Destinations: These are the 10 best zoos in Germany

The days are getting warmer again, and the sun is shining more often – perfect for a trip to the zoo. But where can you find the best ones?

The online portal "Parkscout" once again held an online vote this year. 65,000 participants cast their votes, revealing the results of this year's Parkscout Audience Award – the 10 best zoos in Germany .

Around the world in just one day? It's possible at Zoom Erlebniswelt Gelsenkirchen. Located in the heart of the Ruhr region , you can immerse yourself in the landscapes and wildlife of Alaska , Asia , and Africa on an area of ​​more than 30 hectares.

In the Alaska Adventure World, you can watch brown bears in their den while a man-made waterfall plunges six meters into the depths. In the Africa Adventure World, you can see hippos, antelopes, zebras, and rhinos on a boat safari. And in the Africa Adventure World, you can walk along a 1.3-kilometer-long trail through the jungle.

At Zoom Erlebniswelt Gelsenkirchen, guests can observe the animals from a boat.

Source: IMAGO/Funke Photo Services

A visit to Hannover Adventure Zoo will take you to Africa, Canada , and the Australian Outback. A boat will take you across the recreated Zambezi River, where you'll get up close to giraffes, wild donkeys, and antelopes. In Hippo Canyon, you can watch giant rhinos moving underwater through a panoramic glass panel.

The Afi Mountain theme park is home to endangered drills and Brazza's monkeys, as well as chimpanzees and western lowland gorillas. The entire area is modeled after a real national park in southeastern Nigeria . You can also get up close to polar bears, penguins, elephants, tigers, leopards, and kangaroos at the adventure zoo.

True to its motto "Experience. Discover. Preserve," Hannover Adventure Zoo is also committed to protecting endangered species. For example, the zoo donates to the "real" Afi Mountain, a sanctuary for drill monkeys in the Nigerian jungle.

Cologne Zoo is home to around 12,000 animals. Three major projects make Cologne Zoo so special: the Elephant Park, the Hippodom, and the Rainforest House. The Elephant Park is one of the largest in Europe . Eleven Asian elephants live there; baby elephant Taro was born in March 2025. The animals spend most of their day with their herd, just as they would in nature; contact with humans occurs only during feedings or during care visits.

In the Hippodome, completed in 2011, you can experience an African river landscape complete with crocodiles, hippos, and antelopes. In the Rainforest House, exotic birds, fruit bats, and rare lizards inhabit a 2,000-square-meter patch of Southeast Asian rainforest. Every major project at the zoo is linked to a corresponding nature conservation project.

Cologne Zoo is known for its elephant park – which gained one more animal in March 2025.

Source: imago images/Future Image

The Wilhelma in Stuttgart is the only zoological-botanical garden in Germany and, with over 1.8 million visitors in 2024, one of the most popular leisure facilities in Baden-Württemberg . Around 11,000 animals of nearly 1,200 species call Wilhelma home, from the Australian jumping mouse to monitor lizards and iguanas to cheetahs, koalas, and rhinos. In addition, there are approximately 8,500 plants in the extensive gardens.

The core of Wilhelma is an old royal park with historic buildings and beautifully landscaped gardens. This historic part of Wilhelma began developing in the 1820s, when Wilhelm I wanted to build a park with a wellness facility.

During this period, buildings such as the Moorish Ballroom and the Damascene Hall were built, some of which still stand today. It wasn't until 1919 that the park was opened to the public as a botanical show garden, and in 1951, the first large mammals arrived at Wilhelma.

More than just a zoo: At the Wilhelma in Stuttgart you can also admire a botanical garden and historical buildings.

Source: IMAGO/Arnulf Hettrich

At Leipzig Zoo, you can discover six themed worlds: the Founders' Garden, Gondwanaland, Asia, Pongoland, Africa, and South America . The Founders' Garden begins directly beyond the entrance gate. The buildings date back to the zoo's early days and now house, among other things, a large aquarium.

A special feature of the zoo is Pongoland, a unique ape enclosure. Here you can watch orangutans, bonobos, chimpanzees, and lowland gorillas, among others, climbing, playing, and foraging.

Pongoland is also home to the Wolfgang Köhler Primate Research Center. Scientists here, commissioned by the Max Planck Institute, research the behavior of our closest relatives. Fun fact: For over 20 years, Leipzig Zoo has served as the backdrop for the veterinary series "Veterinarian Dr. Mertens."

A chimpanzee in the outdoor enclosure of Pongoland in Leipzig Zoo.

Source: imago images/Christian Grube

You can see more than 500 animal species from all five continents up close at Munich's Hellabrunn Zoo. The zoo was founded in 1911 and is located in a nature reserve in the Isar floodplains.

Hellabrunn Zoo has popularized the concept of the geozoo worldwide. This means that animals are arranged not according to related species, but according to geographical criteria. For example, in the 10,000-square-meter African savannah enclosure, giraffes live alongside meerkats, while in the South American enclosure, vicuñas, Darwin's rheas, and capybaras live side by side.

Welcome to the Hellabrunn Zoo in Munich.

Source: IMAGO/Lindenthaler

In Hamburg, the Hagenbeck Zoo attracts visitors with more than 1,400 animals from all continents. You can get to know the animal inhabitants in four different themed areas.

In the 8,000-square-meter Arctic Ocean, polar bears and penguins are home to Germany's only walruses. A 750-meter-long visitor trail leads through the various regions of the Arctic Ocean. The Africa Panorama showcases the wildlife of the African continent, including flamingos, zebras, and antelopes.

The orangutan house is covered by a light-filled dome. With an impressive height of 16 meters and a diameter of 32 meters, it is a real visitor magnet.

The orangutans live under an impressive glass dome at Hagenbeck Zoo.

Source: IMAGO/BREUEL-BILD

There's plenty to discover both above and below ground at Osnabrück Zoo: The tunnel labyrinth stretches across 500 square meters underground, where bats flutter around and naked mole rats and brown rats burrow their way through the earth. Visitors can watch the animals building their tunnel systems through glass panels.

Above ground, the zoo is divided into various themed worlds. In Kajanaland, for example, everything revolves around the Far North, with animals like brown bears and silver foxes in the enclosures. In the water worlds, all kinds of sea creatures, from sea lions to penguins, frolic among the dune landscape and colorful wooden houses.

The sea lion enclosure at Osnabrück Zoo is lined with colorful houses.

Source: IMAGO/Fotostand

Lower Saxony's third-largest zoo is distinguished by its display gardens, friendly atmosphere, and scientific focus. The zoo hosts several scientific research projects each year and is recognized by the Lower Saxony Ministry of Education as an extracurricular learning center.

In the twelve-hectare park, plants bloom in all colors and provide a natural habitat for native animals such as hedgehogs and squirrels. Exotic animals such as porcupines, squirrel monkeys, and steppe lemmings can also be seen.

In two petting zoos, you can get up close to pygmy goats, sheep, donkeys, and ponies. You can also pet the black-spotted Bentheim pigs and their piglets. The zoo is dedicated to the preservation of this rare breed of pig.

The spotted Bentheimer pigs are a rare breed – the Nordhorn Zoo wants to preserve them.

Source: imago images/imagebroker

During the summer and spring months, Wuppertal Zoo is awash with blooms and thriving. With its flowerbeds, expansive meadows, ponds, and ancient trees, it is considered a particularly scenic zoo.

360 animal species can be observed on the 24-hectare site, from gorillas and elephants to tapirs and angel-mouth frogs. In the petting zoo, young and old can get up close to donkeys and goats.

The outdoor area of ​​the lion enclosure is particularly impressive. With a floor area of ​​one hectare, it is considered the largest lion enclosure ever built in a German zoo.

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