Skip to content
BusinessesGrow
Arkansas Alligator Farm & Petting Zoo, Hot Springs, AR

Photo: Picturesque Hot Springs National Park, E. L. Glass, Hot Springs, Ark., Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons. Cropped and resized.

AttractionsFamily FavoriteQuirky FunLocal Gem

Arkansas Alligator Farm & Petting Zoo

Arkansas Alligator Farm & Petting Zoo is an attraction in Hot Springs, AR, part of the Diamond Lakes guide. Cost: under $25.

847 Whittington Ave, Hot Springs, AR 71901 · Hot Springs, AR

Why you should go…

Founded in 1902, the Arkansas Alligator Farm and Petting Zoo is one of Hot Springs' oldest tourist attractions, built to give visitors something to do beyond the thermal baths. The zoo houses alligators alongside miniature goats, wolves, lemurs, raccoons and other animals in a hands-on petting zoo setting. Visitors can feed baby alligators meat on a stick and watch live alligator feeding shows held several days a week from May through mid-October.

  • #zoo
  • #family
  • #animals
  • #petting zoo
  • #history

What's around here?

The closest stops to Arkansas Alligator Farm & Petting Zoo, ordered by straight-line distance. A few more like it, plus some different kinds of fun so you can build a full day.

  • Shopping
    Local Gem

    Dryden Pottery

    Free

    A working pottery studio in Hot Springs where visitors watch demonstrations and shop handmade ceramics.

    0.7 mi awaySwitch it up: Shopping

  • Tours
    Family Favorite

    National Park Duck Tours

    $25–$50

    A 75-minute amphibious DUKW ride that rolls past Bathhouse Row in downtown Hot Springs, then splashes into Lake Hamilton to circle St. John's Island.

    1.1 mi awaySwitch it up: Tours

  • Shopping
    Local Gem

    It's About Rocks

    Free

    A downtown Hot Springs shop selling crystals, minerals, gemstones and handmade jewelry.

    1.1 mi awaySwitch it up: Shopping

  • Attractions
    Iconic

    Buckstaff Bathhouse

    $25–$50

    A historic 1912 bathhouse on Bathhouse Row offering traditional thermal mineral baths and spa services.

    1.1 mi awayMore like this

  • Attractions
    Quirky Fun

    Machine Gun Grotto

    $25–$50

    An indoor basement firing range in downtown Hot Springs where you can rent and fire machine guns alongside the Mountain Valley Armory shop.

    1.2 mi awayMore like this

  • Attractions
    Quirky Fun

    A Narrow Escape

    Under $25

    A downtown Hot Springs escape room center with nine themed puzzle rooms for groups up to eight.

    1.3 mi awayMore like this