The Greatest Zoo Exhibit Complexes of All Time

Exactly. I think that is really true, and mostly because the newer zoos have the luxury of starting from scratch and basing their zoos around clear cut areas which are preferable for theming and making an orderly zoo. Meanwhile, zoos with older leftover infrastructure do not have this luxury and instead have to work around these older exhibits. For example, Vienna, London and Paris Menagerie look as if someone took a bag of exhibits and emptied it out onto a piece of land they are so disorganised (geographically).

 

I like large complexes at zoos because they're time-consuming (in a good sense), exiting and offer good quality for money in terms of species, enclosures and much more.

The great ones in Europe i.m.o. :

Ocean-Desert-Rainforest Complex at Burgers' Zoo
The Great and the Little Rock at Budapest Zoo
Islands at Chester Zoo
Alfred Brehme House and Mountain complex at Tierpark Berlin
Aquarium/reptile/insect House Zoo Berlin
Eismeer Hagenbeck Zoo
Oceanium Blijdorp Zoo
Darwinarium Rostock Zoo
Gondwanaland Leipzig Zoo
Grzimeck-Exotarium complex Frankfurt Zoo

Some complexes in old city zoos like Artis (Birdhouse-Monkeyhouse-Reptile House) or Antwerp (Man Ape House - Grottoe - African Buffalo Aviary) are good but cannot be compared with the ones mentioned above.

I also consider the superb Masoala Hall in Zurich not as a 'complex' in the meaning of this discussion, because it lacks separate enclosures.

The Rivièra Hall in Rotterdam with its outside enclosures would be a good contender in it's early days with it's large collection of mammals, primates, birds and herps.
Such as the Jubileumcomplex at Antwerp with it's cats, bears, seals, bird of prey and Nocturama, but this complex is closed now (and to be honest, it couldn't compete with the others in terms of space).

 

I personally would suggest the Cheyenne Mountain Zoo’s: Rocky Mountain Wild as one of the best I’ve seen. First of all, the exhibits are incredible, allowing face to face encounters with Mexican Wolves and Grizzly Bears, an open air Bald Eagle exhibit, and a viewing tunnel running through the Mountain Lion exhibit! The area is also extremely immersive, suggesting it’s an exhibit displaying animals of the Rocky Mountains located in America’s only mountain zoo. Other species exhibited here include River Otters, North American Porcupines, a Canadian Lynx, a Moose, and Wild Turkey.

 

Asia Monorail in Bronx
Pongoland in Leipzig
Gondwanaland in Leipzig
Kiwara Savanna and Kopje in Leipzig
Asia in Rotterdam

 

As a native Michigander I hate to give Ohio anything, but I'm glad Cleveland let's you see the beavers. Detroit's beaver exhibit is so-so, I usually go at least once a month, and I've never seen a beaver.

 

Both North Carolina and Indianapolis had “desert domes” well before Omaha. Both were much smaller (no room for Namibian sand dunes, oasis palm trees or “wave rock”), but are essentially the same concept. Kingdoms of the Night, however, is unarguably a unique extension and improvement over all past nocturnal exhibits.

 

Magic Mountain, Budapest
Polarium in München
Pantanal and Spectacled bears in Zürich
Masoala in Zürich
Kaeng Krachan in Zürich
Okapi Aviary in Doué
Realm of the Red Ape in Chester
Night Trek in Kerzers
Burgers' Bush
Burgers' Rimba
Gorilla exhibit in Apenheul
Africambo in Magdeburg