Join the Adventure
What's On

Home   >   What’s on

THINGS TO KNOW BEFORE YOU ARRIVE

  • THE ZOO IS IN A RURAL AREA OF QUEENSLAND.
  • OUR PATHS ARE COUNTRY PATHS.
  • IT CAN BE HOT HERE IN THE SUMMER AND COLD IN THE WINTER! Please dress accordingly!

The Darling Downs Zoo is open to visitors every day of the year except Christmas Day.

The zoo opens at 9am. Last admissions are at 3pm. Gates close at 4pm.

 

  • The zoo is a sanctuary for wildlife and a breeding centre for endangered species from around the world. Therefore, it is not possible for us to allow entry to any visitor’s animals.  This includes pets, assistance animals or wildlife in the custody of carers.
  • We provide free sunscreen and fly spray for your convenience.
  • The zoo may close early on days of extreme weather conditions out of consideration for human and animal welfare and safety.

If it is a very hot, wet or stormy day it may pay to contact us in advance if you are planning a visit.

10:15am

Meet a baby Crocodilian

Get up close and personal with a baby Crocodilian and feel their unusual skin! One of our keepers...

10:40am

Siamang & Binturong talk

Join us while we explain about the life of Siamangs and Binturong- their habits, what they eat and...

10:50am

Sumatran Tiger talk and treat feed

Watch the keeper feed our beautiful, but endangered, Sumatran Tiger. She is normally quite shy and...

11:00am

Leopard Talk

See the stunning leopards from Sri-Lanka. We are the only zoo other than Canberra where you can see...

11:15am

Giraffe and Cheetah talk

This is the best time of the day to get a guaranteed look at our beautiful young Giraffe trio and...

11:30am

Pygmy hippo & meerkat talk

Queensland's only Pygmy Hippopotamus and Queensland's first ever Meerkat colony are close...

11:40am

African Lions

Queensland's pride - featuring our normal coloured brown Lions plus our magnificent White Lions....

11:50am

Baboon treat feed

Queensland's largest Baboon troupe always has plenty of babies and their antics will delight...

12:00pm

Lunch Time!

Bring along a picnic or cook up your favourite barbeque meal on one of our free gas BBQs. Or -...

1:00pm

Python photos

Meet a python up close and personal. Bring your...

1:30pm

African lion talk

Queensland's pride - featuring our normal coloured brown Lions plus our magnificent White Lions....

Encounters

Would you like to get up close and personal with some of our incredible animals? You could feed a lion, find out just a tall a Giraffe is, cuddle a Zebra, get climbed on by Meerkats or jumped all over by Marmosets or Lemurs!

Our personal encounters are an amazing and unique way to meet these stunning animals and every cent of the money that they raise is used here at the zoo to support our conservation breeding work.

Find Out More

NIGHT ZOOFARI

See the Zoo at night. Enjoy a BBQ dinner as the sun sets before a spotlight tour of the main circuit of the Zoo. See the Alligators feed from just over a metre away, hear the Lions roar and the Maned Wolves bark-howl, watch as the Big Cats all get a treat and ask as many questions as you like along the way.

Find Out More

ZOO PROJECTS

The Zoo is continually growing, with larger enclosures for the current animals, importing new animals and helping our native wildlife.

Our next building project is…

A state of the art indoor and outdoor habitat for our endangered Komodo Dragon and his new mate – due to arrive next year.

We need help with this project please.

Check out our DONATE page for details.

 

Help us Build

THEY ARE HERE!!

The Darling Downs Zoo is now home to Molly and Barney – two young Javan Binturongs.

Help Feed Us

Breeding Program expansion…

Our Bilby breeding program needs a new enclosure so we can start a third breeding group.

Lots of Bilbies bred here at the Darling Downs Zoo have been released to the wild in protected areas of Queensland, NSW, South Australia and Western Australia.

We can do a lot more for this species with your support.

How you can Help
DID YOU KNOW?

The Darling Downs Zoo has imported many species over the years, not just for our Zoo but for many Zoos in Australia. These species include…

Hamadryas Baboon, African Lions, Serval, Aldabra Tortoise, Zebra, Marmosets & Tamarins, Lemurs, Binturong, Cheetah, Caracal, Sri Lankan Leopards, Brazilian Agouti, Radiated Tortoises, Komodo Dragon and Yellow Anaconda.

These animals are quarantined in our government licensed quarantine facility before taking their place in conservation breeding programs throughout Australia.