Artis Royal Zoo

Artis opened in 1838 and it shows, in the good sense: the zoo is laid out as a nineteenth-century city park, with old plane trees, ponds, monumental animal houses and generous space to walk between them. The aquarium building of 1882 is the piece most people remember, and inside it is a tank showing a cross section of an Amsterdam canal, complete with weed, fish and a dumped bicycle. There is also a butterfly house, a savanna section, a small planetarium under the trees, and next door on the same grounds a museum devoted to microbes, ticketed separately. It sits in the Plantage district, a short tram ride from the centre, and doubles as one of the few large green spaces in the old city.

What you actually see

• The 1882 aquarium building - historic tanks including a cross section of an Amsterdam canal, bicycle included.
• The park layout - monumental nineteenth-century animal houses among old trees, ponds and lawns.
• The butterfly house - a heated glasshouse of free-flying tropical butterflies.
• The planetarium - a small dome on the grounds running shows through the day.

When to go

Open year-round. Weekday mornings outside Dutch school holidays are much calmer than weekends, when families arrive in numbers. Spring and early autumn are the best compromise between weather and crowds. Late afternoon suits the big animals, which are often asleep in the middle of the day, and the lighting in the aquarium building.

Honest expectations

It is expensive, particularly for a family, and the microbe museum next door costs extra again. The grounds are compact by modern zoo standards and several older enclosures are visibly small. Big animals are limited compared with the large drive-through parks elsewhere in the country. Weekends and school holidays are crowded, and you are paying zoo prices for what is partly a stroll in a park.

Nearby

The Plantage district, the botanical garden and the eastern canals are all within a short walk.