On another note, Butterfly Journey is closed until the 30th of the month in order for the zoo to do maintenance on the enclosure.
Chester Zoo Chester Zoo 2017
- Thread starter Nisha
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This may be the case but the plans on the website definitely show this on the fountains lawn.
We must take into account that the number of visitors to Chester Zoo is increasing year on year. Consequently the Zoo has to cater for these extra visitors by improving on the capacity and range of its facilities and attractions. That means everything from the car park to the Gift Shop must be under consideration for expansion or upgrading and in some cases new facilities will be needed. I presume that the Commercial Operations team think that the current 3 playgrounds may not be sufficient for the number of children expected to arrive next year and I have no problem with building a new area where they can play safely and let off steam, without bothering the animals or elderly visitors (like myself).
I think that as the zoo expands we must expect more kiosks, more food outlets, more toilet blocks, wider paths and perhaps new educational and entertainment features: they must inevitably accompany the new and refurbished animal exhibits that we want to see, and I hope we might even get some new quieter and more peaceful areas too.
Absolutely agree - apart from the elderly bit. I'd just substitute that for 'other'
In all serious - the zoo has to cater to their full range of visitors and there is no doubt that families are going to make up a large proportion of that range. I'd be interested to know the demographics of the zoo-going population actually.
I would think that families - especially those with children of primary school age - almost surely make up a significant majority. The zoo's marketing is generally targeted at this audience, particularly since the re-branding five or so years ago (which, though heavily criticised on here at the time, has been successful).
Agreed - and I think the membership here tend to forget that when criticising things like the Dinosaurs that so many of the zoos have brought in. I can't comment on Chester as am not there nearly often enough - but in my exprience if you visit Whipsnade on a weekday you will be mainly in the company of a lot of mothers with even younger children than primary school age... who spend the bulk of their time in the cafe, play areas and farmyard bit.
Exactly so, as in term-time all other children will be in school. This is a common denominator in other UK zoos during termtime weekdays too. But it may be quite an expensive way for mothers with very small children to entertain them, given they will probably only look at a small proportion of Whipsnade's extensive animal collection.
Season passes for zoos are often cheaper than for standalone indoor play areas - that's a major income stream for Yorkshire WP, I know. So a decent play area and a cafe and for many, the animals are just a bonus!
I think you are right Maguari - we were saying the exact same thing on our last weekday visit as I was suprised there were so many very little kids. Whipsnade is very expensive imo and if you're even going to go twice as a family for a 'day out' then you may as well buy an annual pass and use their indoor soft play etc all year round.
I also noticed at Twycross recently how quite a few families with small children appeared to have come just to use the Himalaya Centre covered play area/cafe which is outside the Zoo proper- probably they don't go in but use it as a useful local resource.
Apologies for diverting from main topic of thread....
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My bad: it is indeed the (ex-) fountain lawn.
I don't object to play areas in zoos at all, but I prefer them to be distinct from the animal areas. This new one at Chester is going to be a bit "in your face" for my liking.
A brief visit this afternoon confirms that the Fountain Lawn is indeed a building site (sad face) and doesn't look like it's heading for an animal enclosure (sadder face). IMHO a great shame - I realise lawns, bedding and an ornamental fountain are a bit old-fashioned these days but it was such a longstanding feature of the zoo ... And dozens of excited children running around in the heart of the zoo doesn't appeal.
In other news ...
I like the look of the new (old-style) aviaries on the Rainbow Lawn - opposite the chimps. A nice variety of Asian birds? Suits me Sir.
Otherwise, saw pretty much everything we wanted to see:
Two tiny elephants
The new giraffe
Both Aye-Ayes - and good views - plus the Giant jumping Rat
Red Panda
Sun Bear
Great Indian Rhino x2
A much-grown young Malayan Tapir - surprised to see it already in adult livery!
And - of course - the crowning glory of the collection: Binturong ! (Happy face) And it moved!
Sounds like a great visit! Have you got any photos from your trip I'd like to see the progression of the aviaries!
What a bloody shame.
As much as I am happy to see the zoo doing so well commercially, there have been some decisions made recently that really have really made my heart sink. And that state of affairs seems to be set in.
I am not resistant to change. Far from it, in fact. But all taste seems to have gone out of the window. Yuk.
I'll be visiting in a few weeks so I'm looking forward to seeing all the changes from when I last visited in October. 
Agree. All well and good having massive attendances and mega surplus (shouldn't call it profit, but you know what I mean) but it's not a commercial operation - no shareholders to pay - and it mustn't be a the expense of its true role.
Surly the best way for a charity to work is to be a success commercially, making the most from what it can bring in.
Keeping the visitors up and them spending allows for greater income and this to be spent on its conservation work, at home and abroad.
Keeping the visitors up and them spending allows for greater income and this to be spent on its conservation work, at home and abroad.
The zoo's perception of its true role was set out in the six Strategic Objectives in the Annual Report for 2015.
To ensure that our conservation and educational activities, both in the zoo and globally, achieve the greatest conservation impact.
To be a world class ‘must see’ visitor attraction, in terms of quality, service and enthralling experiences.
To be a centre of excellence for animal and plant care based on sound scientific principles.
To ensure long term commercial viability through excellent business practices.
To ensure that our staff are recognised as being at the heart of the organisation and influence the success of everything we do.
To ensure an excellent external reputation that builds trust and allows us to influence our stakeholders.
Everyone is entitled to an opinion about how the zoo can meet these objectives: but in my opinion this development obviously works towards the second one, without contradicting any of the others. Looking at the plans, I don't think that any animals will be unduly disturbed - there seems to be a quiet area of planting and seating next to the lions and I doubt whether there will be any extra noise in Dragons in Danger. Some visitors will miss the lawns and bedding, but there are other lawns and gardens nearby.
I agree that the zoo should have been making a healthy surplus over the last couple of years (£5.6 million in 2015) but it borrowed money to complete Islands and had a debt of £11.3 million at the end of 2015, which has to be repaid by November 2018. I expect that a substantial part of this sum will have been repaid during 2016, but there will need to be surpluses in 2017 and 2018 too.
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I am keen to emphasise that I applaud many things the zoo does, and I certainly don't begrudge them the right to maximise their revenue. My beef with this particular development is, well, did it really need to be in a place so characteristic of the zoo? there haven't been many constants as the zoo has developed and the fountain lawn is one. It has always been a pleasant place and wholly representative of the Chester Zoo atmosphere. There are alternatives. What about the huge grass void where the coati enclosure used to be? it would seem a better location for a playground to me.
To deface the fountain lawn with this sort of infill is, well, tasteless. To put it mildly.
I am keen to emphasise that I applaud many things the zoo does, and I certainly don't begrudge them the right to maximise their revenue. My beef with this particular development is, well, did it really need to be in a place so characteristic of the zoo? there haven't been many constants as the zoo has developed and the fountain lawn is one. It has always been a pleasant place and wholly representative of the Chester Zoo atmosphere. There are alternatives. What about the huge grass void where the coati enclosure used to be? it would seem a better location for a playground to me.
To deface the fountain lawn with this sort of infill is, well, tasteless. To put it mildly.
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A nice little article on Murchison's outdoor debut:
Walking tall! Giraffe calf stays close to mum during outdoor debut | Zoo News | Chester Zoo
Walking tall! Giraffe calf stays close to mum during outdoor debut | Zoo News | Chester Zoo
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