The Wilds

Absolutely amazing! We got the membership and we have been twice so far and each time it is different. The animals move around a lot and it’s cool how close they get. The baby animals are so cute!

On a road trip from New Jersey to Michigan for my sister’s wedding, I decided to make our first stop The Wilds in Cumberland, Ohio. I am a huge rhinoceros fan, and the promise to feed a rhino from my hand prompted me to pay the $ 125/​pp for their Wildside tour.
It was a dreary, cold day towards the end of September. The sky was threatening to open up at any moment. Still, we climbed into the back of the pickup truck (with a covering so if it did rain we would be somewhat protected) and headed off on our adventure. There were 6 of us, and that was pretty tight. I can’t imagine having 8 people.
As we went through our first remote operated gate, a fellow traveler mentioned the resemblance to Jurassic Park. So true. It’s awesome.
We saw a few animals before the rain started. It wasn’t ever heavy rain (at least not until we headed back at the end), but enough to make us all damp. And apparently it was enough to make the rhinos not want to play.
Disappointingly, the rhinos were snoozing in the field when we approached. And, rather than visit the group of 4 who weren’t snoozing, we went on to the giraffe exhibit. I wasn’t able to feed a rhino.
The tour is amazing and they really do off road you right up to the animals. I pet a lot of animals (some who I shouldn’t have pet and was warned not to) I would never have the opportunity to pet in real life. But the whole reason I went was to pet a rhino.
So I did leave slightly disappointed. (and with over $ 100 in rhino merchandise)

I had originally purchased $ 30 tickets for an «Open-​Air Safari» bus tour with 20+ other people, but my husband was generous and offered to pay $ 125 per person for the pickup-​truck «Wildside Tour» for the two of us. We ended up being the only two people in the back of the pickup truck, and we got a private tour with a knowledgeable and friendly driver. For two hours, we rode off the road throughout the large park to get closer to the animals, such as buffalo, deer, ostriches, camels, and zebras, and to feed a giraffe and rhinoceros. The animals looked happy to be walking across acres of land.
In addition to the Wildside Tour, we also participated in a short, up-​close animal encounter program for $ 5. We saw animals such as a hedgehog and sloth.
I really enjoyed this zoo, and I have recommended it to my family and friends.
JANUARY 2016 UPDATE: I am not sure why this page currently says, «The Wilds is temporarily closed. Scheduled to reopen on May 1, 2016.» This information is NOT true. I visited The Wilds on January 2, and it was very much open for winter tours. I was able to use a 50% off coupon on the 2.5-hour Wildside Tour, which would normally cost $ 125 per person. Because the weather was cold, we rode around the land in a heated van. We drove off the road to get close with animals such as buffalo and camels. We saw horses, deer, and takin from a small distance. We got out of the van to walk to see animals such as cheetahs, African painted dogs, and a dhole. Animals that do not like winter weather, such as giraffes and rhinos, are kept indoors in buildings where you can feed and pet them.

We decided to do a daytrip to The Wilds in Cumberland Ohio. Its a Jack Hannah African wildlife safari place. Located about 45 min east of Columbus (3 hrs from Cincinnati), its far enough were you need to make a day out of it to go.
The drive wasn’t bad and the directions are pretty simple. I would recommend going super early so you are on the first few open air safaris. I read that online. They said once it gets hot in the day, the animals aren’t active and hit in the shade. Since this land is all conservation land, they don’t guarantee you see them all. The workers do not get the animals to come to you. They just let them do their thing and don’t bother them; which I love. It’s really being in their natural habitat. Besides getting there early, I also recommend renting binoculars ($ 5) and seeing the animal encounter ($ 5.) The binoculars came in clutch for animals that were farther away like the bison, zebra, and cheetahs.
The land is huge and they have lots to do there including zip lining. We didn’t do that but we did do the animal encounter. It lasted about ½ hr and for $ 5 was a steal. The workers brought out smaller animals that they let us pet while talking about the animals. It was a really cool experience. And I got to pet one of my favorite animals– the anteater!
After that we boarded the open air safari bus ($ 30) for a 2 ½ hr ride around the super large property. We saw so many cool exotic animals. It was amazing and something we will definitely do again! Being so close to these animals without anything separating us really was fantastic. And going from section to section in these big jurassic park type gates was pretty cool too.

Amazing place! I recommend taking an earlier tour (before noon) or one of the later tours (the sunset safari)…best times to see the animals, I think. My supervisor had taken some of my coworkers and I on a day trip out here and we got to do a wildside tour. That tour is awesome, it’s way different from the open-​air safari and the safari transport tour. On the wildside you get so much closer to the animals — the tour guide will drive right up alongside the animals, and you may even get to feed them :)

We went on a tour on the open air bus and it was awesome. Definitely recommend this over the closed-​in bus so you can see the animals better and get some up close pictures. Some of the animals were a little far away that day and we didn’t get a good look at them, but that’s to be expected. Overall a great experience and great learning experience as well. Our tour guide Lee was awesome. fun and very knowledgable! The Wilds does a lot for the preservation of these animals so stop on over and give them your support!

Had an amazing visit at The Wilds yesterday! The only disappointing part was some of the animals you couldn’t see too well, but that’s what you get when you go see them in their natural habitat instead of a zoo! Our tour guide, Lee was absolutely outstanding! He made the tour very interesting and fun! It’s amazing how much this organization does for the environment. Wi definitely be back to go zip lining!

Great time even during a down pour! Our tour guide Lynn was fantastic. Was courteous and friendly. She had so much knowledge of the animals and park. We saw ALL the animals and some came up to the bus! Lots of care and attention for safety for all involved.
We paid 210 for 7 ppl. Scheduled it 18 hours before the day we choose. Used that towards a discount for a membership so we can go again! That is how much we loved it. I think going in afternoon and with some rain helped make the animals be more comfortable being out. Great and fun!

Very lovely place to see lots of animals, many close to extinction. Open air safari which was lots of fun & had much information about the occupants of the park. We really enjoyed the wild horses & camels. The fresh air and the beautiful grounds.
Really enjoyable for all ages & accessibility for the handicapped. Great job Jack Hanna!

This review is specifically for the horseback safari. My mate and I went on a Saturday and the other people signed up for the ride did not show so it was pretty much a private tour, just us two and one guide. The horses were great, lively enough that we actually had to steer them and guide them but not so lively we had a hard time of it. The trail was gorgeous, obviously we would love to ride closer to the animals but that would not be safe for the horses or safari animals. They take you alone the ridge overlooking the park and the view is spectacular! We could see the camels and bison and even one of those weird bear/​pig/​yak thinks. A Takin, I think they are called. Then you cross the road and ride through their prairie restoration area. Our guide was very knowledgeable about the flora and fauna and we learned alot. This tour would be great for birdwatchers! We only wish it could have been longer, it was so peaceful and enjoyable just ambling along the prairie on a horse! This was our first visit to the wilds and we liked it enough to plan to spend the money on a yurt in the future and make a weekend of it. Oh, only con, those soft pretzels in the café were terrible! Cmon, soft pretzels really only need to be two things to not suck, warm and soft. Get it together Overlook Café!

My family and I had the pleasure of visiting The Wilds today. It was the best experience. We had so much fun together in the fresh air surrounded by the beautiful green Ohio hills and seeing all of the wild animals. Our tour guide, Colton, was so great! He was very intelligent and knowledgeable about all the wildlife and environment. He knew the neatest things about the plant life, birds and animals. Plus he was very funny. I think he really made our day even better. Big thanks to him and all the kind people working at the wilds today. I hope to go horseback riding there soon.

We got here by the skin of our teeth to make the first tour of the day in the open air vehicle. Thankfully, it was all adults so we could enjoy the tour without the possibility of distractions from children. We got to see almost every single animal they have on their brochure and the ones we didn’t see were just variations of ones we already saw so it wasn’t a big deal. I don’t know how anyone does the enclosed one because it seems like it would take away from the experience. Part of the fun is making sure not to get splashed by the peeing camel 6″ from your arm or it’s friend not spitting a nice wad of cud on you if they feel threatened or wondering if someone is going to peeve off the rhino and you’re part of the first group to ever get charged at. Pay the extra $ 10 and go for open air.
The animals were beautiful and the land is picturesque. They do some truly wonderful work there.
The cons:
Our guide, C was the weak link for this tour. He was a young, snarky cuss who seemed seriously indifferent and bored as he regurgitated facts the first 15 minutes of the tour. Note to others since he didn’t bother to mention, if you’re sitting on the «window» seat, make sure your elbows are in as you go through gates as there is barely enough room for the vehicle to go through and appendages will suffer if you’re not paying attention. Might want to add that after the «don’t touch the animals» chant. As the day went on, he moved from being indifferent to telling lame jokes and puns and didn’t know when to let it end. (Much like most of SNL’s skits the past 6 years) If he said «talking ’bout Takin» one more time, I was going to twitch. 23x is enough. Then he became more interested in showing off for his co-​workers on other tours by giving them catchy phrases or taking his hands off the wheel, at which point our vehicle lurched to the right… toward the pond. He said everything was fine but tell that to the gasping crowd of 17. Don’t get me wrong, he knew his facts and I learned a lot but the presentation left a lot to be desired with this guy.
Bring your own food if you’ve got a family because they are EXPENSIVE at the food pit stops. $ 3.25 for a meager bottle of water when each of you could have a bottle for that cost if you bring in your own. You can’t drink ON the bus but you can drink at the two pit stops they make at the parakeet enclosure (porta pots at this stop) and the mid size carnivore area (running toilets) that has basically a full service restaurant. This would be the place to break out your fiber bars or something relatively quick. This is also the place where C told us there were ticks all over him and picked two off of his legs. So, stay on the trails and/​or wear long pants because they don’t tell you about ticks on the tour.
I know they say all of their «rounding up» of your totals goes toward conservation but might I suggest it goes into the vehicle maintenance as well? The seat in front of us was duct taped together, another seat front had been ripped open and the stuffing was falling out and when the shuttle bus came to pick us up, I looked at my husband and said «remember the beginning of Nightmare on Elm St Part 2?» It was a rickety old bus and every bump was almost sure to knock off the fan up front that was barely hanging on. For $ 30 pp, it would be nice to sit on decent seats and not have stuffing bouncing out of an open tear.
Despite those things, I’d recommend it at least once. Go early in the day if you’re going in the summer so you can avoid the heat and humidity since you’re exposed to the open air the whole time. Bring sunscreen and enjoy nature’s beauty!

We planned our visit to the Wilds the night before, so it could have been better but now we know for next time. We loved it!
We did the open air safari and had a great time seeing all of the animals. The guide was funny and informative. He always made sure we were able to get the pictures we wanted. The Wildside tour (the trucks) seemed to get much closer to the animals so it is probably worth the money if you can spend it.
We did the overlook zipline and enjoyed it. Our guides were great! Again, we wished we had spent more money and did the longer zipline tour but we had time constraints. Keep in mind that those pictures you see while waiting are ONLY for the long tour so we didn’t get any action shots.
I was nervous about getting there, but we didn’t have a problem. They tell you to take 146 all the way around which was nice because there were signs, but it definitely added a good bit of time to the drive. I would recommend taking 340 to 216 (International Rd).
Highly recommend!

This was a highlight of our vacation. Simply driving out to the location got us excited for what we were about to see. The land is massive and very remote.
We took an open air safari. I would definitely recommend this over the enclosed tour. The shuttle you take to and from the parking lot is enclosed and you can just imagine how much less fun a tour like would be.
It was incredible seeing all the animals in all the open space and sometimes right next to you by the bus. One feels much better about their living conditions in the Wilds compared to those at the zoo. We felt like we learned a lot about the animals and the research the Wilds does. The tour stops at each new animal you come across and the guide explains a bit about the animals. There is plenty of opportunity to take photos.
Our guide Erica was great and very funny. She had a dry and self deprecating kind of humor that made an already great experience more fun.

The Wilds is a great place to visit! Sure, it can be a bit pricey, but their focus is on conservation, and you get a great experience, so if it’s something you’re interested in, check it out!
The location feels very out there — I love that there is a restaurant/​shop on the way that warns you it is the «last stop before The Wilds!» It’s true. It’s pretty much just The Wilds out there. The scenery is gorgeous — beautiful views from the hills as you drive along. There is very good signage to help with way-​finding too.
Once you arrive, it’s $ 5 to park at the bottom of a hill. The butterfly habitat area is across the street from parking, and there is a small, basic picnic area underneath some trees near the lot. A shuttle will take you from the parking lot up to the Johnson Center.
There’s a variety of tours from which to choose — the selection is also available online if you want to get a jump start on decision-​making before you arrive, plus you can reserve your tickets in advance that way too. On my most recent visit, we took an Open-​Air Safari, but I have also been on the Safari Transport Pass, and both were great. They have also added an increasing number of «adventure» type options, like a zipline and a horseback safari.
Whichever way you go, there is a lot to see! The pasture area is huge, and different sections contain different animals. When you arrive, you get a list of what you can see, which includes two types of rhinos, giraffes, zebras, camels, wild horses, and more. It can be handy to bring binoculars for when the animals are further off, but some will run right up to the trucks, like an ostrich who likes to peck at the side and the wild horses and onagers (type of wild donkey) who will park it right in front of the trucks.
There are two stops along the way, including the Lake Trail, where you can feed budgies for $ 1 and catfish for 25 cents a cup. The budgies are not shy and will gather at your feet as you feed them — very funny. There are also gorals and red-​crowned cranes at this stop, and there are port-​a-​potties available here.
The second stop is the Mid-​Sized Carnivore Center, where you can see (and hear!) cheetahs, the African Painted Dogs (whose coats are so pretty!), and the dhole, an Asian wild dog. There are standard restrooms (aka flush toilets) and a snack bar available here too. There is no potable water at the Wilds, so you’ll want to either bring it or be prepared to buy some.
The tour guides will fill you in on the creation and history of the wilds and give facts and conservation info on the various animals as you go. Depending on which tour you take, it lasts about 2 to 2.5 hours, and then the tour ends at the gift shop/​café.
This is well worth a visit!

Simply said: do the wild side tour. It was simply an amazing experience. Awesome!
Never in my life did I think I would get the chance to touch, let alone feed, a rhinoceros. At the Wilds, I was able to do both. That experience alone was enough to justify the price of admission. But that wasn’t the end, by a long shot.
The highly knowledgeable tour guide is someone who works directly with the animals daily and tells some amazing stories about the animals and their personalities. On this tour, you get to drive up as close to the animals as they are comfortable approaching — which is usually close enough that you can smell their breaths.
I particularly enjoyed the opportunity to feed the rhinoceros and giraffes, seeing the hierarchical feeding of the African wild dogs, laughing at the ostriches trying to eat our vehicle, and seeing the majestic scimitar-​horned oryx from only a few feet away while they feed on the Ohio grassland.
My wife and I also stayed the evening at the Wilds’ Nomad Ridge. It is a beautiful place to watch these endangered animals live on hundreds of acres of land, and to escape the city, if even for just an evening.
It’s an amazing experience that you cannot enjoy many places. We are lucky to have place like the Wilds right here in Ohio.

I took my 85-​yr-​old mom and her 78-​yr-​old cousin to The Wilds yesterday, and we really had a great time.
Some logistics that aren’t spelled out on their website:
1. You pay $ 5 to park your car in a gravel lot, and just like at an airport, a shuttle bus sees you and comes right to your car to pick you up and take you up to the ticket window and restrooms.
2. The online ticketing is recommended if you’re 100% sure you can go when you plan and arrive when you plan. Even though the website showed very open availability, when we got there, we had to purchase tickets for 1.5 hours later. But, with two elderly women, I didn’t want to chance paying $ 90 ahead of time and one of them be unable to go at the last minute.
3. There really is minimal walking for those who question going because of mobility issues. There are opportunities to walk if you choose to, and at one location there was even a staff member waiting with wheelchairs – my mom took advantage of that so she could take a potty break and buy a small snack. At that stop, you’ll only see two of the three carnivores (two types of wild dogs and cheetah) if you don’t walk.
4. If it is too cold (yesterday it was about 68), some animals will not be out. For example, the giraffe were kept in the barn.
5. All the busses are a little challenging to get on and off, but even my mom was ok doing it, as was a young 20-​something man with his leg in a brace and using crutches.
6. If you have AAA, you can get a $ 5 discount at the admission booth. Not sure if you can do that online, however.
7. I’m not positive, but I think there’s more than one entrance/​exit. We really struggled finding our way back to I-​77 when we left. If you make a map, make it for both there and back. There are next to no signs except immediately around the entrances/​exits.
Now, as for the location itself, it is quite remarkable. There are 10,000 acres which were donated by the power company AEP, now reclaimed after years of strip mining. The Wilds is constantly working to get it back to native plants and conserving the habitat for many native species as well as the exotics that are there.
I was amazed how close we got to most of the animals. Both type of rhino came right up to the bus, as did the zebra. We saw three babies – zebra, rhino, and camel.
I would have given this adventure 5 stars if it hadn’t been for my experience prior to the trip. I called multiple times the day before, trying to get information to be assured that my elderly mother would do ok. The calls were answered with automated greetings. The first call, I left a voice mail after the recording promised someone would return the call that day. When that didn’t happen, I called several more times. No one ever answered the phone nor returned my call. Sorry, but that isn’t good.

This is a hidden gem in the middle of nowhere, Ohio. If you are traveling to Pittsburgh, Cleveland, Columbus or Cincinnati this is well worth driving to for a day trip, and you can make the trip in a few hours from all these places.
Here is some tips/​thoughts:
— There are a lot of animals spread out over thousands of acres. You will likely see zebras, giraffes, cheetahs and camels. You will also see a lot of less interesting animals, a lot that look like deer, antelope and wild dogs.
— What you will not see is elephants, lions, tigers, pandas, monkeys, gorillas, kangaroos, koala bears, polar bears, or dinosaurs.
— There were baby animals when we visited (August 5^th), including a baby rhino, zebra and camel.
— They charge $ 5 for parking. Which is kind of stupid, considering you are in the middle of nowhere, and there is plenty of area to park your car. This isn’t New York or Chicago. It’s Cumberland, and I know its just $ 5, but come on.
— Bring Binoculars if you own them. If you don’t you can rent them for $ 5.50.
— You will want to bring your camera and camcorder if you own them. The animals do get close to the vehicles and provide great photo opportunities.
— Pack a lunch or stop and pick up some Subway on your way. They have three areas that offer food at The Wilds, but the selection is generally limited to Hot Dogs ($ 3) and potato chips ($ 1.25). There are plenty of picnic tables to enjoy your lunch. Also bring some bottles of water along for the safari.
— Restrooms were plentiful and clean.
— Their current rates are listed on their website. But know this: They DO NOT OFFER discounts to zoo members of other zoos with one exception– the enclosed bus nobody wants to ride on. I am a premium member of the Cincinnati Zoo, and on their website it says the Wilds is a reciprocal member which offers 50% off admission. When arriving to the Wilds they said nope, you pay full price for the Open-​Air Safari, which is easily the most popular tour. They even charged full price for my two year old, which is kind of ridiculous. They offer 50% discount only on the «Wild Animal Encounter», which is an enclosed bus that does a shorter tour of the park, for those people who don’t want to get close to the animals or like fresh air.
— They did give us $ 5 off each of our tickets for being AAA members.
— Speaking of my 2 year old, we were really concerned how he would handle being on a 2 ½ hour tour. He is pretty restless and likes to move around. But the open air safari tour was great. There were two stops where we got off and he was able to run around and have fun. The breaks were spaced out nicely, and there was enough animals running by the bus to keep his attention. He starting getting impatient at around the two hour mark, which wasn’t bad, it just made the last 30 minutes a little unpleasant. But if you have a kid, and he likes animals, don’t hesitate to book the open air safari tour.
— Bring quarters with you on the tour. They stop at a beautiful lake where you may see some animals wading in the water and rare Trumpeter Swans. But also there is fish food you can buy for 25 cents. The catfish there go bonkers over the food, and our little boy just loved it. The swans eat the food too.
— The staff was super friendly, helpful and knowledgeable.
So I recommend taking this tour to experience something unique to Ohio, which provides great memories. Its better than visiting any zoo, because here you get too see the animals in a more natural, open habitat. It’s expensive, but worth it.

This trip was phenomenal! My husband planned this trip for my birthday weekend, and I was quite skeptical that it would be worth it, since we have been on an African safari (as bad as that sounds, that was my honest opinion)… but I was very wrong! The first day we did on open air tour, where we were driven around in a raised roof bus. We learned about the animals, preservation, and conservation.
We spent the night in one of the Yurts, which is a glorified tent… the hot water supply is limited, so be the first to take a shower — first of anyone else staying there; dinner and breakfast is provided — dinner began with a vegetable and dip tray, both meals you have three main dishes to choose from, and dinner had 3 dessert choices. Breakfast’s service was great compared to the previous night’s dinner. However, I think they were short staffed.
WiFi is limited to the concierge yurt.
The Wild Side Tour was great. We were able to see the animals up close, very similarly to our African tours, and we were actually able to pet 3 of them! This isn’t typical, as you may not see all of them, but we were quite lucky.
This is excellent as you get to see animals from Africa, Asia, Middle East, and such.
Highly recommended!

This place is amazing!!! There really isnt anything i could say that someone hasnt said by now. My two cents are that if you havent been… GO!!! For goodness sake this place is by the far the coolest thing Ive done… EVER!
Not to mention this safari (i went on the open air safari + 20% off coupon from the clipper mag) was better then even the one in Disney; it was made to be the most real version outside of a real safari in Africa.
You not only get to see wonderfully wild animals that love to come up to the bus but the beautiful wild Ohio… clearly not so impressive without seeing it in person. They also offer sleep overs and private tours. I can honestly say this was the BEST birthday gift Ive even given to myself! Well worth the hour drive into no man’s land to get there!
No words can describe how amazing this place is! NONE!