“Community support for entry to the Zoo being free has been overwhelming. We’ve loved seeing so many visitors in our community enjoy reconnecting with nature and wildlife at Wellington Zoo,” said Karen Fifield, MNZM, Wellington Zoo Chief Executive.

Visitors were able to visit by booking their free tickets online. For health and safety reasons the total number of tickets each day was restricted. Daily ticket numbers increased as Covid-19 restrictions eased.

“We were absolutely inundated with queries about the Zoo and the free entry with up to 100 phone calls and emails per day. And, on the first day bookings were available, demand was so great it caused our global booking system and website to crash initially,” Karen said.

From 1 July entry to the Zoo will be paid and services have returned to normal including reintroducing popular daily animal talks and Close Encounters.

“It was fantastic to welcome people back into the Zoo and we have had visitors from all over New Zealand. I’d like to thank our community for their continued support over this difficult period. In particular our thanks go to our loyal members and supporters, as well as all the visitors that kindly donated to us during their visit. We couldn’t do our conservation work without you.”