FREE & Cheap Werribee Zoo Tickets | Werribee Zoo Tickets Discount

Are you on the lookout for free or cheap Werribee Open Range Zoo tickets for the family? You’ve landed in the right place.

We have listed Werribee Zoo tickets discount AND some ways to get into the zoo for FREE too! We were there recently so we have this awesome Werribee Zoo review too!

Where is the Werribee Open Range Zoo?

Werribee Open Range Zoo is an African themed zoo in Werribee, about 32 kilometres south-west of Melbourne’s city centre on the Princes Freeway. Plan for about a 30-minute drive from the city over the Westgate Bridge or via the Geelong Road. (Take the Werribee South exit to K Road.)

The Zoo is also en route to the Great Ocean Road and is a major attraction on the Great Southern Touring Route and the Bay Tour.

Free Werribee Open Range Zoo tickets

When it comes to scoring free tickets to the Werribee Zoo, timing is everything. If you manage to plan your family visit on the right day, both kids and teenagers can enjoy free admission – thanks to a Victorian Government initiative. Sounds intriguing, right?

I just checked out this exciting offer by the Werribee Zoo and have all the terms and conditions to ensure the whole family gets the most from a visit. Though similar to most offers, you may need to do a bit of prior planning – though it’ll all be worth it in the long run.

Keeping reading to find out how to get free and cheap admission into the Werribee Zoo.

How to score FREE Werribee Zoo tickets.

Organise your visit to the Werribee Open Range Zoo for a weekend, Victorian public holiday, or on government school holidays. On these selected days, kids 16 years and under will get into the zoo for free.
Visit the Werribee Open Range Zoo website to buy your adult tickets online, or…
Head straight to the zoo to buy your tickets at the front door.
Visit the facility during their opening hours – Monday to Sunday, from 9 am to 5 pm. To get even more bang for your buck, aim to arrive at the zoo earlier in the morning.

Terms and conditions for free Werribee Zoo entry:

Although this offer is very exciting for families, some terms and conditions apply.

This offer is only available to kids under 16 years of age.
Children must be visiting with an adult or they will be refused entry.

Cheap Werribee Open Range Zoo Tickets

Free tickets into the Werribee Open Range Zoo can be very exciting, though what if you want to stop by with the family when this offer isn’t available – such as a weekday? This is where the zoo’s membership program can come to the rescue.

Discount Ticket Sites

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What animals will you see at the Werribee Open Range Zoo?

Cheap Werribee Zoo tickets — Hippos lounging in the sun at the Werribee Zoo

The zoo is known for its African animals and its open range style. It is well laid out and clearly marked with maps and sign posts so you can easily navigate the walking trails. The most popular enclosure is the gorillas, who are housed at the front of the zoo and first animals you encounter upon entry. They are impressive and worth a good few minutes of your time!

You will also get a good look at monkeys, cheetahs, hippos, lions and more on the walking trails throughout the African section of the zoo.

Get Out with Kids Tip: Head straight for the lions if the baby cubs are out in the morning as they only are available to see for a limited time!

Werribee Zoo Safari Tour

As part of your entry price, you will receive a ‘Safari Tour’ that will drive you around the ‘open plains’. This is great fun for the kids to have a ‘ride’ on the long bus and get much closer to the zebra, giraffes, onyx and rhinos. The commentary is excellent too, so parents will get some really lovely insight into how the zoo is run and how the animals are cared for!

Get Out with Kids Tip: There are NO bad seats in this bus.

Playgrounds in the Zoo

The kids were thrilled to see multiple sandpits, rope bridges, playgrounds and things to climb on throughout the whole zoo. When the adults stopped for ‘a bit too long’ to read the information about an animal or consider the way the monkeys interacted with each other, the smaller monkeys (the ones we brought with us) enjoyed climbing and playing on the ‘pit-stops’ designed for such occasions. This zoo has thought of everything!

The Ranger Centre is awesome!

There were a couple of highlights for our kids at the zoo and the Ranger Centre was the first one. Chocked full of ‘let’s pretend’ fun for kids including dress-ups, field hospital, feeding stations and a HELICOPTER for the kids to sit in, this part of the zoo is a must see!

Get Out with Kids Tip: Don’t let the kids know about this centre until after you have done a bit of walking and looked at the animals, lest you will never … get … them … out of here! (And it is air-conditioned too, so lovely on hot days for a sit-down break for adults!)

The Australian section of the zoo has a surprising discovery!

After you have done the African section and the safari tour and the Ranger Centre, head on down to the Australian section of the zoo. It’s another walking part of the zoo where you can see several our famous Australian animals – kangaroos, koalas and lots of sleeping animals in the nocturnal house.

The surprise in this section of the zoo is the woolshed. Take the kids in for a look and encourage them to try the ropes to slide the ‘gates’ up and down – then take a seat for 30 minutes or so… they will climb over the gates and walls, open and close the gates, pull on the ropes and let them go, and climb back over again. We watched astounded by the fun that this space created for all the kids that came in to see it. Super and unexpected fun in the woolshed!

Werribee Open Range Zoo Membership Program

If you’re visiting the zoo on a day where the ‘kids visit free’ offer isn’t available, it may be worth joining the membership program.

I recently checked out the offer and found out that it includes unlimited entry into the zoo, as well as the Melbourne Zoo and the Healesville Sanctuary for only $9.50 a month over 12 months.

This offer is particularly valuable to families intending on visiting these sites on multiple occasions throughout the year. Without a membership, adult tickets can cost $38 each – which can hurt if you’re planning frequent visits.

The Werribee Open Range Zoo’s membership program is only $9.50 a month and includes unlimited entry, express entry every day, and discounts at retail outlets and on animal experiences. Not to mention, these membership fees go towards supporting and saving wildlife.

On top of this mountain of benefits, there’s also a way families can get the best of both offers to maximise their savings at the Werribee Open Range Zoo. If you were to visit the facility on the right day with the kids, during a time where children can enter the park free of charge, the whole family could enjoy a full day at the zoo for only the cost of your membership fees.

If you manage to do a bit of prior planning before visiting, the whole family could enjoy an action-packed day at the zoo without breaking the bank.

Head over to the Werribee Open Range Zoo website (see below) for more information on the membership program or to plan your next family visit.

Why does the zoo cost so much for entry?

Although entry into the Werribee Open Range Zoo may seem expensive, take the time to think about the massive range of animals held within the facility and how many resources it must take to properly care for them – including the proper food, habitats, and more. The zoo staff does amazing work regularly to ensure the animals are well looked after and that people visiting the grounds are having a safe, fun experience. On top of this, the Werribee Open Range Zoo hosts a large variety of tailored experiences that visitors won’t find in too many other places.

If you take all of these factors into account, you’ll see that an entry fee is a small price to pay to support all the hard work done behind the scenes at the zoo.

Where to eat in the Werribee Open Range Zoo?

At some point you will probably want to stop for morning tea, lunch and or afternoon tea, depending on the length of your day trip. The Meerkat Bistro located at the entrance and is not cheap. The Meerkat Kiosk is also a bit on the pricey side, but they do allow you to bring your own food, which we didn’t do (poor planning), so we did eat at the kiosk.

Otherwise, there’s the Tribal Beats Kiosk, Hippo Beach Cafe, or Cheetah Lawn BBQ. With the variety available, there’s something to suit everyone’s taste buds.

However, if you want to eat somewhere cheap for dinner – check out these Kids Eat Free in Melbourne options.

Get Out with Kids Tip: Get a table inside the kiosk AT the windows beside the Meerkat enclosure. The best seat in the house is the one right in the middle of the length of window where the meerkats have a little box that they go into and come out of right beside you while you eat. It’s super cute and the kids loved it!

What else do we need to know?

Make sure you take advantage of the free zoo entry for kids and find out more about zoo prices here.

The Werribee Zoo is an outstanding example of a well managed zoo with well cared for animals working hard to education families and visitors about our plant’s wildlife. It’s a fantastic day trip for you and your own little monkeys!