The young elephants
A bachelor herd of adolescents โ the zoo's European speciality.
4028mdk09 โ CC BY-SA 3.0 ยท Stephan van Helden โ CC BY-SA 4.0 ยท Stephan van Helden โ CC BY-SA 4.0 ยท Stephan van Helden โ CC BY-SA 4.0
For a family based in Heidelberg, yes without hesitation โ zero long transfers and a well-sized day. Stuttgart's Wilhelma is clearly grander but an hour away; this is the second day's ease, not a rival to giants.
Three unhurried hours with feeding stops, four with lunch and playground. Mornings are livelier for the animals.
Tram from station or centre to a nearby stop plus minutes on foot, or a fine riverbank walk from the Old Bridge in half an hour โ walk there, tram back with tired children.
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Heidelberg's zoo is the university city's family face: a mid-sized riverside garden near the campus, sized so a family day covers it comfortably without exhaustion โ its great advantage over the giants. Its stars are the young Asian elephants โ the zoo specialises in raising adolescent bulls for future herds โ along with lion cubs and a modern ape house. The huge central playground makes half the visit a parents' rest as much as a children's romp. It is Heidelberg's ideal second-day stop: after castle-and-old-town day, a morning here rebalances a family with children โ reached by a short tram or a river walk.
A bachelor herd of adolescents โ the zoo's European speciality.
Gorillas and chimps in a modern, close-viewing house.
A central play zone worth half the visit.
Tiergartenstrasse 3, 69120 Heidelberg