The Indianapolis Zoo will be opening its newly renovated doors to the public for the first time this Saturday, May 27.
Now, you’ll enter the colorful White River Gardens as soon as you walk through the gates, with greetings from “Wild Encounter” animal ambassadors like Colt the blue macaw, Chris the 35-year-old tortoise, and a sleepy sloth.
After that, you can choose to stroll through the Hilbert Conservatory and wait for butterflies to land on you or walk into the next area, where you’ll have plenty of opportunities to learn about the zoo’s conservation efforts + become immersed in a 360-degree video series.
Field trippers (and chaperones) will probably notice a lot less crowding as kids wait to go through the gate, thanks to a much larger main area.
We were invited to a sneak preview of the updated entry, so if you want to see what we’re talking about, check out our Instagram reel .