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We love Riverbanks Zoo and happily became members after our daughter Aaliyah was born.
In addition to the free admission throughout the year, there are some other nice perks of being a member.
One I think is especially cool is the Members’ Night Out at Riverbanks Zoo when the zoo opens its doors to only members during special evening hours several times a year and has a bunch of special activities and even special discounts on food.
Here I’ll share what you can expect during Riverbanks Zoo Members’ Night Out based on our experience, including the 2026 schedule for Riverbanks Members’ Night Out.
What is Riverbanks Zoo’s Members’ Night Out?
Riverbanks Zoo’s Members’ Night Out event is a special evening that is only open to members of the zoo.
During Members’ Night Out at Riverbanks Zoo, there are special evening operating hours after the zoo closes to the general public for the day, and there are a number of activities that let you get more up close and interactive with the animals than you can on a normal visit during the day.
There are also some actually really nice discounted prices on food and drinks during the Riverbanks Members’ Night Out events too!
I also think for people who can’t make it on the less crowded weekdays during the day, it’s a nice chance to experience the zoo with less crowds than you’ll normally find on the weekend.
We’ve been to two Members’ Night Out at Riverbanks Zoo, and I think it’s one of my favorite perks of being a member.
By the way, you can compare all the membership levels and benefits in my guide to Riverbanks Zoo Membership levels.
If you haven’t been to the zoo at all yet, be sure to check out my complete guide to Riverbanks Zoo as well as my guide to the animals you can see at Riverbanks Zoo.
Coming from out of town and need a place to stay? Check out my post on hotels near Riverbanks Zoo or search for hotels in Columbia.
Members’ Night Out at Riverbanks Zoo Schedule
Honestly, I think the zoo could do a better job publicizing and making when these nights are clear.
Our first visit to a Riverbanks Members’ Night Out was in September 2025, and I only knew about it based on seeing an ad about it in the membership newsletter and magazine.
Based on the schedule for 2025 and 2026, it appears they hold Members’ Night Out at Riverbanks 3 times a year, once around the start of Spring, once around the start of Summer, and once in the late Summer.
That makes sense given temperatures are warmer, there’s more daylight, and it doesn’t interfere with big evening events around the holidays like Riverbanks Boo at the Zoo and the Wild Lights at Riverbanks Zoo.
Day and Times
These special members only nights at Riverbanks Zoo are always held on Fridays from 6 pm to 9 pm.
Riverbanks Members Night Out 2026 Dates
Here are the 2026 Riverbanks Zoo Members’ Night Out Dates:
- March 27
- June 12
- September 4
If you’re reading this in 2027 and beyond and I don’t have dates listed for the current year, can check the zoo membership page.
Keeping an eye on the email newsletters sent out to members and on the zoo’s event calendar and are other good ways to make sure you know when the next one is coming up.
Honestly, if you’ve never looked at that event calendar before, you should!
I was surprised at all the little activities and classes offered by the zoo that I had no idea about!
Our Experiences at Members’ Night Out
We have really enjoyed our two visits so far to the Riverbanks Members’ Night Out.
It’s really neat to see the animals in a slightly different setting and time, and there are cool extra activities going on, including chances to see animals up close and watch animal enrichment demonstrations.
Especially as Aaliyah gets older, I think she’ll get a lot out of these events.
What to See at Riverbanks Zoo’s Members Night
I alluded to it above when I discussed our experience, but let’s talk about everything on offer during the members nights at Riverbanks Zoo.
Keep in mind, these activities might vary slightly between different Members’ Nights and year to year, but I’d also imagine they are pretty similar too.
Animal Enrichment Activities
So, I think at first glance, this is probably the highlight for most people!
It’s a chance to see the animals doing activities and interacting with keepers. It seems like the exact animals and how many enrichment activities there are vary slightly from event to event.
For example, on our first visit in September 2025, there were enrichment activities for the gorillas, lions, and sea lions, but in March 2026, there were only activities planned for the lions and sea lions.
I imagine that might have been due in part to the fact that the younger gorillas recently moved on to another zoo, but it seems like it might just vary from members’ night to members’ night.
For what it’s worth, they do give out maps when you enter that have all the enrichment activities for that evening listed along with their start times, which are staggered so it’s possible to see more than one.
For what it’s worth as well, I actually wasn’t overwhelmed by these.
It’s worth keeping in mind, these are regular activities the animals do that help them build skills, build relationships with their keepers, and keep them stimulated.
It’s not a “show.” No animals are going to be jumping through hoops or showing off, so it might be worth adjusting your or your children’s expectations.
They also get pretty crowded.
So, I probably wouldn’t go out of my way to see these again as long as Aaliyah is on the younger side, but if you are by one of these animals’ habitats near or just after the start time, you could check them out and see if it’s worth sticking around to watch.
Still, they are neat, and if you are really into one animal or have a child who is, keepers are around and may do some explanations and can answer questions, so it’s a nice way to learn more about them.
Giraffe Barn Tours
This was our priority on our first visit since Aaliyah loves the giraffes so much. Feeding them is one of her favorite activities at the zoo.
These tours have been offered on both of our visits to the Members Night at Riverbanks. So, they seems like a staple, but I imagine it’s also possible they may rotate what habitats or places are open, at least within reason.
For example, I wouldn’t plan on touring the lion barn!
The truth is, this was neat, but wasn’t exactly what we expected.
I guess I figured the giraffes would be in the barn and we’d get to see them a bit closer, which would have been really neat for Aaliyah.
The giraffes were all out in their normal yard area though.
This activity is really more geared towards learning how the keepers take care of the giraffes than seeing them up close.
For example, we got to see the unique placards with a special color and shape that the keepers use to signal to each giraffe to tell them to do certain tasks.
So, I think adults and older children will get more out of it than younger children.
The keepers did do a really nice little talk.
For example, I learned that Bruce, the biggest giraffe, regularly donates plasma, which the zoo banks and sends to other zoos when baby giraffes are born. They are working on training the other giraffes to do the same.
So, this is really cool for adults and older kids.
However, the truth is during our tour, Aaliyah kind of just wanted to see the giraffes.
Some of them did congregate near the gate for a bit, so you could sort of see them a bit closer than normal, but she probably would have been just as happy watching them from the normal platform.
Bruce was hanging out by the feeding platform, munching on some lettuce they had out for him in a container, but they were not doing the feeding activity.
Meanwhile, several others were also munching on some snacks left out for them.
Animal Ambassadors
There are some chances to see some animals up close during the Riverbanks Members’ Nights Out though.
That is with the Animal Ambassadors.
Keepers have some animals out and explain a little about each one while you get a good glimpse of them up close.
On our first visit, we walked by an armadillo in a hurry to get to the giraffe barn, but we later got to see a snake up close, which Aaliyah was pretty fascinated by, perhaps to Susana’s horror.
To be clear, you can’t touch or hold the animals, but you do get to see them a foot or two away, and the keepers talk about the animals and answer any questions.
They do rotate the animals at each stand so none get overstimulated or stressed.
The snake we saw was replaced by a giant cockroach, and we also saw a millipede at a stand nearby a few minutes later.
We got to see a pretty gnarly scorpion on our second visit.
The locations of the Animal Ambassadors stands are marked on the map, but exact times for exact animals are not listed.
Meet a Keeper
This also seems like a really neat activity for adults and older children, especially if they are really into a specific animal.
You can see the places to meet a keeper on the map for the event.
Since we haven’t taken the time to do this yet, I can’t say for sure that the locations mean the keepers will talk about the specific animal or animals close by, but that seems to make the most sense to me.
If you or your kids have a favorite animal that you’d like to learn more about, this would be a really good chance to do it.
Enjoy the DJ
There was a DJ in the main plaza area just after the entrance.
They played music for the entire event from 6:00 to 9:00.
There is a big dance party known as “Party like an Animal” starting at 8:00 as a way to close out the night.
I imagine that is an effort to herd people towards the plaza and exit as most of the activities had concluded by 8:00.
By that time, it’s usually pretty crowded and hopping here, and there are things like hula hoops for kids to play and dance with.
Enjoy Some Discounted Food and Drinks
Honestly, I think this is a really nice touch!
There isn’t a blanket discount on food and drinks, but there were several snack type foods on sale for really, really reasonable prices.
Among the food and drinks on discount both nights we have gone were:
- $1 fries and tater tots
- $2 hot dogs
- $2 sodas and ICEEs
- $5 beers ($7 for craft beers)
Obviously, those items and prices are subject to change for other nights (they were listed on the map on the website and that they hand you when entering), but they are really good deals, especially relative to what things normally cost at the zoo!
Our Food Experience
On our first visit, we got a couple hot dogs, 3 orders of fries, and a soda.
I was really pleasantly surprised by the size of the fries!
To be honest, I only ordered three because I thought they might be smaller portions, but they were basically a normal order.
For just under $10 bucks, it’s a great deal if you can stick to hot dogs!
We got our food that time at the main Tuskers Restaurant, and it looked like they had their normal full menu since we saw people with salads, chicken tenders, pizzas, and burgers. Those items were normal prices.
Tuskers had fries, but they did not have tater tots.
On our second visit, we hit Wild Burger.
I stuck to a dog, but Susana did get a burger, which was the regular price.
We also got a couple orders of tater tots (Wild Burger did not have normal fries, only tots), and I was just as impressed at the size of the $1 order.
I think I spent about $10 on the same amount the last time I went to Soda City.
I should point out though that if you get a burger, it does still come with tater tots, so luckily Aaliyah likes them because we had a lot!
Still, for just under $30, we got a burger, two hot dogs, three orders of tots, a soda, and a beer. A little more than we spent last time, but not bad at all!
Ride the Carousel for Free!
Actually, this might be the best thing about Riverbanks Members’ Night, at least if you have young kids.
On our first visit, I couldn’t remember for sure if they scanned our card to charge Explore More Credits when we rode the carousel, but they definitely didn’t on our second visit.
So, as far as I can tell, even though it doesn’t explicitly say this anywhere, it seems like carousel rides are free during the Members’ Night Out at Riverbanks.
Aaliyah hasn’t really gotten into the train or the goats, so I can’t confirm 100% if they are free as well, but the fact the carousel is makes me think they probably are.
The Saluda Skyride also operates during Riverbanks Members’ Night Out, and it is always free.
Discount at the Gift Shop
There was also a 20% discount at the gift shop during the event.
That’s double the normal 10% discount members get on regular visits.
So, if there’s a special stuffed animal or other gift your kid (or yourself!) always wants when you go to the zoo, it’s a good night to snag it.
Enjoy the Zoo Like Normal!
Unlike most other night time events at the zoo like Wild Lights and Boo at the Zoo, everything operates pretty close to normal during this event.
The farmyard, birdhouse, Koala Knockabout, and aquarium and reptile house are all open, but they do close a bit before the end of the event, so check the map and prioritize as necessary.
The map and info online does warn that some animals might be away or sleeping, but in our experiences, most of them are still out.
For example, Butch the Bear, Aaliyah’s favorite, has been out both times we’ve gone. He was his normal lazy self both times though.
The otters were really active on our latest visit, and the tiger has been moving around both times, a big difference from the day when he is usually hiding.
We saw the rhinos and giraffes on our first visit, but they were both away when we went by there on the second visit. I didn’t note the time but I’d estimate it as sometime around 7:30.
So, if there are animals you must see, I’d prioritize seeing them early.
We haven’t gone over to the gardens on any of our visits to Members’ Night Out.
So, I can’t say for sure if they are open to walk through or if you could check out the excellent kids’ play areas on that side of the river, but I’d lean towards yes.
Some Practical Tips for Members’ Night Out
I think the biggest tip I’d give here is to make sure you look over the map and special activities planned before you go or when you arrive.
Since so many overlap or are pretty close together in timing, you’ll probably need to prioritize and possibly sacrifice some things for others.
That will also help you decide if you want to try to get there early.
In our case, we knew we wanted to do the giraffe barn tour, so we got there a little early and tried to knock it out as quick as possible to maybe make some of the enrichment activities.
However, events like this usually have a bit of a line to get in right at the start and then calm down.
So, it’s possible you might actually get in a little quicker if you come shortly after start time once that initial line gets in.
On our first visit, we did get there a bit early, and got in line about 5:45. There was hardly anyone there then and we were one of the first handful of people in.
However, by 6:00, there was quite a line, maybe 100 people or so, and the event as a whole didn’t exactly feel crowded but certainly didn’t feel empty either.
It was the same on our second visit, when we got there just a few minutes before 6:00 and there was a pretty decent line. It did move really fast once the gates opened though.
I would say both nights felt more crowded than a normal random weekday during the school year, but definitely less crowded than a normal summer weekend.
Keep in mind normal zoo rules like no smoking and vaping and that kids 15 and under must be accompanied by an adult.
Riverbanks Zoo does not require clear bags. The rules state no outside food and drink, but we’ve never had an issue bringing water and some small snacks for Aaliyah.
Will You Go to the Next Riverbanks Members’ Night Out?
If you’ve noticed this event before on the zoo’s calendar or newsletters and wondered if it was worth going, or if you didn’t even realize they had this event like us, I hope this post helped you determine if you want to go or not.
I know we will try to make going to it a tradition as long as we are members of the zoo.
And if you do go, I hope you enjoy it as much as we do!
I’d love to know what you thought and what activities you managed to do in the comments below!
Cheers and Happy Exploring!