Overnight Adventures®

• Find the program that best fits your group by looking at the program details below
• When you are ready, make a program request through our Online Request Form. Select up to 3 dates your group is available.
• If one of your dates is available and you’re ready to book, we will book your program and send a confirmation/invoice.
  • If your dates are not available or you request more information, a member of the Education Team will be in touch.
• Once your booking is confirmed, a 25% non-refundable deposit is due within two weeks.
  • At this time, we will need your best, highest number of participants.
• Once booked, you will receive a link to access more information about your program, including where to park, what to bring, and a general itinerary.
• Four weeks before your program date, your group’s final numbers and balance are due.
  • The final number of participants must match or be less than the booked numbers. You will not be able to increase participant numbers after booking.

On the Africa plains, it’s survival of the fittest! Discover the adaptations predators have to hunt and how their prey have evolved to give them a fighting chance. We’ll observe our incredible African predator and prey species, investigating what it takes for these animals to survive. You’ll go behind the scenes to our African animal care staff areas to see how we bring expert care and attention to these extraordinary species. Then after the fun, curl up in our private education classrooms overlooking our rainforest.

Cost: $60/participant

Capacity: 15-90 participants (including chaperones/teachers). Participants will be split into smaller groups and paired with an educational instructor for the night.

Overnight Adventure Sleeping Arrangements:

• Your group will sleep in the Harold C. Schott Education Center’s classrooms surrounded by the Discovery Rainforest, including the Oliver Nicholson Memorial Sloth Habitat.
• Each classroom sleeps up to 12 people, and some rooms can open to sleep up to 24. Your group may be separated across the classrooms depending on the size of the group, and other groups booked that night.

School Standards:

• School Standards Alignment (updated Fall 2021)

Make Your Request Today

Adaptations are the key to life! Join us as we explore how animals find their food, escape predators, find a mate, and overall SURVIVE in all their unique habitats. Throughout the night we’ll explore a few places in the Zoo, participate in fun, educational activities, get a behind-the-scenes sneak peek, and meet some of our animal ambassadors up-close and personal! Then, after the fun, curl up in our private education classrooms overlooking our rainforest.

Cost: $60/participant

Capacity: 15-90 participants (including chaperones/teachers). Participants will be split into smaller groups and paired with an educational instructor for the night.

Overnight Adventure Sleeping Arrangements:

• Your group will sleep in the Harold C. Schott Education Center’s classrooms surrounded by the Discovery Rainforest, including the Oliver Nicholson Memorial Sloth Habitat.
• Each classroom sleeps up to 12 people, and some rooms can open to sleep up to 24. Your group may be separated across the classrooms depending on the size of the group, and other groups booked that night.

School Standards:

School Standards Alignment (updated Fall 2021)

Make Your Request Today

We have changed things a bit with this program to focus on the incredible animals that share our continent, so if you’ve done this program before, you might want to do it again! But don’t worry, the manatees are still a strong focus and where we will end the night! Our local species play vital roles in maintaining healthy ecosystems. They help regulate prey populations to prevent overgrazing, disperse seeds, pollinate plants, cycle nutrients, and enrich the soil. Some even create habitats that provide shelter and breeding grounds for other plants and animals! There’s so much to discover, and learn, from the amazing diversity of life in North America! When the night ends, you’ll doze off at our Manatee Springs building with manatees floating by your bed.

*Note: Program participants will sleep in our Manatee Springs building, which is one large, open room. Please be aware that there is no way to divide or separate the group within the space. Program instructors will sleep in the same room as participants, positioned at the back of the building to provide supervision while maintaining distance from guests.

*Note: Our manatees are part of a rehabilitation program and typically return to Florida in early October. As a result, programs booked in October may sleep in an alternate location.

Cost: $70/person

Capacity: 15-60 people. Participants will be split into smaller groups and paired with an educational instructor for the night.

Overnight Adventure Sleeping Arrangements:

• Your group will sleep in the Manatee Springs Building, in front of the Florida Manatee habitat.
• The Manatee Springs Building is a single large, open space with no dividers. Your entire group will sleep together in the same room, along with our overnight staff, who will be stationed at the back of the building.
• You and your group will be parking in the Education Center parking lot and will carry your items to the Manatee Springs building. Bringing wagons, carts or rolling luggage is recommended for this walk.

School Standards:

School Standards Alignment (updated Fall 2021)

Make Your Request Today

A truly one-of-a-kind experience, our Twiga Tented Safari will take you across the African grasslands. We’ll traverse through Africa, listening to tales of innovation for living harmoniously with wildlife, such as how a flashlight can shield you against lions, or why a puppy can save cheetahs. On our safari, we will get behind the scenes of Hippo Cove and uncover secrets of our world-famous bloat. We’ll finish up our night at our Twiga tents, gathered round a roaring campfire roasting s’mores and telling stories. This unique adventure ends with a relaxing night in our shared safari tents on cozy cots and waking up to breakfast overlooking Giraffe Ridge.

*Available April – October

Cost: $1,000/tent

Capacity: maximum 4 tents/40 participants (including chaperones/teachers). This experience is booked per tent with each tent sleeping up to 10 people, and up to four tents available. No minimum participant required.

Sleeping Arrangements:

• This high-end experience allows you and your group to sleep in our African Safari tents located in the Twiga Tented Camp.
• Twiga Tented Camp sits on the edge of Giraffe Ridge which provides a stunning close-up with our giraffes when you exit your tent!
• Each tent sleeps up to 10 people on comfortable cot bunk beds.

School Standards:

School Standards Alignment (updated Fall 2021)

Make Your Request Today

Join us for a wild new Overnight Adventure where teamwork takes center stage! Discover the incredible ways animals cooperate to survive and thrive. From elephant herds led by wise matriarchs to the organized chaos of ant colonies, you’ll discover the power of working together in the animal kingdom. As night falls, we’ll trek through the zoo, meet incredible animal ambassadors, and uncover the secrets of animal communities in action. We’ll even go behind the scenes in the Elephant Trek Pump Room and explore the fascinating CREW exhibit space, where conservation comes to life. Then, wind down the night in our private education classrooms overlooking our rainforest.

*Note: There is the possibility to sleep in the Elephant Trek event space on Monday nights only for an increased cost. For all other nights, participants will sleep in our Education Rainforest building.

Cost: $70/person

Capacity: 15-50 people in Elephant Trek on Mondays. 90 people in the Education Building. Participants will be split into smaller groups and paired with an educational instructor for the night.

Overnight Adventure Sleeping Arrangements:

• Any group booked Tuesday-Saturday will sleep in the Harold C. Schott Education Center’s classrooms surrounded by the Discovery Rainforest, including the Oliver Nicholson Memorial Sloth Habitat.
• Each classroom sleeps up to 12 people, and some rooms can open to sleep up to 24. Your group may be separated across the classrooms depending on the size of the group, and other groups booked that night.
• Any group booked on Monday nights have the option to sleep in the Elephant Trek Event Space above the Elephant Trek exhibit.

School Standards:

School Standards Alignment (updated Fall 2021)

Make Your Request Today