1 week Ago
Visitors to the San Diego Zoo and San Diego Zoo Safari Park this summer will find shortened operating hours at both facilities.Safari Park is closing at 4 p.m.
, three hours earlier than last summer but also will open an hour earlier. The zoo’s summer start time remains the same but it will close at 8 p.m.
, an hour earlier than last year.Even with the shortened day, the zoo is continuing its popular Nighttime Zoo program, when musical performers, dancers and other acts entertain visitors into the evening hours.The new hours, which were not publicly announced by the zoo, have prompted lively discussions on social media.
One annual passholder said she learned of the changes from a Safari Park volunteer. Many on a Facebook fan page have expressed disappointment. A zoo spokesperson said the changes have been in the works since August.
The implementation of the new schedule comes at a time when the nonprofit San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance is operating under the direction of an interim CEO while its Board of Directors is searching for a new top executive and someone to run the 1,800-acre Safari Park. Behind the scenes, management and workers are in contract negotiations, with union employees recently rejecting a proposed settlement recommended by a mediator.Officials said “climate” was a factor in the schedule changes.
They hope the earlier start time at Safari Park will allow more people to take advantage of cooler morning hours. The park plans to open restaurants, trams and excursions earlier to accommodate visitors.“Summer hours may vary each year depending on historical data, visitation trends, and guest feedback,” the alliance said in a statement.
“The decision was made to open and close earlier this year when the climate is cooler— not unlike other zoos in the region.”At San Diego Zoo Safari Park, a group of photographers take photos of the various bird species at the Mombasa Lagoon. (Charlie Neuman / For The San Diego Union-Tribune) Most Safari Park guests enter before noon during summer months, and “on days we have opened earlier, we’ve received positive feedback,” the statement said.
“We encourage locals and visitors alike to take advantage of the morning hours at the Safari Park when other attractions in San Diego may not be open.”According to the National Weather Service, communities near Safari Park in San Pasqual Valley have seen an upward trend in high temperatures, with many record hot days logged in Escondido over the past five to 10 years.“It very regularly breaks the 100-degree threshold there, even in June,” said National Weather Service meteorologist Chandler Price.
The record high in Escondido for June was 106 degrees in 2016, for July it was 112 degrees in 2018, and for August it was 109 in 1994, according to National Weather Service records.Visitors can check interactive calendars on the zoo and Safari Park websites and plug in dates to see that day’s operating hours.According to its website, Safari Park will be open from 9 a.
m. to 5 p.m.
through June 13. From June 14 through Aug. 31, it will be open from 8 a.
m. to 4 p.m.
At the San Diego Zoo, gates will open from 9 a.m. to 8 p.
m. from May 23 through Aug. 10, except for June 21, when the zoo will close at 5 p.
m. to accommodate its annual black-tie gala fundraiser, Rendezvous In The Zoo, or the RITZ.Visitors at San Diego Zoo Safari Park’s Condor Ridge area walk on an elevated section of the Condor Trail.
In the distance at right is the Park’s African Plains area. (Charlie Neuman / For The San Diego Union-Tribune)Some zoogoers were unhappy to hear of the new schedules.Rancho Peñasquitos resident Lori Garcia, a longtime annual passholder, said her family typically likes to catch the last tram of the day at Safari Park when it is a little cooler and the animals are more active.
Garcia, 61, said she’s had memberships since she was a kid.“The hours being cut, that’s kind of a bummer,” Garcia said. “If it is a business decision, if it is money, who knows? If that’s what they have to do, then that’s what they have to do.
”News of the changes prompted several people to post comments on a Facebook fan page on the zoo and Safari Park that boasts more than 3,200 followers.“What a bummer. I guess people with out of town guests and 9-5, M-F jobs will have to plan accordingly even if they go on the weekend,” one person wrote.
Commented another: “It really sucks because it’s too hot to go during the day in the summer. At least the evenings cool off a bit.”Cynthia Bell McGillins, an Escondido resident who has been a zoo member since 2022, shared a letter on Facebook that she said she sent to zoo officials to protest what she called a “drastic reduction” in hours.
She encouraged others to send similar letters.“This change effectively excludes working families like mine from enjoying one of San Diego’s treasured attractions,” she wrote. “For those of us who work traditional business hours, it will now be virtually impossible to visit the park on weekdays.
By the time we could arrive, the gates would already be closed.”She also noted that park visitors will miss the “magical golden hour when animals are often most active” and also the “special atmosphere of summer evenings.”In an interview, McGillis said she and her husband often take their two young children to enjoy the playgrounds at the park after work, and that they’ll have to visit on weekends instead.
“That was a really big draw for us,” she said.Patrick Smith, senior horticulturalist at the San Diego Zoo, left, gives then-CEO Paul Baribault, right, a tour of the gardens in the Africa Rocks area of the zoo in 2019.The summer changes come at a tumultuous time for San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance, the nonprofit that runs both facilities.
In recent weeks, Paul Baribault abruptly left as president/CEO of the organization and Lisa Peterson, general manager of Safari Park, announced she was taking a job heading the Houston Zoo in June.The organization also is grappling with labor issues. It has not yet reached a new union contract with Teamsters Local 481, which represents a number of its workers.
Zoo officials said in a statement that the offer included “meaningful wage increases with a significant initial raise retroactive to January 1, 2025, along with other enhanced benefits.” According to the alliance, the offer included average increases over a four-year span ranging from 23% to 26%, an “enhanced” retirement package and additional benefits such as holiday premium pay.A spokesperson said there are 2,072 union team members at the alliance.
More than 2,100 signatures have been left on a petition on change.org that discusses the contract dispute and calls for workers to be paid “a living wage.” A union spokesperson could not be reached.
Shawn Dixon, the acting CEO, said through a spokesperson that he was not available for an interview.“We remain steadfast in our commitment to returning to the bargaining table to work toward a fair and sustainable agreement,” the company said. “SDZWA values our employees’ dedication to our mission and goals, and we are hopeful to achieve a resolution that supports their contributions while ensuring the long-term success of SDZWA.
”.
