Emmen Zoo Animals: What You Can See at Wildlands

At Wildlands in Emmen you can see more than 250 animal species across three themed worlds: Asian elephants, ring-tailed lemurs and Chinese alligators in the jungle world Jungola, lions and Grant's zebras on the savanna of Serenga, and sea lions and seals in the Arctic harbour of Nortica. A fourth area, Yunka, opened in April 2026 with sloths, emperor tamarins and red tanagers among South American jungle planting.

What not to miss

Wildlands is the only zoo actually running in Emmen today. Dierenpark Emmen was founded in 1935 by Willem Osting as a privately run zoo in the town centre. Facing financial difficulties, it reorganised in 2011 and closed for good at the end of 2015. Wildlands opened on a larger site the following March, on 25 March 2016.

Featured location Wildlands Emmen, Netherlands It replaced the Emmen Zoo when it opened in March 2016, at a construction cost of 200 million euros. The reorganisation brought larger grounds but a smaller collection, down from 300 species to about 100; a 2018 count put the number of animal types at 80 or more. Four zones make up the park: Jungola, Serenga, Nortica and Animazia.

Jungola, the jungle world, centres on Rimbula, an indoor rainforest hall of 18,000 square metres -- the largest zoo jungle hall in the world and the largest greenhouse in Europe. Inside, look for butterflies, tropical birds, Chinese alligators, pythons, ring-tailed lemurs, lar gibbons, small-clawed otters and Asian elephants. Rimbula itself had a refit: new lookout towers, reached by a connecting walkway, opened there around July 2026, finishing a renovation that also touched the animal enclosures.

Serenga, the savanna world, is home to lions, Grant's zebras, Rothschild's giraffes, white rhinoceros and hamadryas baboons. Nortica, the Arctic world, centres on a harbour area called Dock16, where you watch sea lions swim and seals bob in the water.

Yunka, the newest area, opened on 3 April 2026 as a walk-through South American jungle. Among the greenery you'll find sloths, green iguanas, emperor tamarins, white-faced sakis and red tanagers.

Best time to visit

Wildlands' regular hours run 10am-5pm from 17 August to 1 November 2026, then shorten to 11am-4pm from 2 November to 17 December. From 18 December to 3 January, hours extend to 11am-9pm for WILDnights, a winter evening event with the park lit after dark. In summer, WILDLANDS also stays open later than usual, from 25 July to 9 August 2026, until 7:30pm.

Tickets and saving money

As of September 2026, tickets for both children aged 3-9 and adults cost from €25 online or €26 at the gate; the final price depends on the date you book. If you already hold an NVD-pas or Club van 11-pas, you don't need to book ahead -- just bring the pass to the ticket desk on the day.

Getting there, with kids and accessibility

Wildlands is at Raadhuisplein 99 in Emmen, about a 15-minute walk from Emmen's NS train station. Wildlands has no car park of its own, though nearby public parking is available, and buses 3, 4, 21 and 44 also stop near the town centre entrance.

With kids and accessibility

Wildlands has a limited number of wheelchairs and buggies available to rent, so it's worth reserving ahead if you'll need one. The Rimbula River boat ride is accessible to all wheelchairs except electric models. For families, there's a baby-care room in every toilet block, and buggies can be rented for €5 a day plus a €20 deposit.

Other wildlife nearby

If you want to see animals living wild rather than in a park, Bargerveen, a peat-bog nature reserve in Drenthe, is protected under the EU's Natura 2000 network -- a different, quieter kind of wildlife-watching to pair with a day at Wildlands.