Columbian Park Zoo
Published on HivePostify by @byzantinecat · Wed Jul 15 2026
Salutations!
On a recent trip to Indianapolis, I made a detour in Lafayette, Indiana. Lafayette is best known for Purdue University but I wanted to see local attractions like the Columbian Park Zoo, the Art Museum of Greater Lafayette, and the Haan Museum of Indiana Art. This post is about Lafayette's local zoo.
Here is a summary of my Indiana posts:
G1: [Fort Wayne Zoo](https://peakd.com/travel/@byzantinecat/fort-wayne-zoo)
G2: [Potawatomi Zoo](https://peakd.com/travel/@byzantinecat/potawatomi-zoo)
G3: Columbian Park Zoo (this post)
G4: [Art Museum of Greater Lafayette](https://peakd.com/travel/@byzantinecat/art-museum-of-greater-lafayette)
G5: [Haan Museum of Indiana Art (Part 1)](https://peakd.com/travel/@byzantinecat/haan-museum-of-indiana-art-part-1)
G6: [Haan Museum of Indiana Art (Part 2)](https://peakd.com/travel/@byzantinecat/haan-museum-of-indiana-art-part-2)
And this is my Indiana backlog:
- Raclin Murphy Museum of Art - Indianapolis Museum of Art, Virginia B. Fairbanks Art & Nature Park, and Holcomb Observatory - Garfield Park Conservatory - Eiteljorg Museum - Kurt Vonnegut Museum - Crispus Attucks Museum
All of the pictures in this post were taken by me except for the map of the zoo. If you want to use any of my photos, please contact me to first obtain permission.
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COLUMBIAN PARK ZOO
20 N 6th Street Lafayette, IN 47901
Website: http://www.columbianparkzoo.org/
Hours:
OPENING DAY 2026: Saturday, April 11 Off-Peak Hours (April 11 - May 22 and August 10 - October 3, 2026): 10 AM - 4:30 PM Peak Season (May 23 - Aug 19): 10 AM - 7 PM Winter Hours: CLOSED (October 4, 2026 - mid-April 2027)
Exhibits close 15 minutes before zoo closing. Apparently, the Education Center closes early as well.
The Butterfly Garden Party Exhibit is open from Memorial Day weekend through Labor Day.
Cost (as of 2026):
Ages (3+): $3 Ages (2 and under): $2
Parking is free.
Estimated Time: 30 - 60 minutes.
I spent 1 hour and 15 minutes and that allowed me to go through most of the zoo two or three times. You can easily finish the tiny zoo in under an hour.
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SUMMARY
Columbian Park Zoo is a tiny local zoo in Lafayette, Indiana. With admission at a mere $3, the zoo is almost free. However, it is a tiny zoo on par with Cosley Zoo in Wheaton, IL.
Like with Cosley Zoo, I rate Columbian Park Zoo at 1 star mainly due to the limited number and variety of animals. Unlike Cosley Zoo, Columbia Park Zoo has some animals outside of North America but Cosley Zoo is better maintained (though more expensive).
The highlights were the butterfly garden, wallaby walkabout, penguins, and baby goats. They have a New Guinea singing dog, which is uncommon. And I got some good pictures of the prairie dogs.
There were a surprising number of animals I was not able to see, despite it already being a tiny zoo. Columbian Park Zoo is currently constructing a new Primate Exhibit scheduled for a 2027 unveiling. However, this meant that the white-handed gibbon and black-handed spider monkey were not accessible, along with the nearby North American porcupine. The North American river otters were off exhibit and I didn't see the laughing kookaburra or llamas either. There are supposed to be a handful of reptiles and amphibians at the Education Center but apparently that closes early.
Columbian Park Zoo is not currently accredited by the AZA. It seems like the zoo is owned, operated, and supported by the city of Lafayette. Over the past 20+ years they have been steadily making improvements and additions. Most recently they renovated the carousel and next up is the Primate Exhibit.
While there are a handful of free keeper chats, unfortunately they are not listed on the website. The website simply says to check the daily schedule posted at the zoo. As a result, it's hard for out-of-towners to really plan a schedule around attending them. By the time I arrived in the afternoon, the penguin and otter chats were already over. If I had known the schedule, I would have tried to visit earlier.
Comparing Columbian Park Zoo to other zoos:
5 stars:
- San Diego Zoo (San Diego, CA) - Brookfield Zoo (Brookfield, IL) - Taipei Zoo (Taipei City, Taiwan)
4 stars:
- San Diego Safari Park (San Diego, CA) - Cincinnati Zoo and Botanical Garden (Cincinnati, OH) - Oklahoma City Zoo (Oklahoma City, OK) - Milwaukee County Zoo (Milwaukee, WI) - Houston Zoo (Houston, TX) - Oakland Zoo (Oakland, CA)
3 stars:
- Lincoln Park Zoo (Chicago, IL, Free) - Zoo Atlanta (Atlanta, GA) - Buttonwood Park Zoo (New Bedford, MA) - Butterflies of Cape Cod (Bourne, MA) - International Crane Foundation (Baraboo, WI) - Henry Vilas Zoo (Madison, WI, Free) - Indianapolis Zoo (Indianapolis, IN) - Sacramento Zoo (Sacramento, CA) - Santa Barbara Zoo (Santa Barbara, CA) - Fort Worth Zoo (Fort Worth, TX) - Fort Wayne Zoo (Fort Wayne, IN) - Zoo Knoxville (Knoxville, TN) - ZooTampa (Tampa, FL) - Busch Gardens (Tampa, FL) - Los Angeles Zoo & Botanical Gardens (Los Angeles, CA) - Detroit Zoo (Detroit, MI) - Virginia Zoological Park (Norfolk, VA) - Virginia Living Museum (Newport News, VA) - Minnesota Zoo (Apple Valley, MN)
2 stars:
- Audubon Insectarium (New Orleans, LA) - Audubon Zoo (New Orleans, LA) - Sarasota Jungle Gardens (Sarasota, FL) - Save Our Seabirds Wild Bird Learning Center (Sarasota, FL, Free) - San Francisco Zoo & Gardens (San Francisco, CA) - Six Flags Discovery Kingdom (Vallejo, CA) - Franklin Park Zoo (Boston, MA) - Capron Park Zoo (Attleboro, MA) - Taylor-Bray Farm (Yarmouth Port, MA, Free) - Racine Zoo (Racine, WI) - Ochsner Park Zoo (Baraboo, WI, Free) - John Ball Zoo (Grand Rapids, MI) - Potter Park Zoo (Lansing, MI) - Antalya Zoo (Antalya, Turkey) - Marine Mammal Center (Sausalito, CA, Free) - Santa Ana Zoo (Santa Ana, CA) - San Antonio Zoological Society (San Antonio, TX) - Cameron Park Zoo (Waco, TX) - Dallas Zoo (Dallas, TX) - Caldwell Zoo (Tyler, TX) - Peoria Zoo (Peoria, IL) - Miller Park Zoo (Bloomington, IL) - Scovill Zoo (Decatur, IL) - Potawatomi Zoo (South Bend, IN) - Como Park Zoo & Conservatory (St. Paul, MN, Free)
1 star:
- Cosley Zoo (Wheaton, IL) - Stone Zoo (Stoneham, MA) - Timbavati Wildlife Park (Wisconsin Dells, WI) - Binder Park Zoo (Battle Creek, MI) - Happy Hollow Park & Zoo (San Jose, CA) - CuriOdyssey (San Mateo, CA) - Columbian Park Zoo (Lafayette, IN)
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AMERICAS
Black-Tailed Prairie Dog Cynomus ludovicianus
Dramatic prairie dog
Bald Eagle Haliaeetus leucocephalus
Barn Owl Tyto alba
Tags: #travel#travelblog#wanderlust#lafayette#indiana#zoo#animals#plants#cute#giftshop