Visiting the zoo during the holidays

As we enter the school holidays, it is wonderful to see so many families and friends wanting to spend their time off connecting with nature and supporting wildlife conservation around the world. We are so grateful for your support!

With even more of you coming to see our incredible animals and enjoy our outdoor spaces, it is really important to be aware of what to expect during your visit, including our very limited car parking spaces, queues for entry, popular viewing areas and more – please watch the 'what to expect' video and read the information below.

Very limited car parking

We are a city zoo based on a hill, so parking spaces are very limited and only available on a first come, first served basis. All car park users need to take a ticket from the barriers on arrival and have this validated to exit the car park without paying full price (£10) at the machine.

Parking at the zoo is free for blue badge holders and RZSS members who can continue to park for free as part of their membership benefits. Parking for zoo visitors is £3.

Travelling by bus is highly recommended where possible and our partners at Lothian Buses can drop you off right outside our gates with their regular services from the city centre (including Waverley and Haymarket train stations) and surrounding areas.

Queuing for entry and our most popular animals

With an amazing number of people hoping to visit the zoo during holidays, it means you will likely have to queue for entry and into popular animal viewing areas like our giant pandas, koalas, giraffes and sloths.

Booking a time slot in advance (more on that below!) helps to keep queues more manageable throughout the day, but it is usually quieter later in the day and outside of school holidays.

Members gate

Our members gate is usually open from 10am – 4pm on local (City of Edinburgh Council) school holidays and on weekends. We always do our best to have it open during these times, however it may be closed at short notice due to staffing.

When the gate is closed, members and their guests can enter through the main entrance with visitors who have booked time slots in advance.

Don’t forget, as an RZSS member you can get free entry to reciprocal zoos and so many other great benefits.

Booking in advance

Please remember to book in advance to avoid disappointment as we can sell out of tickets during busy periods like weekends and school holidays. You could also join RZSS as a member to enjoy free visits all year round without booking ahead.

We highly recommend arriving as close to your time slot as possible, but your ticket will be valid until last entry at 5pm if needed and everyone can stay until the zoo closes – please don’t worry if you are running a little late. We completely understand things don’t always go to plan.

If you need to change the date of your visit, please email info@rzss.org.uk with your booking details with as much notice as possible. Our small team work very hard to get back to everyone as quickly as they can, but this could take up to 72 hours at the moment.

If we need to close the zoo or cancel an event for any reason, including extreme weather, we will contact all pre-booked ticket holders by email and offer refunds or gift vouchers.

Most importantly

Last but certainly not least, please remember to show our teams, animals, signage and other visitors respect. Our hardworking teams are there to make sure you enjoy your day at the zoo!