The parking situation at the zoo is a little crazy, theres a couple of spaces near the zoo with parking meters (0.50 per hour for a maximum of 6 hours) and if thats full there is other car parks around but as its a nature conservation centre they have made the public transport extremely convenient, you can use the RailAway (SBB) combined ticket to take a train and then a tram which also gives you a reduction on your entry ticket, or, from the S-Bahn city train there will soon be a cable car! (read more here)
The public transport connections are very good, there is even a feature to type in your bus stop name and it will list the connections, you can find this here.
Follow the camel prints to the zoo! The footsteps begin by the tram line so you just follow them down the hill a little bit and you'll find the zoo! Tickets for adults (over 25) are 26chf each, for some reason, a very nice lady gave Tim and I her tickets at the gate and we didn't have to pay, I think she was psychic and knew it was my birthday ;)
There is an information centre to the right as you come through the gates, i would definitely recommend popping in there to pick up a map, the maps are super cute and also really useful as the zoo is pretty big so you don't want to miss out on anything!
Well hello there sleepyface! The zoo is split into regions/countries and each section not only offers a lot of information about the animals but about the countries that they come from which is really interesting, for example, the camels are in a Mongolian style village with little Gers and even a stand selling felt souvenirs! It really adds something special to the experience!
ALPACAS!!! (insert heart eye emoji!) I love those little critters!
So whilst I try to calm myself down over the excitement of alpacas, I'll give you a few tips and things I noticed whilst walking around, firstly, and its quite obvious but it was HEAVING on a Saturday! I'm talking pushchairs, families, children e-v-e-r-y-w-h-e-r-e. So just like, brace yourself for being knocked into, toes being trampled by pushchairs etc! Another thing is that was crazy hot and not only did we not bring any drinks with us but the vending machines were 4.50 francs for a 50cl which was a little extortionate in my opinion..! So be prepared to bring cash! There are little kiosks and places to get hot food dotted all over the place, which brings me to my favourite part...
The elephants were in a huge area dedicated to Thailand, all over the place there were traditional shrines and also some installations showing how the Thai people live with elephants, how the elephants destroy their homes (by accident, those big bumbling cuties!) and the watch posts they set up to protect their farms. It was all very fascinating. Apparently if you arrive at 10.15am you can watch the elephants swimming! We weren't able to get there early as Tim was working but I would love to go back and see that, elephants swim like big clumsy labradors and its adorable!
There are many kiosks around this part and especially a Thai themed one where you can buy hot Thai food, drinks and souvenirs! This photo was taken in the new elephant park which is named after the Kaeng Krachan National Park in Thailand. This is the area that has a special viewing area to watch the elephants swimming! The construction and planning of this new area is fascinating and you can read about it in more detail here.
After seeing the elephants, I was severely overheating, luckily we saw that our path led to an underground tunnel which was dark and cool, what I didnt know was that it was leading us to the Masoala Rainforest which brought whole new meanings to the words hot and humid. Desperate almost collapsing, it was fascinating to climb up to the top of the stairs and walk along looking down on the plants and wildlife. After you make your way through to the exit you find yourself in another museum/exhibition then out to the gift shop and restaurant.
I am a serious fan of a gift shop and this one did not disappoint, it literally has everything! I would highly recommend making a trip to this zoo, it was a beautiful and educational day out and is an excellent reminder of what an amazing world we have here and that we should really appreciate that. Thanks for reading! yasmin x
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