The Vienna Zoo is the oldest existing zoo in the world.
This Zoo is also often referred to as Tiergarten Schonbrunn.
In 2018, it was voted Europe’s best Zoo for the fifth time.
Every year, more than 2 Million tourists visit Vienna Zoo.
1. How to reach
2. Opening hours
3. Duration of tour
4. Vienna Zoo tickets
5. Desert House tickets
6. Panorama train
7. Vienna Pass
8. Vienna Zoo map
9. Zoo in winter
10. Animals in Zoo
11. Aqua Terra Zoo
Where is Vienna Zoo?
Vienna Zoo is located on the ground of the famous Schönbrunn Palace in Vienna, Austria.
Vienna Zoo’s address: Maxingstrabe 13b, 1130 Wien, Austria
How to get to the Vienna Zoo?
To reach the main entrance of the Vienna Zoo, the easy and best way is to use the park-gate Hietznger Tor.
If you are traveling via public transport, you have three options.
U4 Underground. You must get down at the station Hietzing.
If you taking the tram, opt for tram numbers 10, 58, 60
If a bus is your preferred mode of travel, you must know that bus numbers 51A, 56A, 56B, 58A get you close to Vienna Zoo.
Some tourists also travel to the Vienna Zoo by car. In such case,
If you are traveling by car, you can park your car at one of the Park & Ride garages a few Underground stations away from the zoo.
The names of the garages are:
1. Hütteldorf U4 (underground)
2. Siebenhirten U6 (underground)
Vienna Zoo hours
The best thing about Vienna Zoo is that it is open 365 days of the year. Yes, that’s right, it is open even on public holidays.
Every day the Vienna Zoo opens at 9 am. However, the closing time keeps changing as per the season.
The closing times are –
Jan: 9 am to 4.30 pm
Feb: 9 am to 5 pm
Mar: 9 am to 5.30 pm
Apr to Sep: 9 am to 6.30 pm
*Oct: 9 am to 5.30 pm
Nov to Dec: 9 am to 4.30 pm
*Until daylight saving time ends
The Aquarium House and the Tyrolean farmhouse close at the end of visiting hours, the Bird House closes an hour before, and all other animal houses close half an hour before.
Desert House opening hours
There is a botanical garden in the zoo known as the Desert House, which is a desert exhibit. Its opening times are a bit different from the Zoo’s timings.
Jan to Apr: 9 am to 5 pm
May to Sep: 9 am to 6 pm
Oct to Dec: 9 am to 5 pm
The ticket counter of Vienna Zoo closes half-an-hour before the closing time.
How much time is needed for Vienna Zoo
If you are one nature lover and love to capture the animals in their natural habitat along with having a fun family holiday, the duration of your tour will be around five hours.
However, if you are in a hurry and don’t have kids with you, you can finish exploring the whole Zoo in around three hours.
Skip the line Vienna Zoo tickets
This is a full access, skip the line ticket.
When you book this ticket online, you can avoid standing in the queue at the ticketing counter, hence the name.
This is also a very convenient ticket because you don’t need to take printouts.
The tickets will be emailed to you within five minutes of purchase. On the day of your visit, just show the email you have received (on your smartphone) at the Zoo entrance and walk in.
This is not a timed ticket. It is valid for the whole day.
Ticket price
Adult ticket (19+ years): 20 Euros
Child ticket (6 to 18 years, with valid ID): 10 Euros
Vienna Zoo’s Desert House tickets
The Desert House is a botanical house within the Vienna Zoo which showcases the habitat, plants, and animals of the desert.
The highlight of Desert House is a 70-meter glass tube labyrinth with desert mole rats.
Among the plants, the must-see attraction is ‘Fockea’ which is an offspring of the oldest succulent potted plant in the world.
This ticket is also valid for the whole day.
Ticket price
Adult ticket (19+ years): 6 Euros
Child ticket (6 to 18 years, with valid ID): 4.5 Euros
Panorama train in Vienna Zoo
The Schonbrunn Palace (the spot where the Vienna Zoo is located) is spread over 160 hectares of land.
The so best option available to cover all of it is via Panorama trains.
The diesel-powered Schönbrunn Panorama Train gives a tour with 9 stops in the Palace Park.
In the zoo, the train shuttles from 10 am to 6 pm between the Emperor’s Breakfast Pavillion, the Elephant House, and the Tirolerhof.
Each interval lasts around 45 minutes.
You can buy the tickets for this train at the Vienna Zoo.
Cost of the ticket: 2 Euros for adults and 1 Euro for kids.
Vienna Zoo and Vienna Pass
The Vienna Pass is an excellent way to save money and time while exploring the city of Vienna.
It provides free entry not just to the Vienna Zoo but 60 of Vienna’s other attractions.
Some of the top tourist attractions where this Pass can help you gain free entry are – Schönbrunn Palace, Giant Ferris Wheel, Spanish Riding School, Albertina Museum etc.
The best part is that you won’t even have to wait in any lines – you can walk right in.
Vienna Pass is available for 1 day, 2 days, 3 days and 6 days. The price varies accordingly.
1 Day Pass
Adult price: 59 Euros
Child price: 29.50 Euros
2 Day Pass
Adult price: 89 Euros
Child price: 44.50 Euros
3 Day Pass
Adult price: 119 Euros
Child price: 59.50 Euros
6 Day Pass
Adult price: 154 Euros
Child price: 77 Euros
*Visitors 19+ years old are considered adults. Kids aged 6 to 18 years need to buy the child pass. Kids 5 years and below enter for free.
Vienna Zoo map
For a hassle-free exploration of the Zoo, we recommend you have a copy of the Vienna Zoo map with yourself.
Especially if you are traveling with kids.
The various animal exhibits, resting places, restaurants, washrooms etc are clearly mentioned in the map.
It is best to have a printed copy of the map or a have it saved on your phone as a pdf document or a screenshot to help you explore the Zoo better.
Vienna Zoo in winter
Planning a visit to the Vienna Zoo in winter, but not sure?
Don’t worry. Summer is the best time to visit any Zoo, but winter at Vienna Zoo isn’t bad either.
Winter visits are more fun as there is less crowd and you can get a closer look at the animals.
You will be amazed at how active the animals are in their warm indoor enclosures.
The cooler temperatures do not bother many animals, especially those from Africa or South America.
Many of the exotic animals are likely to be seen outside in the winter playing between their indoor and outdoor enclosures, depending on their mood.
Vienna Zoo animals – what to see
The Vienna zoo showcases a variety of animals, birds, mammals, reptiles, fishes and more.
The must-see attractions of the Zoo are –
1. Regenwaldhaus
Regenwaldhaus is the German word for Rainforest house. It is a giant glassed enclosure.
This glass house gives the visitor the vibe of a jungle. The artificial thunderstorms, the floor and canopy etc depict a real tropical forest.
Inside this forest animals, birds, bats etc live free giving it a feeling of authenticity.
MUST: To get a look at the ‘flying foxes’ you must go to the top level inside this forest house.
2. Elephant House
This house is dedicated to keeping and caring for the elephants.
The elephant shower routine is an exciting attraction in the Zoo. The kids enjoy the feeding and cleaning sessions.
If you are traveling with kids, we suggest you ask the officials for when the cleaning and feeding sessions are scheduled and plan accordingly.
3. Big Cat House
The cat family – Tigers, Cheetahs, and Leopards – occupy rooms and outdoor areas in the big cat house.
Kids also get very excited in this section.
4. Rhino House
The Vienna Zoo has a nice big house for an Indian pair of rhinoceros.
This rhino is said to be a gift from the Kingdom of Nepal.
5. Polarium
This area features Penguins in their natural habitat and an extended pool for the sea lions.
It’s always a treat to watch the large sea animals jump about and shower the visitors.
6. Tirolerhof
Tirolerhof is a farmhouse from the mountainous Tyrolean region of Austria. It has been re-created at the Vienna Zoo, just behind the Elephant House.
At Tirolerhof one can see rare breeds of farm animals such as horses, sheep, goats etc.
It also doubles up as a good place to catch up on some food.
7. Other Animals
Apart from these main centers, there are other animals as well like Giraffes, Zebra, Antelope, and Birds.
There’s even a children’s zoo where you can stroke and play with the animals.
The other attractions include an Insect house, a Koala house, Polar Bears, a Monkey and Ape house, a Gibbon island, Meerkats, Reindeer, Camels, Giant Pandas etc.
8. Aquarium
Vienna Zoo’s aquarium consists of three sections.
The first section features crocodiles, fish, and free-living birds and butterflies.
You will also spot the butterfly breeding station in this section.
The highlight of the second section is a large 80,000-liter reef aquarium, filled with fish, anemones, and corals.
The third part is the Terrarium – a 7.5 meters (24.5 feet) long glass tunnel resembling a flooded Amazon forest floor.
This section showcases snakes, frogs, lizards, scorpions, the odd spider, ants and a darkened area where you can see bats and scorpions.
Aqua Terra Zoo, Vienna
Other than Tiergarten Schonbrunn, there is yet another famous zoo in Vienna – called Aqua Terra Zoo.
It’s also known as Haus Des Meeres (House of the Sea).
Even though it is referred to Aqua Terra Zoo, it is more of an aquarium. In fact, the biggest in the whole of Austria.
It is built into a 2nd world-war bunker, which provides the massive architecture of the building.
If you are traveling with kids, we suggest you don’t miss the Aqua Terra Zoo.
Aqua Terra Zoo ticket price
Adult ticket (16+ years): 18.50 Euros
Child ticket (6 to 15 years): 8.40 Euros
Toddlers (3 to 5 years): 5.60 Euros
Seniors ticket: 13.80 Euros