The key issue is species density, which makes each of those collections (and Tierpark, for that matter) take rather longer to view properly than other collections of a similar size. For instance, if one considers the Bird House and Pheasantry at Zoo Berlin - which cover perhaps a similar area in total to the Tropical Realm at Chester - you would probably be looking at a minimum of 2 hours required within that pair of houses alone. For what it is worth: I visited Tierpark Berlin across two days - the first day was with several German zoo enthusiasts who were very familiar with the collection and therefore could help me with the most efficient route possible. Even with this and my fast walking pace taken into account, I still only saw perhaps 75% of the collection on the first day with little time for exhibit revisits. The second full day covered the other 25% plus revisits. I suspect the ratio would have been much closer to 50/50 had I not had the aforementioned assistance, however. Zoo Berlin covered about a day and a half - on my first day I managed to see perhaps 90% of the collection, but again did so at a brisk pace with little time to revisit anywhere. I therefore allowed myself another half-day which permitted me to view the rest of the collection along with revisiting areas again. Walsrode was more akin to Tierpark than it was Zoo Berlin, in terms of how much of the collection we managed to see on the first day - I would estimate we got around two-thirds of the place on the first day, with a second full day required for the final third and revisits. As such, if you didn't mind missing things you *would* probably be able to squeeze Zoo Berlin into a day, although I wouldn't recommend it - but there is no way you could do the other two collections in a single day in my opinion.
In terms of rarities yes, but in terms of looks most probably not I would argue that though 2 days is better for the Berlin Zoo, and depending on your love for birds also Walsrode, these two can be relatively easily be seen within a day. It is also possible to do the Tierpark in a day, but I would not recommend that (though I always did that and succeeded in seeing everything). Doing the Tierpark in one day means constant activity for 10 hours without taking any break and walking up to 20 kilometer. One of my friends still hates me for it especially after unsuccessfully backtracking to the invisible aardwolf.... I have no problems with seeing Zoo Berlin and Walsrode in a day. My only visit to Walsrode was only 6 hours and we saw everything twice, but the weather was pretty bad that day, so we did not linger too long outside.
I agree with Lintworm on both counts. To add Zurich to this trip is a real waste of Switzerland. It's much better left for another day. Besides, Zurich Zoo is only getting better. We are all broken records on this point, but I would say that Berlin Zoo, the Tierpark, and Walsrode can all be done in a day. Walsrode is not a big site, and like Lintworm I actually walked the whole of it several times across my visit. Berlin TP is a LOT of walking, and I've ended both of my visits at a brisk trot, but I'd still rather do that than use a second day on a single zoo. For Berlin Zoo you can easily split the Aquarium into a separate day; the central location and ticketing options make this an attractive choice. That will relieve some of the pressure on what could otherwise be an overwhelming day. Of course, TLD would be just as frustrated by schedule as I would be by his; the key is working out what works for you.
Thank you for the advice @Chlidonias, @Giant Panda, @Brum, @TeaLovingDave, @lintworm and @FunkyGibbon Here, therefore, is my new itinerary: Day 1 - fly into Hannover, Hannover [stay in Hannover START] Day 2 - Hannover to Walsrode, Walsrode, Walsrode to Hannover [stay in Hannover FINISH] Day 3 - Hannover to Walsrode, Walsrode, Walsrode to Berlin, Berlin Aquarium [stay in Berlin START] Day 4 - Berlin Zoo Day 5 - Berlin to Leipzig, Leipzig, Leipzig to Berlin Day 6 - Berlin to Rostock, Rostock, Rostock to Greifswald, Welt der Gifte, Greifswald to Berlin Day 7 - Berlin Tierpark Day 8 - Berlin to Magdeburg, Magdeburg, Magdeburg to Berlin Day 9 - Berlin Tierpark [stay in Berlin FINISH] Day 10 - fly out of Berlin
Day 3 looks a bit of a nightmare. That's three hours of trains on two separate journeys, buses to and from Walsrode and the subway to the Aquarium. I'm sure it's possible, but I can't imagine it'll be much fun. For Hannover, remember you can blitz the Zoo in the evening for a much cheaper ticket. It's what I'd do and it may be your only option if your plan doesn't get in early.
As a native and someone who's been to the places on your itinerary several times, may I offer you a few recommendations to make the journey as pleasant for you as possible? Binge zoo visiting is all nice and fine, especially when you're travelling on your own, but you should also take your time to enjoy surrounding non-zoo attractions and plan in some extra time to react flexibly if something unexpected occurs. Furthermore, I wonder how you want to get along - by car or by public transport? I know that there are some (non-German) die-hard fans of the Deutsche Bahn (the national German railway company, which I personally rather dislike) among us, but some locations cannot be conveniently reached by the local public transport system. Like Vogelpark Marlow, a good zoo and a great example of how a private person can turn his collection into a major zoological institution, though not on par with Walsrode. Additionally, please keep in mind that prices for accommodations can differ considerably at times. During the main tourist seasons, it can be tricky to find a good and affordable place to stay, even in Berlin. What German city is cheapest to travel to from your closest airport? If I were you, I'd spend at least some days in Berlin. Next to the Zoo, the Aquarium and the Tierpark, you should visit its Natural History Museum, the AquaDome (via the hotel, so you don't have to go through the SeaLife center), the KaDeWe and maybe Berlin Underground, take part in one of the many special city tours, shop at an Ampelmännchen store for souvenirs and relax at the Vabali Spa near the central station to experience an upper class German sauna. Next to Hagenbeck (where I can offer you an excellent guide, who is also a fellow zoo nerd at ZC), Hamburg offers its grand harbour, the infamous Reeperbahn and of course Miniatur Wunderland, Germany's No. 1 Tripadvisor attraction. The local zoological museum isn't bad, either. If you do happen to come my place, you can combine your visit of Greifswald (the closeby local zoo is small, but very nice, including a new walkthrough capybara exhibit) with a trip to the closeby beautiful Stralsund, which offers two public aquaria (the Maritime Museum and the Ozeaneum) and the local zoo. The Maritime Museum, located in an old abbey, is a wonderful place to explore. Due to the planned general overhaul, it is going to close in 2019 and will re-open again in 2022.
The last trains for Berlin leave Greifswald at about 6:30 and 8:30 pm, and arrive there shortly before midnight. Since the WdG is my avocational business, I can only be there at 5pm the earliest during the week, and that not on every work day. And based on GiantPanda's visit, 1:30 h won't cut it for you... Can I suggest Berlin => Greifswald + Stralsund => Rostock => Hamburg => Hannover ?
You can indeed @Batto - the more I think about it the more difficult it appears this trip will be!!! I will be using an Interrail Pass for my travel, so train travel essentially everywhere right now, it appears to be cheaper to fly into Hannover from London. In essence, as long as I do the five zoos I desperately want to do, and it’s relatively cheap, I don’t mind where I go!!
Having done this myself, I can only confirm that it can be done. The aquarium is wonderful in the morning when hardly anyone is around.
Equally guilty of that - even though my friend, a Canadian zoo nerd, loved it. We had to buy new shoes for him afterwards, though...
So it's Hannover => Walsrode => Hamburg => Rostock => Stralsund / Greifswald => Berlin => Magdeburg => Hannover? I guarantee that after that, your legs will be tired, your head and camera will be full as a tick, your luggage will weigh a ton and your wallet will be as skinny as a Karl Lagerfeld model.
This is always the problem with planning a trip to such a large and diverse area as Germany.... Currently the absolute minimum of a trip I’m looking at is (roughly) a week and six zoos (Berlin collections, Leipzig, Walsrode, Magdeburg, WdG) and the absolute maximum of a trip is (roughly) two weeks and 12 zoos/centres (the above mentioned plus Rostock, Hagenbeck, Hannover, Schönebeck, Sydower-Fließ and ACTP)....any tips on time saving and or prioritising is welcome, I’m not intending on using you all as travel agents but it is handy to hear about it from others that have visited before!! If anyone else has suggestions of an itinerary like Batto I would love to hear, as I’m really struggling to think of one myself right now.
Ok I’ve just tentatively thought of an option; Day 0 - fly into Hannover = Hannover Day 1 - Walsrode pt. 1/Hannover = Hannover Day 2 - Walsrode pt. 2 = Hannover Day 3 - Magdeburg = Berlin Day 4 - Berlin Zoo pt. 1 = Berlin Day 5 - Leipzig/Berlin Zoo pt. 2 = Berlin Day 6 - Berlin Tierpark pt. 1 = Berlin Day 7 - Welt der Gifte/Rostock = Berlin Day 8 - Berlin Tierpark pt. 2/fly out of Berlin I know it may seem like I’m spreading myself thin, but this would not only allow me to visit the zoos I desperately want to visit, but would also cut down the time and amount of money I would be spending considerably
If you like sore feet, you can do it in a day. But if you want to enjoy a more leisurely visit with longer stops then definitely plan two days. We did multiple re-visits to enclosures by looping around stuff but did have a few no shows.
Given the distance between Berlin and Leipzig (a shade over an hour on the fastest trains) and the size of the latter collection - which I would allow at least four or five hours to see - I suspect you would be pushing things somewhat to attempt to visit both in a single day......
The previous day would be for seeing most of the collection - the visit after Leipzig would be for the aquarium and anything else I may have missed.
Would be very interested to know what you consider is a 'last chance to see', as I am planning on flying to Cologne in the spring to go to Duisburg /Cologne but don't want to miss anything nearby! Are there still brown hyaena at Opel? Still haven't seen them and Cologne to Prague is a trek!
Spread across the two stages of the trip, last chance species (some of which may already be gone now, or which may be gone by the time I reach the respective collections) include: Douc Langur, Rufus Sengi and Matschie's Tree Kangaroo at Cologne; Mountain Anoa at Krefeld; Himalayan Palm Civet and Angolan Giraffe at Dortmund; Indian Leopard at Wuppertal; Boto and Greater Spot-nosed Guenon at Duisburg; Eastern Gorilla at Antwerp; Cacomistle, White-bearded Wildebeest and Screaming Piha at Arnhem; Spectral Tarsier and Spotted Cuscus at Ouwehands; and Hellbender, Klipspringer, Fat-tailed Dwarf Lemur and South-central Black Rhinoceros at Frankfurt.
Jake, I'd give some consideration to what Batto says. Berlin is one of the great world cities and it would be a pity not to see some of the non-zoological attractions. It's one of my favourite cities to walk in, as the density of historical interest is so high there.
After a lot of deliberation, it seems that there's so much choice that I will have to split the trip into two parts, effectively making my Germany tour a three/four part affair haha So the order is now: PART 1 (confirmed February/March 2018) = COLOGNE, FRANKFURT, STUTTGART PART 2 (late 2018?) = BERLIN ZOO, BERLIN TIERPARK, LEIPZIG, MAGDEBURG, ACTP(?) PART 3 (some time in 2019) = HANNOVER, WALSRODE, HAGENBECK, ROSTOCK, WELT DER GIFTE, WILDKATZENZENTRUM(?) PART 4 (some time in 2019/2020) = NUREMBERG, MUNCHEN, (hop over to Switzerland) BASEL, ZURICH AD LIB ZOOS (whenever I have the time/money and am in the eastern Netherlands) = KREFELD, DORTMUND, WUPPERTAL, GELSENKIRCHEN
