San Diego Zoo comes in 8th place in USA Today’s ‘Best Zoos in the U.S.’ contest

Anna Ashcraft
·2 min read

SAN DIEGO (FOX 5/KUSI) — Voters across the U.S. have chosen their favorite zoos. The San Diego Zoo has made USA Today’s list of the 10 best zoos in the country.

The results are finally in for USA Today’s 10Best Readers’ Choice Awards for the Best Zoos in 2024. Coming in first place this year is Omaha’s Henry Doorly Zoo and Aquarium in Omaha, Nebraska.

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The San Diego Zoo came in 8th place, representing California as the only zoo in the state to make the list, beating out the Oakland Zoo which didn’t make the final list.

The San Diego Zoo, along with its Safari Park, has one of the largest, most diverse zoological collections in the world, the voting page states.

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The San Diego Zoo features an award-winning Elephant Odyssey and Elephant Care Center, and has the largest collection of koalas outside Australia in its Australian Outback exhibit.

In a separate 2024 Readers’ Choice Award, the San Diego Zoo Safari Park in Escondido came in 4th place for the Best Safari Park in the U.S.

Vote: San Diego Zoo in running for USA Today’s Best Zoo in U.S. award

The Walkabout Australia at San Diego Zoo Safari Park was also a nominee for the 2024 Best Zoo Exhibit, but didn’t make the final cut.

Here are the winners of USA Today’s “10 Best Zoos in the U.S.” in 2024:

  1. Omaha’s Henry Doorly Zoo and Aquarium – Omaha, Nebraska

  2. Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden – Cincinnati, Ohio

  3. North Carolina Zoo – Asheboro, North Carolina

  4. Honolulu Zoo – Honolulu, Hawaii

  5. Cheyenne Mountain Zoo – Colorado Springs, Colorado

  6. Brevard Zoo – Melbourne, Florida

  7. Audubon Zoo – New Orleans, Louisiana

  8. San Diego Zoo – San Diego, California

  9. Saint Louis Zoo – St. Louis, Missouri

  10. ZooMontana – Billings, Montana

Out of hundreds of zoos across the country, a USA Today team of experts narrowed down their top picks, and voters were able to vote daily for any of the 20 zoos featured on the list.

You can visit the world’s rarest insect, several zoo babies, a wide variety of animals and so much more when you visit the San Diego Zoo.

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