The ULTIMATE Guide To The WNC Nature Center

The Nature Center is operated by the City of Asheville’s Parks and Recreation Department. It’s a great place to observe animals in their natural habitats and spend time outside.

Wondering where the animals come from? Most animals at the WNC Nature Center have either been permanently injured or don’t have the skills needed to survive in the wild.

We always describe the WNC Nature Center as a cross between a nature trail and a zoo. Our kids call it the Asheville Zoo and it actually used to be called the Asheville City Zoo. It has a very natural feel– you may even forget you are in a gated attraction altogether in a few areas!

Individual day passes

The WNC Nature Center sells both individual day passes and annual memberships. As of Fall 2024, daily passes for adults and ages 13-15 are $13.95 ($9.95 for City of Asheville), seniors are $12.95 ($8.95 for City of Asheville), children ages 3-12 are $9.95 ($7.95 for City of Asheville) and children under 2 are free.

You can buy tickets online in advance (recommended) or in person at the ticket booth.

Buncombe County ZOOM Pass Entry

Free access is available for residents of Buncombe and Transylvania Counties via the ZOOM Pass program! Library cardholders can get free access to several Asheville area attractions every thirty days.

Annual Membership

The WNC Nature Center has several annual membership tiers starting at $39 for an individual all the way to $119 for a family (2 adults + 4 kids) plus two additional people (as of April 2022). A Family Plus plan would be a great idea if you have grandparents nearby!

There are also a few larger plans that even include donor status. Memberships can also be gifted, which would make such a great treat for the family.

Discounted admission to 450+ Zoos and Aquariums with an annual membership

Membership to the WNC Nature Center includes free admission, discounts to the gift shop and summer camps and discounted admission to 450+ centers nationwide. That last bit is awesome!!

You can view the full details here, but the WNC Nature Center is part of the Association of Zoos & Aquariums, which means you can get free or discounted admissions to several other zoos and aquariums across the US with an annual membership. One of which is Columbia, SC’s Riverbanks Zoo, which is a top 10 zoo and only 2.5 hours away from Asheville. The program allows for 50% off admission to Riverbanks.

There are several parking lots at the WNC Nature Center, some of which get you very close to the entrance and others you have to walk a bit.

The ideal parking lot is right out front of the entrance, but it fills up pretty quickly. This is the parking lot where you turn just after you see the main Nature Center sign. There are generally a few handicap spots available right out front in this lot but unless you came early or get lucky the other spots may be full.

There’s an overflow lot on your right just before you get to the main area to park. It’s pretty large and you can generally find a spot. You can turn around in the main parking area easily, so you may want to scope that out first before trying the overflow lot.

If you do end up in the overflow lot and aren’t traveling with a stroller, try to park toward the middle! There are stairs that you can up toward the Nature Center’s entrance. If you are traveling with a stroller, though, you’ll have to walk all the way out of the parking lot back to the main road to get to the entrance. So, park closer to where you drive in if that’s the case!

If you are visiting with a large group or young children, there’s a loop at the entrance where cars can pull over to let people out. The driver can then find a parking spot a bit further away while everyone else gets settled at the entrance.

The map below shows the layout of the various habitats. It’s a loop, so it doesn’t really matter which way you go. You may want to head in the direction of your ‘must-see’ animals first. We find that the animals are more active in cooler mornings than on hot afternoons.

You’ll notice ‘Nature Play’ areas around the Nature Center, like a slide at Otter Falls and an area to build a fort on the way to the foxes. These are marked by green arrows on the map above.

The admissions area is located just at the front gate. There’s a gift shop located here as well.

Once you pass the main entrance area you’ll make your way to a big red barn. This area is home to chickens and a striped skunk.

There are also restrooms located here as well as water fountains and vending machines. You can skip the barn by walking around the right side of it.

Once you exit the barn you’ll see the farmyard filled with various breeds of goats, donkeys and sheep.

As you make your way along the paved path you’ll reach a crowd-favorite habitat at the Nature Center: Black Bear Ridge. Here you’ll find a boardwalk that goes over the bear and deer habitats.

As you get through the bear and deer habitats you can choose whether you want to check out the Birds of Prey habitat and Otter Falls or if you want to go the opposite direction toward the bobcat, cougars, wolves, etc.

The Nature Center forms a loop, so you can still see everything regardless of your direction of choice.

The habitats for the birds of prey, otters and turtles are pretty close to one another. However, the other animals (bobcat, cougar, gray + red wolves, coyotes, red panda and foxes) are kind of spread out.