As of November 2, Turtle Back Zoo's daily hours are 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Starting Friday, November 20, the gates open again at 5 p.m. on Holiday Lights nights and stay open until 9. Evening admission is free, and you don't need a reservation.
That puts the most generous hours on Northfield Avenue after dark this season. The daytime zoo you know shrinks to five hours with a ticket booth. The evening zoo runs four hours for no charge, and Santa, ice carvers and the rest of the South Mountain Recreation Complex are built around it. If you live a few minutes away, it makes sense to plan your November and December visits around the evening.
The same zoo at two very different prices
By day, the zoo's homepage lists admission at $22 for adults 13 and up, $19 for seniors 62 and up, $19 for children 2 to 12, and free for children under 2. At those prices, two adults and two children between 2 and 12 pay $82 to get in, and last admission is 3 p.m.
On a Holiday Lights night, that same family walks in at 5 p.m. for nothing. The zoo puts up more than 50 lit winter and animal characters along the paths. Parking is free in the lots and garages across the South Mountain Recreation Complex. Instead of a ticket, the zoo asks visitors to bring non-perishable food, new toys and gently used coats for donation.
Members get a preview on Thursday, November 19. The public season runs on this schedule, from 5 to 9 p.m. each night:
| Dates | Holiday Lights | Santa at the gazebo, 5 to 8:30 p.m. | Extras |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fri. to Sun., Nov. 20 to 22 | Open | Yes | Ice carving Fri. at 6 p.m. |
| Fri. to Sun., Nov. 27 to 29 | Open | Yes | Ice carving Fri. at 6 p.m. |
| Fri. to Sun., Dec. 4 to 6 | Open | Yes | Ice carving Fri. at 6 p.m. |
| Mon. to Thu., Dec. 7 to 10 | Open | No | None listed |
| Fri. to Sun., Dec. 11 to 13 | Open | Yes | Ice carving Fri. at 6 p.m. |
| Mon. to Tue., Dec. 14 to 15 | Open | No | None listed |
| Wed. to Wed., Dec. 16 to 23 | Open nightly | Yes, nightly | Ice carving Fri., Dec. 18 at 6 p.m.; Grinch Dec. 18 to 20 |
| Thu. to Fri., Dec. 24 to 25 | Closed | No | None listed |
| Sat. to Thu., Dec. 26 to 31 | Open nightly | No | None listed |
November gets two weekends. Early December gets nightly lights with Santa only on weekends. The week before Christmas has something every night, ending in the Grinch weekend. Visiting Santa and taking your own photos costs nothing, and you don't need an appointment. Professional photos are for sale if you want them.
What's open once the gates reopen at 5
The evening zoo doesn't run at full capacity, but it offers more than a walk past light displays. Holiday Lights nights include the train, the touch tank, the Reptile House and the farm, plus the carousel, pony track, face painting and gift shop, which cost extra. The food is spread out by location, which helps when you have a child who's done walking:
- Café: open for the evening
- Outside the café: s'mores
- By the train: kettle corn and hot cocoa
- By the Sea Turtle: zeppole
- By Africa: holiday treats
- By the picnic area: igloos, which require reservations
The igloos are the one part of the night you have to book ahead. Check terms and pricing with the zoo directly before planning a group night around one.
Regular zoo rules still apply after dark. Pets aren't allowed, and visitors 17 and under must come with a chaperone. That second rule matters if you're thinking of dropping teenagers off for the evening.
The two hours between closing time and the lights
If you arrive in the afternoon, the 3 p.m. closing leaves a two-hour gap before the lights come on. The Waterfront area of the complex fills it. The 1.7-mile walking path around the reservoir and the Regatta Children's Playground are open all year, according to Essex County Parks. A loop of the reservoir at an easy pace, plus some playground time, gets you to the evening opening.
Some of the summer attractions are done for the year. The paddle boats are listed as closed for the season. The TreeTop Adventure Course closed for the season on October 25. That leaves the reservoir path, the playground and, on some days, the ice rink.
Thanksgiving weekend lines up the whole complex
Essex County Codey Arena shares the 560 Northfield Avenue address, and over Thanksgiving weekend its holiday skating overlaps with Holiday Lights. Public skating costs $14 for adults, $10 for children 15 and under, and $10 for seniors 62 and up. Skate rental is $5. The arena asks skaters to reserve holiday sessions online. Session times for the long weekend:
- Friday, Nov. 27: 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. and 4:45 to 6:15 p.m.
- Saturday, Nov. 28: 12:30 to 2 p.m., 3 to 4:30 p.m., and 5:30 to 7 p.m.
- Sunday, Nov. 29: 12:30 to 2 p.m. and 3 to 4:30 p.m.
Each listing also has an earlier session whose printed time looks wrong, so check the Codey Arena calendar before you plan around a morning skate.
Put those times next to the zoo schedule and Saturday, November 28 can hold a full day close to home:
- Shopping downtown for Shop Small Business Saturday, which Downtown West Orange is promoting that day.
- The 3 p.m. skating session at Codey Arena, which ends at 4:30.
- A short walk to the zoo for the 5 p.m. Holiday Lights opening, with Santa at the gazebo from 5 on.
- Hot cocoa by the train before the 9 p.m. close.
For a family of four with two children 15 and under, the skating session is $48 before rentals. Everything after that is free except food, face painting, the gift shop and the paid rides. Friday, November 27 works the same way: the 4:45 p.m. skate ends at 6:15, which leaves just enough time to walk over for the 6 p.m. ice carving if you leave the rink a little early.
Downtown takes the following Saturday
A week later, the season moves from the county complex to the township's downtown. Downtown West Orange's annual Holiday Open House and Tree Lighting at Town Hall is Saturday, December 5. The day starts at 9 a.m. at Washington Elementary School with a holiday character breakfast and free photos with Santa, courtesy of Benji's Mexican Grill. There are also historic tours of Downtown West Orange, a stuffed animal workshop and a make-your-own gingerbread house activity. Sign-up for the activities is listed as coming soon, and the downtown office takes questions at [email protected] or (973) 325-4109.
That same Saturday, Holiday Lights is open from 5 to 9 p.m. with Santa at the zoo gazebo. Like November 28, December 5 has events downtown and a free evening on Northfield Avenue.
From November 20 through December 31, the complex charges for its daytime hours and opens its evenings for free. Two Saturdays, November 28 and December 5, each put a downtown event and a free night at the zoo on the same day.
If you'd like to talk about what this season looks like on your own street, from holiday traffic on Northfield Avenue to the best weeks to have your home photographed with the lights up, the Stephanie Mallios Team knows West Orange well. Schedule a personal market consultation, and we'll go over your plans with you.
