Mooresville's Lazy 5 Ranch Leads NC Field Trip Annual Attractions Survey

CHARLOTTE, N.C., Sept. 8, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- For the second consecutive year, a Rowan County attraction heads the list of North Carolina's biggest field trip attractions, according to the annual survey conducted by Carolina Field Trips Magazine.

The Lazy Five Ranch, a popular zoo and animal park in Mooresville, moved to the top of the annual rankings list replacing another Rowan County attraction, the Dan Nicholas Park. The Mooresville based attraction which opened in 1993, saw 125,932 field trip visitors during the 2010-2011 school calendar year with the North Carolina Zoo finishing second in the survey with 118,937 total teachers and students.

Dan Nicholas Park, a Rowan County Parks Recreation facility, finished third in the survey with 116,428 field trip visitors. Rounding out the top five field attractions were the North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences and the three North Carolina Aquarium locations based along the coast in Manteo, Pine Knoll Shores and Fort Fisher.

"The Lazy 5 Ranch continues to grow through the overwhelming support from the visitors and people in our community," said Lazy Five Ranch owner and president Henry Hampton. "Our field trip and group education market is truly outstanding. We strive to provide fun, yet we want students to have an educational experience while visiting our farm."

The top 10 ranked attractions were 1. Lazy Five Ranch, Mooresville, 125,932; 2. North Carolina Zoo, Asheboro, 118,937; 3. Dan Nicholas Park, Salisbury, 116,428; 4. North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences, Raleigh, 115,694; 5. North Carolina Aquariums, Manteo, Pine Knoll Shores, Fort Fisher, 104,089; 6. Natural Science Center of Greensboro, Greensboro, 99,000; 7. Discovery Place, Charlotte, 79,223; 8. Morehead Planetarium & Science Center, Chapel Hill, 78,542; 9. Marbles Kids Museum & IMAX Theatre, Raleigh, 78,010; and 10. North Carolina Museum of History, Raleigh, 77,792.

Rounding out the top 25 were 11. The Schiele Museum of Natural History, Gastonia; 12. Museum of Life and Science, Durham; 13. Children's Theatre of Charlotte; 14. North Carolina State Capitol, Raleigh; 15. Old Salem Museums & Gardens, Winston-Salem; 16. Biltmore, Asheville; 17. Catawba Science Center, Hickory; 18. Tryon Palace, New Bern; 19. Carolina Raptor Center, Huntersville; 20. North Carolina Museum of Art, Raleigh; 21. Neuseway Nature Center & Planetarium, Kinston; 22. The Health Adventure, Asheville; 23. Linville Caverns, Marion; 24. SciWorks, Winston-Salem; and 25. Patterson Farm Market & Tours, Mt. Ulla.

SOURCE Carolina Publishing Associates