Chester Zoo

One of the most famous and beloved attractions in the city, here you can immerse yourself in over 125 acres of zoological gardens; home to 15,000 animals spanning more than 500 species. If you’re looking for hotels near Chester Zoo, our Wirral (Childer Thornton) hotel is 10–20 minutes away by car and our Wirral (Bromborough) hotel is only a little further still.

Attracting nearly two million visitors each year, Chester Zoo is the busiest of its kind in the UK. In 2017, it welcomed a raft of new guests, including a pair of Eastern black rhino babies, an Asian elephant calf, Javan green magpie chicks and – in news that was live streamed around the world to millions – a new Rothschild giraffe called Narus.

In total, there are 15 different habitats spanning tree-top forests, Asian plains, fruit bat forests and an extensive aquarium. Home to some truly amazing animals, some of our favourite areas to explore are the Komodo dragon enclosure and the jaguar area, which is also home to the two-toed sloth.

Built with as few cages as possible, a lot of the enclosures use moats and ditches as alternatives. The chimpanzee area was built on a series of grassy islands just four metres from the visitors, and it was only after they were housed that it was discovered they couldn’t swim!

There are dozens of educational talks and Q&A sessions held with zookeepers each week where you can discover more out about the zoo’s cheetahs, orangutans and also their tropical bird area, where you can even watch them having lunch.

Open from 10am to 4pm during winter and up to 6pm during summer, you should book your tickets online to get the best prices, while family tickets offer good value for money. There are lots of free car parking spaces on site, with plenty of kiosks and cafés dotted around the zoo including the Bembe coffee shop, June’s food court and Manado Street Kitchen.

If the sight of the longest snake species in the world or dainty seahorses doesn’t do it for the kids, there are three play areas dotted around the park full of slides, rides and themed attractions. A large park that will take all day to explore properly, use the two stations on the monorail system to get around.

With large-scale expansion plans, including several areas set for completion in 2018, Chester Zoo promises bigger and better attractions to come, with more animals and conservation projects making it a must-do on your Chester bucket list.

There are plenty of options when it comes to Chester hotels. If you're looking for a base to explore this historic city, there are three located in the city itself and a further four nearby in Wrexham and Wirral.