Brookfield Zoo
Brookfield Zoo Chicago, known until 2024 as simply Brookfield Zoo, and also known as the Chicago Zoological Park, is a zoo located in Brookfield, Illinois.
A zoo & aquarium inside Brookfield
Winters are cold
January nights drop to 17°, with about 39" of snow a year. When to go ↓
You can stay in Brookfield
Brookfield Zoo is inside Brookfield, which has 1,134 hotel and restaurant jobs, so you won’t need a base farther out. Where to stay ↓
Best months: May, Jun, Aug, Sep and Oct
May, June, August, September and October are the mild months, with highs of 63–82°. When to go ↓
A day trip from Chicago
Chicago is about 8 miles east (straight-line). Where to stay ↓
An airport 5 miles away
Chicago Midway (MDW) has airline service, about 5 miles from Brookfield Zoo.
Written from NOAA 1991–2020 normals, Census job and town figures, Wikidata and Wikipedia.
Weather, month by month
Typical highs and lows in Brookfield. Green months are the mild ones.
Brookfield Zoo
Brookfield Zoo Chicago, known until 2024 as simply Brookfield Zoo, and also known as the Chicago Zoological Park, is a zoo located in Brookfield, Illinois. Brookfield Zoo is owned by the Forest Preserve District of Cook County and is managed by the Chicago Zoological Society. It is the largest zoo in the Chicago metropolitan area and houses approximately 511 species of animals in an area of 216 acres (87 ha).
Brookfield Zoo opened on July 1, 1934, and quickly gained international recognition for using moats and ditches instead of cages.
- Type
- Zoo & aquarium
- Established
- 1934
- Wikipedia readers
- 18K a year
Stay in Brookfield, or close by
Towns within 30 miles, closest first. Hotel and restaurant jobs show how many places there are to stay and eat.
| Town | From Brookfield Zoo | Hotel & restaurant jobs | People | Typical home | Safety |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Brookfield | in town | 1,134 | 19,331 | $332K | A |
| Riverside Township | in town | 1,627 | 16,242 | $415K | — |
| Riverside | 1 mi east | 133 | 9,039 | $491K | — |
| North Riverside | 1 mi north | 827 | 7,249 | $298K | D |
| Lyons | 2 mi southeast | 403 | 10,339 | $257K | — |
| La Grange Park | 2 mi west | 230 | 13,447 | $440K | A− |
| Broadview | 2 mi northwest | 244 | 7,896 | $252K | — |
| Berwyn | 2 mi east | 1,911 | 55,595 | $300K | B+ |
| Berwyn Township | 2 mi east | 1,911 | 55,595 | $300K | — |
| McCook | 2 mi south | 59 | 268 | $332K | — |
| Forest Park | 3 mi north | 819 | 13,943 | $305K | D |
| La Grange | 3 mi southwest | 1,019 | 15,998 | $594K | B+ |
Day trip from
Straight-line miles.
Getting there
Nearest airports with airline service
Also near Brookfield Zoo
Other well-known places within 40 miles. Numbered ones are on the map above.
Big draw113 mi🏛 MuseumBarack Obama Presidential Center
Big draw211 mi🏛 MuseumArt Institute of Chicago1.5M visitors a year
40 mi🏞 National ParkIndiana Dunes National Park2.6M visitors a year
312 mi🏛 MuseumAdler Planetarium550K visitors a year
412 mi📍 LandmarkAbraham Lincoln: The Man
511 mi📍 LandmarkBalbo Monument
68 mi🌸 GardenHumboldt Park
722 mi🌸 GardenChicago Botanic GardenPhoto credits
Barack Obama Presidential Center: AlphaBeta135, CC0 · Art Institute of Chicago: Diego Delso, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Indiana Dunes National Park: J. Crocker, Attribution · Adler Planetarium: Adler Planetarium, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Abraham Lincoln: The Man: AndrewHorne, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Balbo Monument: J. Crocker, Attribution · Humboldt Park: Plij (talk), CC BY-SA 3.0 · Chicago Botanic Garden: No machine-readable author provided. Kaosfere assumed (based on copyright claims, CC BY-SA 2.5
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Visiting Brookfield Zoo
Is Brookfield Zoo in Brookfield?
Yes. It’s inside Brookfield, IL.
When is the best time to visit Brookfield Zoo?
May, June, August, September and October, with highs of 63–82°.
How far is Brookfield Zoo from Chicago?
About 8 miles east of Chicago, as the crow flies.
What is the closest airport to Brookfield Zoo?
Chicago Midway (MDW), about 5 miles away.
Where should I stay near Brookfield Zoo?
Brookfield (in town, 1,134 hotel and restaurant jobs), Riverside Township (in town, 1,627 hotel and restaurant jobs) and Riverside (1 mi, 133 hotel and restaurant jobs).
Tips from people in Brookfield
No tips yet. Ask, or answer, in Brookfield’s Town Square.
Sources: National Park Service · ski areas © OpenSkiMap / OpenStreetMap contributors · Wikidata · Wikipedia readership · photos via Wikimedia Commons · NOAA climate normals · U.S. Census.