India's first ever zoo came up near Chennai's Central Station in the year 1855. Eventually in the year 1979, it was relocated to its present location amidst the rambling 510-hectare property perched on top of the jungle-clad hills. It was then named Arignar Anna Zoological Park.

Anna Zoological Park's claim to fame rests in the fact that it the largest menagerie in South East Asia. The zoological park was carved out of the Reserve Forest zones of Vandalur lying in the west of Chennai and is situated in the outer environs of the urban metropolis.

The zoo is highly accessible by rail, road and air and is frequent by tourists as well as local citizens of Chennai accompanied by their families during holidays and weekends. A colorful carnival greets visitors as they try to enter the zoo premises with hawkers and peddlers selling edible items, nuts for the monkey and chimps, fruits for the elephants, cps, balloons and paper flutes with a deafening sound, souvenirs with trivia about the zoo and its animals; children running all over the place, families picnicking, young lovers seeking out a solitary corner under the shade of a banyan tree as well as the maddening crowds near the animal enclosure.

Anna Zoological Park has tried its level best to create a surrounding that closely approximates the natural habitat of the wild beasts. The animals reside in large moats, surrounded by greenery and present an island like ambience. The zoo boasts of nearly 170 varieties of mammals, birds and reptiles.

A trip to Chennai remains incomplete without a stopover at the Anna Zoological Park and going on the scintillating lion safari, the imperial elephant ride or merely a sightseeing tour around the zoo's premises in the battery-operated vehicles.

Last Updated on 1/17/2011

Wildlife Tours