ZOO Zlín and the Lešná Chateau

If you ever get close to Zlín city in the eastern part of Czechia, there is one spot you shouldn’t miss – ZOO Lešná. It is a favorite place for our kids. We’ve already seen it during the day, at night, in the heat, in the rain, in the frost, or lit only by candles, and every time we find something new or something that surprises us.

I guess we’re not the only ones, as I read somewhere that it’s the most visited place in the Zlín Region and the second most popular zoo in the Czech Republic (but it’s hard to compete with Prague Zoo; the number of tourists in the capital is much higher 😉).

The entire zoo is dominated by a fairytale chateau, and the park surrounding it is a gateway to all corners of the world. The park is divided into sections – one for each continent. In each section, there are details reminiscent of the culture of the place the animals originally come from.

The African section feels like the middle of an African village; the kids can try playing real African drums, there are wooden sculptures created by artists from Africa, and all that’s missing is a fire and dancing natives.

There is also a little stall with Ethiopian coffee and cookies next to the meerkats enclosure. It is an obligatory stop for us. The kids watch the meerkats and adults can enjoy a coffee break. A little further on is the monkey enclosure, where the monkeys sometimes perform incredible tricks.

The Asian section feels completely different. The Japanese garden is a peaceful oasis. When I walk through the forest around the red pandas, I feel like I’m back in the Himalayas, where the wind plays with prayer wheels and the Buddha sitting nearby watches the passers-by.

Australia and New Zealand are like they’ve been transported in space. As a bonus, you can see a kiwi bird, a sight I didn’t manage to get while I was enjoying my 10 months stay in New Zealand 🙂

South America is the newly built exposition, and it takes us to Pantanal (the world’s largest tropical wetland and one of the most biodiverse regions on the planet). Kids can walk through a parrot aviary; they can watch capybaras playing on the lake bank or see the majestic jaguars swimming in the water.

If I had to pick the top 5 favorite things in the whole zoo, they would be:

1. Tropical Hall Yucatan (giant greenhouse): It’s like being in the middle of a Guatemalan jungle. You can hear birds chirping above your heads and the roar of a waterfall. You pass by a Mayan pyramid overgrown with jungle. A blue bird runs across the path, and a sloth lazily moves overhead. You can go up to a wooden walkway or down to see what’s hidden underwater. Our kids can stay here for a loooooong time 😊
   
2. Rays Feeding (Ray Bay): You wash your hands, buy a cup of fish treats, and lean over the edge of the pool. In the illuminated water, you can see the silhouettes of rays swimming, and every now and then, one comes up to the edge to see what’s on offer. It’s best to go early in the morning, as sometimes they are no longer hungry in the afternoon and they don’t swim to the edge as often.
   
3. Japanese Garden: An oasis of calm. Stones, trees, and water in a harmonious combination… well, unless you have a restless child with you who climbs on every stone and would love to get into the water. That affects completely different senses and isn’t very calming. But it’s worth a visit, especially in the fall when the leaves change color.
   
4. Elephants: They live in an extensive enclosure similar to the African savanna. There is no fence between them and visitors, just a water basin.
   
5. Children’s Playground: In the lowest part of the zoo there’s a large playground for kids. It includes a spooky wooden house with a tower and slide and large colorful rubber balls for kids to bounce on. Sometimes water flows from an old Australian cistern, and sometimes there are pony rides. And in the trees there is “Lanáček Rope Center” – kids can climb up to the treetops and enjoy the zip line, giant slide, and airy rope paths attached to tree trunks.
   

What I like most about the whole zoo is that they really care for the animals with love, and it shows. The cages, enclosures, and aviaries are spacious both inside and out and are designed to provide the animals with maximum comfort in an environment that closely resembles their natural habitat. They also strive for maximum authenticity.

The zoo is large. If you have a small child, bring a stroller. There is a circular train that can take you from the lowest part of the zoo up to the greenhouse. But you’ll miss most of the animals in America and the beautiful walk-through parrot aviary. Or you can take the train up and then walk through America downhill and then take the train back up. Or split the zoo visit over several days 😊

How to get there? We usually drive to Lešná. There are several parking lots in front of the main entrance. It’s worth finding the one that belongs to the zoo; it’s free. Other parking lots on private land are paid. If the main entrance parking lot is full, you can drive to the side entrance, where there’s another large parking area. We’ve never had trouble finding a free spot.

The public transport option is also available. There are several trolleybus lines from Zlín to the zoo main entrance; the journey takes about 20-25 minutes and it runs frequently throughout the day. Or there is a bike path from Zlín.

Food and refreshments can be found at several places in the zoo. You can have a proper restaurant meal, or just a snack like pizza, chips, or a hotdog. It might get crowded in summer. We usually bring something with us and have a picnic; there are picnic areas available.

As I mentioned already, we can’t resist coffee and cookies at the Ethiopian café in the African section (this café, as well as snack bars next to the children’s playground, are closed in winter). And there is a chocolate shop with great coffee, ice cream, and all the chocolate treats you can think of (located right opposite the side entrance to the zoo). The kids already know what’s inside, so we usually buy at least one small praline when passing by.

Tickets can be purchased in advance online or you can buy it directly at the entrance. The train, chateau visit and rope center are paid separately inside the zoo. The adult ticket costs 130 CZK( about 4-5 EUR) and kids pay 80 CZK.