Anyone here (in particular from the Netherlands) has any information about any new zoo projects planned to open in the country? The country is full of great facilities and awesome zoos. Do you think there is still "business space" in the country for more big zoos to come up in the future?
There is plenty of space for new zoos! Whenever I'm taking a "Road trip" (big word for someone who's continent is smaller than the USA) I'm always imagining creating a zoo in the colossal empty space in the majority of the country
Yes, it would be really cool, but I wonder how easy and cheap would be to buy that land and build a large zoo >50ha
Yep, farmland in use is indeed full on empty space! In all seriousness, I don't think the Netherlands really needs more zoos. The country is already quite zoorich compared to other countries of similar size.... And given the fact we already boast a ton of smaller zoos, some of which may have the wishes to grow out into larger zoos, I do not think more competition is needed. Not easy. I am known that there is at least 1 zoo project is in the works. However how much of that will become true only time will tell. Especially given the current pandemic starting up a new zoo is incredibly hard. All other zoos in the country need their visitors too, so the competition would be incredibly unfavorable. So I don't think it would be wise to start a new zoo in these conditions.
Fair. But I also think we could have one really big one. Most current zoos are surrounded by protected forests or cities, and don't have much more space to expand.
And this exact new big one of yours.. In my opinion... Will be one of the current smaller zoos; like a depaay, Zie-Zoo, bestZoo, faunapark Flakkee, Blanckendaell, but then just in a decade or two. Like a new large zoo doesn't get build in a year. Wildlands is a exception purely since it was a entire zoo, with a already large collection, etc, moving location.
You know what? That's completely fair My plan would indeed be to get some unusual animals like wombats and tamanduas. But that's exactly the plan that BestZoo seems to have
I know, that's why I gave those very specific examples (Been meaning to visit them for a while now, but... ya know...)
I don't think that there are many areas suited for a zoo in the netherlands. Maby arround Gronigen, but really not anywhere else. Since most of the country has allready a larger zoo very close to it.
The North and south could use some I think. Aquazoo Leeuwarden is really your only option up North, and Beekse bergen is the only larger one in Brabant
I'd count Wildlands as being more close to the middle, and the other two I would count as smaller zoos
That would be wrong though. I mean a quick glance at the map of the Netherlands shows that Emmen very much lies in the north? The ''central'' region of the Netherlands is considered to be the Gelderland, Utrecht and Noord-Brabant provinces. Small zoo or not, a zoo is a zoo. Why would we disregard them?
You're right. But I still always feel like I often go to the same zoo because all the other ones are more than an hour away
What is a big or large zoo is always hard to answer, and in my opinion, it cannot be based on land area. I think any zoo that has elephants, large ungulates, and big carnivores can be grouped into a "big zoo". Because these are the animals that catch visitors and a zoo that has them over competes its neighbors that do not have them. On my first glance I would say that somewhere between Utrecht and Breda another big zoo could fit (because it is equally distant from the other big ones), it is close to the Randstad (loads of people). But then the availability of land and its price would make it complicated. Thank you for your input, I am studying zoo management and I am curious about zoos as "businesses" as well.
