Despite not being huge “zoo” guys, we’ve written about the Bioparc in Valencia, Spain, on numerous occasions. Maybe we’re so drawn to it, because the park was inaugurated at the same time as our move to the city in 2008: almost to the exact date. After our initial visit, we were so impressed by the zoo that we immediately invested in annual passes.
We never got tired of the Bioparc, and renewed our annual memberships during our first few years in Valencia. But eventually, we started traveling “For 91 Days“, and we no longer were in Valencia frequently enough to justify it. Still, we’ve visited frequently over the past 15 years… not as much as before, but still enough to know the park and its inhabitants very well.
Usually, we end up feeling a little depressed after visiting a zoo. But the Bioparc is completely different, due to their immersive concept of open habitats. You won’t see any cages in the bioparc. The enclosures are more organic: an impassible trench, a large rock face, a thick tangle of trees, and so on. And the animals have plenty of space to roam and play. Not as much as they’d have in the wild, obviously, but it’s enough to put them at ease. The animals of the Bioparc simply don’t seem as sad as animals at other zoos.
Over the years, we’ve become BioParc pros and have learned to plan our route based on the feeding hours of the animals (information you can ask for at the zoo entrance). We also always plan to have lunch at the wonderful restaurant which overlooks the Savannah-themed habitat. Eating with a view of giraffes, ostriches, and antelope roaming around is a lot more entertaining than lunch in front of the TV.
Otherwise, we just try to see as many animals as we can, especially any babies which might have been born since our last visit. The highlight during our most recent visit was the anteater pup in its cave being fed by its mother. This time around, we skipped the Birds and Mammal Show, but can also highly recommend it.
If you plan on visiting, be ready to spend a whole day in the park. With 4000 different species and 10 hectares, you’ll need as much time as you can spare!
Despite having been so frequently, our visits to the Bioparc never feel the same. Maybe it’s the weather, the season, or the giddy moments that take you by surprise — the gorilla interacts with you through the glass, the hyena pays a bit too much attention as you’re walking by, a lemur jumps on the ground right in front of you. The Bioparc is just an excellent and extremely fun zoo.
And if you’re in the position of having to choose between the Bioparc and the equally-wonderful Oceanogràfic, our tip is easy: make time for both!
From our Travel Blog.