Zoo Map at Dvur Kralove, 27/08/12

The main map shows the walk-around Zoo and, across the car park, the Safari Camp area where we stayed.

The inset indicates the Safari drive-around area, including the large mixed reserves that required a bus trip in 2003 and the rhino/giraffe/zebra paddocks that were formerly accessible n foot.

The Czech. Rep. appears to be a real "dark horse" European nation for zoos, with Prague, Plzen, Dvur Kralove and Zlin all being included in "What Zoos Can Do" and several decent smaller zoos are also found in the nation. If Germany and The Netherlands are unanimously Europe's two premier countries for zoological parks then could Czech. Rep. be a strong candidate for the #3 slot?

For me, those three countries are the 'holy trinity' of European zoo countries when it comes to my foreign trips. The Netherlands has arguably the highest overall quality, Germany has the highest number of high-quality zoos, and the Czech Republic has the fastest-improving zoos and some of the biggest animal collections. As of my recent Czech trip I've now visit all the Czech members of the Czech and Slovak Union of Zoos; the quality is variable but improving very quickly.

Prague and Plzen are among the very best in Europe, Dvur is a very good day out (if something of a black sheep at the moment) and Zlin is probably the rightful holder of '4th place' in the Czech Republic (if nothing else it has one of the most pleasant zoo sites I've ever seen). Brno is one to watch, and the newer exhibits at Olomouc and Ostrava bode very well for their future. Chomutov I really enjoyed, with a pleasing almost-exclusively-Palaearctic animal line-up. Vyskov is a glorified farm park, but has disposed of a lot of sub-par exhbits recently by all accounts. Decin has a wonderful site and quite idosyncratioc, if a little slight. Liberec and Usti have that 'hardly changed for years' feel but both have plenty of potential (Usti in particular). Ohrada is another in the 'small but pleasant' category. A much better small zoo is Jihlava, which is also one of the most friendly and welcoming zoos I've ever encountered (and still has a fair amount of space for development). Hodonin I'm least well-placed to judge, having not visited since 2003, and then in half-darkness (long story) but it was a small collection that I'm sure will have improved in that time.

Many Czech zoos operate a small aquarium or terrarium in the town centre, which is a nice concept. There are also some really interesting standalone reptile places like Protivin and Prague Terrarium at Dubec. It's a really interesting zoo country all-round.

Another 'dark horse' is Switzerland - not as many zoos as some of the others but I've been to three (two large, one small) and they were uniformly first-rate.

If forced to create a European 'top 10', it would probably include two Dutch, two Czech, one Austrian and up to two Swiss zoos, with the remainder being German. Probably. Just don't ask me which!

Well I'm sorry but you've tempted me, which 3 German zoo's 9doesn't have to be in order of preference).

Thanks Maguari! I can always count on you to respond with an informative posting that is packed full of great information. I even copied and pasted your Czech. Rep. report so that I have a mini-reference guide for the future. Also, I have a top 20 list from you that you sent me via a private message a couple of years ago and I wonder if your love for Czech Rep. zoos will have affected the zoos on that list. Perhaps Prague and Plzen will be even higher?

Here's a question for you Maguari - how doable are Czech and Dutch zoos for those who don't speak a word of the languages?

Fortunately I *can* speak a bit of German.

Maguari said:

If forced to create a European 'top 10', it would probably include two Dutch, two Czech, one Austrian and up to two Swiss zoos, with the remainder being German. Probably. Just don't ask me which!

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That’s interesting.

I would find it very difficult to restrict my favourite European zoos to only ten but my personal “top ten” would probably include one Dutch, one Belgian, one Austrian, three Czech and four German zoos.

TeaLovingDave said:

Here's a question for you Maguari - how doable are Czech and Dutch zoos for those who don't speak a word of the languages?

Fortunately I *can* speak a bit of German.

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Holland is possibly the easiest country in the world in which to travel: everybody, pretty much, speaks perfect English; everything works well; public transport is very good.

The Czech Republic is hardly Outer Mongolia either. Fewer people speak English, but it's pretty easy to get around, and while the people are not always the most cheerful in Europe, it is a very safe, very hospitable country. And you can get very nice beer and even nicer fried cheese in each zoo cafe!

Maguari said:

Another 'dark horse' is Switzerland - not as many zoos as some of the others but I've been to three (two large, one small) and they were uniformly first-rate.

!

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...and what about Belgium? The big two zoos are, mostly, wonderful. Pairi Daiza is impressive (but probably not my sort of place). For a small country, it's a pretty good trio!

chizlit said:

Well I'm sorry but you've tempted me, which 3 German zoo's 9doesn't have to be in order of preference).

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I knew I shouldn't have posted that, because I can't answer!

Every time I've tried a top ten, it's ended up a top 15-or-so!

This is the list (alphabetically - NOT in order of preference!) I sent to snowleopard way back in 2010:

1- Arnhem
2- Basel
3- Berlin (East)
4- Berlin (West)
5- Chester
6- Leipzig
7- Prague
8- Rotterdam
9- Vienna
10- Zurich
11- Antwerp
12- Cologne
13- Dvur Kravlove
14- Edinburgh
15- Emmen
16- Hannover
17- London
18- Nuremberg
19- Stuttgart
20- Wuppertal

Since then... hmmm. I hadn't been to Frankfurt at that time, and that would definitely be there now, probably at the expense of Dvur, London, Edinburgh, Hannover or Emmen. Beekse Bergen may also be flirting around the lower levels of top 20 as well, I think.

My actual 'top 5' has been, generally, pretty stable at (in alphabetical order) Berlin, Berlin, Pilsen, Prague, Rotterdam ever since I first visited Pilsen. The next five, on reflection, are probably Arnhem, Cologne, Vienna, Wuppertal, Zurich (so just one Swiss and four German).

But ask me again tomorrow and you'll get a different answer!

And I find it almost impossible to place Chester into a ranking on the list - it's too much of an old friend! I can't exclude it from my top 20, but whether it's objectively top 20 I find hard to say.

TeaLovingDave said:

Here's a question for you Maguari - how doable are Czech and Dutch zoos for those who don't speak a word of the languages?

Fortunately I *can* speak a bit of German.

Click to expand...

Sooty's answer covers this pretty well!

Tim May said:

That’s interesting.

I would find it very difficult to restrict my favourite European zoos to only ten but my personal “top ten” would probably include one Dutch, one Belgian, one Austrian, three Czech and four German zoos.

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sooty mangabey said:

...and what about Belgium? The big two zoos are, mostly, wonderful. Pairi Daiza is impressive (but probably not my sort of place). For a small country, it's a pretty good trio!

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Antwerp is probably 'top 15', but I can't quite squeeze it into the 10. I really enjoyed Planckendael, but it would be a little lower (perhaps I need a summer visit and some Slender-horned Gazelles to bump it up the list a bit!). But, yes, Belgium is a good 'dark horse' contender.


(wow - mammoth post!)



Two more general comments on the Czech Republic and its zoos:

1 - Food - Czech food is on average better than German or even Dutch food, both within the zoos and without (in my opinion! )

2 - Breeding - Czech zoos have a commitment and approach to breeding to put most other countries' zoos to shame. It's young animals left, right and centre and extensive breeding facilities for even the most unfashionable of animals. Really great to see.