Rolling Atlas

Zoo Atlanta

Last checked: Oct 16, 2026

Provisional guide: the zoo's official pages are strong on rentals, sensory support and low-vision and Deaf access, but they don't describe entry, restrooms or accessible parking spaces, and visitor reports describe hills. Only 2 areas are rated so far, so there's no Overall score yet. We'll update this guide as we confirm more.

At Zoo Atlanta you can rent a manual wheelchair or an electric scooter just inside the front entrance, pick up a free sensory bag with noise-canceling headphones, and watch African Savanna and elephant-center videos with ASL and captions (Zoo Atlanta accessibility, [Official], checked Oct 16, 2026; Zoo Atlanta sensory needs, [Official], checked Oct 16, 2026).

Please confirm before you go: for mobility-device questions, call 404.624.5937 (Zoo Atlanta accessibility, [Official], checked Oct 16, 2026). Hours shown on Oct 16, 2026 were 9 a.m.–5 p.m., with last admission at 3:30 p.m. (same page).

At a glance:
  • Accessible restrooms
  • Heads-up: hills
  • Heads-up: arrival

Plan your visit

  • Parking: the Grant Park Gateway deck is at 759 Boulevard S.E., with "pay-on-foot machines … on each level"; there are also lots on Cherokee Avenue. The city-owned lots are "$3 an hour for a maximum of $12 a day" (Zoo Atlanta getting here, [Official], checked Oct 16, 2026). The deck's elevators and pathways are covered in the arrival note below. No source gives the number or location of accessible spaces.
  • Rentals: "Manual wheelchair: $14 + tax/day"; "Electric scooter: $33 + tax/day," first come, first served, at the Zoo Atlanta Explorer Store or Safari Outfitters, both just inside the front entrance. Reservations aren't accepted. Scooters aren't rented at 21+ events, and renters must be 18 or older (Zoo Atlanta accessibility, [Official], checked Oct 16, 2026).
  • Other devices: Segways, guest-driven golf carts, hoverboards, self-balancing scooters and some other powered devices can't be used on zoo grounds; the zoo says it "will offer reasonable accommodations" (same page).
  • Service animals: dogs or miniature horses. "Emotional support animals and other animals are not permitted." Service animals can't enter "the petting zoo, The Living Treehouse aviary and walk-through building, the viewing decks at the Monkeys of Makokou area, the giraffe feeding area and behind-the-scenes areas." Tell a Guest Relations Team member when you arrive (same page).

Accessibility and ratings

See how we rate

What we found

From the zoo's official pages

  • Paths: the zoo "makes every effort to ensure that our pathways, habitats and facilities are accessible." It doesn't describe hills, grades or surfaces (Zoo Atlanta accessibility, [Official], checked Oct 16, 2026).
  • Sensory: a "certified sensory inclusive destination" with KultureCity. Sensory bags with KCVIP badges, fidget tools and noise-canceling headphones are free with an ID at the Member Services Office just outside the entrance. Weighted lap pads are at the train station in KIDZone and the World of Wild Theater, and Quiet Zones and Headphone Zones are signed and on the map (Zoo Atlanta sensory needs, [Official], checked Oct 16, 2026).
  • Low vision and Deaf access (partial): African Savanna ID signs "have a QR code that links to a video" with an Education team member, an ASL interpreter and captions; Zambezi Elephant Center videos have "audio, ASL interpretation, and captions." There are "many displays around the Zoo that have tactile elements," and staff and volunteers can describe animals and habitats, "weather and staffing dependent." No braille, large print or audio-described tour is listed (Zoo Atlanta accessibility, [Official], checked Oct 16, 2026).

Details not published

  • Accessible entry and drop-off, accessible restroom details, and the number or location of accessible parking spaces.
  • Braille, large print or an audio-described tour.

Heads-up: hills. Visitors describe sloped paths. Brandon Winfield, a manual wheelchair user writing for Discover Atlanta, found ramps and "access to all corners of the park," but added "there is a bit of elevation" (Discover Atlanta, Apr 3, 2026, [Trusted], checked Oct 16, 2026; the article notes that Zoo Atlanta partners with the author's company, iAccess Life). Rolling in an RV wrote that "all of the paths are sloped to some extent. Most wheelchair users will need to have some help" (Rolling in an RV, Apr 2014, [Trusted firsthand source], checked Oct 16, 2026). A TripAdvisor reviewer described "TONS of hills" (TripAdvisor, Nov 3, 2014, secondary, checked Oct 16, 2026).

Heads-up: arrival. Older reports describe a steep walk from the car to the gate: "there is a huge hill and a very long walk" (TripAdvisor, Nov 3, 2014, secondary, checked Oct 16, 2026), and the east lot's "path down to the zoo is fairly steep" (Rolling in an RV, Apr 2014, [Trusted firsthand source], checked Oct 16, 2026). Both predate the Grant Park Gateway deck, which opened in 2021, so they may no longer apply.

Arrival note: parking deck. When the Grant Park Gateway deck opened, city parks officials described it as having "three elevators" (Urbanize Atlanta, Jan 27, 2021, [Secondary], checked Oct 16, 2026), and its landscape architect says "Direct ADA-compliant pathways from each level of the parking deck connect key destinations" (HGOR, deck landscape architect, [Secondary], undated, checked Oct 16, 2026). These describe the route from the deck, not accessible parking spaces, so they don't give Parking a score.

We asked Zoo Atlanta about accessible parking and restrooms on Oct 16, 2026, and will update this page when they reply.

Zoo Atlanta

Category Rating
Overall Not enough info yet
Only 2 categories are rated; we need at least 3.
Entry & Arrival Not verified
Getting Around / Paths 5 of 5 · Venue states accessible
Facility-published info states it is accessible; we have not personally verified this.
Restrooms 5 of 5 · Team guidance for public facilities
The Rolling Atlas team's guidance: public facilities like this are taken to have accessible restrooms. No information we found contradicts accessibility.
Parking & Drop-off Not verified
No source gives the number or location of accessible spaces; see the arrival note above.
Staff & Info Not verified
Wheelchairs and scooters are rented, not free, so our loaner rule doesn't score them.

Paths scores 5 (Venue states accessible): the zoo says it "makes every effort to ensure that our pathways, habitats and facilities are accessible." Visitor reports of hills are shown in the Heads-up above. Restrooms score 5 under the Rolling Atlas team's guidance for public facilities; the zoo's pages don't describe them. Parking is Not verified: the deck's landscape architect and city officials describe ADA-compliant pathways and three elevators (see the arrival note above), but no source describes accessible spaces, so call to confirm. Entry is Not verified: no current source describes the route from parking to the gate. Overall is Not enough info yet: only 2 categories are rated, and we need at least 3.

Ratings tagged "not personally verified" rest on information the venue published or on trusted firsthand reports; we have not personally verified them.

Last checked Oct 16, 2026. Sources: Zoo Atlanta accessibility (official) · Sensory needs (official) · Getting here (official) · Discover Atlanta, Apr 3, 2026 (trusted source; the author's company partners with the zoo) · Rolling in an RV, Apr 2014 (trusted firsthand source) · Urbanize Atlanta, 2021 (secondary) · HGOR (secondary) · TripAdvisor review, Nov 3, 2014 (secondary)