Sydney Zoo, Bungarribee: Visit A World of Wildlife

Home to a wide range of native and exotic (nearly 4000) species, Sydney Zoo is a place that embraces advanced technology and innovative infrastructure to improve animal welfare, visitor engagement, and education. So, if you are alone or with kids in the city and want to meet the animals up close and in person, meet Australian wildlife, and have an immersive experience of a zoo, Sydney Zoo is a place to visit.

In addition to their clever habitat designs, daily schedules, encounters, talks about animals, and other activities, they provide an extraordinary experience, unlike any traditional zoo. More than simply visiting and seeing the animals up close or taking pictures of them from a distance, the Sydney Zoo has a number of attractions that make you want to visit and learn more about them all. Want to know them all? Let’s get started and read about what you can do at the Sydney Zoo and how best you can spend your day there.

However, before we run down the activities they offer, let’s quickly read what to expect and why you must visit the Sydney Zoo and then learn about their activities.

When you are at the Sydney Zoo, you can expect this from the place –

• Sydney zoo sits on 16 hectares of the Western Sydney Parklands in Bungarribee. 
• The zoo combines aquarium and animal habitats and claims itself as Australia’s most advanced Zoo.
• You can expect to see animals kept under the best conditions and the infrastructure that occupies them well and raises your experience as a visitor. 
• The pram’s accessibility is excellent. . 
• Highlighted animals you’ll come across include orangutans, Sumatran tigers, African lions, and more endangered and rare species. 
• Witness Australian native species’ after-dark antics at the zoo, as it is also home to the largest reptile house in Australia and a nocturnal house.
• Get to encounter primates, spiders, baboons, monkeys, and capuchins in the park calling the zoo their home. 
• Treat your eye with freshwater fishes, like barramundi, Murray cod, and more. 
• Have a Bungarribee Dreaming, an aboriginal-led experience-sharing workshop.

Live Experiences You Can Not Afford to Miss Out

What’s the point of seeing animals from a distance? Well, we would say, why even see them from a distance when you can go near them, hand-feed them, and spend time with them? Ready to get closer to every species you have always wanted to see, touch, feel, and feed? Come on, let’s see which species you can spend time with, what is the time to meet them, the price you have to pay and other details.

• Meet the Cute Koala Bears

On the Koala Trail, you can get closer to Koala bears which are arboreal herbivorous marsupials native to Australia. While getting guidance and knowledge about them and their behaviour from zookeepers and the discovery crew, you can get close to them and take pictures while they climb the eucalyptus branches. Get to meet them at the time mentioned below and according to other details.

• Feeding the World’s Cutest Primates

These cutest primates, squirrel monkeys, are mostly found in tropical rain and dry forests of South America. These are not just cute, but they are known as cleverest due to having big brains compared to their body. 

Excited to feed, interact with them and spend time around them? Meet them and know more about them from passionate zookeepers at the given time below.

• The Giant Mammal – Elephant Encounter

How about having an interactive session with the largest land mammal living on the Asian continent – the Asian Elephant? Well, if you want to go behind the scenes, greet them, meet them, learn more about them, get close to them and have an unforgettable moment with these massive mammals, visit them at the given time and according to other details mentioned. 

• Tiger Encounter can Make you Feel the Thrill

Do you think it is time to experience the thrill? Let’s have an interpersonal catch-up with the world’s largest living cat, hand feed them and know about them. Since tigers are the largest members of the cat, they are known for their strength and power and are nature’s most feared predators. Meeting them will be no less than a thrilling-packed experience. Experience the thunder of meeting them at the mentioned time and according to the given details. 

• Meet the Tall Friend – Giraffe

Here’s an opportunity to see the tallest living terrestrial animal and the largest ruminant on the planet, Giraffe. They are large African hoofed mammals, thanks to their towering neck and legs. Would you want to meet them, take snaps, have fun family time, and feed them? You have the time mentioned below and other details to visit them. 

• Sydney’s Only Lion Encounter

The large cats of the genus Panthera native to India and Africa have quite a lot of lovers out there, and if you are one of those lovers too, pay a visit to Sydney Zoo. The only Lion experience you can have in Sydney is at Sydney Zoo. Look into the eyes of a Lion, go behind the scenes to meet the family of lions, feed them and have the chance to take snaps with them at the given time while fulfilling other details.

• The Cutest Encounter with Meerkats

How about making your kids meet the Meerkats from the famous Meerkat Manor documentary and allowing them to have fun with them while you accompany them? A good idea, right? Well, if that is so, get your ticket to meet the family of Meerkats that are mostly found on the southern tip of Africa. These super cute small mongooses sitting on their rear legs, watching you and you watching all their adorable actions, are sure to make your day. Take pictures with them, feed them, and if your luck is in your favour, you might have them climbing on you. 

• Hyena Encounter

Hyena, a coarse-furred carnivore, the doglike creature found in Asia and Africa, is known for its scavenging habits and proficient hunting. Though movies often depict Hyenas as a villain animal, it is an essential part of the ecosystem. Besides, as this species of mammal is persecuted nearly to extinction, you might not see them in many places. So grab this chance to meet them face-to-face and take pictures with them at the given time and details. 

• Capybara Encounter

The capybara, a rodent native to South America, has a pig-like body shape and is the largest living cavy rodent. They are adapted to live in water bodies. They are known as water hogs as they are strong swimmers. Meeting them and piping around them for pictures can be a lot of fun. Meet them at the time they are ready to meet you while applying the other details mentioned below.

• Reptile Encounter

Want to see these bewitching, scaliest, and slithery residents of different species? You have all the time to do so when you visit Sydney Zoo. During the reptile encounter, the zookeeper takes you to meet the venomous snakes, feed them, and take some beautiful shots. Get ready to meet them at the given time below while following the other details.

• Camel Encounter

Camel is a working animal that was primarily used as a mode of transportation in desert areas. There are two types of camel species – first is a two-humped Bactrian camel that makes up for 6% of the camel population, and second is a one-humped Dromedary camel that makes up for 94% of the population. Want to see and meet the earlier time’s passengers and cargo? Get there on the mentioned time following the other details.

• Barramundi Encounter

Watching a fish, seeing them lapping in the water, interacting with them, and having them follow your finger can be a stress reliever for you. And watching Barramundi, Australia’s one of most iconic tropical fishes, will surely be a lovely experience. During the barramundi encounter, get to know other fascinating aquatic species, take a lot of pictures, and pallet feed them. Excited to do so? Hop on to the Sydney Zoo at the given time below to meet these aquatic animals closely.

Learn To Draw

Almost every house has a creative head that loves drawing, even if not very proficiently, at least they enjoy working on arts. For those creative kids aged 8 to 15, the Sydney Zoo has a Creative Kids Program that allows children to rehearse their drawing skills.

What to expect from the Creative Kids program

• In the Creative Kids Program, the kids will spend 90 minutes with the Sydney Zoo artist and will teach to draw three animals. The program takes the kids through the basics of drawing the shape of the animal, shading it, and adding colour to it.
• Another thing you can expect is – every kid who registers for the drawing session gets free entry to the Zoo and also has free entry for the accompanying elder. 
• Every kid that enrols on the drawing program is sure to have a magical and unforgettable experience. 
• The orientation will begin at 1:45 pm. 
• You will draw the live animals with the assistance of the zookeeper artists.

Enjoy the Ferris Wheel Ride at Sydney Zoo

Want to enjoy a bright night out with kids, family, a partner or just alone? It’s as accessible and easy as possible. Enjoy the wheel ride, have the entire Zoo’s view from the top of the Ferris wheel and the trail of lights and skate on a twinkling ice rink. You can access the evening from 5.30 pm – 9.30 pm. Buy the tickets online at $25 and the gate at $30, while babies aged 0-2 have free entry.

Be A Mini Zoo Keeper For a Day

For an animal-loving kid, who loves to take care of animals, or who wants to go close to animals but is quite overwhelmed when they are around, this experience of being the mini zookeeper is going to be a lot of fun and a lifetime experience for them. Little kids who are willing to get into the post of the mini zookeeper for a day can expect the following – 

• Hand-feeding and taking care of a range of animals and different species. 
• Gain knowledge on the conservation of animals. 
• Learn about training animals and what they can do to save endangered and rare species.
• Know more about the job of the zookeeper. So, if they want to enter this field at a later date, it’ll be an interesting and practical session for them. 
• Participate in the daily food preparation and cleaning tasks 
• Get creative to make elements that enrich the life of the animals. 
• Have questions? Get to have the open discussion and Q&A session with the zookeeper and the education team.

Other Details

• There are only a few available dates when you can enroll to be a zookeeper. So, make sure you have a word with the team and check with them for the available dates and times. 
• It is most often an activity of 6 hours. 
• Children aged 8 – 12 years can enroll to be mini zookeepers for a day. 
• The price of the annulment is $139.99 per child, and for members, it is $125.99. 
• Max group size is 1. 

Do not Miss Out on the Daily Schedule

When you are in the Sydney Zoo, there is so much to explore, talk about, experience, see, take pictures of, and listen to. But the hard part is, you always have to choose between what to do first and what to do later or escape. To make it simple for you, after adding all the experiences you can have at the Zoo, here are some zoo schedules of the day you might enjoy.

What More You Can Do At Sydney Zoo?

It is more than a collection of animals and world-class infrastructure that defines Sydney zoo. There is much more to it than that. We say this because there is more to it than meets the eye. At Sydney Zoo and its walkways covered with natural foliage and sunset sceneries, you can enjoy a bubbly drink, lunch or breakfast accompanied by the background music and serene backdrop. There are different places in the zoo with different capacities you can use to host family or colleagues breakfast, lunch, dinner, or sunset sippers and drinks.

Add a scaly aspect to your next get-together or function by hosting it at Sydney zoo.

Host Functions at –

• Lion Deck 

– Maximum Cocktail Capacity: 300

– Maximum Buffet Capacity: 250

• Primate Boulevard 

– Maximum Cocktail Capacity: 500

• Zoo Entrance 

– Maximum Cocktail Capacity: 100 (use the entrance to serve welcome drinks)

• Aquarium 

– Maximum Cocktail Capacity: 150

• Reptile House 

– Maximum Cocktail Capacity: 200

• Harvey Norman Amphitheatre

– Maximum Cocktail Capacity: 150

– Maxim Theatre Capacity: 150

Packages You Can Get, Include – 

• Breakfast Package 

• • Timing – 8 am – 11 am
  • PA
  • Private barista
  • 3-hour private space (Lion Deck only)
  • Security and staff
  • 25 free scatter feed experiences
  • Admission to the Zoo 
  • Charges: Standard package starts from $99 per person

• Lunch Package 

• • Timing: 9 am – 5 pm
  • PA
  • Cultural talk
  • 3-hour private space (Lion Deck only)
  • Buffet or canape lunch
  • Beverage package for 3-hour of non-alcoholic drinks 
  • Staff and security
  • Entry to the Zoo
  • Charges: Standard package starts from $120 per person

• Sunset Package 

• • Timing: 6 pm-10 pm
  • PA and background music 
  • Buffet or canape dinner
  • 4-hour private space
  • 4-hour non-alcoholic drink or or standard alcohol beverage package
  • Security and staff 
  • Charges: standard package starts from $130 per person & standard package with alcohol starts from $150 per person

• Corporate Family Days 

• • Timings: 
    • Day Packages are available only available Mon – Fri
    • After Hours Packages are available only after hours from 5 pm – 9 pm. 
  • Admission to the zoo 
  • Exclusive venue hire 
  • Keeper talks according to daily program (available only in the day package)
  • Branding of zoo’s key locations and the entrance of the zoo
  • Reptile encounters
  • Ferris wheel accessibility 
  • PA
  • Security and staff

Make an Impact by Recycling Your Phone!

Recycling stuff always makes an impact. But do you ask how recycling phones can make a difference in wildlife? Let’s get you the answer. 

Mining coltan poses the biggest threat to chimpanzees and other animals as it affects the ecosystem and animal habitat. But, mining coltan can not be restricted completely, as its unique electrical properties make it the best material to be used in mobile phones and other electronics today. Thus, as the demand for electronics is increasing day by day, so does mining animal habitats.

You can simply help to save the chimpanzees and wildlife by donating your old used phones and other electronic accessories. Because recycling mobile phones and accessories will at least contribute to restraining the mining of coltan, saving animal habitats, and raising funds.

The fund generated through your donation will go toward the Jane Goodall Institute Australia, which will preserve chimpanzee habitats.

Frequently Asked Questions

Recommended:

▶ 7 Day Trips You Can Take From Sydney

▶ Must-Do To Activities In Sydney for Summer Fun