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Canton of Zurich
Zurich
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Zoo Zurich
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Zoo Zurich

See all things to do
See all things to do
Zoo Zurich
4.5
3,012 reviews
#11 of 271 things to do in Zurich
Zoos
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9:00 AM - 6:00 PM
Monday
9:00 AM - 6:00 PM
Tuesday
9:00 AM - 6:00 PM
Wednesday
9:00 AM - 6:00 PM
Thursday
9:00 AM - 6:00 PM
Friday
9:00 AM - 6:00 PM
Saturday
9:00 AM - 6:00 PM
Sunday
9:00 AM - 6:00 PM
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About
«People who know animals will protect them.» Up above the city of Zurich, spanning a surface of approximately 27 hectares, is Switzerland’s largest and most frequently visited cultural and educational institution: Zoo Zurich. The popular nationwide excursion destination wants to get people interested in animals and encourage them to play an active role in nature conservation and the protection of species.
Suggested duration
2-3 hours
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Top ways to experience Zoo Zurich and nearby attractions

The area
Address
Neighborhood: Fluntern
Best nearby
Restaurants
1,673 within 3 miles
Restaurant Altes Klosterli
180
0.2 mi$$ - $$$ • Swiss • European • Central European
Dieci Allo Zoo
196
150 ft$$ - $$$ • Italian • Pizza • Mediterranean
Zoocafe
34
100 ft$$ - $$$ • Cafe • European • Central European
Chalet Zuriberg
70
0.3 mi$$ - $$$ • Swiss • European • Vegetarian Friendly
Restaurant Pantanal
14
145 ft$$ - $$$ • Swiss • European
Restaurant Zurichberg
217
0.4 mi$$ - $$$ • Swiss • European • Central European
Chaesalp
268
0.7 mi$$ - $$$ • Swiss • Central European • Vegetarian Friendly
Restaurant Adlisberg
325
0.8 mi$$ - $$$ • Swiss • European • Vegetarian Friendly
Restaurant Alter Tobelhof
243
0.7 mi$$ - $$$ • Swiss • European • Central European
The Restaurant
380
0.8 mi$$$$ • Israeli • Vegetarian Friendly • Vegan Options
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Attractions
297 within 6 miles
Friedhof Fluntern
38
0.1 miCemeteries
FIFA Headquarters
112
0.2 miPoints of Interest & Landmarks
James Joyce's Grave
16
0.4 miMonuments & Statues
Museum of Art (Kunsthaus Zurich)
1,923
1.6 miArt Museums
Old Town
5,219
1.5 miNeighborhoods • Historic Walking Areas
Zoological Museum
213
1.4 miSpeciality Museums
Tourist Information
960
1.6 miVisitor Centers
Lake Zurich
6,121
1.9 miBodies of Water
Lindenhof Hill
1,587
1.8 miParks
Limmat
937
1.8 miBodies of Water
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Detailed Reviews: Reviews order informed by descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as cleanliness, atmosphere, general tips and location information.
Popular mentions
4.5
3,012 reviews
Excellent
1,834
Very good
847
Average
229
Poor
61
Terrible
41
Jennifer R
Switzerland165 contributions
Entire day of fun
Aug 2020 • Family
On a Wednesday at opening we felt that there wasn’t too many people, but it did start to fill as the day went on. I feel like they should enforce masks in any building (like the ape building) because there really isn’t enough space to keep a constant meter from people. It made me a little anxious but there were ample sanitizer stations around.

Food wasn’t excessively expensive (the Bratwurst and bread, and later ice cream and bottled water). The camel, backhoe, bird feeding - all very reasonably priced for the experience.

We throughly enjoyed the day. We wandered all around and after 5 hours, we were wiped out. Luckily we saved the safari for last and the tram ride for 2chf back to the gate was heaven sent.
The highlight for the kid (6) was riding the camel. The second was the massive playground by the safari area and the mini backhoe by the farm display. He also enjoyed the open enclosure with the emus. We saw every animal we could hope for with the exception of insects but we might have just missed their location. Overall, a wonderful day. I’d consider it even worthy of a season pass for locals.
Written September 30, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.
Lucinda C
London, UK56 contributions
Excellent day out even in the rain!
Jun 2020 • Couples
It was cold and wet and still we had such a great afternoon visiting the zoo. I’m always worried about zoos and keeping animals in captivity but here they really look after them and the enclosures are excellent and massive! They care about animal conservation and there are lots of opportunities around the zoo learn and to sign up to help or to donate to wild animal conservations around the world. I particularly enjoyed the Orangutans as we traveled to Borneo and saw them in The wild so it was great to re-live the memories and be reminded of what amazing apes they are. Due to Covid-19 some of the indoor areas were closed but most was open and it was safe to walk about with lots of hand sanitizer to use. The gorillas seemed to be putting on a bit of a show, maybe as they have not seen visitors for a couple of months, it was so funny! Would recommend a visit even if you are a zoo sceptic like me because this really is a great example of how a zoo should be run. The best I’ve been to.
Written June 7, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.
Shawn A
Los Angeles, CA28 contributions
A day at the Zurich Zoo.
Sep 2022 • Couples
WOW! For a zoo of this age it was VERY maintained and clearly a development plan that has been followed.

This is the FIRST time I had seen wolves or hyenas in a zoo environment.

In the care of elephants I believe they exceeded the environment that most zoos provide for these majestic animals. The outdoor spaces were vast, but the indoor space for winter care was impressive.

While on the side of a hill the grading didn’t feel Iike you were walking up or down steep trails. There were some hikes up, but they were mild. However, I wouldn’t say this park is easy to navigate in a wheelchair, cane or walker. Many families had strollers with small children, but they were getting a workout at times.

The rainforest was also impressive. The environment was clean and full of animals. Birds were plentiful, but lizards and frogs were a welcome surprise. Of course the lemurs in the space were surprisingly present and not hiding in the back of the space. The restaurant here also offered an impressive view into the space where you could enjoy lunch with a view.

The space with the zebras, rhinos and giraffes was also very impressive. Loads of space for these animals to roam and graze.

I am fully aware of the pros and cons of zoos and animals in captivity. I can’t speak to the past of this facility, but the future does seem to be on track to balance education with public display of animals many will never be able to see in their natural habitat.
Written September 11, 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.
pb
2 contributions
Appalling (Unfair) Parking Marshallers
Apr 2021 • Family
Day totally ruined by incompetent bullies, dressed up as parking marshallers, unfairly refusing us entry to the parking lots, even while some were visibly being vacated.

My wife and two young children disembarked our car and remained at the zoo while I want off in search of accessible parking some kilometres away. The whole experience was a strain for our young children, it cost significantly more than parking at the zoo and of course it left us feeling frustrated. This was only compounded by my wife observing the barrier being lifted once I'd driven away and her counting several vacant parking spaces at the zoo, which the marshallers had refused us access too.

It took me almost an hour to finally catch up with my family at the zoo. And I had to leave them early in order to return by public transport to collect our car. On both my inbound and outbound journey by public tranport I also observed many vacant parking spaces (and of course no barrier, it having been lifted moments after refusing me entry to vacant parking lots).

As much as the zoo is good on the inside, I cannot possibly recommend visiting in the face of such blatantly unfair treatment on the outside, nor can I score it more than one star on that same basis.

There are other animal attractions within the canton of Zürich, without this kind of unnecessary offensive behaviour towards customers. I'd suggest trying one of them instead.
Written April 16, 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.
XonqNopp
Canton of Fribourg, Switzerland280 contributions
So many animals...
Jul 2021
We spent a day with our kids (5 and 4) and we could not even see all the animals... We tried to estimate and we think we have seen 60 different species, which would account for something like half of the zoo. The kids got tired of walking in the afternoon, hopefully we could hop on the train to come back to the exit. We entered around 10h and we left around 16h. Our only regret: we did not study the lunch options before. We ended eating hot-dogs because we found some fuel for our kids, when we could have eaten asian food or african food just 5-10min farther... If we come back, we will better know :-)
Written July 19, 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.
The Swiss Nomad
Lugano, Switzerland3,143 contributions
Pleasant
May 2021 • Couples
Last weekend we decided to visit the Zoo, as it had been many years since I had last been there, and I wanted my girlfriend to see it too.
We arrived early and parked at the zoo parking lot, which is very cheap considering you're in Zurich.
We purchased our tickets and started visiting the exhibitions; some were very interesting and detailed, some others felt like they had to fill in the space.
Some animals seemed a bit lonely and as if they didn't have enough space, but maybe it was just our perception.
The best exhibition was the one with elephants, rhynos, giraffes etc, even though in this case it seemed there were not enough animals for the large space.
We spent close to three hours roaming the zoo and then headed back to the city for some sightseeing.
Overall a pleasant attraction, especially if you have kids, but I don't think I'll be back any time soon again.
Written May 26, 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.
la_fra1990
Zurich, Switzerland4 contributions
Amazing!
Jul 2021
My family and I are in love with this place.
We have an yearly ticket as we like to visit it many times during the year and we never have time enough for visiting it all in once.

This Zoo is amazing.

I'm usually not a super fan of Zoos, but in this case I love it because the animals have space enough, they seem all in really good shape and the way they have built it it's really incredible.

The area of elephants and giraffes is amazing, I would say it is my favorite one!

Most of the time we do also eat at some of the restaurants inside which are not so expensive and the food is ok. Good for being in such a place!

I would definitely recommend it!
Written August 12, 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.
Ranjister
Kozhikode, India61 contributions
A good zoo family day
May 2022
Zurich zoo is well maintained and has a wide variety of well-treated animals. Lots to walk and a lot of cafes all over inside the zoo. Ample parking area and easy access by public transport. Even have one or two children's parks. You require at least half a day to cover the zoo completely
Written May 30, 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.
Sarah G
Hertfordshire, UK395 contributions
Great Visit To The Zoo
Mar 2022
I have been to many zoos in the past, but by far this is the best one I have been to. The enclosures are very big for the animals and have lots of space to roam around. The animals look well kept and looked after. There are lots of different animals to see such as - toucan birds, flamingos, variety of monkies, red pandas etc etc. The park is very clean and tidy, the staff are friendly. There is a lovely gift shop they sells all the usual toys, soft toys, stationary etc but they do have lots of homemade sauces, spices, jams etc.

We stayed in stayed in central Zurich and took the tram (Number 6) it takes you direct to the zoo - and only 5 mins walk to the entrance. The tram/ bus tickets are alot cheaper than getting a taxi.

I would highly recommend visiting the zoo.
Written March 19, 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.
quetzal feathers
London, UK63 contributions
Fantastic day out. Highlight of the trip
Oct 2022 • Couples
It was a fantastic day out, we had a blast, it’s a massive zoo and it’s great to see the animals in such great conditions. We spent there almost 6 hours and time just flew by. Lots of toilets and places to grab a bit / drink around the whole zoo. Absolutely loved it and recommend whilst in Zurich. The tram gets you there too. Very very cool!
Written October 9, 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.
ZooZuerich
Thank you very much for your visit and review!
Written October 19, 2022
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
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Zoo Zurich - All You Need to Know BEFORE You Go (with Photos)

Frequently Asked Questions about Zoo Zurich
Zoo Zurich is open:
  • Sun - Sat 9:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Buy tickets in advance on Tripadvisor. If you book with Tripadvisor, you can cancel at least 24 hours before the start date of your tour for a full refund.
We recommend booking Zoo Zurich tours ahead of time to secure your spot. If you book with Tripadvisor, you can cancel up to 24 hours before your tour starts for a full refund. See all 1 Zoo Zurich tours on Tripadvisor