Hi, I was thinking what my next trip would be and I know the Rhin-Rhur region is pretty rich zoo wise. The idea is to plan a logical way through the region. Considering continuing the loop to Arnhem and then to Antwerpen. What are, in your opinion, the best zoos in the Rhin-Ruhr area, then on the road to Arnhem and around ? Same to Antwerpen and around? Detours are no big deal, especially if they're worth it. Thank you
It all depends on how much time you have, 1 week, 2 weeks? You could easily spend a month in that area if you wanted to, but arguably the must sees for 1 week would be: Zoo Cologne Zoo Duisburg (as long as the River dolphin lives) Burgers' Zoo Apenheul Diergaarde Blijdorp Rotterdam Antwerpen Then it depends all on time and personal taste, from Antwerpen Planckendael and Pairi Daiza are the top picks. For the Netherlands Artis Amsterdam, Avifauna (bird park) and Gaiazoo would be particularly interesting, but small zoos like Ziezoo and Best might be an interesting choice purely for their collection. In Germany there is a lot to choose from. Krefeld can be combined with Duisburg in one day. Wuppertal, Zoom, Dortmund & Munster are other major zoos in the area and Frankfurt is not far away either. It depends on your interests and time what is best for you
Probably 10 days. I started listing my zoo sights therefore what interest me the most are species or subspecies I have not seen yet. I spent time on ZTL and I came up with this "list" : Would start either in Francfort either in Cologne. Francfort / Cologne / Wuppertal / Dortmund / Duisburg - Krefeld / Apenheul / Arnhem / Best / Antwerpen / Planckendael / Pairi Daiza. Münster, GaiaZoo, Rotterdam and Amsterdam wouldn't be really practical. I wouldn't like missing rarities in these zoos or in the area (I missed the uakaris this summer in LA don't want to miss other crazy things). I missed some rare species in Berlin as well being unaware of where to find them or even of their presence in the zoo. It is pretty safe to say that just between these zoos I'd see a lot of rare species but better be safe than sorry.
I'd be inclined to advise that you should either omit Best, or do it on the same day you visit Apenheul - depending of course on whether you are driving or relying on public transport - as it is a very small zoo and won't take more than an hour to visit. I'd also slightly swap around your route as follows: Francfort / Cologne / Wuppertal / Dortmund / Duisburg - Krefeld / Arnhem / Apenheul - Best / Antwerpen / Planckendael / Pairi Daiza. If you omit Best, your original route would suffice.
I've visited all the zoos on your list - I agree Best isn't worth it unless you REALLY want to see some of it's rare species. In that case, combine it with some other small zoos. Zie-zoo in Volkel would be a good option. You might also still have time to visit De Oliemeulen in Tilburg. It's only an half hour drive from Best and would take about 90 minutes to visit. Those 3 small zoos combined would make for a good day.
I mean Best has Eastern spotted skunks, Virginia opossums, Allen's gallinule, Dorcopsis (That I would see in Pairi Daiza), buff-necked ibises, chilean tinamous, green magpie (that I'll see if I go to Prague) and a few others. Especially if it's only an hour and a half worth of time, I'd say it's really worth it, at least for me, to visit it. Will definitely rent a car. Frankfurt, Antwerpen and Rotterdam each have pretty interesting species. Instead of swapping I should just consider making a smallish detour to go to Rotterdam. I've heard it's a nice city to visit as well, and I do not like travelling just for zoos, I think it's even better if you can get a look at the architecture and the landscapes around. @ralph What would be the highlights of Zie-Zoo and De Oliemeulen ? After hanging out on ZTL for a bit, Rhenen Dierenpark looks worth visiting. What would do you guys think?¨ Let's consider making the trip a little bit longer : Francfort / Cologne / Wuppertal / Dortmund / Duisburg - Krefeld / Arnhem / Apenheul - Rhenen / Rotterdam / Best - other small zoos around ? / Antwerpen / Planckendael / Pairi Daiza.
Just as a heads-up; dorcopsis is almost always off-show/invisible at Pairi Daiza (every year there are a few people who mention seeing it in the Australian aviary, but I haven't been so lucky and don't know anyone personally who has), and green magpie is off-show in Prague. If you really want to see those species, I think it's best you visit Best. I'd definitely advise visiting Rotterdam, it's a wonderful zoo!
I do not want any particular species but I like adding new species to my list. But I mean, let's be honest, the rarer the species are, the best I feel seeing them for real. How long would visiting Rotterdam Zoo take ? Maybe considering going early to Rotterdam, then leaving to Best and around, then heading so Antwerpen in the evening. Other question, even though I use ZTL a lot I still do not know where to check if the species is on or off-show. Is it even mentioned on ZTL?
Blijdorp is a real full day zoo, it takes at least 6 hours to properly appreciate it, so I wouldn't combine it with another zoo. The only zoo that is not a full day on your current plan is Apenheul (about 4 hours) next to Best. Driving between the two should take about 1.5-2 hours... But then you have a full day If it says "hinter den Kulissen" the species is off-show. Except for the Spotted cuscus there are not really many reasons to visit collection-wise, everything else can be picked up elsewhere. In terms of enclosures it is a mixed bunch with great Bear enclosures and mostly kind of weird enclosures for the rest....
Where should I look for "hinter den Kulissen" on ZTL ? I'm bad at german but I would have understood it if I had seen it. Edit : I figured it out thanks Mmh ok good to know. Just checked the species list on ZTL and yes, except for the cuscus, it's nothing crazy.
The green magpie (Cissa chinensis) is on display in Prague. I visited the zoo last week. They also keep Short-tailed green magpie (Cissa thalassina), which ARE behind the scenes. The Virginia opossum in Best is behind the scenes, too. I visited recently and did not see one. Zie-Zoo Volkel has quite a nice collection of small mammals. De Oliemeulen less so. Neither are a must-visit, though. I guess you could do Apenheul and Best on the same day. Apenheul is not a full-day zoo. In my opinion, Ouwehands Dierenpark can't measure up to other big Dutch Zoos like Burgers' or Rotterdam. But they do have the spotted cuscus. (Unfortunatly, the tarsiers passed away last year). And giant pandas, if you find those interesting.
I wouldn't want to miss the opportunity to see a spotted cuscus but then again, is it really worth it ? I guess it's up to me. I've seen Pandas in Berlin, Wien and San Diego. I wouldn't mind seeing them again but definitely not the reason I'd go to Ouwehands Dierenpark. The only reason would be the cuscus.
If you are in the Rhine-Rhur region and in (dodgy) Duisburg, you could also visit the allegedly largest pet shop in the world:
Watched the video but my german is not that great. Went on the website but couldn't get what I am looking for : do they have a list of all the species they have ? (I found the fish, amphibians etc. section but not the mammals, reptiles and birds ones) It is really surprising I didn't know such pet shops existed so yeah, definitely worth a visit.
Since this is a pet shop, the presence of individual specimens of legally obtainable species is supposed to be a transient one, influenced by commercial demands. They certainly keep an extensive internal animal inventory for business purposes, but I doubt that they'll share it externally with any stranger. As for your German: isn't German the most commonly used of the four official languages in Switzerland?
I'm from the french part of Switzerland and despite me having German classes at school, I'm pretty bad at it. Not gonna lie I could be better at it if I payed more attention. Swiss speak English well enough for me to be understood everywhere. Was a bit harder in Berlin in April though.
Maybe the perspective of visiting some nice German zoo will serve you as an incentive to revamp your German language skills.
