The Lisbon Zoo (Jardim Zoológico) is set in a pleasant environment and the largest zoological gardens in Portugal located in the  Sete Rios.  It's a fun day out for both kids and adults. There's an aquarium and children's farm as well as an enjoyable ride on a cable car to enjoy the animals from above.

I've always enjoyed going to the zoo.  When I lived in Virginia, I used to visit the National Zoo quite often.  I've also try to go to zoos when I visit other destinations like Miami, San Diego, Seattle, and Tampa.

It's like going on a trip around the world, seeing exotic animals that had only previously graced my TV with shows like Animal Planet. I love all kinds of animals and it's fun seeing them up close and personal.  I've been learning Portuguese so it was a real learning experience seeing the animal names in something other than English.

Lisbon Zoo was founded in 1884 and was the first zoological garden with both fauna and flora on the Iberian Peninsula. First located in Parque São Sebastião da Pedreira, the zoo moved several times before settling at its present location in Sete Rios in 1905.

Some of the first animals at the zoo were donated by the Portuguese royal family.

The zoo holds a variety of animals from all over the world.  I hope you enjoy the slide shows of my photos taken at the zoo.

Larger mammals from Africa include elephants (elefante/a), giraffes (girafa), hippos (hipopótamo), pygmy hippopotamus (hipopotamo-pigmeu), rhinoceros (rinoceronte) and zebras. ​

Gorillas, orangutan (orangotango), Mantled guereza (Colobo guereza kikuyu) and other primates.

Big cats include lions (leão/leoa), cheetahs (chitas), Sumatran tigers (tigre-de-sumatra), White Tiger (tigre-branco) and a pair of Iberian lynx.

There are also African antelope (addax), bears, and bison.

Animals on the smaller side included meerkats, pygmy kangaroo and javelina.

Animals with feathers - white pelicans, Greater Rhea (Nandu), Japanese crane (Grou-do-japao)

There is also an impressive selection of flowers which I totally loved!  I saw some of the best Birds of Paradise I've ever seen and that's saying something from someone who lived in SW Florida for about 10 years.

Lisbon Zoo
Praça Marechal Humberto Delgado
1549-004 Lisboa
Tel: 217 232 900

The zoo is open 365 days a year; in summer hours are from 10 am to 8 pm; in winter from 10 am to 6 pm.

Discounts on entry fee with the Lisboa Card.

The nearest station on the Lisbon metro to the Lisbon Zoo is Jardim Zoológico on the Linha Azul (Blue Line).

Need more info?  Check out their official website.

Gary and I are on a 2-week vacation in San Diego.  And our vacation wouldn't be complete without a trip to the San Diego Zoo.

The San Diego Zoo, founded in 1916,  is probably my favorite zoo of all time.  It's 100 acres in size and home to more than 3,700 rare and endangered animals representing approximately 660 species and subspecies. 

This guy was fun to watch and he went from the seated position, walked a few feet, sat and rolled a bit...

At the San Diego Zoo, you'll find a small herd of Masai giraffes within the Urban Jungle exhibit. Take a loop around the Urban Jungle to see the rhinos, cheetahs and other exciting animals.

Sadly, China called back all of the giant pandas from the San Diego Zoo at the end of April 2019. We are sad to see the giant pandas leave the San Diego Zoo. However, you can still visit the red pandas at Panda Trek.

Pandas are one of my favorite animals which means that the Red Panda is right up there with the Pandas. Couldn't you just stay there and watch them all day?  I know I could because they are just so darned cute!

​The San Diego Zoo is also well known for its lush and a prominent botanical collection with more than 700,000 plants. 

The zoo is one of the largest I've been too so we didn't get to see everything.  I would definitely plan on being their earlier next time.

Plan your visit by checking their official website.