Zoos are big attractions and many big attractions such as water parks may have some sort of hotel or overnight stay. In the zoo world, hotels seem rather underused. The ones I can think of off the top of my head are Disney's Animal Kingdom with their Safari Lodge and the National Zoo in Canberra, Australia has the Jamala lodge hotel with glass windows looking into enclosures for bears, giraffes and big cats. Are these the only hotels that are in zoos? It seems like they would be major money grabbers and would generate a great amount of interest. The Singapore parks will be constructing a large new hotel with the mandai project in 5 years time, and I there were once plans for a hotel on the site of Columbus zoo that I believe were canned. So, do you think there should be hotels in zoos? Are there any I haven't mentioned? I mean, who wouldn't want to do this?
I don't see why zoo hotels would be a bad idea, (I'd be down for visiting one, the Disney one looks so cool) but I understand why they aren't common. I imagine that hotels would take up a lot of extra space and resources, your typical non-profit zoo might have a hard time doing that. Hotels would probably be better suited for safari parks. I do agree that zoo hotels would probably make good money in a lot of places. Moody Gardens has a hotel, but it's not like, IN the zoo.
Costs? Zoo hotels and glamping are an economic sideline to maximise income. Ordinary camping too, with a cheaper outlay. That's what smaller zoos need - 1/4 acre to 1 acre set aside with a composting toilet, water tap and campfire or BBQ area. 10 of the best tiny British campsites
Wow, you're some zealot for camping. I agree that hotels and "glamping" (hate that word) are attempts to maximise income -nothing wrong with that per se though I struggle to imagine how much spare cash one must have to see staying in ZSL's options as a good idea. The idea of paying a small fortune to stay in the woods at Whipsnade and having to walk through a cold, dark night if you need the toilet is bizarre to me. I don't think your camping suggestion would work much in the UK: 1. People generally only want to camp in certain areas (seaside and/or "natural beauty" areas); 2. Many zoos aren't near these areas; 3. Many of these areas are already adequately served by existing non-zoo facilities; 4. A large part of the UK population has a zoo within a reasonable travelling distance (i.e. no need to stay over); 5. Yes, it would be a great facility for touring zoo-nerds on a visit but I suspect that's too small a market to justify the investment for most zoos. In spite of my above points, it can work in limited situations -Banham and Africa Alive have adjacent campsites/caravan parks (though I'm not sure if they're budget priced or necessarily zoo-owned).
What matters is a small pitching grounds takes minimal outlay and management, which means minimal risk, and small collections could diversify easily into low budget camping for tents and RVs. Provision really is as simple as a latrine, bins, and water supply - and what makes this a useful side income for a small collection, is that all zoos must have these same facilities for the public or exhibits, and often sell food on premises. (Yes even urban campgrounds survive, especially those useful serving as as a stopover.) Such is at least as useful as a hotel, which need only be a budget dorm - a pair of spare rooms with beds - to attract guests using popular apps like booking.com. Small dorms and rooms are often attached to eateries or pubs, as I'm suggesting for small roadside or regional collections, the owners do so as an additional income.
Edinburgh Zoo is right next to the Holiday Inn. Jersey has a hostel, which I have thought of trying. One of Chester's former masterplans included a hotel, which would have been beside the main road past the zoo (A41), near the current hunting dog exhibit: I don't know for sure how much that plan has changed.
As regards to the UK:Though not necessarily within the zoos: Grossly Overpriced Chessington Resort has Azteca themed hotel. Port Lympe has the Livingstone (opposite) & Bear Lodges/Glamping. Marwell has an adjacent hotel . Whipsnade has Lookout Lodge Durrell Wildlife Park,Jersey,has glamping/camping Bristol Zoo has The Lodge London Zoo has Gir Lion Lodge.Glamping/overnight only?
I don't think many small zoos would want to try and run campsites. Monkey World has it right - there is an independently run campsite right next door where people can camp, but it is separate to MW so they don't have any of the issues with running it. Should places wish to run campsites then good luck to them - it would be nice to see some places offering some more affordable accommodation options (how I long to stay in the Lodge at Bristol Zoo, but would never, ever in a million years be able to afford it). Talking of Monkey World, they have their own accommodation - two flats in the nearby village of Wool for supporters to stay in (both of which are very nice - I have stayed in both) and they also have some accommodation available now in Hethfelton House (or on the estate - I think the house is available for weddings, though) which is closer to the park. They are not cheap, but they are not the prohibitive prices I have seen at other zoo accommodations.
I think both Bali Zoo and Bali Safari have on-site zoo hotels. When I eventually return, I will probably spend a couple of nights at both of them just for the experience. Jamala Wildlife Lodge at National Zoo Canberra was mentioned by pachyderm pro - staying here is an integral part of my plan for when I finally get the chance to visit, although it is very expensive (around £1,185 per night on my caluculations), I really want to stay in the sun bear bungalow and have a sleepover with Taki and Otay. The area directly outside of the bungalow window is heated and food, enrichment and sleeping materials are provided in this area to encourage them to settle there alongside the guests. It would be a once in a lifetime experience. As referenced before by gentle lemur, just as the Holiday Inn is next door to Edinburgh Zoo (I used to volunteer at Edinburgh and stayed here a few times for convenience), the Hotel ‘t Paviljoen is next door to Ouwehands Dierenpark Rhenen (when I visited it was great to just roll out of bed in the morning and then into the zoo).
Chessington World of Adventures has a large hotel with the premise of waking up overlooking the Savannah. There's a large field behind the hotel where Sitatungas, Eland and Ostrich roam. I believe the giraffe and rhinos also gave access to it. However, as Eric said, its pricey.
In the Netherlands there is a mostly bird oriented zoo (they now have some lemurs as well) I rather like called Avifauna which is integrated with a hotel and restaurant of the Van der Valk chain. Integrated in such a way that hotel guests have access to the zoo for 24 hours a day, even when it is closed to other guests, and the restaurant is inside the zoo. Also, the hotel offers boat trips trough the surrounding Dutch countryside, and a playground. It's an odd, but good combination. The hotel/restaurant and the park seem to exist on an equal basis to each other. It's one of my favourite zoos. I love birds, and being able to walk around the park after a late dinner or before breakfast and have it all to yourself is magical. They close the buildings after hours, but all the outdoor enclosures remain visible.
Oh my goodness - forget what I said previously about The Lodge at Bristol Zoo, if I ever win the lottery I am staying at Tiger Lodge at Port Lympne!
Disney's Animal Kingdom lodge sits in the middle of its wildlife park, and I'm thinking of putting it on my bucket list. Also there are some buildings that a built right at the border of the Berlin Zoo, across from the Kaiser Wilhelmskirche, and one of them is a hotel (25hours Bikini Berlin), and I've always thought it would be interesting to stay there and have a view out over the zoo.
Kind of related, but I always wonder what it would be like to live in one of those houses which border a zoo and look out on enclosures. To wake up to the sound of the sea lions at Queens Zoo or the sound of the gibbons at Edinburgh Zoo. I guess you would either love it or hate it!
Surprisingly no-one has mentioned Dvur Kralove, which has its own hotel and campsite/lodges. The campsite at least is very reasonably priced and it's fantastic to wander round the zoo late at night. There is also a small 'savannah' enclosure which can only be viewed from the campsite.
Western Plains Zoo in Dubbo, Australia has Zoofari Lodge, within the zoo grounds, next to a large savannah exhibit. Visitors get three tours when the zoo is closed (one late afternoon, one at night, and one early in the morning), plus access to the zoo all day. It's expensive and fully booked on weekends. They also have a Roar and Snore (camping) with more than 40 tents elsewhere within the zoo, which has been popular for many years. It's based on the one at Taronga Zoo which is also very popular. The Ugandan Wildlife Education Centre has bandas in the zoo grounds (and you can walk around the zoo at night but there are lots of mosquitos and other flying insects) and the year after I had stayed there they had built two more larger bandas to accommodate families. [A banda is a circular building with a thatch roof, containing a large bedroom/living room and a smaller bathroom.] The suggestion that only zoo nerds would be interested in spending a lot of money to stay in a zoo is incorrect, as a lot of people are interested in different experiences, particularly if they involve animals. Hix
