Pairi Daiza in Belgium is one of the most beautiful zoos I’ve been to – it really can’t even be described as just a zoo, it’s very much more a park with beautiful gardens and scenery to also enjoy. It’s definitely an experience! Pairi Daiza is fairly new, having first opened 1993, but you would never guess being there. Everything about the place is amazing, and for sure my pictures don’t highlight that enough, nor do they cover the whole park – one day is really not enough to cover everything thoroughly, and as a panda fan this was the focus of my visit in the Summer of 2017. I also visited Pairi Daiza at the start of January 2020, however the weather wasn’t so good for taking pictures; I was also due to visit in June a couple of weeks ago, but we’re working on re-scheduling, hopefully we’ll make it by the end of the Summer months!
Tian Bao
Tian Bao is the first cub to be born in Belgium – he was born on the 2nd of June 2016, and we saw him a few weeks after his first birthday in June 2017. On this visit mama Hao Hao and papa Xing Hui were both inside the whole time – if you’ve ever been to Pairi Daiza you will be familiar with the ‘cave’ design to the indoor enclosures which makes taking perfect pictures a little challenging, especially with a not-so-advanced camera that I was using back then. However I got so lucky with Tian Bao as he spent a lot of time outside! He had a very cool climbing frame which was very naturally made with trees and wood, and even a slide! I was desperate to see him go down the slide, but was unlucky this time – I’m sure I’ll manage to see it sometime, although from another panda! He made great use of his climbing frame, being all over it and climbing up and down the ladders to reach the different platforms on offer to him. He really was also very good at posing, I got some of the most adorable photos of him^ It was super cute at the end of the day when his keeper came out to bring him in and he seemed like he preferred staying out to play, but eventually he followed her inside with a cute little run =) Of course now being 4 years old, he has had his own enclosure across the park for a few years now – it also comes with a fun climbing frame and from the pictures I’ve seen online he loves that one too! There is a new climbing frame for the twins in Hao Hao’s outdoor enclosure now which also looks like a good one similar to this from a few years ago. Hopefully you enjoy this selection of pictures of a young Tian Bao =D
The environment of and around the panda enclosure is also very impressive, it’s so incredibly well thought out. While it doesn’t have the typical Chinese red and roof design alike can be seen at Ouwehands and Berlin Zoo, there is still Asian theming throughout with a lot of bamboo and a lot of natural-ness like the stone-work you can see below and also something similar at the entrance to the route through the panda enclosure. I really like this piece (I’m really not sure what to call it), it’s completely unique to Pairi Daiza, I’ve certainly not seen an equivalent at any other panda zoos that I’ve been to. This one has a special plaque for Tian Bao’s birth (I wonder if there is an additional one now for the twins?), and represents the uniting of the two countries of Belgium and China in this partnership with giant pandas. Additionally to the giant panda area, there are other Asian-themed buildings, architecture and gardens elsewhere in the park which are pretty spectacular.
More than pandas
Pairi Daiza was already a well-established park when giant pandas moved there in 2014 so there are plenty more animals to see – I didn’t get to see everything or experience the whole park, but still managed to see a number of the different themed areas that are on offer and the different animals living there. This year the new ‘Land of the Cold’ has opened up, introducing a number of new species to the zoo, including Polar Bears, which I am very excited to see as the pictures of the new enclosures really look incredible and unique. Anyway, here’s the animals that I did see back on my trip in 2017:
Giraffes are often in mixed species habitats, and this particular giraffe had made good friends with an ostrich – the two were so interested in each other for over 15 minutes! There was also a walkway and platform which can be seen on the right where there were various hanging baskets and enrichment for the giraffes, giving the possibility of being right up close to the animals.
The elephants area was particularly memorable for both this stunning architecture of the enclosure building, but also the sheer number of both African and Asian elephants that were in the herds. Their home was impressive with so much space, there were paddocks on both sides of the indoor building here at the front, but through the back there was such an expanse of space – of course on our visit the elephants were typically mostly together and not making good use of it, but it was really good to see what they had. It was a lot bigger than other elephant enclosures I’ve seen, however the larger herd size would also account for that.
Walk around the park
As I’ve already mentioned many times in this post already, there is so much more to Pairi Daiza than just seeing animals, the grounds are spectacular with the architecture and landscaping and fitting with the theming of the different lands around the park – I almost feel like you could walk around and enjoy this aspect without even realising you are in a zoo! So it’s very worthwhile setting some time aside to enjoy the garden aspect of the park. While some of the more traditional styled buildings are more of a new-build, the park isn’t without history. The Cambron Abbey Tower (below) is located within the park and is part of the ruins of the original abbey which was there back in the early 1100’s, however I think the tower was built in the 1700’s, where a group of monks used to stay. It’s an incredible building, and something so unexpected to come across. The Asian theming is also just unbelievably good, I’ve been to several temples and similar complexes like this one in China, and would never have been able to pick this out and say it wasn’t in China, the details gone into it are just crazy.
Your Visit
Getting to Pairi Daiza
Pairi Daiza is located in southern Belgium, in the French speaking region, so is popular amongst both Belgians and French visitors. On both my trips my friend has driven up from Ghent to Pairi Daiza, which has taken around an hour to an hour fifteen – it was busier in the Summer than when we visited in January. However there is also a local train station to Pairi Daiza – once I have made my visit this year I will be able to say more about it, however it’s around an hour and twenty minutes from the centre of Brussels on the train, I think it should be pretty easy!
Where to stay
Back in 2017 there were no local hotel options in the close vicinity to Pairi Daiza, however in the past year the Pairi Daiza Resort has been established and opened – there are now several different options for staying in Pairi Daiza itself, from regular hotel rooms, to various lodges and rooms directly looking into animal enclosures. The options are great, and make it incredibly appealing. With the size of the park, two days is really needed to make sure you can see everything at least once, so as a non-local, these options really are perfect. I have a stay booked in the Polar Bear hotel with a ‘from above’ view, however you can also book a ‘head to head’ view, where half of your bedroom window is looking into the underwater section of the polar bear enclosure. This option is also available for the walrus, and I know a penguin hotel is also planned. The hotel really looks great, I have no personal experience, but I think it does offer good value for money – while the price is a little more on the expensive side, a one night stay includes entry to the park for 2 days (an adult ticket is €36 per day), early entry to the park, 24-hour access to the lands where the hotels are located, a 3-course evening meal in the hotel restaurant, and breakfast. For me, it’s completely worth it!
In Pairi Daiza
The park is very large, so comfy shoes are a must! Opening time is 10AM, with so much to do, I’d definitely recommend getting there early – in the summer months, closing isn’t until 8PM, which really gives a good amount of time, while in the autumn and winter months it is a 6PM close, however it will be getting darker earlier, so isn’t so much a problem. The park is seasonal, so does have some ‘closed’ time – last winter was the first time the park had a winter opening, I really enjoyed visiting at this time and would really like to be able to do so again. Tickets are €36 for an adult for a day, however a season pass is also available at two different levels (€79 or 98) and would only need a couple of visits to make it worth buying, and is also a great way to show your support to the park.
The park also has plenty in the way of restaurants, I’ve eaten at a couple of them and whilst they are more expensive than other zoo restaurants I’ve been to, the quality is worth it – you could be in a restaurant anywhere, not specifically a zoo. In particular I was lucky enough to be invited to lunch at the restaurant in The Paddling Bear Hotel called Octopus, and as a picky eater, I am the last person who would be regarded as a ‘foodie’, but my word that was the best food I might have ever had! For the lunch there were two meat options and a vegetarian option for both starter and main courses, and then two dessert options – the vegetarian food was delicious, and it certainly made a change from some of the vegetarian options I’ve had to eat at restaurants here in the UK.
And of course I have to mention gift shops, there are also a wide variety of options and they sell absolutely everything you could think of for a zoo gift shop. So many different mugs, shirts, hats, toys, books, magnets and postcards to choose from! When I was there in January there was also a newer gift shop located right by the panda enclosure, which had merchandise specifically for the pandas and also some of the other nearby animals – I really liked this touch, I didn’t have a look in the main store, so I’m not sure if some of these items were specific to this shop. I bought just about anything with the panda twins picture on it!