I’ve already talked about the pandas at Copenhagen Zoo – now for the rest! It’s a large zoo with a lot of different species to see. It’s just outside the city centre, you can take the bus, however we walked from the centre and it took around 35 minutes and was a pretty direct walk. Even in late January it wasn’t too bad to walk in the chillier weather. The vibe of the zoo really reminded me of Edinburgh Zoo, maybe it was the similar cold January climate, or the design of the buildings and enclosures. The zoo has been able to expand across the street, with an underpass connecting the sections. The zoo is split into different themed regions to split the species on show – it’s well indicated on the map, but I didn’t feel the difference so much while I was there myself. But it makes it a good path to follow through the 4 main regions.
‘The North’
This area of the zoo is the first main one that you come to when entering the zoo and covers species such as harbour seals, musk ox, wolves, reindeers and both polar and brown bears. The brown bears were nowhere to be seen when we were there, but the polar bears more than made up for that! This cub was a year old, and is one of the best ages to see cubs at – not long after we were there the newest cub came out of the den, the pictures and videos on the Facebook page really look adorable.
This cub had a few different toys, which were in the pool – he/she had such a great time ‘stalking’ them from the edge and then jumping in to grab them. Then the cub also dove into the pool and pulled out some sort of meaty treat, that was entertainment for over 30 minutes, pulling the skin off and getting the best bits first. Mum was on patrol while the cub was eating, there were a lot of seagulls around, and then only when the cub was done did she take a look at what was left.
Another highlight from this area were the Arctic Foxes – these two are just so adorable, they are up there for the top spot with the pandas from this visit! The Arctic Foxes shared an enclosure with a couple of owls, but they stole the show, they’re just so expressive and incredibly furry with rather magnificent tails, just beautiful^ Their enclosure was filled with christmas trees which is a fun and seasonally appropriate enrichment option.
‘Asia’
Next up was the Asian area, which has such a good range of species, big cats, otters, red pandas and more! The big cats were a highlight for me – the tiger was prowling all over the enclosure (which also had a lot of Christmas trees around), and there were leopard cubs to see. When we entered the zoo the welcoming employee told us about the two leopard cubs being a must see, she was right, they were adorable! The cubs were in with mum (who was enjoying a nap), one was sitting high on a platform, watching a couple of keepers in the distance while the other was trying to find a playmate and was exploring over the whole enclosure. Dad was next door and was also looking pretty cute, scratching his neck and ears on logs right next to the fence we were standing at. This area of the zoo was much quieter, it’s a little more in a corner, so I think some guests missed it out, which is a shame, the leopards were a highlight!
And the elephants are also in this area, which live in a new and very modern, uniquely designed enclosure – it’s really very an impressive building and my pictures really don’t do it justice. We were also told about a young elephant calf, who was pretty cute. The females and young ones were kept in one side of the enclosure, while the male(s) were in the other – there were two adult females and what looked like 3 younger calves of varying ages, who all seemed to want to have fun and play! The youngest calf was in an area designed just for an elephant its size, where there was access to a hay bale through the rope wall – that didn’t stop an adult trying to reach her trunk in too to get some^ The outdoor space was great too, it’s a huge space with a lot of different enrichment activities and a big pool.
‘Tasmania’
The Tasmania area was small, but features all of the main related species – this was the first time I had seen Tasmanian Devils! I had no idea how cute these guys were. There were several in the enclosure, a few of them were running all over the place so it was tricky to keep a count. Their enclosure was very nice, there were two sections so it looked like it could be separated into two enclosures if need be. There was a good mix of open and covered spaces with foliage, and there was a stream and pond area. Some of the enclosure wall was glass, which meant the tasmanian devils could look out – a child in a pram really enjoyed getting to see one of them very up close!
This area also had a walkthrough with kangaroos, wallabies and wombats – there was even a baby kangaroo! It was very similar to walkthroughs I’ve been through for these species before for wallabies, there’s plenty of space for the animals to explore and they can hop over the path in front of you. There was no hopping when we walked through, but I can hope for next time to have a kangaroo or wallaby crossing in front of me! I was really hoping to see a wombat as I’ve never seen one before, but they were a little elusive this time.
‘The Savannah’
Lastly the African themed ‘Savannah’ area which is in the second section of the zoo across the road. The space is very large but party divided by these large wooden logs which you can see in the ground in the picture below, giving a very natural looking partial barrier – the giraffes had no issue moving between these to the other part of the enclosure. There was a walkway over to view over mosts of the Savannah space which guided you around the enclosure. First up were rhinos, which could be viewed inside or outside, they were running around a little when we got there – you might have now seen the news that a new calf was born recently, so I’m sure they will be much more popular when the zoo opens back up again.
The giraffes and ostriches seemed to share one space, but had access to the large main area where the zebras mostly were – the giraffe’s were very active, and really covered most of the enclosure while we walked around. We also spotted the meerkats – they can be seen at the ground level viewing point between the giraffes and rhinos, one even popped up at the perfect time for the picture I took! We walked all the way around the outside of the enclosure, so you can get to the animals who’re sticking over that side away from the viewing walkway.
Also on the far side is the hippo enclosure, these guys have access to the outside savannah area too, but were all inside enjoying the pool when we were there. It’s a nice indoor space, and is very similar to the enclosure to the one at Berlin Zoo, you can see them underwater or chilling on their island rocks. This was another area which was pretty quiet.
In addition to the main themed areas, there were also lions to be seen with several playful cubs, a chimpanzee house also with a young one who seemed to be bothering every other chimp to play, and a tropical house with a whole host of related species, I really hoped to see the sloths – I’ve been to 3 or 4 zoos in the past few years who have them, but I’m yet to see them!
Your Visit
Getting to Copenhagen Zoo
The zoo is just outside the city centre, and there are a few options – we walked, the zoo wasn’t opening until 10AM and we’re early risers, so we had plenty of time. Walking took around 40 minutes and it was just about a straight road from the centre of Copenhagen. You can also take the bus from the centre, which would take around 20 minutes. There is a metro system in Copenhagen, however there’s not a close stop to the zoo to make it worth taking really. Of course you could also take a taxi, but I’m not sure on the cost.
In Copenhagen Zoo
A ticket for Copenhagen costs 195DKK for an adult (around £23), or you can also get free access with the Copenhagen Card designed for tourists (gives access to over 80 attractions, you can pick the duration of validity which works best for your trip, price varies.) An annual membership for the zoo costs 475DKK.
The zoo is typically open every day of the year (it is currently closed at the time of writing, but is expected to open on the 1st of May) from 10AM with closing times depending on the season. We arrived just after opening and left around 3PM, which was more than enough time to see everything once and then see a few favourites again. It was a Friday in January when we visited, so it was fairly quiet with only one school group of children – it made for a very pleasant visit.
The cold weather of winter wasn’t off-putting at all, it started to rain a little, but it wasn’t too bad. For me the pay off between visiting in a quiet but cold time was better than visiting in great weather but a busy zoo.
There were no issues in navigating the zoo, as far as I can remember most signs (both directions and at animals themselves) were in both Danish and English, as was the main zoo map – which was very nicely illustrated, so it’s easy to find what you’re looking for quickly.
The zoo also had a lot of options for food, with a couple of different restaurant options with 6 sit-down places, the PanPan Bistro offers a French/Asian fusion with a view of the pandas, or there are some more regular or typical choices at the Zoo Market cafe. There were also several food stands where you could buy small snacks and treats like fries or churros.
And lastly the gift shops – there was a main gift shop by the exit, it definitely is one of the better shops that I’ve seen, they had a huge range for both kids and adults with fun and educational things to buy. One of the highlights for me were the range of retro-style postcards, they really had a very nice selection with individual designs for different animals. There was also a specific panda shop, this was very cute and I really like that touch for the zoo – it’s also located next to the panda enclosure. It did seem a little more orientated towards kids, but they also sold a nice selection of photo post cards and posters of the pandas.
