Basel Zoo with Kids: Is Switzerland's Oldest Zoo Worth Visiting?
- Dec 2, 2018
- 2 min read
Basel Zoo is Switzerland's oldest and most visited zoo, welcoming families to discover more than 500 animal species from around the world in the heart of Basel. Known locally as "Zolli", this award-winning zoo is home to elephants, lions, monkeys, penguins and many other fascinating animals, making it one of the country's most popular family attractions. Whether you're planning a family day trip to Basel, looking for one of the best zoos in Switzerland or wondering if Basel Zoo is worth visiting with kids, this iconic destination offers a memorable experience for animal lovers of all ages. (Updated: June 2026)
We visited the “Zolli! Basel's Zoological Gardens, opened in 1874, are home to a large number of beautiful animals.
On Saturday morning we visited the zoo in Basel. It’s in the centre of town and you can park outside where I believe parking tickets are refundable but we forgot to ask about it before we left.
As it was so central we weren’t sure what to expect, but actually it’s pretty huge! It wasn’t too busy so we passed a nice couple of hours exploring and we were impressed that the animals were so close. We were able to see clearly see things like hippopotamus, crocodiles, lions, giraffes and flamingoes up close which the children loved.
There are lots of little buildings dotted around which house various groups of animals. In my pre-children days I would have enjoyed the challenge of trying to locate a particular animal in his habitat but these days we do a quick scan and if it’s not immediately visible we move on pretty quickly before little people start pleading boredom.
Despite this slap dash approach we did manage to spot, amongst other things, snakes, lizards and chameleons in the reptile house.
The monkeys were obliging too and we spent quite a while watching the babies as they practiced swinging from the vines and playing with their mates.
By this time Jude was starting to pay the price for his 5.30am start and we decided it was time to go for lunch before we were tempted to ask the zoo to consider keeping him!
It was a really nice family outing in the centre of beautiful Basel.
Information
Parking : Yes
Toilets : Yes
Baby Change Facilities : Yes
Accessibility : Fine with a pushchair
