Reviews of Luray Zoo A Rescue Zoo (Zoo)

Brittany Ferreras

This zoo was a hidden gem during our vacation to Luray, VA! Since it's a rescue zoo, the animals were all very taken care of and had plenty of food. They also were very friendly and every animal has a name. The zoo had a very large selection of venomous snakes and a cool petting and feeding section for the goats! It's a small zoo but definitely really cool animals to see.

Kevin Wade

Awesome zoo to make a day trip out of

Michelle Calhoun

We went on the after hours tour. What an amazing experience. So worth it!! Once in a lifetime experience. Snuggles was adorable.

Dustin Genter

A great little zoo where all the animals are rescues. Definitely like supporting a great place like that.

Elspeth Senz

Small but nice. Good experience with a 4yr old and baby. Nice petting zoo. Lots of reptiles, many snek.

Kawaii Kittle

We've been here 5-6times. Everytime we visit Luray the Zoo is always the #1 thing we see each time. The owners seriously care about their animals and will have conversations with you if you have doubts about anything. The gift shop is always fun. I highly recommend the sweat pants and hoodies! Warm and comfy!

Jack King

Amazing stories and rescue effort. You must do the behind the scenes tour!!

Bruce Cartier

This is the second summer in a row my family has visited Luray Zoo when we visit the area. They have an impressive and diverse array of reptiles and snakes in particular. My kids love feeding the goats. We appreciate their dedication to rescue animals which include stories behind the rescues.

Kristen Sanders

This little zoo was incredibly cute and welcoming. You can tell that the animals are well cared for and loved. My kids loved Woody and Jojo (monkeys) and my favorite was Star, the Bengal tiger. We appreciate the stories of the animals and talking to the owner!

Sreehari Kottoor Madam

It's a small zoo and it takes approx. an hour to see everything. Kids will love this zoo as we can see all animals up-close and they have large collection of reptails.

Roseann Bastio

A wonderful little rescue zoo. Well maintained on donations-no government funding at all. The animals are well cared for until their natural death. They're rescued from private owners who can no longer care for them. They're also rescued from zoos who have rejected them for being "less than perfect."

Rebecca Frend

Kids loved the zoo and seeing all the animals

J Straub

Small but nice zoo with rescued animals. The goats in the petting zoo were my son's favorite

Julie Smith

Kinda small but cute not many animals

glen osvold

Definitely worth a stop. If not to check out all the animals to support the operators in the care of all the exotic animals they have.

Brittany Ferreras

This zoo was a hidden gem during our vacation to Luray, VA! Since it's a rescue zoo, the animals were all very taken care of and had plenty of food. They also were very friendly and every animal has a name. The zoo had a very large selection of venomous snakes and a cool petting and feeding section for the goats! It's a small zoo but definitely really cool animals to see.

Matt R

We went on the Discovery Tour on a weekday; what an amazing experience. Our tour with Mark was energetic, full of knowledge, and fun feeding events. My wife and I love reptiles, which the Luray Zoo delivers. A hidden gem in Virginia and a must see if you visit Luray. The venomous snake collection exceeds large-city zoo exhibits. Mark is undoubtedly passionate about the animals he cares for, and is an avid reptile professional. Great experience!

8bit Noob

This Zoo is fantastic. Very informative, the owner is very funny, and a great array of animals.

wayne starks

Awesome... Small, but just enough entertainment for My kid and I. Nice place to spend a couple hours

Brian Manion

Spent a while there, great reptile exhibit, you can feed and pet the goats and the adopted rescues were a treat.

K Sun

Animals are well taken care of, cages were clean and animals were real active and happy!

timothy hansberger

Didn't have near the amount of animals as I remember, which may be good as well.

Kathryn Morrow

Our third visit. The kids love it. The animals are the same as before. There are new signs since the last time. Most of the animals were napping

Ryan Murphy

Clean, friendly, and fun.

Perry Davis

Visited the zoo with my partner and his family. Even though the weather was less than ideal, the zoo was great. The inside, as stated in a lot of the reviews, the majority of the animals inside are snakes. However, the variety is nice. The outdoor section was also nice. The weather was cold and nearly snowing but the man that was working that day didn't hesitate to talk to us and even pull out some of the kore stubborn animals to show us. Overall, its clean and definitely worth the visit.

Gaurav Shah

It's a small zoo but with amazing experience at very affordable price. Mark is having very in depth knowledge about wild life spices. I got the discovery tour with Mark and it was really awesome and was a good knowledge sharing tour......it will be great for young kids

colleen bennink

Great little zoo. Although it's small, there are quite a few animals. All of the animals looked to be in great health, well cared for with clean enclosures. The staff was also very kind and helpful!

Cory Price

Snakes, a 150+ year old turtle, and Steve Irwin been here before. But I all seriousness, this rescue zoo is absolutely amazing.

Jessie Mayhem

Love taking my family here. We have a beautiful time EVERY time. My daughter chose this over the Washington Zoo for her birthday this year. Id much rather go to a place like this than a zoo that doesnt have time for the animals and is based solely on profit. The animals are seen as family here and not some creatures for show and tell. Love this zoo and recommend to anyone with a good brain and kind heart.

Bezaleel Santiago

Great rescue Zoo gentleman was doing a great job I recommend the visit

Jess

Need more animals. The price is a Rip off

Linda Gormab

Poor excuse for a zoo. Not worth the trip.

Sofia Kalaitzakis

Love this zoo so cute and the monkey

Jason Peters

Smaller zoo... you would pass it if you didn't know where it was, like I did. I took my 11 and 8 year old there and we loved it! My kids would've spent all day there if I'd allow it. We loved the stories each animal had outside if their enclosures. It makes it a lot more personable than your typical zoo and made you want to spend even more time with each of the animals. They're doing an amazing job at Luray Zoo and we will definitely be back.

Erica Smargisso

Wonderful staff. They really care for the animals and are willing to share any knowledge that they can. Definitely went above and beyond for us, I felt like we were on our own personal guided tour. The animals are super happy, they show it when you visit them! Highly recommended!!

Andreana DiDario

Mark was awesome and clearly passionate about his animals. We will certainly be back!

Kelly Zerrlaut

This place is great! An amazing variety of snakes, turtles and other critters. Loved the kookaburra and coatimundi, my favorites!

michael plummer

A lot of fun a good way to break up the day if you're staying at one of the local campgrounds

Tallee Ford

I was extremely excitedly after seeing the impressive flyer. Upon arriving I was unpleasantly disappointed; however at that point my daughter was excited. For the size and the number of animals it was expensive. The aquarium housing for the snapping turtles where extremely SMALL..... poor animal didn’t even seem like it could turn around. The animals didn’t seem well taken care of but caged & depressed. The structures the animals were kept in were overgrown, lacked maintenance and looked run down! Don’t waste your money.

Chelseyy Ann

Owner is extremely kind and knowledgeable, as is the staff. The animals are well taken care of. Definitely worth a visit!

Emily Bibby Mitchell

Huge collection of snakes, largest I've ever seen. As I am fascinated by snakes, this was a lot of fun for me. The tiger, Star, is lovely. The owners are very personable and ready to share their insights on the animals. Really a cool little zoo.

Kelli Ernano

I couldn't decide whether to give this zoo a try on our trip to VA. It looked small and I don't much care for snakes plus we live in NJ where we have access to the amazing Cape May Zoo and Philadelphia Zoo. I'm so glad we took the leap. The zoo is small and we went off season so the animals were ALL interested in our presence unlike the much larger zoos. The monkeys and lemurs came to the front of the cages and put on little shows. The tiger was right up front and made eye contact with each of us. Even growled at my husband twice LOL! The condor put on a show of her enormous wing span. Even the kookaburra made eye contact and delighted us with his song. The goats in the petting zoo were hilariously aggressive with each other and fun to feed. The wallaby let us pet him. The whole experience was so great!

Scott MacMillan

Excellent place to bring a toddler. Owner was filled with stories and engaged the visitors directly, even coaxed the tiger out of his house for us.

Jason Stewart

Such a great place to get close to beautiful rescue animals!

Alec Duncan

This place was awesome! Much more personal than your typical zoo experience. The owners were there and happily provided amplifying info on a few of the exhibits!

Anu Laguda

Went with my husband and 2 year old daughter. We all had a blast. Their reptile collection is amazing. The owner is awesome and very passionate about the animals. Great place to take your kids. And the drive up is so scenic.

Michelle Sandness

Nice little place. Very informative. I just love Bella

margot

Great experience! Reptiles, birds, monkies, small farm animals, tiger. Nice toy store.

James Harrison

Cool place... wallabie

Tressa Rankin

All I can say Is LOVED IT!!!!!I am definitely going back. I fell in love with all of the animals. My spirit guide is a Buffalo so I felt so wonderful and then I petted and fed a giraffe personally and that to was so spiritual for me. Wonderful vacation for both me and my husband to experience together❤️Thank you. Namaste

Christina Sunderland

This place was amazing. You must do the discovery tour! We got to feed a tiger!

Yehuda Zev Zitter

Great reptile exhibit,pettingand feeding zoo

will R

My favorite zoo! Don't listen to any of the urban apartment dwellers who are saying the animals are not cared for properly (not that they would know what proper care is for a tiger) I love going here because you don't have to deal with the self proclaimed ghetto crowd that seems to favor the National Zoo. The exhibit with the different copperhead snakes is fascinating. A+

Ruth Thompson-Herfurth

Nice little place, animals look happy and the goats at the petting area were so darned cute, there were even two alligators.

Andrew Ratliff

It was pretty unfortunately on July 23rd of this year the tiger passed but it was still worth going to visit with all the snakes as soon as walk in and the the different types of birds it was worth the trip for me

Mark Ritchie

The zoo is small but it's worth visiting. The reptile house is really cool (our four year old daughter loves looking at all the snakes), and you can get a lot closer to the animals than you might at other places. The petting zoo area sometimes has little baby goats running around. Overall it's a good place to see animals both local and exotic, and if nothing else you can learn what the venomous snakes that live around here look like.

Elite RiOT

Amazing and needs support!

Sarah Mosbacher

We stopped here on our visit to Luray Caverns and had such a wonderful time. The staff was extremely friendly and being able to interact with the animals was so much fun.

Christine Muraska

Cute little zoo. Bathrooms were absolutely disgusting (toilet paper everywhere trash over flowing). Not an absolute must see but if your killing time it's worth it

Rachel Davidson

It was good But If you are a person that hates snakes like me then you better close yours eyes on the first part. But other then that it's so good I love it. I will live pictures down below

Bryce M

Had a great time. Awesome animals and knowledgeable staff. I highly recommend.

Chris Freeze

Great place to see spider and makes goats

Jason Brewer Sr

Awesome place. Remember to ask for the owner. He loves to let visitors interact with the animals..

Eve Gribble

Nice self guided tour. Animals are well cared for and like their care takes. Be sure to see the alligator turtle, wow!

Becca Smith

Luray Zoo was AWESOME! We had a great time checking this place out. Takes about an hour to get through seeing everything and well worth the money to check it out if you are an animal lover!

Jennifer Hensley

Great day at the zoo... had a great time

Donna Dunaway

I'm not sure where all the other patrons of this zoo saw what they did..First of all there were not 250 different species of animals, secondly the living conditions of the ones that were there were deplorable..My first thought when I saw this place, was we have got to have the wrong place..It looks like a small house, with a store, and several different enclosures out back, with a port a potty for a rest room. Definitely a waste of time..Very Disappointed..I felt really bad for the alligators, two of them in a pool, not even big enough to turn around..

Pat Demko

Not much to see and is rundown

Andre Powell

A lil piece of paradise in Virginia best zoo and staff healthy active animals

Scarlett Cruz

Very polite people there. And a fun experience like no other zoo.

Dillon White

Nice zoo very interesting. The most reptiles I've seen in a zoo on awhile. Would love to go again when the tiger is out.

Jessica Bogie

Loved it all, the monkeys were so personable, and the tiger was adorable!!

Rocco Belmonte

Cool hole in the wall attraction considering the location. Fun for the kids!

Eva Caulder

This zoo is honestly one of the best zoos I have ever been to. One of the reptile handlers gave me a full body viper shed. I literally cried because when I was on a treck in Africa I tried my hardest to find a viper shed. Super sweet people. Have the best set of goats I have ever come across. Definitely will be going back!

Lindsay Rupprecht

The animals are very interactive and have personality and wish the tiger was still there! Im sure she was a blessing!

Cody Lyons

I guess this place takes in animals that are more endangered or exotic, and it was a nice little treasure in town.

Ben Zook

We had an excellent time at the Luray Zoo! The adults and kids both loved it. The owner took the time to talk with us about various topics, including his beautiful golden eagle. We will definitely visit again.

Brian Payne

It could use more staff and could inprove the grounds but awesome snakes

Nicole Williams

Do not judge this book by its cover... doesn't look like much but there is a whole lot behind the storefront. Animals are clean, well cared for, and displays are engaging. All animals are rescue and the owner was very nice.

Ann Dugay

Absolutely love what they are doing ! They advertise 260 animals but that is not what we saw. They may have, but what you get to see is only a handful of animals. The reptile exhibit is worth it ! They have an impressive selection of snakes ! The owner is very friendly and informative. The young man at front desk is fantastic ! You really do have to stop by and support their cause !!!!

Emily Litton

Awesome place! Wish we had known about it earlier. My 2 yr old daughter loved it. It was even great on a rainy day. The owner is awesome! He just makes his rounds interacting with all the visitors and animals. If was a really neat place! We will definitely be visiting again very soon

Corey Swann

I have been coming here for 20 + years and have always enjoyed my time here. Today was the first time my wife has been with me and she enjoyed it greatly! It was so neat to see someone seeing this all for the first time. The park is a very intimate time and it's best to take your time and enjoy the multiple facets available. I will always be a patron of this establishment. Mark truly does a great job taking care of all the animals and when you speak with him you know he loves what he does and that this isn't a job for him, but a way of life.

Kelly Kingsley

Very small local zoo which is great for our toddler! I love their mission behind the zoo, and that they have rescued all of these animals.

Xin Wen Huang

Smells so bad at summer time, a lot of flies around,only few animals, very small zoo, they don’t take care the animals very much,better go little farther to bigger zoos if you can,only took 10 minutes for entire zoo!

G Slocombe

This exotic animal rescue zoo rates as one of the best I have seen in years. Mark, the owner, is an expert on all the animals, from African porcupines to Bengal tigers and from falcons to squirrels. He spent time with the late Steve Irwin and his widow, Terry, from the Australia Zoo. The entire tour takes about 2 hours and includes feeding the Bengal tiger as well as a ring-tailed lemur. The zoo is supported by the tour price, proceeds from their gift shop, and donations. If you are an animal lover or are merely curious, you should drop by and take the tour. Don't forget to visit the official website.

Jason Bobbitt

I love Rescue zoos like this one. Well worth the price and self guided so I can look for as long. Take your kids it’s for a good cause

Linda Coleman

Great fun for the whole family, and support s a good cause.

Scot Morgan

Place is amazing! Great representation of some of the most beautiful reptiles on earth! Plus my baby Travis lives there now

jenny callahan

Wonderful place to be! Luray is a magical town. And this zoo is as unique as the town! The tiger is so beautiful. The wallabies are a mesmerizing. ALL the animals here are special. Nice people/staff. Great for all the family. More to see than I can describe. Even a petting zoo area!! Love Luray so much. Bless.

Lauren Adams

My grandkids really enjoyed it...

John Dalton

Nice little place. I hate snakes but am fascinated by them and they have some really cool venomous ones I have never seen before. Worth the trip and knowing that it's all basically run with the generally cheap fee they charge, at least you know your contributing.

Ben Zimmerman

Great place to see some unusual animals! The owner is very knowledgeable and personable. We always enjoy our time at the local zoo.

Greg Prillaman

Nice stop to help support a good cause

Jennifer Bolhuis

An invisible tiger and very few animals. Takes only 10 minutes to see everything, save your money

Lillian Chen

kids absolutely loves this place

Adonay Jimenez

Don't judge a zoo by the dinosaur infron of it! One of the best venomous snake exhibits I have seen at any zoo. Great to see the stories behind some of the rescues. A fun 1hr to 2hr outing and a good effort to support. Personal and close to the animals.

dkpgad

Relaxing time

Hustiene ,

Great place! Had a great visit the owner was very nice extremely knowledgeable and gave me some great information on animals! Thanks!

Bill Harner

It's a small rescue zoo that's probably nothing like most people expect a zoo to be like but the animals are well cared for by passionate people.

Camryn Anderson

It was so fun my cousin held a snake and we fed goats

Dean Thomasson

We had a great time. Meeting the owner and seeing his passion for the animals just made it better... Of course watching him feed the alligators was awesome

Yossi Mendelson

It really smelled inside the reptile house!! Also its a very homemade zoo with very little animals!! I wouldnt recommend this zoo!! Sorry

Amanda C.

This is a very small zoo, but great for all ages. They have alot of different animals. We were disappointed, that we were not able to see the Tiger. We were there for about an hour, and I asked an employee if the Tiger, would come out? " And he said, it depends" . The Wallaby was super cute, and she is apart of the petting zoo, so you are able to pet her. The petting zoo was super cute. They also have a huge variety of different, interesting snakes, and alligators. It is also a little pricy, for how small it is. But, the zoo gets no government funding, and for that I can understand the charges.

Kimberly B.

Great place to take the kids!

Ron Creech

Five stars given relative to the cost and what these good folks are doing for animals. Its not a big money zoo, but there's plenty for the kiddos. The collection of venomous snakes is very impressive. Stop by and support a good cause if you have spare time in Luray.

Michael Van Allen

Very nice. It was beautiful and I'm so happy they rescued those animals.

Nancy Dormann

A hidden gem in Luray. Can't say enough goods things about this rescue zoo. A d the owner is a very friendly knowledgeable man. Highly recommend here. Fun petting zoo too.

Trevon lewis

It was nice and ww enjoyed the animals... But the alligator feeding was 30 minutes earlier than what was posted on website.. So we had to run and try to figure out where to go and missed most of the 5 minute show... The staff wasn't helpful at all. And the gift shop is a humongous trap! That's how you enter and exit the zoo and things are way too expensive...sadly all of this took away from the enjoyment of the animals.. All my son could think about was the toys that he saw when we first walked in.. I understand the establishment needs the money to care for the animals.. But isn't everyone's attention supposed to be focused on the animals?

P

This place was awesome! The staff is very friendly, lots of snakes inside (they will even let you hold/pet them), there is a petting zoo outdoors which includes monkeys, peacocks, wallaby, goats, etc. Great place to bring the kids!

Sonnet Williams

Awesome zoo

Bill Deckelman

This is a rescue zoo. You can tell they don't have millions of dollars behind them. The animals seem to be well taken care of. We started in the snake room and I don't like snakes, so I looked at them but was happy to get out of there. The tiger didn't like me but the goats were ready to get a handout.

John Carwile

Love this place and the fact that it is rescued animals is even more amazing

Carol Simpson

I love this place, and visit it every time that I am in the area! It is a small rescue zoo for exotic animals. Many of the animals have signs with their personal story. They all seem well cared for, happy, and healthy. There is an area in the back with goats and such that you can feed and pet.

William Andrews

We visit this place every year, and it never disappoints. The place is consistently as clean as could be. The price is reasonable and really isn't climbing much. They have a large selection of snakes which is so interesting. I don't know of such a large selection in the greater DC area. The information cards with each of the snakes is great. When you live outdoors, you get to the avian exhibits as well as the different monkeys. Mr. Bluberries was an absolute hit and very entertaining. You'll set what I mean when you visit. There is s tiger, but tigers are very lazy no matter where we're see them. You can feed the goats which is a great experience for the little humans. Its not the National Zoo, but it's a prize to have and experience especially if you are interested in reptiles.

Margaret Mack

This place has many animals here, but each trip is always different because it's a rescue zoo. Steve Irwin's turtle is here too! You can pet and feed goats and sheep, and there's so much to explore and learn about the animals here.

Andrew & Jodi Rowe

Very small and expensive. Not worth the waste of your time. The exhibits are all overgrown and not very many animals at all. 250+ of the same few animals, most of them are snakes. If you are into snakes you will enjoy it.

Tracy L

Interesting place. Tad overpriced for what is there, but overall glad we went. That first monkey is ... excited....Haha

Brian Schoonover

Small but gratifying. The animals are joyous. The staff is wonderful. Little ones will love going!

Lysa J

The animals are in a few areas that are very small. I appreciate that it's a rescue, but later living quarters needed to be arranged. The animals seen to be healthy otherwise.

Sue Ellis

Great fun for all! Sorry the tiger passed away. Many different types of rescused species. Petting farm great for all ages.

Connie McMaugh

Private zoo, kids LOVE it

mike f

Cool reading about tha animals stories, great variety I remember going here when I was a kid 20 years ago and glad to see its still there with more

Kitty Biller

would have liked more informative signs for the animals they had. a few had no signage. employees need more training on species, and specifics about the animals that have

Elisa A

Beautiful animals with such great personalities!!!

Mitsi Moody

We did the after hours tour. We had so much fun!

Wonder

Animals loved and treated well. Very clean and organized and animals seemed content unlike any other place I've been. Donations are essential so please spare no charity. Visit these sweet animals please. They have an extensive array of snakes! Seeing these animals happily at home had me walking away very pleased rather than wanting to release the animals. Treat you family

James Hyssong

We attended the after-hours personal tour and the experience was fantastic! The owner was very friendly and knowledgeable. His care for the welfare of all of the rescue animals was immediately evident. The personal interactive experiences with several of the animals is something I HIGHLY recommend. Well worth the price and I recommend this Zoo to anyone who loves animals.

S4V8GE Horch

For being such a small town zoo its allot more to appreciate compared to a city zoo cool stories about the animals that have arrived there and the owner was very nice and a really cool person. I would highly advise visiting this even if you have a short period of time.

David Fowler

I'm not sure if this is considered a hidden gem. But it is! This is a much more personal experience than a National or bigger zoo. It had a lot of different animals including a tiger, kangaroo, lynx and alligators and crocodiles. It also has a petting zoo with goats, horses and sheep. The monkeys were awesome...very entertaining. The owner will explain a lot and gives valuable information about the animals and seems to make sure everyone has a good experience. We'll definitely visit more often.

andrew w e l t m e r

this is a cool place. the owner is very dedicated to saving and protecting all these animals. absolutely loved this place. the owner is very interactive and is very helpful with any question u have. I highly recommend visiting and buy something from the gift shop. it all benefits the rescue

Julia Park

I have always been someone that does not go to zoos, but when I heard there was a zoo with all rescue animals I had to visit! This zoo is very clean and all of the animals were happy and looked healthy. I really liked how they all had places in their enclosures where they could go and hide to be left alone if they wanted to be. Each enclosure has facts about the species and a lot also have another placard that tells you that specific animals back story. There is also a petting zoo and you can feed the animals with grain that is provided. I had a wonderful experience!

Jaclynn Danielle

My maid of honor booked us the after hours tour as a part of my bachlorette weekend, and it was absolutely fantastic. We thoroughly enjoyed seeing the animals and were even able to interact with some of them as Mark told us about their stories and their personalities. It is obvious that they are well taken care of, and while listening to Mark talk about them, it is clear that he respects each one on an individual basis and knows all of their quirks. It is a smaller place, so don't expect all the fancy bells and whistles a larger zoo would have; however, if you come with the idea in mind that this is a place for these rescued animals to call home, and you are open to learning about them and the history of the place, you will have a pleasant experience. I definitely plan on coming back in the future.

Wonder

Animals loved and treated well. Very clean and organized and animals seemed content unlike any other place I've been. Donations are essential so please spare no charity. Visit these sweet animals please. They have an extensive array of snakes! Seeing these animals happily at home had me walking away very pleased rather than wanting to release the animals. Treat you family

Beth Lakes

Great little zoo

tamara Ham

A very nice little zoo with an interesting history. Makes you feel good about spending your money ~ you're supporting the animals! The owner is very involved and even came out to bring "Star" the Bengal Tiger out so we could see her. Loved "Woody" the capuchin!!

Kimberly London

A cute, small zoo with a good selection of rescued animals. The enclosures were on the small side, but I guess otherwise adequate. (None of the animals were exhibiting signs of stress that we could see.) The petting zoo is not exactly as described, as there is a fence between you and the animals, but you can still feed goats over the fence. The one zoo keeper was a bit odd, rambling on about how alligators make better pets than dogs since, according to him, a dog will turn on you at any point. I thought that was rather strange and irresponsible for a zookeeper to be preaching on about, even after I told him that my family has always had dogs and we've never had an incident. He said he was shocked we hadn't been bitten yet. We walked away at that point. A good, brief activity for family with small children, just don't bring up household pets, I guess.

Joshua Daily

Great place for a family visit. We had a great time, all the animals, and snakes, were very happy to great you.

James Hyssong

We attended the after-hours personal tour and the experience was fantastic! The owner was very friendly and knowledgeable. His care for the welfare of all of the rescue animals was immediately evident. The personal interactive experiences with several of the animals is something I HIGHLY recommend. Well worth the price and I recommend this Zoo to anyone who loves animals.

Shelia Webster

The snakes are the first thing you see. I don't like snakes

Candy Boise

What a great place. Friendly people. It was bigger than I expected. Glad to know they were all rescued.

Lilly Micheletti

King Cobra, Black Mamba, Gaboon Vipers, Room full of Rattlesnakes! Snake collection is the crown jewel of this little zoo!

Marc Snyder

Mark was extremely friendly, very knowledgeable in all his animals, and even let us hold a ball python! We got to hear the kookaburra sing it's hilarious song, and watched Mark pet the Bengal Tiger! A must to stop at if traveling through Luray, or visiting the caverns. (The zoo is 2 minutes down the road from Luray Caverns!) Highlight - Alligator tortoise. Don't worry, you can't miss it!

David Britt

A nice little zoo, and doing a good service, as they're a rescue zoo. I was pleased with the variety, and most of the animals seemed comfortable or happy. You can feed the goats, which is fun for the kids, pun intended. Protip: buy your food in the gift shop before you go down.

Tonya Alligood

The staff is very friendly and we enjoyed our visit. We will come back again and again. The owner took time to talk and show us the animals. Very personal experience unlike a big zoo where people don't interact with there guest. Our kids loved it and so did we very nice gift shop with reasonable prices.

Vira Cellee

It was interesting to see the animals and read the stories of how they arrived at the zoo. Gift shop/entrance is small and easily gets crowded. Cute petting area with animals that had us laughing at how they attempted to get us to feed them. The man who sold us tickets had a strange sense of humor and I noticed people trying not to be near him too long. Won't take long to go through the zoo.

Chris Wimmer

Great smaller locally owned animal advocate, that has taken the time to truly care for his passion, animals.. As well as provide a great atmosphere for others to take in the marvel of these animals. We travelled over 1000 miles and stubbled onto this great little zoo. Thank you to the owner for his dedication. Hope to visit next year!

Helen Kasey

My family and I had a great time. Best part was all the snakes and goats.

M McCoy

Was skeptical when we first pulled up, but was pleasantly surprised! Awesome and knowledgeable staff and the animals are well taken care of. Love the fact that the story behind most of the animals are posted. Would definitely visit again!

Simone Reynolds

Its was fun feeding the baby animals, Sadly ★ Star the Bengal tiger

S4V8GE Horch

For being such a small town zoo its allot more to appreciate compared to a city zoo cool stories about the animals that have arrived there and the owner was very nice and a really cool person. I would highly advise visiting this even if you have a short period of time.

Frank Sciortino

Kinda small. But nice place. Especially good if you like snakes.

Aj Boggs

5/5 !!! There are many beautiful and amazing animals here you won't see anywhere else (close by at least) and the owner is very intelligent, fascinating, and clearly knows and loves his animals. Highly recommend!

Michael Morton

It was a small zoo but I was very impressed by the collection of venomous snakes. The owner was very friendly, knowledgeable, and helpful. I would definitely recommend it.

A small cat

We did the Discovery Tour. We signed up a few days out for this tour by calling on the phone. They like to keep it private so whenever someone calls and makes a reservation that person/people get the spot for that day whether it is one person or a group of 15 people. It is best to go in smaller groups so the animals do not get tired out of being petted on or fed he told us though. The tour is given by the owner, Mark. He was very knowledgeable about the animals. He was a great tour guide and the best we have ever had as a guide anywhere whether it was in a zoo, aquarium, etc. We started the tour in the gift shop with the owner telling us about himself and the history of where the zoo used to be located and where it went after that and how it ended up in Luray. He also talked about how he bought it, his history with animals since he was a boy, etc. We loved his personality because he is truly an animal lover and rescues them and knows all of them individually (their personalities) and how to treat them properly, when it is best to feed them, and most importantly making sure he is the dominate species so he can interact with them, etc. The zoo is not huge. It is a rescue zoo after all so just keep that in mind. However, our tour lasted just about 2 hours from the interactions we got to do with some of the animals, him talking to us about the zoo, its animals, and his experience with animals in general, and we asked questions too. We got to see snakes be fed mice and rats pretty early on in the tour. They feed them at night so people on the tour get to see it. I am not a snake lover at all so I didn’t really care for this part. I am not much fan of reptiles in general. Our interactions: feed and pet a wallaby, feed and pet goats, feed a lemur bananas in his cage meaning we actually went in the cage and stood there and the owner put banana slices on a toothpick and you hold it out and the lemur takes it with his hands and eats it then you give him another one, we each fed a Bengal tiger several cuts of beef through his cage using a metal instrument, we got to toss peanuts to monkeys, and we got to interact/pet a porcupine. The porcupine, Snuggles, was all about being petted and loved smelling our shoes. Our guide said because shoes tell a lot and there are a a lot of smells on the shoes. Maybe it smelled our cats as well since our girls rub all over our shoes. I don’t want to give too much else away but I loved each and every one of those interactions with the animals. I was very hesitant with the porcupine but you really just have to be gentle and we pet her under her chin. Make sure you don’t move fast or she will get a little scared and that scared me when that first happened. Next time I think I will be braver and pet her more than once. Each interaction was very special. The only thing I had done before was feed the goats but I love feeding goats. I feed goats at every zoo or farm I go to that you are allowed to feed them. Hahaha. I am a kid at heart. They have a great gift shop that is perfect for kids. We absolutely loved this tour. It was the best way to go to a zoo we think after experiencing this. We would definitely go back again if we are back in the area visiting in the future. The tour was $25 dollars a person which we think is worth much more because it is so amazing and you get to have so many new/interactive experiences that are unique and most of these you can’t get anywhere else. We were told people come back here to do the tour again, that there are several regulars. We hope to be one of these!

Cui yue Wu

I like this place! Kids are very happy feeding goats and sheep

David Fowler

I'm not sure if this is considered a hidden gem. But it is! This is a much more personal experience than a National or bigger zoo. It had a lot of different animals including a tiger, kangaroo, lynx and alligators and crocodiles. It also has a petting zoo with goats, horses and sheep. The monkeys were awesome...very entertaining. The owner will explain a lot and gives valuable information about the animals and seems to make sure everyone has a good experience. We'll definitely visit more often.

Jason Plume

The shows where great an the staff was as well

Benjamin Gordon

This place is not very big, but if you have kids, it's the perfect size for them. Yes the place is in need of a little TLC, but they run based on donations and do it for the love of the animals. There was more opportunity to interact with the animals and some of them, especially the monkeys, really put on a show. They are well-trained and cared for.

Jenna Holderness

Loved the different animals. I actually got the chance to hold a Python. They have a small petting zoo where you can feed goats. Its a small setting but the zookeepers are very sweet to the animals and public. Also they are very knowledgeable. I would love to be able to go back in the future and would recommend this to any one who is an animal lover.

Rachel

The owner is a bit......opinionated the moment you discuss tigers. He immediately suggests people are assuredly brain washed and tigers make great pets. Like Petco should sell them and any novice ought run out and buy one. Oooh okay buddy. There's enough lousy pet owners out there. Do we really need lousy tiger owners added in the mix with a tiger in a dining room sized enclosure?

andrew w e l t m e r

this is a cool place. the owner is very dedicated to saving and protecting all these animals. absolutely loved this place. the owner is very interactive and is very helpful with any question u have. I highly recommend visiting and buy something from the gift shop. it all benefits the rescue

Nancy Weidner

Cute rescue zoo! Owner fed the alligators by hand and a snack to the Bengal Tiger. Amazing! He personally took a Q&A session. He was very informative and his passion for his animals is genuine. Definitely returning!

Andrew Crouthamel

The Luray Zoo certainly has an impressive reptile building, including a Black Mamba. Considering all of the animals are rescues, it makes you wonder what some people are doing with some of these animals as pets. The enclosures are decent, if a bit small for some of the animals, but they have various toys and things to do at least. It would be nice if they had some more thematic enclosures for the animals, like you see at larger zoos.

Julia Park

I have always been someone that does not go to zoos, but when I heard there was a zoo with all rescue animals I had to visit! This zoo is very clean and all of the animals were happy and looked healthy. I really liked how they all had places in their enclosures where they could go and hide to be left alone if they wanted to be. Each enclosure has facts about the species and a lot also have another placard that tells you that specific animals back story. There is also a petting zoo and you can feed the animals with grain that is provided. I had a wonderful experience!

Donna Knight

Love this place and the animals...especially Bella!

Ronald flores

They have a bunch of reptiles. They have a freaking tiger.

Jesse Hurt

This zoo, understandably because it is only a rescue zoo, could use alot of work. The exhibits and facilities could be better maintained and kept, but overall it isn't completely run down. The staff, for the most part, are friendly and knowledgeable. And the animals they do have are just precious. If you're going to go for any reason, let it be the monkeys. They will enteract with you and entertain you to no ends.

Brenda Marie

Th e owl cage had around 10 xead rats in the bottom the tiger wasn't even there th e re was several habitats that were very nasty

E&C Cox

It might be small but there is plenty to see and do. There is a petting part with friendly goats for the kids. This zoo has been here forever and it is a great family friendly stop if you are in the area.

Beth

This is a rescue zoo, so that is great! I did feel as though some of the animals, especially the monkeys and the tiger could benefit from larger, nicer habitats though. Huge collection of snakes, which was quite interesting.

Anna Wilcher

The monkeys were the best!

Leah Claypoole

Animals seem happy and healthy.

Brittany Howell

If you're driving through, you have to stop in! We took the kids and were quite impressed with the selection of animals. They seemed well cared for and were beautiful! The snake show was great!! Very entertaining! we really enjoyed learning about the different snakes and holding one!

Aidan Artley

There were some cool spots, but I felt the reptiles and all indoor creatures were a bit mistreated by just living in bland boxes...I also hoped the tiger would be a bit closer to us, it would be cool to pet a Bengal.

Frederick Besnoska

Very interesting place to visit, the owner is very knowledgeable and compassionate with the animals, highly recommended to vist

Wendy Litteral

This place was amazing. The owls and monkeys they have are adorable! There's also a place to feed goats at the end that's wonderful for young kids. The feeding area also has a sink to wash your hands. :) The tiger is beautiful, and the lemurs, snakes, and the peacock were wonderful. And we cannot say enough about the man who runs the place (I think his name is Mark). He was so kind to our family, answered all our questions, and went out of his way to make the experience super memorable. He let us see a rescued owl - which was amazing! Owls are my favorite animal so of course I was over the moon. :) I'm sure it helped we went at a very quiet time on a very rainy day, but it was a great way to close out our visit to Luray! We very much appreciated the great visit Mark, and we'll be back!

Jaclynn Danielle

My maid of honor booked us the after hours tour as a part of my bachlorette weekend, and it was absolutely fantastic. We thoroughly enjoyed seeing the animals and were even able to interact with some of them as Mark told us about their stories and their personalities. It is obvious that they are well taken care of, and while listening to Mark talk about them, it is clear that he respects each one on an individual basis and knows all of their quirks. It is a smaller place, so don't expect all the fancy bells and whistles a larger zoo would have; however, if you come with the idea in mind that this is a place for these rescued animals to call home, and you are open to learning about them and the history of the place, you will have a pleasant experience. I definitely plan on coming back in the future.