Warsaw Zoo, Zoo in Praga district, Warsaw, Poland
Warsaw Zoo is an animal park spread across roughly 40 hectares on the eastern bank of the Vistula in the Praga-Północ neighborhood. The facility holds more than 4200 animals from over 500 species, arranged in themed areas including bear enclosures, seal pools, hippo ponds, giraffe houses, and chimpanzee islands.
The animal park opened in 1928 and quickly became a popular leisure facility for the city. During World War II, director Jan Zabinski used the grounds as a hiding place for hundreds of Jewish refugees, helping them escape persecution.
The Polish name Miejski Ogród Zoologiczny w Warszawie is usually shortened to Warszawskie Zoo in everyday speech, showing how closely the city relates to its animal park. Families often spend entire days here, watching feedings and having picnics on the lawn areas between enclosures.
The paths through the park are mostly paved and allow a complete circuit of all areas, even with strollers or wheelchairs. Visitors should plan several hours for the visit, especially if they want to watch the feeding times.
The facility is among the few zoos worldwide to have successfully bred polar bears in human care. The 2017 film The Zookeeper's Wife tells the story of Jan and Antonina Zabinski, who rescued hundreds of Jewish people here during the Nazi occupation.
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