As someone who recently visited the zoo with my spouse and two children under 5 on a recent crowded Saturday, well, we did not pay to park and walked a fair amount.  We would have rather had closer parking, but we weren't the only ones who parked a bit from the door. 

We did not ride the train, we did not ride the carousel.  Those aren't really zoo functions.  We did not do the Children's Zoo.  We did do the stingrays for $12.  We still had a great time seeing the lions, giraffes, bears and other interesting animals. 

If people plan on visiting the zoo more than once or twice a year, memberships are available that defray the cost of those types of things going forward. 

I am ok with the structure as is.  A ton of great stuff to do for free, and some extras if you want to pay for them. 

Yes, these elements are expensive. However, I would argue that the main functions of a zoo are to provide a space to see and learn about exotic animals that are housed in as humane of a way as possible. All the other distractions are extras and are probably there to help the zoo cover its costs. As for parking, one can choose to take the metro or bike or park further away (for free) and walk--in the beautiful Forest Park, the latter is a benefit!

Admission to the Zoo is free - speciality extras (which have little to do with the preservation and care of animals) cost $.  I see no problem with that model.

I walked at the Zoo twice a week for 20 years and never paid for any of that stuff. The Children's Zoo and the Carousel are free during the first hour of the Zoo day. You can bring your own drinks and snacks. If you get there 15-30 minutes before the zoo opens, you can even slip into the north parking lot free (but let's keep that our little secret, shall we?).

The zoo could probably make more money on the parking lot if they cut the price in half. I have often seen cars lined up along the street almost up to Wells Drive at about 9:30 on a nice spring or summer morning, while the parking lot sits half empty. If they charged less, many of those cars would be parked in the lot instead, and there would probably be more turnover of cars throughout the day. They should experiment with "half-price for green cars on Tuesday"-type parking promotions. When the price went over $10 per car, it hit the tipping point. It's not like a group of friends going to a concert or event, where they could share the cost of the "per car" fee. Each car parked in the zoo lot most likely contains one family: one or two parents, several kids, maybe kids' friends. That carful of folks is not sharing the cost six or seven ways — it's really just one entity, the parent(s) shouldering the cost. Charge less, sell more units (parking spaces), make more money.

We go to the zoo pretty often, and have always appreciated that admission was free. By comparison, Cincinnati is $15 per adult, $10 per child; Denver is also $15/$10; Detroit is $14/$9; Miami is $15/$11. We bought a membership for the first time this year, so the kids actually get to ride the railroad. But in the past, we just said no to the train, and made a point of coming when the children's zoo was free. And yes, we parked on the street and walked. Nobody has died from that yet.

I am a bit surprised by your comments.  What an incredible bargain the zoo is for all.  It is free admission.  That doesn't mean every part of the zoo has to be gratis.  As someone who pays a lot in taxes to support the zoo and also donates, I believe the public has made this an opportunity for all.  To grouse that parking isn't free.  Why not ride your bike?  There is free parking.  It just isn't close.  We live in a society where people don't want to pay substantial taxes, and yet expect to be taken care of.  You can't have it both ways.

Like everyone else, I am surprised by the petulant tone of this article.  Park on the street, take some snacks, and enjoy one of the most spectacular zoos in the country at no admission charge. Yes, there are extras.  That's why they're called "extras."  If you indulge and do every single one of them, it will cost you. But the St. Louis Zoo has free admission.  It's an incredible value and a great way to spend a day.

The zoo is partially supported by tax dollars and is partially free. Seems fair to me.

I am fairly certain that paid admissions to these other zoos do not include parking. I'd have to agree w/ Butler and the others that you can certainly enjoy most of the zoo w/o paying. Besides, walking in Forest Park is half the fun. The fact that there is no real cover charge just to drop in makes it a great spontaneous trip.