Frequently Asked Questions

GloWild runs select nights from November 7, 2024 – January 5, 2025. Gates will open at 5:00 p.m. each night and guests must exit by 9:00 p.m. 

For all nights, the last entry is at 8:30 p.m.

GloWild will be open on New Year's Eve, and closed on Thanksgiving, Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. See ticket sales link for full schedule.

As the Arkansas Zoological Foundation's largest fundraiser for the Zoo, GloWild needs you! Email us at ZooPartner@littlerock.gov.

No, regular Zoo hours will not be changed during the GloWild Light festival.

GloWild is an event for everyone to enjoy! This is a cultural experience designed to delight guests of all ages. It is ideal for a family outing or a date night.

This is a rain or shine event. The lanterns will glow beautifully no matter what the weather. Be sure to bring gear appropriate for rain. A limited number of rain ponchos and other clothing items will be available for purchase at the Safari Trader Gift Shop.  Since safety is our first priority, the Zoo reserves the right to close or cancel the event if weather conditions are assessed to be a safety hazard. In the event of severe weather, you will be notified by email if the Zoo must close. Updates will also be made on our website and social media.

The Little Rock Zoo is located at: 

1 Zoo Drive
Little Rock, AR 72205

Parking for GloWild is Free!  Parking is available directly across from the Little Rock Zoo’s main entrance. We encourage you to ensure your vehicle is properly secured with valuables out of sight.

There is NO off-site parking or Zoo shuttle. Be sure not to park in the parking lots of neighboring businesses or you may be towed.

Many of the animals will not typically be visible in the evenings so they can rest and maintain their regular schedule. However, you may catch some of our late-night party animals (weather permitting). You are most likely to see kudu, alpaca, and elephants. Please visit the Zoo during regular hours to see all the animals. 

All lanterns have a safety turn-off mechanism which sets in when there are unusually wet grounds and surfaces.  Therefore, due to wet surfaces, some lanterns may not be lit on particular nights. During Sensory Night, Thursday, December 12, 2024, some lanterns and music may be turned down or off to accommodate individuals with sensory sensitivities.  

Yes, strollers, wheelchairs, and electric scooters can be rented from the Gift Shop. Available on a first come first served basis.

No. The Little Rock Zoo is a smoke free facility. Smoking, including vaping, is prohibited anywhere inside the Zoo.

Some lantern displays feature flashing lights and may trigger seizures for people with photosensitive epilepsy.

During Sensory Night, Thursday, December 12, 2024, some lanterns and music may be turned down or off to accommodate individuals with sensory sensitivities.  

Yes, children 2 and under are free. Ages 3 and up require a full-price ticket.

Sorry, we cannot exchange or refund tickets for this important Zoo fundraiser.

GloWild is a separate, ticketed event in partnership with Tianyu Arts and Culture.  Zoo tickets and GloWild tickets must be purchased separately. We appreciate your understanding.

Guests visiting the Zoo during normal hours will be asked to leave at the time of closing and re-enter with their GloWild tickets at 5:00 PM. This allows us to clear the Zoo and prepare the festival for the night. We appreciate your cooperation. 

Guests with SNAP/EBT card with a valid, matching photo ID are eligible for $5.00 admission per person. Limit 6 guests per visit. Must be purchased at the gate. No online tickets available.

No, GLoWild is a separate, ticketed event that provides entry to the Zoo when the after-hours event begins.  Zoo tickets and GLoWild tickets must be purchased separately. We appreciate your understanding.

Purchase Tickets Here

No, day guests cannot stay in the Zoo past closing time with a GloWILD ticket. We need to clear the park to prepare the lantern displays for the night. Additionally, not all day guests are attending GloWILD, and we need to check in GloWILD tickets separately. Thank you for your understanding and cooperation!

Not necessarily. Some phones (for example, those with cracked or broken screens), and saved PDF versions of the tickets present scanning challenges. Please, do not screen capture your tickets as they will not scan.

An email confirming your purchase should arrive within 15 minutes of payment. Please check your Junk/Spam folders for an e-mail. If you entered an invalid or misspelled email during your purchase, the payment will appear on your credit card, but your tickets will not be delivered.

No!  Feel free to purchase as many as you need.

If you are purchasing for a group of fifty (50) or more, those tickets are sold at a bulk discounted rate. [Please e-mail Zooevents@littlerock.gov for questions.]

Our family four value packs are a great option, too. Please note: There is a limit for the number of family four value packs that can be purchased.  

Yes. Current members can purchase discounted tickets online through our ticket site. You can also purchase extra tickets for non-member guests not covered on your membership at the same time (at the regular rate). Note: We reserve the right to check member cards and photo IDs at the gate.

Yes, we reserve the right to check member cards and photo IDs at the gate. The membership office will be closed during evening hours, so please pick up your membership card during regular Zoo hours. See Member FAQs for more general member details.

You can purchase tickets for the number of people covered on your membership card. We reserve the right to check membership cards and photo IDs at the gate.

Purchase Tickets Here.

We are not offering reciprocal Zoo discounts for this fundraising event.  Only Little Rock Zoo members receive the discounted member pricing. 

Parking is available directly across from the Little Rock Zoo’s main entrance. While we charge a $3.00 parking fee during the day for non-members, this particular event will not have a parking fee added to admission. We encourage you to ensure your vehicle is properly secured with valuables out of sight.

Yes. Additional guests not covered by the membership regularly must pay full price. You can purchase these full-priced guest tickets at the same time you purchase your online discount tickets. We reserve the right to check membership cards and photo IDs at the gate.

Purchase Tickets Here.

No. All visitors will have their tickets scanned at the ticketing windows and enter through the main gate.

Because this is a special after-hours fundraising event for the Zoo, ride and attraction punch cards are not honored during the event.  These rides are an additional cost for all participants.

No, most of our lanterns are hand-crafted and are meant to be viewed, not handled. Please, do not touch, climb, cross or lean on the lanterns or barriers around them. We will have some lanterns without barriers that will allow guests to get up close and become part of the beauty of the lantern festival.

The route is approximately .5 miles long on a wheelchair-friendly path and takes around one hour to walk through. This is a walking event, there are no shuttles.

No, our handcrafted lanterns are illuminated with LED bulbs and will stay firmly on the ground.

Yes, the event is wheelchair and stroller-friendly on a paved path, however, please be aware that there are some steep hills. The Little Rock Zoo rents strollers, electric scooters and wheelchairs (limited number) available in the Gift Shop.

Yes! You are welcome to take photos and we’d love to see them! Share your fun photos on our social media channels by tagging #LRZGloWild. Please be considerate of other guests; do not block pathways or the views of others while waiting for that perfect shot. GloWild photographs and videos are not to be used for commercial purposes.