Mesker Park Zoo and Botanic Garden

Mesker Park Zoo traces its roots to the 1920s, when it began within a large city park on Evansville's northwest side. Named for the Mesker family, whose gift helped create the park, it started small and grew over the decades into one of the oldest and most established zoos in the state.

Through the twentieth century and into the present, the zoo modernized its habitats and broadened its mission, adding a botanic-garden focus alongside its animal collection. That long, continuous history has made it a beloved institution, the place where generations of families in the region first met the animals of the world.

The centerpiece for many visitors is Amazonia, an indoor rainforest exhibit that recreates the layered, humid world of the Amazon. Walking its paths, you move among tropical plants, brightly colored birds, monkeys, and other creatures of the rainforest, all under one warm roof, which makes it a welcome stop no matter the weather outside.

Beyond Amazonia, the zoo's habitats range across the continents, from big cats and primates to native and exotic species arranged along the hilly, wooded grounds. The blend of animal exhibits and rich plantings gives the whole place the double character its name promises, a zoo and a garden at once.

Part of Mesker Park's charm is its landscape. The zoo occupies a rolling, wooded park with a lake at its heart, so a visit means walking under trees and around water rather than across flat pavement. Paddle boats and lakeside paths add to the park-like feel.

That setting places it in the leafy northwest corner of Evansville, a city that grew up as an Ohio River port and industrial center in southwest Indiana. The land here is old homeland of the Miami and Shawnee peoples among the region's Native nations, part of the broad river country of the lower Ohio valley.

Evansville is the largest city in southwest Indiana, set on a bend of the Ohio River across from Kentucky. Its revitalized riverfront, museums, and downtown make it a full-day destination in its own right, with the zoo as one of its longtime family anchors.

The surrounding lower Ohio valley offers river drives, historic towns, and, a short distance east, the amusement parks and Lincoln heritage sites of the Santa Claus area. A trip to Mesker Park pairs easily with a broader loop through this southwestern corner of the state.

The closest Boutel™ stays, so you can turn this stop into an overnight. Each is an independently owned, editorially selected place to stay.