Budapest Zoo & Botanical Garden, Zoo and botanical garden in Budapest, Hungary
Budapest Zoo & Botanical Garden is a zoo with a plant collection in Budapest, Hungary. The grounds divide into themed areas with different climate zones, from tropical greenhouses to open enclosures for northern animal species.
The park opened in August 1866 as one of the first zoo facilities in Europe. After heavy war damage in the 1940s, the historic buildings were gradually restored and expanded.
The zoo's historic buildings, designed by Kornél Neuschloss and Károly Kós, date mainly from the 1909–1912 reconstruction; the India House was built in 1912 to plans by Károly Kós and Dezső Zrumeczky. The elephant house entrance is framed by a pointed arch with a blue and green glazed tile border, four white stone bears on a ledge above it, and two stone elephants flanking the door. A banner over the doorway reads "ALLATKERTI" and "FŐVÁROSI ÁLLAT- ÉS NÖVÉNYKERT".
The zoo lies at the northern end of City Park, bordered by Dózsa György Road, Hungária Boulevard and Állatkerti Boulevard, with the main gate on Állatkerti körút. Metro Line 1 stops at Széchenyi fürdő, a short walk from the entrance. The 18.4-hectare grounds are flat, and the area has been a nature reserve since 1986.
An underground aquarium area displays marine life in a landlocked city. The old lattice windows in some enclosures date back to the original construction and were deliberately preserved during renovation.
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