Gatorland or Wild Florida: Where to See Alligators Near Orlando
4 min read
Short answer: for most visitors, the Gatorland ticket is the better first alligator day: shows and a full-day park in one ticket, between Orlando and Kissimmee. Choose Wild Florida if you would rather combine alligators with a self-guided drive past other animals (the drive-thru safari ticket includes its gator park), and add the Gatorland night walk or zipline only if you want something beyond the standard visit.
Two parks, two styles
Both places are about alligators, but they are not the same day out.
Gatorland sells itself as a place to meet thousands of alligators and crocodiles. The listing for the Gatorland skip-the-line ticket is a full-day admission, places the park between Orlando and Kissimmee on South Orange Blossom Trail and names the Gator Jumparoo Show; food, drink and transport are not included. Gatorland’s own site gives the park hours as 10 am to 5 pm every day, holidays included, and lists the Jumparoo at 11:30 am and 4:30 pm, noting that the show schedule is subject to change and depends on the weather. Check Gatorland’s showtimes page for the day you go.
Wild Florida is a gator park with a tropical bird aviary, a hands-on alligator demonstration and cypress swamp nature trails, according to the Wild Florida park ticket listing. It is also the home of a drive-thru safari. The Visit Orlando listing gives the address as 3301 Lake Cypress Road in Kenansville and describes it as about 45 minutes from the Disney area. Plan the drive into your day.
The five tickets
| Ticket | Price | Rating | What the listing says |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gatorland skip-the-line ticket | €33.18 | 4.7 (537) | Full-day admission; alligators, crocodiles and the Gator Jumparoo Show |
| Gatorland zipline adventure with full-day park access | €66.38 | 4.8 (98) | 1,200 feet of zipline above Nile crocodiles and the alligator breeding marsh |
| Gatorland flashlight tour at night | €23.70 | 4.9 (38) | A guided walk into the alligator marsh after dark, with feeding |
| Wild Florida park ticket and gator shows | €13.36 | 4.7 (165) | Gator park, bird aviary, hands-on alligator demonstration, nature trails |
| Drive-thru safari park at Wild Florida | €31.17 | 4.6 (678) | Self-guided drive in your own car past more than 100 exotic animals and native wildlife; gator park admission included |
The drive-thru safari is priced per person, like the other four. According to its booking page it also includes admission to the Wild Florida gator park, so you do not need the park ticket on top; giraffe feed costs extra and pets are not allowed.
What each one is good for
The standard visit: the Gatorland ticket. It is rated 4.7 from 537 reviews, and the Jumparoo show is the attraction its listing names.
Adrenaline: the zipline includes full-day park access, so you are not paying for a second admission. The course has five lines totalling 1,200 feet and takes about 1.5 hours. The booking page sets a minimum height of 94 cm and a maximum weight of 125 kg (275 lb), and children aged 8 and under must be accompanied by an adult who is also on the course.
After dark: the night tour matches the Gator Night Shine that Gatorland describes on its site: guests walk the boardwalks of the alligator breeding marsh with flashlights and a guide. It runs on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays, and the start time moves with the season, from 6:30 pm between 1 November and 31 December to 8:30 pm between 2 April and 31 August, according to Gatorland. Groups run from 5 to 25 people. The booking page lists entry to the rest of the park among the exclusions and lets children aged 2 and under go free. Check the date you book against Gatorland’s page.
A smaller outing in the countryside: the Wild Florida park ticket costs €13.36, against €33.18 for Gatorland. Its booking page describes a 1-hour admission rather than a full day, and the drive out to Kenansville comes on top.
You want to stay in your car: the drive-thru safari needs your own vehicle; a rental car is not included. If you do not have one, you can compare car rentals for Orlando. Whichever ticket you choose, none of the five listings includes transport to the park.
Who should skip it
Both parks are about animals in open-air enclosures, so this is not an air-conditioned afternoon. If you care more about seeing wild animals than captive ones, see the airboat guide or the manatee guide instead.
Our recommendation
For most visitors: the Gatorland ticket. It covers the shows and the park in one admission, and the zipline ticket includes the same full-day access if you want more. Pick Wild Florida when the drive-thru safari or the bird aviary is the reason to go; the safari ticket covers the gator park as well. More alligator and wildlife options are on our airboat tours page.
