Bangladesh National Zoo is located in a beautiful natural environment in the capital city of Dhaka, Mirpur. Zoos in Bangladesh started in 1950 with a small number of wild animals on the premises of the Dhaka High Court for public entertainment, conservation of animal diversity, breeding, research and knowledge of wildlife. Later, in 1960, an initiative was taken to establish a zoo in Mirpur and on 23 June 1974, the present Bangladesh National Zoo was opened to the public.
Although the main attraction of the Bangladesh National Zoo with an area of about 75 hectares is the world famous Royal Bengal Tiger, there are 2150 domestic and foreign animals of 191 species. Among them are Chitra Deer, Monkey, Nilgai, Lion, Hippopotamus, Rhinoceros, Bear, Lion, Crocodile, Zebra, Flamingo, Kanibak, Pankauri and Fish Ranga. And the animal museum has about 240 species of stuffed animals. Besides, Bangladesh National Zoo has two lakes covering an area of 13 hectares.
Opening and closing schedule
The National Zoo is closed every Sunday. However, if Sunday is a public holiday, the zoo is open on that Sunday. Open from 9 am to 6 pm in summer (April-October) and from 8 am to 5 pm in winter (November-March).
Entrance ticket price
Ticket price for anyone above two years is 50 rupees to enter the main gate. The ticket price to enter Joe Museum is 10 rupees. No ticket is required for children under two years of age. Besides, the entrance ticket price is half for students of schools, colleges and universities. In that case you have to show the ID card of your educational institution.
Picnic spot rental: Utsav and Nijhum picnic spots will cost Rs 10,000 and Rs 6,000 respectively for the entire day.
Car parking fee: Tk 40 for bus, truck, minibus type vehicles. Parking for such vehicles as microbus, taxi, jeep, private car, pick-up is 20 rupees. 10 taka for CNG, Tempu, Motorcycle etc. 2 taka parking fee for rickshaws, bicycles etc.
How to go
There are buses going to Bangladesh National Zoo from various places in Dhaka, the capital of Bangladesh. Besides, you can go to the zoo by hiring your own transport taxi, CNG or private car.