Just over the line · Kingwood, West Virginia

Hovatter's Wildlife Zoo

Private wildlife zoo · also called West Virginia Zoo

A family-run zoo in rural Preston County with over thirty species: chimpanzees, grizzlies, a giraffe, a herd of fallow deer that walks right up to the fence, and a walk-in room full of parakeets. You can feed some of the animals. There's a gift shop, a snack area, restrooms and somewhere to picnic.

Better than it has any right to be for the price. Chimps, grizzlies, a giraffe, a tortoise the size of a coffee table, and a room of parakeets that lands on you. Feed is a few dollars and they take credit. Watch the 5pm last admission, because the gate says six.

Matt, 4 Aug 2026

A very large tortoise resting on bare earth beside a wire fence, with a paved path and trees behind it. — One of the tortoises, out by the path rather than behind glass.
4 Aug 2026

Going

Season: Open seven days a week, 10am to 6pm, last admission 5pm. Open on all holidays. The 2026 season opened 11 April.
Admission: Adults 13-64 $15.99. Seniors 65+ and military with ID $12.99. Children 3-12 $11.99. Two and under free. Season passes: $70 adult, $65 senior or military, $60 child.
Feeding them: Feed runs $1 to $5 depending on what you buy, and they take credit. You don't need to hunt for an ATM first.
Strollers: The paths take a stroller.
Phone: 304-329-3122
Getting there: Open in Google Maps to Hovatter's Wildlife Zoo (opens Google Maps)
Website: West Virginia Zoo (Hovatter's Wildlife Zoo)

Where it's

Hovatter's Wildlife Zoo, 291 Wagner Lane, Kingwood, WV 26537, West VirginiaDirections →

More photographs

A dozen pink flamingos standing around a shallow muddy pool in a grassed enclosure under a blue sky. — The flamingo enclosure, mid-afternoon in early August.
4 Aug 2026

Two large rattlesnakes coiled together on straw bedding inside a reptile enclosure. — Rattlesnakes in the reptile house. Behind glass, in case that needed saying.
4 Aug 2026

A giraffe standing on gravel in front of an open barn door, photographed through a wire fence. — There's a giraffe. I did not expect a giraffe.
4 Aug 2026

The giraffe enclosure seen from a grassy slope, with a split-rail fence in front and a tan barn behind. — The same enclosure from the path above it, which is where you get the better look.
4 Aug 2026

A herd of spotted fallow deer crowded around a round hay bale in a feeder, in a wooded dirt pen. — The fallow deer herd at their hay bale. There are more of them than the photo makes it look.
4 Aug 2026

A young spotted fallow deer with large ears looking directly through a wire fence at close range. — This one came over on its own. The fence is wire, so you end up nose to nose.
4 Aug 2026

A wooden climbing ramp signed Goat Mountain in a large dirt yard, with goats standing along the fence in the foreground. — Goat Mountain. The goats work the fence line, so they'll find you before you find them.
4 Aug 2026

From people who were there

Restrooms, a snack area and somewhere to picnic. You can feed some of the animals — feed is $1 to $5 and they take credit — and there's a gift shop. The paths take a stroller. Prices and hours photographed on site.
Site maintainer, first-hand · reported 4 Aug 2026 · visited 4 Aug 2026

Verified 4 Aug 2026 · Visited, and read off the zoo's own brochure on site

Hovatter's Wildlife Zoo: the zoo's own brochure, collected on site — Printed brochure picked up at the gate on 4 August 2026. Gives park hours (7 days, 10am to 6pm, last admission 5pm, open all holidays), the address, phone, and the USDA license. Admission and season pass prices are from the posted price list inside.
West Virginia Zoo: official site — The operator. Gives the 11 April 2026 opening, the 34th season, the phone number, and the species list. Publishes no admission prices or daily hours on the front page.
West Virginia Zoo: directions — Confirms Hovatter's Wildlife Zoo and West Virginia Zoo are the same place, gives the address, and routes visitors from Oakland, Maryland — though it describes the zoo as east of Oakland when it is west.

Were you just there?

Tell us what you saw

Anything you noticed. If it's wrong or it's changed, this is the fastest fix.

Still open — tap one

Got a photograph? The full form takes up to four.