Chiang Mai Zoo

Its not at the top of our list of things to see in Chiang Mai, but if you're spending more than a few days in the area, the Chiang Mai zoo is definitely worth a visit. Located on the road that takes you to Doi Suthep, right at the base of the mountain in fact, the zoo is easy to find.

Its not quite so easy to negotiate. The zoo is situated on the side of a hill covering about 200 acres. From the entrance a long looping road takes you through the park. There are no trams or other means of getting up and down, so unless you have your own car, its quite a hike to get around the whole place.

The collection is fairly common. Its the setting that makes it interesting. There are some old-style small cages, but most animals are displayed in quite large enclosures. They also seem quite well cared for. The buck at right seems quite healthy. He stood quite still for me to take this picture, though I can't quite read the expression in his eyes.

A couple of the pens allow you to get quite "up close and personal" with the animals. One was shared by a family of giraffes as well as a couple of zebras. A ramp allows you to walk up and into the middle of the enclosure where you can get almost eye-to-eye with a giraffe. A nearby vendor will sell you some long beans, which the giraffes seem to like. The zebras don't like to be left out either! Their coloration was quite a bit more sharp than I expected.

You can easily spend a whole day looking round the zoo. Check out the signs near the entrance to make sure you see what you want to see. There are plenty of places to stop and get something to eat if you get hungry.