School holidays at Taronga Zoo - Sydney Travel Guide

Famous not just for its incredible wildlife, but also for its stunning views of Sydney Harbour, Taronga is often labelled the world’s most beautiful zoo. With a jam-packed school holiday program, exciting new arrivals and an incredible lineup of beautiful animals, I couldn’t resist hopping on the ferry and spending the day at the iconic zoo.

My guide was Kiah, who’s been with Taronga Zoo for 16 years and knows everything there is to know about every animal. He talked me through all of the Spring Holiday offerings, taught me all about Taronga’s conservation efforts and took me to see some exciting new additions.

His top tip? Leave at least three hours to explore the zoo — giving you time to check out all the incredible precincts and animals, catch a few presentations and maybe grab a coffee or ice cream at the food market.

Here’s our guide to the school holidays at Taronga: what’s on, what to see and what’s coming up.

My top picks

1. Tiger Trek

Tiger Trek is not your average tiger exhibition— Kiah called it “a new way of displaying our animals with storytelling”. It’s a full immersion into the forests of Way Kambas National Park in Sumatra. You’ll board an airplane and learn about the tragic consequences of deforestation for palm oil on the Sumatran tigers. You’ll then get a chance to see the zoo’s striking, critically-endangered tigers, six-year-olds Mawar, Tengah Malam and Pemanah as well as their mother Kartika, their father Clarence and their uncle Kembali.

At the end of the trek, you’ll find yourself in a colourful supermarker (don’t worry, it’s not a gift shop). This display supermarket, called Choice Mart) has been erected to show visitors which companies are using Certified Sustainable Palm Oil (CSPO), in a bid to educate guests on which brands to support. There’s also the chance to send an email to companies to encourage them to be part of the solution to save tigers. Guests can send congratulatory emails to companies using 100% CSPO or send messages to encourage companies to transition to CSPO. Kiah tells me that over the years, hundreds of thousands of emails have been sent to retailers and manufacturers.

2. Seals for the Wild

One of the highlights of my day at Taronga was the Seals for the Wild presentation, featuring Taronga’s experienced trainers and the stars of the show — the elegant (yet very loud) rescue seals. Not only do we see the seals perform enrichment activities, including touching the pole with their heads, climbing and diving off platforms, and catching plenty of fish, but we also learn about how we can make better lifestyle choices to help wild seals.

You’ll meet Bondi, a beautiful seal found with significant shark injuries on Bondi Beach. After making a full recovery, the energetic seal now shows off its natural abilities, while also teaching kids about rehabilitation and the marine environment. The presentation is free, occurring daily at 11am and 2pm throughout the spring school holidays. One word of caution — if you’re wearing something nice, steer clear of the splash zone!

3. Meeting the kids: Piper and Penny

In what Taronga Zoo is dubbing “Bring Your Kids to Meet Our Kids”, visitors can head to the Backyard to Bush precinct to see some of Taronga’s adorable new arrivals. Tilly the goat is the mum of twin kids, Piper and Penny, who can be seen strolling around their pen under the watchful eye of their mother. Give them a gentle pat or explore the rest of the farmyard, which features alpacas, quokkas, a hairy-nosed Wombat and more.

Pygmy Hippo Taronga Zoo — Taronga Zoo has three pygmy hippos.

4. Taronga’s very own Moo Deng

Viral social media sensation Moo Deng put the hilarious pygmy hipps on a world stage, whether she was blowing bubbles and disobeying her mother. It’s no surprise then, that Taronga Zoo’s own pygmy hippos are super popular with guests, as they lounge around their enclosure, taking dips and yawning on their rocks (as seen above). Kiah did inform me about the pygmy hippos unfortunate habit of spinning their tails when doing their business (leaving a very big job for the zookeepers that are in charge of cleaning up after them).

5. Taking in incredible views

It’s not surprising that Taronga is often dubbed the world’s most beautiful zoo. Set in Mosman, with sprawling sights of the Sydney Harbour (which may sometimes be partially blocked by the long neck of a striking giraffe), there are plenty of opportunities to snap pictures, watch boats float along the water and take in the city’s incredible skyline. It’s what makes Taronga Zoo an iconic Sydney landmark.

Koala Taronga Zoo — Spot the two cuddly koalas.

6. Adorable Aussie wildlife

Few of us will be lucky enough to see a koala bear in the wild, so head to Taronga’s Nura Diya Trail instead, and spot Kangaroos, Dingo pups, a Southern Cassowary and the cuddly koalas on the 400-metre walking trail. The koala exhibition includes a winding path on an incline, so that you can watch the bears from all angles, whether they’re hiding among the leaves or clutching to the top of the branch.

School Holidays Program

7. Ride the Taronga Wildlife Express

All aboard the Taronga Wildlife Express! The bright green train takes guests on a 10 to 15-minute scenic ride through the heart of the zoo (perfect for those who want to avoid walking up the hills). The Wildlife Express opened earlier this year and will run daily from 10:30am to 3:30pm, costing $5 per person, or no cost at all for Zoo Friends Annual Members.

8. See Taronga illuminated after hours

Taronga After Dark will run through the school holidays, from October 3 to October 12. Guests can stroll lantern-lit trails, be enchanted by magical Mermaid Shows, a Sunset Seals for the Wild presentation, enjoy firepits, a food truck village, acoustic music and the Wildlife Cinema, and even climb the Wild Ropes course illuminated at night. Parents, fear not. Archie Rose will be there, hosting a sunset bar with delicious cocktails, so there’s something for everyone.

Tickets cost $41 for adults (16+), $36 for children (4-5) and are free for children under 3. You can buy them here.

Taronga Zoo Zookeeper for a Day — Taronga Zoo lets guests become a zookeeper for a day. (Image: Taronga Zoo).

9. Become a Zookeeper for a Day

Throughout the school holidays, Taronga will runs its popular Keeper for a Day experiences. Costing $170 for Junior Keepers (between the age of 8 and 11) and $190 for Cadet Keepers (ages 12-17), the experience gives young animal lovers the chance to go behind the scenes of the bustling zoo.

Kiah took me through the program and the world-class facilities that Taronga has. What particularly stood out were the zoo’s immersive habitat classrooms. Within the Taronga Institute, there’s a rainforest, desert and woodlands room, each replicating the habitats. With cutting-edge technology, kids can interact with wildlife in a space where the animal can move freely and display natural behaviours, making it the best zoology class in Australia.

What’s coming up?

New Animals Taronga — A One-Horned Rhino, named Hari, will be arriving at Taronga Zoo soon.

10. New arrivals: Hari, the One-horned rhino

There’s plenty of excitement in the air at Taronga, with the imminent arrival of a one-horned rhino, Hari, and some Asian Water Buffaloes. Kiah tells me that Hari was born and bred at Taronga Sydney’s sister zoo, Taronga Western Plains Zoo in Dubbo, and now he’s of age, he’ll be coming to the zoo “in the coming weeks” (so watch this space!) His new enclosure, located in the middle of the zoo, will feature moats that he can swim around, so zoo visitors can appreciate the beauty of the animal. It’s been two decades since Taronga have has an Indian Rhino at their facility, and with the species being the second-biggest land mammal in Asia, there’s no doubt Hari will draw a lot of attention.

11. Twilight at Taronga

Twilight at Taronga is a summer concert series at the zoo, and while exact dates have not yet been released, the series tends to take place from February through to March. Last year saw exciting sold-out performances from artists DMA’s, Boy & Bear and Bjorn Again, among lots of other acts. Although the stage (pictured above) is not currently looking concert-ready, Taronga put together a stunning stage, perched against one of the best views of Sydney Harbour.

Taronga Zoo

Where: Bradleys Head Rd, Mosman NSW 2088.
When: Open daily, 9am-4:30pm.
Price: Entry to Taronga Zoo costs $49.50 for adults, $38.70 for concessions, $29.70 for children (4-15 years).

You can purchase your tickets here.