Arignar Anna Zoological Park

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The Arignar Anna Zoological Park, also known as the Vandalur Zoo, is located in Vandalur, 30 kilometers from the city of Chennai, India and 15 kilometers from Chennai Airport on GST Road.

Founded in 1855, the Madras Zoo (as it was earlier known) was situated in People's Park near Park Town. It the first public zoo in India. By 1975, the zoo had expanded and had to be moved out of the city. In 1979, the Tamilnadu Forest Department set aside 1300 acres (5.2 km²) on the outskirts of the city to build the current zoo, which is one of the largest in South Asia.

1 Zoo timings
2 Battery operated vehicles
3 Suggested days to visit
4 Exhibits to avoid
5 External links

[edit] Zoo timings

9.00am to 6.00pm all days, except Tuesdays.

All the animals, especially the big cats are back in their cages after 5.00pm. So it would be wise to finish those before going on to the other exhibits.

[edit] Battery operated vehicles

You can easily end up walking 10-15 Km across the stretch of the park. If you are not upto the task, there are battery operated vehicles that you can rent. However, there are only 5-7 vehicles. So, again it is advisable to arrive early at the park and reserve one of these for getting around the park. Each vehicle carries approximately 15-20 people.

[edit] Suggested days to visit

Choose an overcast day for visiting the zoo. It does get very hot. Carry some water to drink, there aren't too many refreshment counters within the zoo. There is a restaurant, an ice cream parlor and a drinks counter - all situated near the entrance. The maps provided are inaccurate and misguiding.