Wilhelma Zoological and Botanical Gardens, Stuttgart - Botanical Gardens on Waymarking.com

On permanent exhibit are around 9,000 animals of almost 1,000 species, exemplary facilities and greenhouses which are open to the public, important collections of orchids, large magnolia grove, aquarium with crocodile hall and famous coral fish collection, modern ape house, bear facilities, walk-in bird free flight facility, demonstration farm with petting enclosure. With ca. 1.8 million visitors a year, one of the most visited sights in Baden-Wuerttemberg.
The park can be visited until nightfall - at latest until 8:00 p.m.

The buildings were constructed in 1850 by Karl-Ludwig von Zanth under the directions of King Wilhelm I. of Württemberg as a "summer-house with living quarters and decorative glasshouses in Moorish style".

Since those times exotic plants have been cultivated there, but it was not until after the destruction in the Second World War that the park was developed into a zoological-botanical garden. Today Wilhelma, with its 10,000 animals of almost 1000 species, is one of the zoos with the largest amount of animal species in Germany, giving a cross-section through all the climatic zones of the Earth. Also of great value is the plant collection, with around 5000 species. In the rhythm of the seasons the face of the park constantly changes, daily offering new impressions.

The Amazon House has meant a huge step forward for the world of botany. Over an enclosed area of 1200 square metres, in a magnificent man-made rocky landscape one can observe plants and animals from the upper Amazon rainforest. In the lush greenery of kapok and mahogany trees, assai palms, the snake-wood tree, the powder-puff tree and bananas, howler monkeys live, with white-faced sakis, golden lion tamarins and the like. Free-flying birds such as sunbittern, jacanas, tanagers and humming-birds fill the virgin forest. In the pool beneath a thundering waterfall are caymans and various species of fish from the Amazon. At the appropriate temperatures and humidity, the visitor really gets an impression of this endangered habitat. The following open enclosure is the home of the lively coatis.

Also of great value is the plant collection, with around 5000 species, and in the rhythm of the seasons the face of the park undergoes constant change, offering new impressions nearly every day.The botanical year at Wilhelma begins as the orchids bloom - we have approx. 5000 plants to look after. Those with the most beautiful flowers are displayed in two glass cases in the greenhouse for tropical plants. Camellias and azaleas, each represented by over 30 types, are the next to blossom in their appropriate greenhouses. Many of these plants and shrubs date back to the very beginnings of the park. They are now well over 150 years old and are therefore real botanical treasures.

Blossomtime in Europe's largest magnolia grove is unique, and the thousands of tulips and narcissi in the park's large beds are magnificent. During the summer, when the 650 square metres of the water lily pond are heated to 30°C, the tropical waterlilies and lotus flowers conjure up the magic of a tropical garden. The blossoming of the hundreds of thousands of summer flowers brings Wilhelma's botanical year to a close.

Further botanical highlights are the succulents and the fuchsias, 200 kinds of which flower during the summer season. Starting with the liverworts, via the club mosses and horsetails to the ferns, tree-ferns and primitive coniferous plants, in one cold and one warm glasshouse many lower vascular plants are cultivated. And a cross-section from the multitude of tropical useful plants is also shown: coffee, carambolas, papayas, cotton and many others. The pivot between the old and the new sections of the park is formed by the subtropical terraces. There are 35 aviaries there for parrots and an enclosure for squirrel monkeys, all surrounded by a myriad of subtropical plants. Because this area is south-facing, citrus trees grow here, as well as olives, fig trees and kiwi plants, all of which bring out a crop of ripe fruits every year. Palms, bananas, cypresses and magnolias complete the scene. Those plants that are sensitive to frost are, however, taken indoors in the frueer.

Cost of entry: 11.00 (listed in local currency) Hours of Operation: Mon-Fri: From: 8:15 AM To: 4:00 PM Hours of Operation: Sat, Sun: From: 8:15 AM To: 4:00 PM

Recent Visits/Logs:

Date Logged Log User Rating   07/17/2014 LotusLeon visited it 06/14/2014 ISTAFB visited it 03/09/2014 STM-Stivi visited it 05/26/2013 Loiblinger visited it 03/27/2013 Windego1 visited it 10/19/2012 acholzer visited it 01/22/2012 Tante.Hossi visited it 06/06/2011 SphodromantisViridis visited it 04/11/2011 dl2scj visited it 07/19/2010 Wombat97 visited it 06/10/2010 HJThom visited it 09/21/2009 travelling visited it 06/03/2009 tyro-n-www visited it 05/23/2009 poelchen1337 visited it 07/07/2007 Blind Eagles visited it 09/12/2006 DieCacherGirls visited it

View all visits/logs