Posted by All visitor info with admission prices Pilsen Zoo (Czech Republic)
The zoo in the city of Pilsen in the Czech Republic is surprisingly large and modern for the size of the city (180,000 inhabitants).
The beautiful zoo is also a botanical garden. Also integrated in the zoo of Pilsen is the so-called Dino Park. It is a kind of exhibition of huge, life-size dinosaurs made of plastic. The dinos move partially and roar loudly.
What is there to see in the Pilsen Zoo?
Very much! For example, besides the usual zoo animals, there is a large farm that you can visit.
The Pilsen Zoo is divided by continents. If you go left after the entrance, you will first come to the animals from Africa. You can see lions, zebras, antelopes and monkeys, among others. Then follows Asia with camels, more monkeys and other mammals.
We especially liked the Europe area. The European brown bear has a huge enclosure on a slope with forest. Furthermore, there are wolves and giant bison to see. Now we are in the upper part of the zoo of Pilsen and we reach the farm, which especially children like. Goats, sheep, cattle, pigs and horses are among the farm animals at the Plzen Zoo. You can also see stables and old agricultural machinery.
In the large America section, for example, llamas and cougars are highlights. Other sections of the Pilsen Zoo deal with the wildlife of Madagascar and Australia (such as kangaroos and emus).
Our impression of Pilsen Zoo
The zoo is modern and inexpensive compared to zoos in Germany. This is true for the entrance fee as well as for the gastronomy in the Plzen Zoological Garden. It is a full-fledged zoo, absolutely comparable with a larger zoo in a major German city.
We liked the spaciousness of the zoo. In some sections of the zoo, you almost feel like you’re on a forest hike. In many places you can also see plants such as flowers, grasses and herbs, which are marked and described with signs. There are benches and tables at nice places to rest or have a picnic.
We liked less that almost all signs in the zoo of Pilsen are only in Czech. Hardly any information is translated into German or English. What we liked very much that many signs, buildings and landscapes were adapted to the respective continents, partly also with humor.
Only in one of the many good and inexpensive restaurants and cafes did we see a menu in German and English. Also the staff in the zoo hardly speaks any foreign language, according to our impression. Pilsen is just not a tourist city, in the zoo of Prague this is quite different.
Some paths in the zoo in Pilsen are hiking paths on a mountain (partly with steps) and are not very suitable for a stroller. However, there are many other paths in the huge Pilsen Zoo that are asphalted. These can be easily navigated with a stroller.
Entrance fees Pilsen Zoo 2024
The entrance fee to the Pilsen Zoo is not too expensive. Children under the age of 3 do not have to pay admission.
Entrance fees: 220 crowns (8,50 euros) for adults in winter. Children between 3 and 15 years pay around 6 euros. In summer, prices are slightly higher in our experience. As of January 2024, DinoPark costs extra.
There are still slightly cheaper tickets for families, also a cheap annual pass for the Pilsen Zoo can be bought at the ticket office at the entrance.
You should ask for a free map of the zoo at the entrance (cash desk). We got this only by asking.
Dogs are NOT allowed in the zoo.
We recommend visiting the zoo in good weather. There are some animal buildings, but most of it is outdoors.
Paying the entrance fee is NOT possible with euro or card! (As of 2018) So you definitely need enough Czech crowns. We saw an ATM machine at the zoo, a few meters behind the main entrance.
Status of info and prices: Januar 2023
Opening hours Pilsen Zoo 2024
In summer, the zoo of the city of Pilsen is open from 8 am to 7 pm.
In winter, opening hours are shorter (9 am to 5 pm, November to March inclusive).
The zoo is open every day of the week.
Gastronomy Pilsen Zoo
Very inexpensive are the drinks from the vending machines. As in the other two zoos we visited in the Czech Republic (Prague Zoo and Usti Zoo), a cool mineral water from the vending machine (0.5 liter) costs the equivalent of only about 1 euro. Other drinks are hardly more expensive.
In the many cafes and restaurants (at least 5) you can stop inexpensively. A main course usually costs a good 5 euros, a coffee not much more than 1 euro. Unfortunately, most menus are only in Czech, and the staff is hardly prepared for tourists from abroad.
Directions to Pilsen Zoo
Getting there by car is quite easy. Pilsen Zoo is about 2 kilometers north of the city center. There is a large parking lot in front of the zoo. Parking with a car costs 80 crowns (a good 3 euros) per car in 2022.
By public transport, the journey is not easy, but doable. Unfortunately, there is no direct bus from the city center to the Pilsen Zoo. However, there is a streetcar stop (line 4) called “Zoologicka Zahrada” (Zoological Garden). However, this streetcar line does not go to the main train station or to the central square Namesti Republiky (Republic Square). However, it stops several times in the wide street in front of the Great Synagogue not far from the center.
After getting off at the “Zoologicka Zahrada” stop, you have to walk for just under 10 minutes through the beautiful Lochotinsky Park to the zoo. This is also not easy to find, because at the streetcar stop Zoological Garden the zoo is not directly signposted. You go left in the direction of the streetcar, through an underpass and then over a bridge. After that you see a narrow street below, there you see a sign with the inscription “Zoo”. Walk past the Pilsen Amphitheater and you will reach the entrance to the Pilsen Zoo.
Articles other zoos
The zoo of Prague: Click here
The great zoo of Budapest: Click here
The zoo of Berlin (West): Click here
The zoo of Berlin (East): Click here
The zoo of Munich: Click here
The zoo of Vienna, the oldest zoo in the world: Click here
The famous zoo in London: Click here
The great zoo of Valencia (Spain): Click here
The largest aquarium in the world in Dubai: Click here