Illinois’ Brookfield Zoo is Free for Kids Before Going Back to School

Bring your babies to see all the babies at Chicago's famous Brookfield Zoo. These will be your last chances to bring them for free before the new school year starts.

If you haven't made the trip to Brookfield Zook, here's a great opportunity to get it in before the school bell rings, and save some money.

For kids age 11 and under, roaming the earth as if it were 20,000 years ago is a free adventure. The Ice Age Giants exhibit is where you'll hear the most "Ooohs" and "Aaahs" while they're standing next to a 15-foot tall Woolly mammoth.

The exhibit features over 30 life-sized animatronic re-creations of the animals that roamed North America during the Ice Age. According to the zoo's website, those animals include:

• Mastodon (18 feet long)
• Wooly mammoth (15 feet tall)
• Giant ground sloths (20 feet long)
• Giant rodent (10 feet long)
• Short-faced bear (11 feet long)
• Giant ape (10 feet tall)
• Saber-toothed cat (5 feet long)
• Giant bird (12 feet tall)

Brookfield Zoo's Kids Free Days

Mondays through Wednesdays, kids' admission is totally free. On these Kids' Free days, the zoo will be open from 9:30 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.

Another big highlight of your visit will be your babies meeting so many animal babies that are currently at Brookfield Zoo, like this red panda below.

Get our free mobile app

On these special kids' free days, adults will still need to pay $25 for their admission, plus $15 for parking. Brookfield Zoo has two different gates you can enter through.

North Gate Main Entrance
8400 31st Street (1st Avenue and 31st Street)

South Gate Main Entrance
3300 Golf Road

For more information, be sure to visit the zoo's website.