Wuppertal Zoo

Wuppertal Zoo is one of the few zoos you can reach by suspended monorail: the Zoo/Stadion station of the famous Wuppertal Schwebebahn is close by. The zoo itself climbs a hillside as a 24-hectare park with mature trees. Around 2,200 animals from some 320 species live here, including elephants, great apes, big cats and penguins. It calls itself "The Green Zoo Wuppertal", and the name fits.

History

The zoo was laid out by landscape architect Heinrich Siesmayer and opened on 8 September 1881 with just 34 animals, including a bear and a pair of wolves. Early on, entertainment came first: you could go canoeing on the pond where the gibbons live today. A darker chapter were the human zoos: in 1885 a 17-year-old Aboriginal woman, Sussy Dakaro, died here; a memorial stone in Sonnborn cemetery has commemorated her since 2017. The city took over in 1937, and in 1946 a British military court held the Natzweiler war crimes trial on the zoo grounds. Major modernisation followed from the 1990s: an elephant enclosure in 1995 and a 4-hectare extension for lions and tigers in 2007.

What to see

• African elephants: A breeding herd on 4,340 m², watched from a restaurant built like a hunting hide.
• King penguins: One of Europe's largest penguin enclosures (2009), with a 15-metre acrylic tunnel for underwater views.
• Lions and tigers: The lion enclosure was the largest in any German zoo when it opened in 2007. The Sambatrasse cycle path crosses the tiger valley on a bridge.
• Great apes: Orangutans behind glass since 2003, plus gorillas and bonobos.
• Aralandia: A 1,100 m² walk-through aviary with macaws, flamingos and free-roaming pudus.
• Snow leopards: Housed in a mock abandoned mountain village.

Good to know

With almost €4.4 million in federal funding, the zoo aims to be largely climate-neutral by 2027. Takins and okapis are among the species you rarely see in German zoos, and the villa district around the zoo is even named after it: the Zooviertel.

Getting there

Take the Schwebebahn to Zoo/Stadion, the S-Bahn (S8, S9, S28) to Zoologischer Garten, or buses 639 and 605 to the main entrance. Drivers use the A 46 and park next to the stadium. Check current opening hours and prices on the City of Wuppertal website, and wear good shoes for the steep paths.

Tripto tip

Ride the Schwebebahn over the Wupper river to get there, and allow three to four hours for the zoo.