St. Augustine Alligator Farm

On our way to North Carolina we stopped off for a visit at the St. Augustine Alligator Farm.

Established in 1893, this Zoological park is home to rare and exotic birds, mammals and reptiles.  They have 23 species of Crocodilians on display as well as a Komodo Dragon, King Cobra and a 21 foot Python!

We really enjoyed how low key the park was.  Even though it was in the middle of tourist season, once we entered the park you really didn't notice the crowds. The park is big and even the littlest child (strapped to her stroller) was able to see all of the displays easily.

An exhibit that we didn't anticipate enjoying as much as we did was the Alligator Swamp & Wading Bird Rookery.  The birds were everywhere (and yes, you could smell it) but seeing the nests, babies and assortment of incredible birds at eye level was amazing. We loved it.

We were able to identify and see the:

Roseate Spoonbill

Snowy Egret

Tri-colored Heron

Wood Stork

little Blue Heron

White Ibis

Black-Crowned Night Heron

The kids were also excited to see the Tortoises and were especially thrilled to see Red Foot Tortoises and Galapagos Tortoises on display.  The Red Foot Tortoise was exciting because we have one, and they were excited to see how large it was!  The Galapagos Tortoises are just incredibly beautiful and I suspect they are on their "wish list" for a future pet, which won't happen unless we buy a zoo...which won't happen.

It was truly a nice visit...and I'm still impressed at how clean and nicely scented their public restrooms were.