Berlin Zoo Tickets: A 5-Step Guide

Most visitors choose between two tickets: the zoo alone or the zoo and aquarium together. The steps below put the choice first and then follow the order of your day.

Step 1: Choose your Berlin Zoo tickets

A zoo-only day ticket is the right choice for most visits, and the combined zoo and aquarium ticket is worth adding when you have time for both. The Zoo Berlin price page shows the online price as a "from" price and the booth price as a fixed one. These were the prices on 28 October 2026.

Add the numbers for your group. Two adults and two children aged 4 to 15 pay from €47 online for the zoo alone, against €75 at the booth. The combined ticket for the same four people is from €70 online, against €109 at the booth.

Concessions need a personal proof of status, which staff check at the entrance together with a photo ID. The price also includes an optional €0.50 conservation contribution per person, which you can remove when you buy.

Pro Tip Two adults and two children save about €28 on the zoo alone by booking online, and about €39 on the combined ticket.

Step 2: Book online and know the ticket rules

Book your day ticket online before you go, because online tickets are cheaper and you do not need an account. The zoo's FAQ page says you can show the QR code on your phone, and pre-bought tickets go to the marked booths at the entrances.

Four rules are worth knowing before you pay.

• The time slot is binding and cannot be changed, though you may arrive at any time within it.
• Booked day tickets cannot be cancelled or rebooked.
• A day ticket is valid for one admission, so you cannot leave and come back the same day.
• Combined tickets are sold until 3 p.m. on the day, and you must visit the zoo and the aquarium on the same day without leaving the site in between.

Children aged 0 to 3 are free but still need a free online ticket booked in advance. Children under 12 must stay with an adult at all times. Dogs are not allowed in the zoo or the aquarium, and luggage cannot be stored for security reasons, so leave big bags at your hotel.

Bikes, scooters, e-scooters and inline skates are banned too. Balance bikes and scooters for children up to 5 are allowed with some limits. A stroller or a bike trailer is fine.

Key Takeaway The slot you pick is final, so choose a time you can keep, because a day ticket cannot be cancelled or rebooked.

Step 3: Get to the zoo by train, tram or bus

The easiest way to the zoo is the S-Bahn or U-Bahn to Zoologischer Garten, the station next to the zoo. The S-Bahn lines S3, S5, S7 and S9 stop there, and so do the U2 and U9. The U1 and U9 stop at Kurfürstendamm, and about 15 bus lines serve the area, according to the zoo's FAQ. Regional trains such as the RE1 also stop there. The getting around Berlin guide explains which ticket you need.

From the city centre, bus 100 runs from Zoologischer Garten to Alexanderplatz in about 30 minutes. It uses a normal AB ticket, as the BVG sightseeing page states. There is no visitor parking, and public transport is recommended. Paid spaces are at Hardenbergplatz, in front of the Löwentor entrance.

The Löwentor entrance has the service centre and the lost-and-found. After the last admission time, the Elefantentor is the only exit open. The pages we checked do not give walking times from the station.

The aquarium's address is Budapester Straße 32, according to its ticket page.

Step 4: Plan the day around the opening hours

Plan about half a day for the zoo alone, and allow more for the combined ticket. No recommended visit time is published. The only limit on your stay is the opening hours. The opening hours change with the season, and the zoo is open 365 days a year.

The animal houses and restaurants close 30 minutes before the zoo itself, and on 24 December the zoo closes at 2 p.m. The opening hours page lists these times. The aquarium is open from 9:00 to 18:00 all year, with the last admission at 17:00, and it may have a wait at the door, according to the aquarium's hours page.

Berlin has a second zoo, the Tierpark, which the park calls a short train ride from Alexanderplatz, and it suits a longer day. It covers 160 hectares, and its page says dogs are welcome on a short lead. Adult day tickets there are from €14.50 online and €22.50 at the booth, and children aged 4 to 15 pay €7.00 online and €11.00 at the booth, as the Tierpark price page shows.

Is the zoo worth it? For families with children, yes. The zoo reports around 20,000 animals and says it has more species than any other zoo in the world. Its home page also listed a panda talk on 28 October 2026. The honest limit is time. From late October to the end of December you have about seven hours at most, and the animal houses close earlier, so skip the zoo if you only have a short afternoon.

Good zoo days are planned around the closing time, not the opening time.

Step 5: Add something nearby and pick where to stay

After the zoo, the simplest way to use the rest of the day is a ride past the main sights. Bus 100 passes the Kaiser Wilhelm Memorial Church, the Victory Column, the Brandenburg Gate and Unter den Linden on its way to Alexanderplatz. It has no commentary, so read up first if you want the stories.

If you want a ticket that covers the bus and one more attraction, two bundles fit a family day. The hop-on hop-off bus and LEGOLAND Discovery Centre bundle is from €44 per person, with free cancellation, according to the listing on GetYourGuide as of 28 October 2026. The meeting point is the LEGOLAND centre at Potsdamer Strasse 2. It has a 4.1 rating from 12 reviews, so the sample is small. The hop-on hop-off bus and Berlin Dungeon bundle is from €49 per person, also with free cancellation. It is not suitable for children under 10, so pick it for older kids only.

Both bundles include a 24-hour bus ticket with an audio guide. The Dungeon has 4.4 from 11 reviews. Neither bundle includes food or drinks. The Best Travel Destinations' count of GetYourGuide listings for Berlin on 27 October 2026 found 10 hop-on hop-off tickets among 352 experiences, with a median rating of 4.1 and prices from €10 to €47 per person.

Is a tour worth it for this? On your own, bus 100 and a zoo ticket cost far less. A bundle makes sense when your children want a second attraction and you want one booking with free cancellation, which the zoo's day tickets do not have.

A short ride keeps a family day easy, so many parents stay in City West. The H10 Berlin Ku'Damm is on Joachimsthaler Strasse near the Kurfürstendamm and the Zoologischer Garten area. The Holiday Inn City Center East in Prenzlauer Berg is listed as family-friendly and has a tram stop outside. The Homaris Kreuzberg 61 has kitchenettes. The where to stay in Berlin guide compares the areas, and the Berlin tours page lists more ways to fill a day.