My family and I have had our Phoenix zoo membership for 1 year now. We love it! It is worth every penny. We go at least 1 time per month and always have a great time. The volunteers are extremely friendly, we have only met 1 who was not. Even when it is too hot in the summer to do anything outdoors we go to the zoo. We play at the water park then go straight home.
We watch many families (parents) rushing their children through the zoo to the point that the kids don't have fun. With a membership we are always walking at a leisurely pace. Sometimes we go and only see a hand full of animals. Sometimes we go to ride our bikes around and don't stop at the animals at all.
We love that the new Kimono Dragon exhibit is in, and are excited to see the Orangutan exhibit being started. My daughter is learning quite alot at the zoo. At 5 she is already interested in traveling the world to see these animals in their native habitat.
Now, I must say... If you have been to the San Diego zoo, please realize that the Phoenix Zoo can not compare. So, don't go to the Phoenix Zoo expecting anything more than a great zoo for education purposes. But, it is the 2nd best zoo I have been to.
My family is from a small city in Arizona. We moved to Phoenix primarily due to the culture a big city can provide for raising children. I chose to live in S. Scottsdale specifically because the Phoenix zoo is about 2 miles away from my home.