Although wildlife spotting might not be high on your list of things to do in Las Vegas, a trip to the Lion Habitat Ranch is an unforgettable experience not to be missed.
Las Vegas is world-famous for its casinos, nightclubs, and live music shows. But did you ever wonder what happened to the majestic lions that used to take part in the MGM Grand Casino Lion Habitat?
This free attraction was popular with visitors to the MGM Grand Hotel between 1999 and 2011. When the exhibit finally closed in 2012, the MGM lions were then taken to spend the rest of their natural lives at the Lion Habitat Ranch in Henderson, about 12 miles south of the Las Vegas Strip.
I took my kids to the Behind the Scenes Tour at the Lion Habitat Ranch, which allows you to explore the ranch with an expert guide before the doors open to the public. Read on to find out how we got on.
Lion Habitat Ranch Logistics
The Lion Habitat Ranch is on Bruner Ave in Henderson, NV, just off South Las Vegas Boulevard. It’s easy to find by car if you follow the Lion Habitat Ranch signs along the roadside. Once you arrive, there’s plenty of parking at the ranch.
If you don’t have a car or prefer not to drive, you can easily reach the ranch by public transportation. Buses run regularly, and there’s a bus stop just a short walk from the ranch entrance.
You can book your tickets online at the Lion Habitat Ranch website, and standard tickets can be booked for same-day admission. You must book the Behind the Scenes experience at least 48 hours in advance, although some of the tours are reserved for larger groups.
The tour lasts approximately 90 minutes and starts at 8.30 am, so plan to arrive a little earlier than that.
Lion Habitat Ranch: Behind the Scenes Tour
On the day we visited, there were about 20 people booked on the Behind the Scenes Tour, so we were split into two groups. That kept the group reasonably small, with around 10 people touring with each keeper.
We saw about 10 different lions, and the lion keeper told us lots of information about each one. This is one of the major advantages of the tour because visitors in regular opening hours don’t have a guide to show them around. It’s lovely to see that the knowledgeable staff know each animal individually and really care about them.
While the keeper talked about each lion in turn, she fed them a little snack to keep them interested. The food they feed the lions at the ranch is specially designed to be nutritionally balanced and as similar as possible to what they’d eat in the wild.
To put it bluntly, big cats in the wild eat every bit of their prey, not just the prime steaks. So the lions at the Lion Habitat Ranch have a specially-tailored mixture that looks like uncooked ground beef but contains every part they’d usually eat.
The keeper was breaking small pieces of this ground meat off to feed the lion through the chain-link fence, and the lions were up on their hind legs, literally eating it out of the keeper’s hands. This gives you a great close-up view of the lions and the opportunity to take some fantastic photographs.
Sometimes, one of the lions would rub up against the fence like it wanted a scratch or a pat. There seemed to be genuine affection between the lions and their keeper, at least with the ones that we saw, and it shows that these incredible animals are well-looked after in a loving home.
All of the lions at the ranch are related in one way or another, so they can’t all be kept together in one big group. But some siblings live together in a small family group because that’s what they’ve always been used to.
The animals all seem very relaxed and the lions’ environment has plenty of drinking water, toys to keep them entertained, and dens to shelter from the hot Las Vegas sun. This isn’t one of those sad animal experiences with bored animals pacing in too-small cages. The animal enclosures are well-maintained and clean, and you might see some of the staff cleaning enclosures or bathing animals during your tour.
Other Animals At The Lion Habitat Ranch
Along with the lions, there are various other exotic animals living at the ranch, and you can get up close to all of these on the Behind the Scenes Tours.
These include birds like macaws, cockatoos, ostriches, and emus, as well as several tortoises. The keeper took us around the park and told us about each animal, and we were able to touch the tortoises and take photos with them.
We also had a chance to go into a side section of the giraffe enclosure and feed Ozzie the giraffe. Having this gentle giant eat leaves of romaine lettuce out of our hands was an unforgettable experience!
After the Tour
Our whole tour took about 90 minutes, and it was nicely paced. We didn’t feel like we’d been rushed through the park or had too much information thrown at us, but by the end of the tour, the kids were ready to go.
Once the park opens at 10 am, you can leave the park and carry on with your day. Alternatively, you can stay and continue exploring the park or do some add-on activities, including feeding the lions or spending more time with Ozzie the giraffe.
You can even have Ozzie paint a bespoke picture for you. You get to choose some paint colors, and then Ozzie holds a paintbrush in his mouth and paints a picture on a canvas for you. This add-on costs around $100, and there are only a couple of opportunities each day so book early. The painting giraffe session takes about 15 or 20 minutes, and it was an amazing experience that I definitely would recommend.
Some of Ozzie’s paintings are available to buy in the ranch’s small gift shop, along with custom-painted bags, scarves, and t-shirts. You can also purchase other merchandise, gift certificates, or sponsor an animal to support this worthy organization.
Downsides of the Lion Habitat Ranch
There aren’t many downsides to the Lion Habitat Ranch, especially if you sign up for the Behind the Scenes Tour.
It does mean an early start to your day, as the experience starts at 8.30 am, but this can be the best time to visit the ranch. Las Vegas is sunny all year round and gets very hot in the summer, but the Behind the Scenes Experience allows you to enjoy your tour before the temperature gets too hot.
If you stay on after your tour for the optional add-ons, it can get hot later. You might even find that some animals sleep through the hottest part of the day.
The ranch is an outdoor attraction, and although the animals have plenty of shade, there isn’t much shade for human visitors. So, remember to wear sunscreen and drink plenty of water.
Is Lion Habitat Ranch Behind the Scenes Tour Worth It?
We really enjoyed the Lion Habitat Ranch Behind the Scenes Tour and thought it was well worth the money.
It was a wonderful experience to have an expert guide show us around this amazing place. We got much more information about the ranch and the history of these majestic creatures, which wouldn’t have been possible with the standard entry.
When the park opened at 10 am, about 30-50 people came through the gates, and by the time we left, the ranch was starting to fill up a bit. I’m not sure how much busier it gets throughout the day, but we enjoyed having the park to ourselves.
A few years ago, my husband toured the Lion Habitat Ranch during regular opening hours with our older son. He enjoyed the Behind the Scenes Tour much more and thought it was a more in-depth, personal, and memorable experience.
Overall, I highly recommend the Lion Habitat Ranch Behind the Scenes Tour. The ranch is a great place to visit and a must-do for your Las Vegas vacation!
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