BERLIN TRAVEL GUIDE

Berlin Travel Guide
Zoologischer Garten
Berlin’s Zoological Garden is Germany’s oldest zoo and, with over 1,400 different species, it is one of the best-stocked
in the world. Animals have been kept and bred here, in the northwest of the Tiergarten district, since 1844. A total
of about 13,000 animals live in the zoo, ranging from saucer jellyfish to the Indian elephant. Some enclosures
are interesting buildings in their own right. In summer, a visit to the zoo is a favourite day out for Berliners, and
many animals, such as the panda and baby gorillas, have become celebrities.
Aquarium: www.aquarium-berlin.de
Top 10 Zoo Sights
1
Panda Bears
Bao-Bao the Giant Panda (one of the most
endangered species in the world) is the greatest star of
the Berlin Zoo. He was presented to Germany by China
as an official gift in 1980. His female partner Yan Yan is
on loan from China for breeding purposes.
2
Monkey House
Monkeys and apes are at home in this house, and
here you can watch gorillas, orang-utangs and
chimpanzees swinging from tree to tree and playing in
the straw. The venerable Eastern Lowland Gorillas, who
raise several young in a group, are always a special hit
with young and old alike. The big attraction, however,
which draws the greatest crowds, is Sangha, a small
baby gorilla, who is being raised by his carers.
3
Lions’ Outdoor Enclosure
The kings of the desert usually sit aloft the high
rocks. The lions are fed at 2:30pm in summer and at
3:30pm in winter.
4
Giraffe House
The African-style Giraffe House is the oldest house
(1871–2). Visitors enjoy watching the giraffes as they
nibble the leaves of a tree or bend down, in slow motion,
to take a drink.
5
Nocturnal Animal House
This house, in the cellar of the Predatory Animal
House, houses the creatures of the night, including
nocturnal reptiles and birds. Here you can admire striped
bandicoots, fruit bats and slender loris. Asleep during
the day, their hearing is outstanding and their eyes may
light up uncannily in the dark.
6
Elephant House
These good-natured pachyderms have a healthy
appetite: fully-grown male Indian elephants devour up
to 50 kg (110 lb) of hay a day! Four elephants have been
born in captivity.
7 Aviaries
Nowhere else in the city can you hear such singing,
tweeting and whistling – cockatiels, birds-of-paradise,
parrots, hornbills and humming-birds sound off in the
Bird House aviaries.
8
Crocodile Hall
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Not for the faint-hearted: in the crocodile hall visitors
cross a small wooden footbridge, only 2 m (6 ft) above
the dozing creatures. The reptiles are fed their meat
every other Monday at 3:30pm.
9 Aquarium
The greatest draw in the aquarium, where Caribbean
and Amazonian habitats have been recreated, are the
blacktip reef sharks and green morays. The electric eel,
able to generate up to 800 volts, and the sting-rays are
also popular.
10
Amphibians’ Section
Poisonous snakes, bird spiders and reptiles as well
as other amphibians crawl and slither around behind
glass on the second floor of the aquarium. A particularly
spectacular event is the feeding of the spiders.
Zoologischer Garten
Practical information
• Hardenbergplatz 8 and Budapester Str. 34
• (030) 25 40 10
• Map D4, N5
• www.zooberlin.de
• mid- Oct–mid-Mar: 9am–5pm daily;
mid-Mar–mid-Oct: 9am–6:30pm daily
Aquarium:
• 9am–6pm daily
• Admission charge
Top tips
• There is a café with terrace inside the zoo, to the
right of the Elephant Gate.
• A day at the zoo is not complete without a visit
to the aquarium. The basins and terraria teem with
life, as do the zoo enclosures. A combined ticket
for €15 entitles you to visit both zoo and aquarium.
6
Highlights