ZooTampa doesn’t list a discount for individual teachers, and its FAQ says so directly, naming teachers and students among the groups that don’t get one. What the zoo does offer is school field trip pricing: free chaperone tickets, free admission for bus drivers, and a youth rate of $16.00 per student for school groups with at least 15 paying guests.
If you’re the one who has to turn a field trip idea into a booked date, a bus and a stack of permission slips, the field trip page is where ZooTampa keeps its numbers. It’s a long page, so the sections below pull out what a teacher needs to decide.
How To Get The ZooTampa Teacher Discount
There’s no teacher ticket to show an ID for, so the way in is a school field trip registration. The first step on the page is to register your group to receive a username and password for scheduling field trips on the zoo’s website. After you register, the zoo emails the login within 2 business days, and you use it to pick a date and finalize the details of your trip. If you’ve done this before and already have your login, you can skip registration and go straight to booking.
The page says school group field trip prices are only valid for children’s field trips and only on select weekdays. They aren’t valid on weekends, holidays, days Hillsborough County public schools aren’t in session (summer months excepted), or the week Hillsborough County Public Schools are on Spring Break. School field trips require a minimum of 15 paying guests to receive a group rate, and field trips have a limit of 600 people per day. If your date is full, the page asks you to choose another one.
What A School Group Gets
Field trips include free chaperone tickets. The chaperone to student ratio requirement varies from 1:5 to 1:10 depending on grade level, and chaperones must be 18 years of age or older. Bus drivers get free admission, and the page lists free parking for buses and ZooTampa Members.
Group field trip admission is $16.00 per student, Pre-K through 12th grade, and $31.00 per adult. Children 2 and under get free zoo admission. The page doesn’t explain how the adult rate and the free chaperone tickets fit together, so it’s worth asking when you book.
Lunch And Add-Ons
Group field trip lunches are $12 per person. Boxed lunch orders must be received 5 business days before your arrival, and the page says groups are responsible for all boxed lunches that were confirmed at that time.
The page also lets you upgrade your day in advance when you book. The add-ons listed are Zoo Gift Bags, an animal plush, an Excavation Experience, and Carousel Games & Retail. The gift bag is a pre-order price of $5 per student, which is one way to send every student home with something without a line at the gift shop.
The Zoo Quest Activity Pack
For the classroom side of the trip, the page offers the Zoo Quest Activity Pack, which it says was designed at the request of the Hillsborough County School District. It includes self-guided activities for students that meet Florida state science standards. The pre-order price is $2 per student or chaperone, the page asks you to purchase 1 pack for each student in your group, and one Chaperone Guide comes with every 10 packs you purchase.
Group Rates For Other Trips
If you’re planning a trip that isn’t a school field trip, the page points you to its group tickets section. It covers groups for birthday parties, family gatherings, church groups and more, and says a group rate needs a minimum of 15 people. The benefits it lists are discounted admission to the zoo, additional discounts for seniors and high school or college groups, meal vouchers, and one complimentary admission per 30 paid admissions.
Visiting On Your Own
For a day with your own family, the tickets page lists same-day general admission at $53.95 for adults and $43.95 for children 3 to 11. Planning ahead saves $3 per guest, which brings the prices to $50.95 and $40.95, and the page says that rate isn’t valid for same-day purchase.
The FAQ lists two discounts. Active duty military and veterans can get $4 off per ticket on up to 4 general admission tickets, and senior citizens get $2 off a general admission ticket when purchasing at the ticket window.
What We Couldn’t Confirm
ZooTampa’s summer salute page invited Hillsborough County School teachers, along with Hillsborough County government and City of Tampa team members, to a free day. The offer was one complimentary admission for the employee with a valid ID, plus 25% off general admission tickets for up to four guests, redeemed at the ticket windows for one visit during the promotional period. That period runs from Memorial Day through Labor Day, and it has passed. The FAQ doesn’t mention it, and we couldn’t find anything saying whether the zoo will offer it again.
ID.me’s teacher page for ZooTampa says the zoo has a teachers discount and/or cash back offer. Its store page names only one specific offer, up to 2.0% cash back for military, and the zoo’s own FAQ says teachers don’t get a discount, so we haven’t treated the ID.me listing as a teacher rate.
The FAQ lists general admission at $51.95 for adults (ages 12 and up) and $41.95 for children (ages 3 to 11), while the tickets page lists higher same-day prices. We used the tickets page, and the price you pay is the one at checkout.
Q&A
Does ZooTampa give teachers a discount?
We couldn’t find one for individual teachers, and the FAQ says teachers don’t get one. School groups get free chaperone tickets and a youth rate of $16.00 per student.
How many chaperones can I bring free?
The chaperone to student ratio requirement varies from 1:5 to 1:10 depending on grade level. Chaperones must be 18 years of age or older.
What does a student ticket cost on a field trip?
Group field trip admission is $16.00 per student, Pre-K through 12th grade. Adults are $31.00 per person, and children 2 and under get free zoo admission.
How many people do I need for a school group rate?
School field trips require a minimum of 15 paying guests to receive a group rate.
Can I book any day of the week?
No. School group prices are only valid on select weekdays, and not on weekends, holidays, days Hillsborough County public schools aren’t in session, or the week Hillsborough County Public Schools are on Spring Break.
How do I get started?
Register your group on the field trip page. The zoo emails a username and password within 2 business days, and you use it to pick a date and finalize the details of your trip.
Can my class order lunch?
Yes. Group field trip lunches are $12 per person, and boxed lunch orders must be received 5 business days before your arrival.
More Information:
The details above come from ZooTampa’s own pages as they loaded when we checked, and prices change without notice. See more entertainment discounts for teachers.
