Updated for September 2026
The Best Zoos in Santa Barbara
How this list is ordered: by how complete our listing is — how much we hold on opening hours, ticket prices, accreditation, photographs, animals and facilities. It is a measure of our own coverage, not a judgement of the venue. We hold no visitor scores or conservation assessments, so “best” here means every zoo in Santa Barbara that qualifies for the list, fullest entry first.
Listed alphabetically
-
Animal feeding experienceRides and attractionsGuided tour
Santa Barbara Zoological Gardens
Zoo in Santa Barbara
It occupies the former Child Estate and holds more than 500 animals, capybara and California condors among them; one of its giraffes had a bent neck. A 2 ft narrow gauge train runs on the grounds.
-
Animal feeding experienceParking
OstrichLand USA
Zoo in Solvang
More than 100 ostriches and emus are kept and can be fed by the public, with the owner Trudy Brown putting the figures at around 80 ostriches and 20 emus. The location was chosen because the landscape resembles African and Australian habitat. Visitors are told to grip the bowl of alfalfa pellets firmly, keep their fingers clear and not touch the birds.
More in Santa Barbara
View all Santa Barbara listingsZoos nearby
Our ranking methodology
This is not a ranking. The 2 venues above are listed alphabetically by name, the same order used throughout this site. We do not collect visitor reviews, star ratings, ticket-sales figures or a conservation-impact score, so none of those exist here to rank by — “best” in this page’s title means every venue that qualifies for this list, not first-to-last by quality. If we ever add a data source robust enough to support an honest ranking, this note and the order above will change together.