Cool temps bring a hot deal to the Knoxville Zoo

Amy Smotherman Burgess/news sentinel Red pandas like Sebastian prefer cooler temperatures and may be more active in the winter.

Amy Smotherman Burgess/news sentinel Red pandas like Sebastian prefer cooler temperatures and may be more active in the winter.

Bundle up if you want a real price break at the Knoxville Zoo. And through January you can recycle at the park and get an even better admission deal.

The zoo is holding its annual half-price Penguin Discount Days now-Feb. 28. And although the recent East Tennessee weather is the type that makes most of us want to stay indoors, temperatures in Knoxville area likely to be nearly spring-like at some point before March begins.

Half-price at the zoo means that adult tickets are $8.50. Half-price tickets for children ages 2 to 12 are $6.50. Children under 2 get in free. Parking remains $5 a vehicle.

But through the end of January, zoo visitors can get an even better rate. All they have to do is toss their old telephone book in the car.

Visitors who bring their outdated phone books to the zoo for recycling get one free admission ticket with the purchase of another. That means zoo visitors can get two admissions for the half-price cost of one regular ticket. This deal requires a phone book and is done through a partnership between the park and AT&T Real Yellow Pages.

The zoo is often a visitor destination in warmer temperatures and some species are moved indoors when temperatures drop below 40. But several of the park’s species are more active in winter temperatures. Red pandas and otters are among those that don’t mind winter. Other species, including penguins, chimpanzees, gorillas and elephants, have indoor exhibit areas.

The zoo also has an indoor exhibit/play area geared to preschoolers and their families called “Wee Play Zoo.” Located in the Pilot Special Exhibit Building, “WeeSpecial Play” is a child-scale size exhibit where youngsters can pretend to be the people who care for the park’s exotic animals.

The zoo is located off Interstate 40’s Exit 392. Hours currently are 10 a.m.-4:30 p.m.; ticket sales and admission stop an hour before closing.

© 2010, Knoxville News Sentinel Co.
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