ZOO rules

1. Access

• Visiting the ZOO is only allowed if you own a valid admission ticket and during official opening hours, with the last admission being possible up to half an hour before closing time. These opening hours are indicated at the entrance. The ticket only provides access to the public areas of the ZOO.
• Everyone who is in the ZOO must own a valid admission ticket and must show it on request. You must therefore keep this ticket carefully during the visit. The ticket loses its validity when leaving the ZOO. If necessary, you can leave the ZOO and come back later on the same day, only in consultation with our colleagues at customer service.
• The management reserves the right to close (parts of) the ZOO or to restrict further access to visitors. Reasons for this may include; excessive crowds and the rising of dangerous situations. If necessary, this decision will always be taken by the management. In the event of a decision of this nature, no exceptions can be made and no reimbursement of costs will take place.
• The annual passes remain the property of GaiaZOO. These can be confiscated if the owner behaves improperly or acts in violation of these ZOO rules. This also includes committing fraud with someone else’s annual pass.

2. General

• Entering the ZOO is at your own risk.
• Only walk on the paths. It is forbidden to climb over fences or bypass barriers. Service paths are only accessible to staff.
• Persons under the influence of alcohol or narcotics will be refused entry or removed from the ZOO without reimbursement of costs.
• All parents and supervisors of groups are responsible for those who visit the ZOO under their supervision.
• Unaccompanied children may be refused entry.
• If you believe that you have been (unjustifiably) inconvenienced during your visit, you can file a complaint at the customer service counter.
• Waste must be disposed of in the appropriate bins. You will find these waste bins in various places in the ZOO.
• In the event of a violation or well-founded fear of violation of these ZOO regulations, GaiaZOO is entitled to remove the visitor in question or deny access to the site. GaiaZOO can also do everything that GaiaZOO deems necessary and/or useful in this regard, including reporting to the police.

3. Animal safety

In order to ensure the safety of both visitors and the animals in GaiaZOO, it is strictly forbidden to enter the habitats on both land and water. Sticking hands, fingers, sticks or other objects through the bars or fences is also strictly prohibited.

• Petting the animals is not allowed.
• Feed the animals is not allowed.
• Allowing waste or other objects to enter the animal enclosures is strictly prohibited.
• If you witness any of the above events, please report them to an employee at any time.

4. Items brought along

• Consuming your own food is not allowed in the restaurant or on the terrace located at the restaurant.
• Radios and other sound equipment may not be used, as they can cause inconvenience to both animals and other visitors.
• Rolling toys, such as children’s bicycles, roller skates and skateboarding is not allowed. Strollers as well as wheelchairs and walkers are an exception to this.
• The possession of weapons and/or the carrying of weapons or dangerous objects is prohibited. If this is detected, the visitor wil be expelled immediately without reimbursement of costs.

5. Pets and animals

• (Domestic) animals are not allowed due to the safety of our animals.
• Assistance dogs are allowed on a leash under certain conditions, please contact our costumer service.
• GaiaZOO cannot provide shelter for visitors’ animals.
• Leaving (domestic) animals in a vehicle will always lead to informing the police about this fact.

6. Appearance

• GaiaZOO asks you to wear appropriate clothing.
• For baby changing, we ask you to use the available facilities at the toilets.

7. Multimedia

• Taking photos and videos in the ZOO is permitted, provided that it is for personal use.
• When making the above recordings, there may never be any inconvenience to other visitors, the animals or the staff.
• Professional photography and video for commercial use is only allowed after written permission from the PR department.
• The use of drones (for commercial as well as private use) is only permitted after written permission from the PR department.
• It is possible that you as a visitor will be filmed or photographed. GaiaZOO reserves the right to use this material for publication.
• If you do not want to be photographed or filmed, you are advised to avoid the locations where you see a photo or video crew at work.
• GaiaZOO does not owe the visitor any compensation for the use and publication of the recordings.

8. Playgrounds, presentations and feedings

• The use of the playgrounds, playground equipment, etc. is at your own risk.
• When using facilities, the instructions/rules of use that appear on the signs or are indicated by the employees must be followed. Some attractions have restrictions on use, such as a minimum or maximum height or age. For safety reasons, you are obliged to comply with these regulations.
• The management reserves the right to close attractions. Reasons for this may include; the weather conditions, necessary maintenance and too high or too low visitor numbers.
• The management also reserves the right to make changes to the public feedings and times, or to cancel them without giving a reason.

9. Damage

• The ZOO is carefully maintained. However, you may be confronted with less pleasant matters. If you encounter such a situation, you are requested to always report this immediately to one of the employees.
• A case in which you cause unintentional damage must also be reported.
• Damage must always be reported immediately so that it can be recorded on the spot (see liability). In any case, any compensation in the event of a report at a different time is excluded.

10. Liability

• GaiaZOO is only liable for damage that is caused by intent or recklessness on the part of the staff. Liability for other damages is excluded.

11. Promotion and sales

• It is not permitted to promote or sell services and/or products in GaiaZOO or the access roads without prior written permission from the management of GaiaZOO.

12. Removal from GaiaZOO

• Instructions of the staff and/or regulations on the signs must be strictly observed.
• Physical or verbal violence, or other undesirable behavior towards other visitors and staff will not be tolerated. Visitors who do not comply with the ZOO rules can be removed from GaiaZOO and are not entitled to reimbursement of costs.

13. Parking

• The Road Traffic Act applies to the car park and a max. speed of 15 km per hour.
• Instructions from the staff must be followed.
• Do not leave valuables or pets in a vehicle or in the parking lot.
• You can only park your car in the indicated spaces. In other places, parking is only allowed on the instructions of the staff.
• Cars that block an exit for other traffic will be removed. The costs of this must be recovered by the owner of the vehicle.
• GaiaZOO is, regardless of the cause, not liable for damage to cars unless it is caused by its own staff in the context of intent and/or recklessness.
• On busy days, the demand for parking spaces may exceed the supply. In these cases, an alternative will be designated by the staff.

14. Catering

• GaiaZOO does not sell alcoholic beverages to persons under the age of 18.

15. Smoking

• GaiaZOO is a non-smoking park. Smoking is only allowed in the designated smoking areas. This applies to cigars, cigarettes, e-cigarettes and vapes.

The possible invalidity of any clause in these ZOO rules does not affect the validity of all other clauses. In matters and events not provided for in these ZOO rules, ZOO Management decides.

We wish you a pleasant visit and hope that these ZOO rules will contribute to this.