Pairi Daiza, Zoo and botanical garden in Brugelette, Belgium.
Pairi Daiza covers roughly 65 hectares near the Dender river and presents over 7000 animals from different continents in nine themed sections. The grounds combine animal habitats with garden design and display plants and structures inspired by several world regions.
Éric Domb found the Cambron-Casteau abbey estate in 1992, with twelve hectares of water and 52 hectares in all. The park opened on 11 May 1994 as Paradisio, modelled on the Walsrode bird park in northern Germany, with 2,500 birds of 400 species. It took the name Pairi Daiza in 2010, and the tropical greenhouse Edenya opened on 7 February 2026.
The Chinese garden, called The Middle Kingdom, was begun on 1 August 2005. It houses red pandas, snow leopards, golden takins, Père David's deer and golden snub-nosed monkeys, plus terraria for gavials and Chinese alligators. The giant pandas Hao Hao and Xing Hui arrived on 5 April 2014.
Access is through the main entrance at Brugelette with parking nearby and paved paths suitable for wheelchairs and strollers. Plan several hours for a full tour because the nine zones spread over a large area.
Hao Hao and Xing Hui arrived from China on 23 February 2014. Hao Hao gave birth to a male, Tian Bao, in 2016, and to twins in August 2019, so the park held five giant pandas from 2019 to 2024. In autumn 2024 the three cubs born in Belgium were sent to China for the breeding programme.
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