Guest Experiences

Make your trip to World Bird Sanctuary even more memorable with one of our many Guest Experiences! There are lots of activities available to enhance your visit – get up close and personal with some of our animal ambassadors who can’t wait to meet you!

Available Daily for Ages 13 and Up

• Each experience approximately 30 minutes.
• Tickets for Guest Experiences available for same-day purchase in our Raptique Gift Shop. Please call ahead to be sure your experience is available for same-day purchase (636) 431-1333.
• Tickets and gift certificates available for purchase online here dates and times are subject to availability. Please email education@worldbirdsanctuary.org before purchasing if you need a specific date.
• Guest Experiences are not guaranteed to be private, unless your group fills the maximum capacity of 15.
• World Bird Sanctuary reserves the right to cancel any Guest Experience due to unforeseen circumstances. In case of cancellation, every attempt will be made to reschedule, or refunds will be offered.
• Please arrive at least 15 minutes prior to your Guest Experience to give yourself time to purchase tickets and get to the Guest Experience location.

Parrot Party: daily at 10am
WBS Member Price: $27 each • Non-Member Price: $30 each
This very special Guest Experience features “Waylon,” a blue-and-gold macaw who loves people and attention, and who can step up to your hand and entertain you with a lovable personality and a special ability to mimic certain words. Let one of our Naturalists guide you in this unforgettable experience!

Emu Encounter: daily at 12pm
WBS Member Price: $27 each • Non-Member Price: $30 each
Come meet “Kevin” and “Sprinkles” up close and personal! Offer them food, feel their coarse feathers, and get some amazing pictures with the two best emus around; all while learning about the natural history of emus from one of our Naturalists. You will get to enter their enclosure with the Naturalist to guide you through this one of a kind experience. Children under the age of 13 will be able to enter the corale and interact with the emus through the fence.

Handle an Exotic Raptor: daily at 4pm
WBS Member Price: $36 each • Non-Member Price: $40 each
A very special opportunity, indeed – Let one of our Naturalists guide you on how to hold a non-native raptor! With a special falconry glove provided, one of our feathered ambassadors will step up to your hand, giving you a personal and up-close encounter with a talon-ted predator. Guests may handle Zorro, our resident Aplomado Falcon or Trevor, our resident Eurasian Eagle Owl.

Special Events and Classes

Amazing Animal Encounters
every Saturday and Sunday from Memorial Day through Labor Day • 11:00am and 3:00pm at World Bird Sanctuary Amphitheater • Admission is FREE!
Exciting and individually unique shows presented by our Naturalists who will share fascinating information about a variety of our birds, mammals and reptiles.Learn about the amazing animals that share our planet and what you can do to help them survive. During each 25 minute presentation you’ll get to meet some of the animals that call WBS home and even see some fly!

Fete du Feather
June 13, 2020 • at Hyatt Regency at the Arch
World Bird Sanctuary invites you to our 2020 Fete du Feather Gala and Auction: A Celebration of Feathers! The night includes dinner, drinks, live and silent auctions, live music and a special flight appearance by the one and only…Clark! Click here for Tickets, Sponsorship and Auction Donations

Eagle Adventure Camp
Session 1 for ages 6-9: June 16-19, 2020 • Session 2 for ages 10-12: July 13-17, 2020
Are you ready for an exciting adventure? Come explore you wild side this summer at World Bird Sanctuary’s Eagle Adventure Camp! Learn all about birds of prey with each day focusing on a different kind of raptor. Meet live education ambassadors, complete bird focused activities, participate in team building challenges and games, and of course have lots of fun. Make new friends, both human and feathered, while exploring the great outdoors! Click here for more information

Bird Banding Demo Days
Coming in 2020: June through August

Trivia Night
Coming in 2020: August 7, 2020

Volunteer Picnic
August 16, 2020

Vulture Awareness Day
September 26, 2020
Join us as we celebrate vultures with zoos and conservation groups around the world. Participate in fun activities, scavenger hunt, crafts and food. Family friendly.

Hawktober Fest
Coming in 2020: October 10, 2020
Come rock ‘n roll at Hawktoberfest! Enjoy craft beer from local breweries, a wine tasting, and some of the best live music in St. Louis. Meet some of our hawks in person and see how lovely the sanctuary grounds are during Fall.

Wizarding Owl-O-Ween
October 31, 2020 at World Bird Sanctuary • Suggested Donation of $5/person, $20 max per car Advanced reservations required.
World Bird Sanctuary presents a Wizarding Owl-o-ween. Wizards and Muggles are invited to join us for a Harry Potter themed event. Visit our owlery, and see our very own basilisk, acromantula and magical beasts from around the world. Take a break from the Muggle world while sipping butterbeer, trick or tweet at Honeydukes, and find your magic wand at Ollivanders! Costume contest, kids games and crafts. Enjoy food from the Leaky Falcon. You may even get your fortune read by Professor TreDawney.

Camera Day: WBS Members & Adopt-A-Bird Parents Only
November 7, 2020
World Bird Sanctuary Members and Adopt-A-Bird parents are invited to Camera Day to take close up photographs of our birds of prey perched in natural settings. Visitors can get up close without exhibit wire in the way. Species will rotate throughout the day and during the event, our Naturalists will free-fly a bird!
Become a WBS Member
Become an Adopt-A-Bird Parent

Avian Training Workshop
November 12-15, 2020, at Drury Inn & Suites St. Louis Southwest • Cost $800
This intensive 4-day workshop will cover many topics including: Establishing your own program – permits, insurance, facilities, staff & volunteers; working with and training your bird – manning and positive reinforcement, desensitizing; choosing the correct species to work with; transportation – crates, permits, driving, flying, shipping; housing – mews, jumpboxes, A-frames, flight cages, climate, hotwire, substrates; perch types – bow, platform, screen, etc. – which perch works best for what species; diets – food types, frozen vs. live, storage, prep, vitamins; training your birds for flying – weight management, base weights, target weights, flyer food.

Holidays Party
December 10, 2020

Holidays at Hawkwarts
December 19, 2020 • 10:00am – 4:00pm at World Bird Sanctuary

Owl Prowls
select evenings from November – March • 7:00pm at World Bird Sanctuary Book Online Here
Come over to the dark side and meet those amazing birds that exist by moonlight. Owl Prowls offer an exciting opportunity to learn more about the amazing life of owls. Spend an evening with a WBS naturalist who will introduce you to live owls and their unique calls. Then, take an easy night hike through our grounds to try to call in a wild owl!

Eagle Days
Join us for Eagle Days in several locations in Missouri, Illinois, Kentucky and Minnesota during the months of January and February. World Bird Sanctuary’s Eagle Days will feature free education programs including a Bald Eagle and your questions answered by our knowledgeable staff and volunteers.

Open House
TBA • 10:00am – 2:00pm at World Bird Sanctuary • Free Admission
See and learn about birds from the comfort of your car and the work that we do to save threatened bird species and their habitats! 6 stations to hear about our birds and animals and drive by to see many others.