Only a few in the world….

Join our experienced carnivore keepers as they approach the habitat boundaries to feed one of our  Lions, Jake , Mischka, Mlinzi or Nairibi. Get close enough to see the spikes on their tongue as they devour their afternoon treat and learn about the amazing adaptations of Africa’s most famous predator.

CHILD TICKET ONLY VALID FOR PARTICIPANTS 15 YEARS OLD OR UNDER

DAYS: Everyday except Mondays

TIME 3:15pm

MAXIMUM PEOPLE 4 people

MINIMUM AGE 6 years 

LENGTH 15 minutes

ZOO ENTRY FEE Not included and must be purchased separately

RESTRICTIONS Please see Things You Need To Know

QUESTIONS? Please see our FAQs

Due to other precautions, there are no mask or vaccination requirements for participants on this tour or encounter. However, guides will wear masks when appropriate and guests are welcome to wear one.

Eye-to-eye with the world’s tallest animal??

Step onto our raised feeding platform and stare into the eyes of these gentle giants – at least until the food comes out! Then hold on tight as Shaba pulls the leaves from the branch in your hands. Or perhaps Mzungu is more your style, daintily pulling each leaf from the branch with her dexterous tongue! Their baby Themba will be nearby!

CHILD TICKET ONLY VALID FOR PARTICIPANTS 15 YEARS OLD OR UNDER

TIME 1:45pm

MAXIMUM PEOPLE 4 people

MINIMUM AGE 6 years 

LENGTH 15 minutes

ZOO ENTRY FEE Not included and must be purchased separately

RESTRICTIONS Please see Things You Need To Know

QUESTIONS? Please see our FAQs

Due to other precautions, there are no mask or vaccination requirements for participants on this tour or encounter. However, guides will wear masks when appropriate and guests are welcome to wear one.

What a story!

Meet our beautiful sun bears and hear the remarkable tale of Arataki and Otay’s love story. One of survival, learn how Australian  Mary Hutton saved over 1,000 bears, including our own! 

You will personally feed the most protective of the bear family, but while letting you know who is boss, they will gently take their food from you!

CHILD TICKET ONLY VALID FOR PARTICIPANTS 15 YEARS OLD OR UNDER

DAYS Daily

TIME 1:30pm

MAXIMUM PEOPLE 2 people

MINIMUM AGE 6 years

LENGTH 15 minutes

ZOO ENTRY FEE Not included and must be purchased separately

RESTRICTIONS Please see Things You Need To Know

QUESTIONS? Please see our FAQs

Due to other precautions, there are no mask or vaccination requirements for participants on this tour or encounter. However, guides will wear masks when appropriate and guests are welcome to wear one.

Rare and getting rarer!

Meet with one of our Carnivore Keepers to discover the unique abilities of such magnificent big cats. Learn about their diet as you feed an afternoon snack, as well as the care and enrichment we provide to ensure their wellbeing.

Wonder at the size of the tiger’s paws when they are centimeters from you, before being astonished by the size of their teeth! These big cats will leave an impression on your to carry through a passion for their conservation. 

CHILD TICKET ONLY VALID FOR PARTICIPANTS 15 YEARS OLD OR UNDER

DAYS Daily except Tuesdays

TIME 2:30pm

MAXIMUM PEOPLE 4 people

MINIMUM AGE 6 years

LENGTH 15 minutes

ZOO ENTRY FEE Not included and must be purchased separately

RESTRICTIONS Please see Things You Need To Know

QUESTIONS? Please see our FAQs

Due to other precautions, there are no mask or vaccination requirements for participants on this tour or encounter. However, guides will wear masks when appropriate and guests are welcome to wear one.

Yes, they lives in trees!

Have the privilege of feeding his favourite snacks to our beautiful Tree Kangaroo, Simbu. During this encounter, learn all about this incredible species and how our breeding program is assisting their survival. You will be moved by the closeness that you come to this tree-climbing kangaroo and by what a remarkable species it is.

CHILD TICKET ONLY VALID FOR PARTICIPANTS 15 YEARS OLD OR UNDER

DAYS Daily

TIMES 10.00am

MAXIMUM PEOPLE 2 people

MINIMUM AGE 8 years

LENGTH 15 minutes

ZOO ENTRY FEE Not included and must be purchased separately

RESTRICTIONS Please see Things You Need To Know

QUESTIONS? Please see our FAQs

Due to other precautions, there are no mask or vaccination requirements for participants on this tour or encounter. However, guides will wear masks when appropriate and guests are welcome to wear one.

Fly to me!

Enter Ruby and Rocco’s aviary and be enthralled by their grace in flight and their amazing abilities as an apex predator! Feed them and have them fly to you and see if they land on your outstretched arm! The Barking Owl is native to Australia and New Guinea. Gain and understanding and appreciation incredible birds, and how they can help them! 

CHILD TICKET ONLY VALID FOR PARTICIPANTS 15 YEARS OLD OR UNDER

DAYS Daily

MAXIMUM PEOPLE 2 people

MINIMUM AGE 10 years

LENGTH 15 minutes

ZOO ENTRY FEE Not included and must be purchased separately

RESTRICTIONS Please see Things You Need To Know

QUESTIONS? Please see our FAQs

Encounters not available during breeding season, August to October.

Due to other precautions, there are no mask or vaccination requirements for participants on this tour or encounter. However, guides will wear masks when appropriate and guests are welcome to wear one.

Meet the meerkat mob! 

During the encounter you will experience:

The weight of the meerkats as they sit on your lap

Their tongues as they eat their lunch from your hands

Witness the group dynamics as they move all around you!

CHILD TICKET ONLY VALID FOR PARTICIPANTS 15 YEARS OLD OR UNDER

MAXIMUM PEOPLE 2 people

MINIMUM AGE 8 years (Must be accompanied by a paying adult on the encounter)

LENGTH 15 minutes

ZOO ENTRY FEE Not included and must be purchased separately

RESTRICTIONS Please see Things You Need To Know

QUESTIONS? Please see our FAQs

How close can you get to a Rhino…

Get as close as is possible to the second largest land animal – two or more tons of power and strength! 

Leave this encounter captivated by the species and to become an ambassador for ensuring their survival. Either Eco or Ubuntu almost invariably choose to come over to meet our guests and the next time someone says ‘the hide of a rhinoceros’ you will probably be able to tell them that you have experienced the texture of a rhino’s skin! 

CHILD TICKET ONLY VALID FOR PARTICIPANTS 15 YEARS OLD OR UNDER

DAYS Every day except Wednesdays and Thursdays

TIME 3pm

MAXIMUM PEOPLE 4 people

MINIMUM AGE 6

LENGTH 15 minutes

ZOO ENTRY FEE Not included and must be purchased separately

RESTRICTIONS Please see Things You Need To Know

QUESTIONS? Please see our FAQs

Due to other precautions, there are no mask or vaccination requirements for participants on this tour or encounter. However, guides will wear masks when appropriate and guests are welcome to wear one.

Walk with a cheetah!

As part of their enrichment, a number of our cheetahs are taken on a regular walk in the undeveloped area of the zoo. On some of these walks, we have guests accompany them. You can join Solo on his walk and keepers will take you to enjoy the view from Solo’s lookout. Solo was a rare single-birth Cheetah cub, born right here at the National Zoo and Aquarium. 

WALK DAYS Everyday

WALK TIME 11.15 pm

WALK DURATION 40 minutes

MAXIMUM PEOPLE PER WALK 4 people

ZOO ENTRY FEE Free

MINIMUM AGE 16 years

MINIMUM HEIGHT 1.5m

RESTRICTIONS Please see Meet a Cheetah Terms & Conditions

QUESTIONS? Please see our FAQs

Meet our 3 young brothers

Canberra’s National Zoo & Aquarium offers one of the most incredible animal experiences in Australia – the opportunity to provide hands-on enrichment for these amazing cats.

During your Greet-the-Cheetah-Boys experience, you will be in the same enclosure as our three unrestrained cheetah brothers. 

At all times an experienced zookeeper will be with you to answer your questions, pass on important information regarding their conservation in the wild and guide you as you interact with these incredible animals. A maximum of 2 people go into the cheetah enclosure with the keeper per session, and sessions last for approximately 15 minutes.

DAYS: Everyday

TIME: Sessions starting from 10:30am and 1:30pm 

MAXIMUM PEOPLE: 2 people per session

MINIMUM AGE: 16 years

MINIMUM HEIGHT: 1.5m

LENGTH: 15 minutes

ZOO ENTRY FEE: Included 

Go in with an unrestrained adult cheetah!

Canberra’s National Zoo & Aquarium offers one of the most incredible animal experiences in Australia – the opportunity to provide hands-on enrichment for this amazing cat.

During your Meet-a-Cheetah experience, you will be in the same enclosure as one of our unrestrained adult cheetahs.

At all times an experienced zookeeper will be with you to answer your questions, pass on important information regarding their conservation in the wild and guide you as you interact with these incredible animals. A maximum of 2 people go into the cheetah enclosure with the keeper per session, and sessions last for approximately 15 minutes.

CHILD TICKET ONLY VALID FOR PARTICIPANTS 14-15 YEARS OLD 

DAYS Everyday

TIME Starting from 2:30pm 

MAXIMUM PEOPLE 2 people

MINIMUM AGE 14 years

MINIMUM HEIGHT 1.5m

LENGTH 15 minutes

ZOO ENTRY: Included 

What a family!

Be introduced to a truly amazing family living here at the National Zoo & Aquarium! Masina & partner Polo have produced 14 children through our breeding program at the zoo, contributing to vital conservation efforts of this critically endangered species.

Head into the enclosure to hand feed and pat the family raising awareness for their critically endangered counterparts.

DAY: Monday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday

TIME: 11:30am

MAXIMUM PEOPLE: 4 people

MINIMUM AGE: 10 years 

LENGTH: 15 minutes

ZOO ENTRY FEE: Not included 

RESTRICTIONS: Please see Things You Need To Know

QUESTIONS? Please see our FAQs

Get in before the zoo opens and have this area to yourselves!

One of the most amazing interactive animal tours available in the world and held early in the day to maximise the chances of the animals being active! You will come face to face with some of the most dangerous and endangered animals on earth and if you are game, we will have you feed a tiger, bear and a beautiful hyena (yes, beautiful!), as well as try to find our elusive leopards.  To change your heart rate from racing to just beating fast, we will introduce you to the adorable meerkats and otters.

We will demonstrate how you can help save them in the wild, whilst at the same time providing guests with 90 minutes of awe-inspiring interactions. 

Please refer to additional notes on the encounter page

BOOK THE AFRICAN SAVANNAH SAFARI TOUR ON THE SAME DAY AND GET 20% OFF BOTH TOURS!!!

CHILD TICKET ONLY VALID FOR PARTICIPANTS 15 YEARS OLD OR UNDER

TIME: 7:30am

MAXIMUM PEOPLE: 12 people

MINIMUM AGE: 6 years

LENGTH: 90 minutes

ZOO ENTRY: Included

RESTRICTIONS: Please see Things You Need To Know

QUESTIONS? Please see our FAQs

CHECK IN: CHECK IN FOR THIS TOUR IS AT ZOO RECEPTION

Due to other precautions, there are no mask or vaccination requirements for participants on this tour or encounter. However, guides will wear masks when appropriate and guests are welcome to wear one.

Tour the Zoo's open range section!

This interactive tour is designed for guests of most ages! Sure to thrill both the young and young at heart as you step into an African adventure like no other!

Join a guide as you discover the stunning animals of Africa and beyond. We aim to have you feed a giraffe, to feel the texture of a rhino’s skin and to be overwhelmed by the height and strength of these species! Attempt to count the number of stripes on our zebras, admire the lemurs that call the zoo home and see why the cheetah is the fastest animal on earth. 

Many African species face well-known threats, so learn all about these amazing animals and how we can act to help them before it’s too late!

Please refer to additional notes on the encounter page

BOOK THE AWESOME ROARSOME TOUR ON THE SAME DAY AND GET 20% OFF BOTH TOURS!!!

CHILD TICKET ONLY VALID FOR PARTICIPANTS 15 YEARS OLD OR UNDER

DAYS: Available every day except Tuesdays and Thursdays. Additional days and sessions may be opened for group bookings.

TIME: 9.30am

MAXIMUM PEOPLE: 12 people

MINIMUM AGE: 6 years

LENGTH: 90 minutes

ZOO ENTRY FEE: Included

RESTRICTIONS: Please see Things You Need To Know

QUESTIONS? Please see our FAQs

Due to other precautions, there are no mask or vaccination requirements for participants on this tour or encounter. However, guides will wear masks when appropriate and guests are welcome to wear one.

30 Minutes of cheetah interaction!

Meet our 3 Cheetah Boys and their zookeepers as we see to their morning care and enrichment. This 30-minute encounter allows a unique insight as you step into their territory and interact with this big cat entirely on their terms. 

See cheetah playtime from the inside as keepers bring in some favourite enrichments and be entranced by their curiosity and inquisitiveness. At all times a keeper will be with you to explain their unique personalities and guide you through any interactions the cheetahs choose
to engage in. You will also learn how everyone can help with much needed conservation in the wild.

DAYS Everyday

TIME Starting from 10:00am 

MAXIMUM PEOPLE 4 people (up to 4 people can be accommodated in a single booking and at a discounted rate)

MINIMUM AGE 16 years

MINIMUM HEIGHT 1.5m

LENGTH 30 minutes

ZOO ENTRY: Included