National Zoological Park

The Delhi Zoo was opened on 1st November 1959 and was later renamed as National Zoological Park in 1982. Popularly known as ‘Chiriyaghar’ among the Delhi residents, the zoo is spread over an area of 176 acres and houses more than 127 species of animals and birds.  As soon as you enter the portals of the National Zoological Park, you encounter animals like Hippopotamus, Chimpanzee, Spider monkey and Zebras. The other section includes migratory birds from across the nation like peafowl, storks and ducks. In the centre of the Zoological Park is the underground reptile house.  Delhi Zoo is a part of a conservation breeding scheme run by the Central Zoo Authority for animals like the Royal Bengal tiger, Indian Rhino, Asiatic lion, Swamp deer, brow antlered deer and red jungle fowl. The breeding program for the brow antlered deer proved to be such a success that just from a pair of these deer in 1962, a number of their offspring can now be found in zoos of various cities like Ahmedabad, Hyderabad, Mysore to name a few. Some of the marvels of the National Zoological Park include the elephant that plays harmonica, the White Tiger from Reva, and many endangered species. Other highlights are the Lion-Tailed Macaque, Leopard Cat, Black Buck and Indian Gazelle.  Delhi Zoo also facilitates the visitors a canteen, drinking water counters and battery operated vehicles at reasonable prices but the actual fun in exploring the National Zoological Park is on foot! The visit to the Zoo is not only fun but also educational, so don’t miss on this one!

Best time to visit The best time to visit the National Zoological Park is from October to March as the weather is quite pleasant to explore Delhi.

Trivia The minimum time required in exploring the zoo is 2 hours.  No eatables are allowed inside the zoo except water bottles. Feeding & teasing the animals is strictly forbidden.

Timing The summer timings (April - October) for Delhi Zoo are 8:30 am to 5:30 pm. The winter timings (November - March) are 9:30 am to 4:30 pm.  The park is open on all days except Friday