Chester Zoo

Chester Zoo stands on 51 hectares of landscaped grounds in Upton-by-Chester, a suburb of Chester. The site began in 1931 when George Mottershead opened his collection of animals to the public. Mottershead chose Oakfield Manor for its nine acres of gardens and good transport links. He built exhibits without iron bars, using moats and ditches inspired by Carl Hagenbeck’s ideas. The zoo grew quickly after the Second World War, adding a polar bear enclosure made from wartime materials. Mottershead received an OBE for his work and served as President of the International Union of Zoo Directors. The zoo is now the most-visited wildlife attraction in Britain, with over two million visitors in 2019. It has twice been named the best zoo in the UK and once the third best in the world by TripAdvisor. In 2007 Forbes listed it among the fifteen best zoos globally. The North of England Zoological Society, a charity founded in 1934, runs the zoo without government funding. Recent projects include Islands at Chester Zoo, a £40 million redevelopment of six Southeast Asian island habitats, and the opening of Heart of Africa, a 22.5-acre savannah exhibit. Visitors find wide paths winding past grassy islands where chimpanzees live separated by water. The zoo’s design keeps animals in naturalistic surroundings with lush vegetation and water features. Newer exhibits like Realm of the Red Ape and the Himalayan habitat house orangutans, red pandas and snow leopards. A 600,000 square foot nature reserve outside the main zoo offers free entry. The bridleway that crosses the zoo is crossed by Elephants’ Bridge and Bats’ Bridge, allowing access to different areas.