North Carolina Zoo

North Carolina Zoo The North Carolina Zoo in Asheboro is the world's largest natural habitat zoo, with over 2,800 acres.
(54000)

Celebrating our Golden Anniversary of 50 wild years! 1947-2024 ✨

World's largest natural habitat zoo. At the North Carolina Zoo, connect with wildlife from two different continents as you explore 500 acres of animals in natural habitats. Walk from Africa’s grasslands to North America’s Arctic coast. Escape to the forests and streams of North Carolina’s beautiful Central Piedmont. Located at the f

oot of the Uwharrie Mountains, the Zoo is just outside the charming southern town of Asheboro. Discover more than 1,700 animals and 52,000 plants along five miles of shaded pathways.

06/08/2026

You might be missing something really cool on your visit without even realizing it! 🤗 Take your time and stop by the marsh in North America to see a variety of carnivorous plants! 🌿

06/07/2026

The red-ruffed lemurs are here to tell you to keep hydrated!💧So, don’t forget to bring your refillable water bottle to the Zoo on your next visit. Water fountains and bottle refill stations are located throughout the Zoo for your convenience. 🌞

06/06/2026

There are SIX different species of antelope on the 40-acre Watani Grasslands habitat! Can you name them all? After this video, you’ll be able to🤩

06/05/2026

What better place to celebrate the Global Pokémon GO 2-day event than in our beautiful Zoo? The North Carolina Zoo is home to MORE than 48 PokéStops and 10 gyms! Save the date and mark your calendars for July 11 & 12, we will have more details coming soon! 🤗

Join us at the Zoo on Saturday, June 13th from 10 a.m. - 2 p.m. for Deaf Culture Awareness Day! We hope to see you there...
06/05/2026

Join us at the Zoo on Saturday, June 13th from 10 a.m. - 2 p.m. for Deaf Culture Awareness Day! We hope to see you there! ☺️

ASL Keeper Talks Schedule (Each talk will be appx. 15 mins):
10:00 a.m. Polar Bear
10:45 a.m. Red Wolf
11:30 a.m. Desert
1:00 p.m. Gorilla
1:45 p.m. Chimp
2:30 p.m. Elephant

Inclusive Features:
- ASL interpreters at select programs
- Interpreted keeper talks
- Visual program guides available

This event is included with zoo admission.

https://www.nczoo.org/events/deaf-awareness-day

06/05/2026

The Giraffe Feeding Deck is a paid attraction where you can feed the giraffe lettuce! 🥬 You do NOT have to pay extra to be able to see the giraffe on habitat!

There are three habitat overlooks to see the giraffe on habitat, with the zebra and ostrich. 🦒🦓🥚

The cost for the giraffe feeding deck experience is $5 per person and the deck is open daily 10 a.m. - 2 p.m. (weather permitting) Keep in mind, the giraffe can also choose when they want to be at the feeding deck, so even if the deck is “open” the giraffe may have other plans and choose not to come up to the deck!

We’ve got two stunning new faces at Desert, please welcome the King Vultures: King & Ham! 😍Male, King, and female, Ham (...
06/04/2026

We’ve got two stunning new faces at Desert, please welcome the King Vultures: King & Ham! 😍

Male, King, and female, Ham (short for Birmingham) came to us most recently from the Philadelphia Zoo. But they have a long history together and have been together all of their lives - almost 50 years!!

Ham hatched on June 23, 1978 at the Birmingham Zoo in Alabama (hence her name). King hatched on May 26, 1979 at the Jackson Zoo in Mississippi. Ham moved to the Jackson Zoo in 1979, where she met King. Together King and Ham have moved to several zoos throughout their lives and now we are so excited to have this iconic duo here at the North Carolina Zoo! 🤩

Except for condors, King vultures are the largest New World Vulture. King vultures are among the largest and most distinctive scavengers in the Americas. Found from southern Mexico to northern Argentina, they are known for their brightly colored, featherless heads. Due to their large size, they often dominate carcass feedings by pushing smaller scavengers out.

🖤❤️💜🧡💛🩵

A WIN FOR ELEPHANT CONSERVATION EFFORTS! ‼️ ⬇️Last month, while on a conservation trip in Côte d’Ivoire our Chief Veteri...
06/03/2026

A WIN FOR ELEPHANT CONSERVATION EFFORTS! ‼️ ⬇️

Last month, while on a conservation trip in Côte d’Ivoire our Chief Veterinarian Dr. Jb Minter successfully darted and anesthetized an adult female elephant for the safe deployment of a GPS collar! 📍🗺️

The movement data collected from this collar will help the government of Côte d’Ivoire better understand how elephants are using the landscape, identify critical habitat and travel corridors, guide land-use planning, and develop strategies to reduce human-elephant conflict in areas where people and elephants share space. Every data point helps inform smarter conservation decisions. 🌍

The North Carolina Zoo has been a part of elephant conservation in Côte d’Ivoire for over 20 years! We are proud to continue to support elephant conservation locally and globally through partnerships, science, and boots-on-the-ground action. Congrats Dr. Minter! 🐘

We are thrilled to be able to announce that we recently had a new chimpanzee join Kendall's troop, meet Akira!Akira rece...
06/02/2026

We are thrilled to be able to announce that we recently had a new chimpanzee join Kendall's troop, meet Akira!

Akira recently came to the North Carolina Zoo from the Detroit Zoo, where she was born in 2011. She is a very socially savvy individual and has quickly become friends with troop leader, Kendall. Youngster Gombe also loves to play with Akira, and she keeps up very well with him! She is a peacemaker in the troop.

Akira is very smart and enjoys training with her keepers. She is very observant, watching her troop members and following quickly after. We can’t wait to get to continue to get to know Akira as she continues to make herself at home!

📸 Thanks to Keeper Jocelyn for these photos of Akira from her first day out on habitat! She is pictured here with Gus.

06/01/2026

Even Anana the polar bear can't resist a roll in the grass on a warm spring day! 🌞 Anana always has a choice on where she wants to spend her time, whether it's in her chilled, temperature-controlled indoor quarters or out on habitat in the sun. As a geriatric bear, Anana sometimes prefers to nap all day behind-the-scenes and that's a-okay! It makes these special moments in the sunshine even more special✨

Address

4401 Zoo Pkwy
Asheboro, NC
27205

Opening Hours

Monday 9am - 5pm
Tuesday 9am - 5pm
Wednesday 9am - 5pm
Thursday 9am - 5pm
Friday 9am - 5pm
Saturday 9am - 5pm
Sunday 9am - 5pm

Telephone

(800) 488-0444

Website

Alerts

Be the first to know and let us send you an email when North Carolina Zoo posts news and promotions. Your email address will not be used for any other purpose, and you can unsubscribe at any time.

Shortcuts

Share

Category