Denver Zoo has three Community Free Days left in 2026, and the first one lands on a Wednesday. The free days are Wednesday, Nov. 11, Saturday, Nov. 14 and Sunday, Nov. 22. Admission is free, but every visitor needs a timed ticket reserved online ahead of time. The zoo says walk-ups will not be accepted on free days.
The date to put on the calendar is the ticket release, which comes two weeks before each free day. Tickets for Nov. 11 are released Oct. 28, tickets for Nov. 14 on Oct. 31, and tickets for Nov. 22 on Nov. 8. They are first come, first served. For homeschool families, the weekday date is a chance at a free zoo field trip. The zoo does not run it as a homeschool program; it is open to everyone who gets a ticket.
What to know
- When: Wednesday, Nov. 11, 2026; also Saturday, Nov. 14 and Sunday, Nov. 22. Daily zoo hours are 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.
- Where: Denver Zoo, 2300 Steele St., Denver, CO 80205
- Cost: free with a reserved timed ticket (regular admission is $27 for adults, $24 for seniors and $19 for ages 3 to 15)
- Ages: all ages. Everyone needs a ticket, including children 2 and under.
- Subject: nature and science (animals)
- Registration: required and online only, on the zoo’s Free Days page. Tickets are released Oct. 28 (for Nov. 11), Oct. 31 (for Nov. 14) and Nov. 8 (for Nov. 22). You can book up to five tickets per free day, with one registration per person per free day.
- At the gate: tickets are valid only for the date and entry time you reserve; bring your digital tickets. Members can show a digital membership card instead.
Good to know
Homeschool groups of 10 or more have another free route that does not depend on the ticket release: see our guide to free weekday field trips at Denver Zoo for homeschool groups. Nov. 11 is also the date of the Colorado Symphony Youth Concert at Boettcher Concert Hall, a second Denver option for homeschool families that day.
More like this: Denver, Free field trips, Free things to do, CSU Spur free field trips, Denver Art Museum Homeschool Program Day
