SEATTLE - Zoomazium at Woodland Park Zoo will close Monday, September 18 through Friday, September 22 to gear up for the upcoming rainy season. The indoor, nature play space, designed for kids ages 8 and under, premiered to zoo visitors in May.

photo:Ryan Hawk

Zoomazium has drawn large crowds since opening, including a capture rate of more than 70 percent. “The interactive facility has enjoyed a very successful summer. It’s been a tremendous hit with our toddlers and kids and, of course, with parents,” noted Zoomazium Program and Exhibits Manager Frank Hein. “The climbing, crawling and sliding by thousands of kids have added some natural wear and tear. This is the right time to do some seasonal maintenance to prepare it for the throngs of kids we anticipate during the fall and winter.”

Zoomazium will open in time for the weekend of September 23. Zoomazium hours will be 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. daily through October 14; and 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. daily October 15 through March 14. It is free with zoo admission.

The nature-centered, interactive facility is divided into nature-themed zones and encourages active play and learning. A day in the 5,500-square-foot Zoomazium play space might include ascending a mountain, crawling through a nurse log, climbing a towering strangler fig tree or squirming through a dark cave. At Nature Exchange, kids can trade their nature knowledge and observations for all kinds of fascinating things like a fossilized shark’s tooth. Storytelling, live animal demonstrations, videos, theatre performance, arts and crafts, and more await inquisitive and playful youngsters.

Zoo admission: Adult (13-64) $10.50; Child (3-12) $7.50; Toddler (0-2) Free. Seniors and disabled receive a discount and zoo members receive free zoo admission year-round. Parking: $4.00. Parking is limited. Please call Metro at 206.553.3000 for bus service to the zoo.

Info: For more information and how to become a zoo member, call 206.684.4800 or 684.4026 (TTY), or visit the zoo’s Web site at www.zoo.org.

Accredited by the American Zoo and Aquarium Association, award-winning Woodland Park Zoo is famed for pioneering naturalistic exhibits and setting a standard for zoos all over the world. With conservation, education and excellent animal care at the core of the zoo’s mission, the zoo is helping to save endangered species in Washington state and around the world including tree kangaroos, snow leopards, red-crowned cranes, African wild dogs, western pond turtles and Oregon silverspot butterflies. By inspiring visitors and others to care and act, Woodland Park Zoo is making a difference in our planet’s future.