years, and we absolutely love it! The improvements over the last few years--like adding more rides and creating larger enclosures for the animals--are amazing. The pricing is very reasonable, especially for a petting zoo in Southern California. I can't even remember the last time they raised their prices! Considering everything we've all been through with COVID and the economy, I'm more than happy to continue supporting them. As a business owner myself, I really appreciate how clean, well-maintained, and welcoming this place is. The animals are well taken care of and the staff is always friendly and make the experience even better. read more

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Interesting and small petting zoo nestled in the newly built next to the River Street Marketplace. This petting zoo is designed for young children. There aren't many animals, but you will find goats, pigs, chickens, rabbits, guinea pigs, and a single emu. There is a pony ride service also. Pricing for entrance and feed is not cheap, but the facilities are well maintained with a good staff. $15 per adult and $12 for children. A basket of vegetables is an optional additional cost. There are also additional activities for children for farm/country-like entertainment The process for entrance is a internet-based release waiver that ask for far too much information making it feel like you'll be on a SPAM list forever. read more

What a bummer this place is. Growing up here, the mini farm was such a joy! Free to enter. A few dollars to feed the animals. Guinea pigs and bunnies running free everywhere! Now I understand changes needed to be made. But it's wildly expensive to simply walk in the door! And then you have to pay for every. single. move you make. Beyond that, don't bother coming at 10 am. We showed up right when it opened to have a fun morning before nap time. But NOTHING was set up. They literally arrive at 10 and just begin to pull out animals and get the rides ready. NO no no.. if you open at 10, OPEN AT 10! It's simple. Want to ride a pony? Oh the horses are on "medical leave". Basically the only reason we went was to ride the pony. My daughter was so disappointed. Get a new horse or make it known on the website/Instagram everywhere that you don't do pony rides. Truly, all of it was such a bummer. Workers acted like we were a bother and inconveniencing them. Sorry you had to go get a Guinea pig and do your job? My daughter was so bored because just staring at a Guinea pig was lame. Couldn't hold it? We can look at Guinea pigs at the pet store. The train was gone. And we can play at the playground in our neighborhood for free. Safe to say we won't be back! read more

I won't even step foot in this bougie petting zoo. The prices they charge are ridiculous, it's insulting. $16 for adult admission!! Adults don't even want to be there!! And $13 for a 3 year old who's gunna get over it in 45 minutes. Please don't support this kind of place. On top of that, the admission price doesn't even include any activities, rides or feeding the animals. read more

3.5 stars - Great location and idea, but expensive and disorganized River Street Ranch has a lot of potential and I really wanted to love it. It's in a beautiful, walkable part of San Juan Capistrano and could easily be part of a fun family day out with lunch or sightseeing nearby. I'm also genuinely grateful that it exists--Orange County needs more hands-on experiences for kids that isn't just another shopping center. That said, the overall experience left us a bit disappointed. Admission was $16 for adults and $13 for kids 3+, which felt steep for what was offered. You can pet the guinea pigs, but not the bunnies (they're behind a cage), and while the goat area was accessible, the floor was covered in droppings--which ended up all over our shoes and really took away from the fun. For comparison, the goat area at the OC Zoo has a staff with a sweeper working the area. We were especially disappointed that the pony rides weren't available that day. There was no notice on the website or Facebook page, so it felt like a letdown to get there and find out it wasn't an option. Same with the extra rides and stations--they were technically "available," but not welcoming at all because no employees were staffing them. It gave the place a disorganized, unfinished feel. The check-in and waiver process was also frustrating. It requires a separate phone number and email for each guest, which makes no sense for families. And right after finishing the paperwork, we were told animals would be put away in 10 minutes (at 3:30 PM), even though closing time is listed as 4 PM. Also worth noting: children under age 3 are not allowed to ride the train or tractors, which can be disappointing for younger families. And for a place that's been around for a long time, it's surprising that these operational and communication issues haven't already been addressed. Even something as simple as a kid-level handwashing sink would go a long way toward improving the experience since this is such a kid-oriented place. Overall, I appreciate what River Street Ranch is trying to offer, but the pricing and lack of structure made it hard to justify. At the very least, include the basket of feed with the admission price. The feed basket was $6. I hope they can iron out these issues--it really could be a gem with a few changes. read more

$60 for a family of four just to "enter the premises". Then, an additional cost to do literally anything else. Every activity has an additional cost once you're inside. I believe the owners are banking on social media ads to bait and switch families to get to the gate, then money-grabbing once they're inside. Not worth the experience whatsoever. This isn't Disneyland. Head over to Irvine Regional Park. Your dollar will go further and you'll have a much better experience with the same amenities. read more

The rabbits had a break the day we went, so we only got to look at them (no petting). The guinea pigs were open for petting. We had so much fun with these guys. You can buy a basket of vegetables to feed them. We did that and we were giddy to watch them eat. The llamas were huge. The goats were aggressive. The emu was sadly neglected. read more