Quick answer
Khao Kheow Open Zoo is near Si Racha, about 45 minutes by car from Pattaya. It opens daily from 08:00 to 17:00, with last entry at 16:00. Foreign visitors pay 350 THB (children 120 THB); Thai visitors pay 200 THB and 40 THB. A car costs 80 THB to take inside and a golf cart 500 to 700 THB for two hours. Moo Deng, the pygmy hippo born in July 2024, is on show. Allow four to five hours.
Khao Kheow Open Zoo spreads over about 800 hectares of forested hillside at Bang Phra, in Si Racha district, inland from the coast road between Pattaya and Chonburi. It is run by Thailand's Zoological Park Organization, opened in 1978 and keeps more than 8,000 animals of over 300 species. Since 2024 most of the world knows it for one of them: a pygmy hippopotamus called Moo Deng.
What kind of zoo is Khao Kheow?
It is an open zoo: large paddocks and moated enclosures laid out along several kilometres of road through the hills, instead of cages around a central square. Giraffes, zebras, white rhinoceroses and deer share wide grassy fields; elephants, hippos, tigers, orangutans, gibbons, tapirs and penguins have their own areas. The distances are the point to understand before you go. Nobody sees this zoo on foot. You move between the animal areas on wheels, park, walk a loop of a few hundred metres and move on.
How much are tickets, and what are the opening hours?
| Item | Price (THB) | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Foreign adult | 350 | Shows included |
| Foreign child | 120 | Height 90 to 140 cm |
| Thai adult | 200 | |
| Thai child | 40 | |
| Children under 90 cm | Free | Also free for visitors over 60 |
| Car taken into the zoo | 80 | Parking inside is free |
| Motorbike taken into the zoo | 40 | |
| Golf cart rental | 500 to 700 for two hours | By cart size; extra time charged |
The zoo opens daily from 08:00 to 17:00, and the ticket office stops selling at 16:00. Arrive at opening time. The animals are fed and active in the first two hours, the air is cooler and the golf carts have not run out. Weekends, Thai school holidays and public holidays are busy; a weekday morning is calm.
How do you get around inside: car, golf cart or tram?
- Your own car or a hired car with driver: the most comfortable choice in the heat and with small children. Pay the 80 THB vehicle fee at the gate and park at each animal area. The roads are steep in places and shared with carts and pedestrians, so drive at walking pace.
- Golf cart: the popular choice, rented near the entrance, with the price set by the size of the cart. Two hours is tight for the whole zoo; three is comfortable. Carts are not allowed on the outer zone's roads, and queues for them form by mid-morning at weekends.
- Tram: the budget choice. It follows a fixed route with stops at the main animal areas in the central zone, and you hop off and wait for the next one. It suits a short visit focused on the headline animals.
If you arrive by taxi, ask the driver to wait and drive you round, or rent a cart: there is no way to cover the grounds on foot. Bring a hat, sunscreen, water and mosquito repellent, and wear closed shoes. Feed animals only with the food sold at the official feeding points.
Can you still see Moo Deng in 2026?
Yes. Moo Deng was born at the zoo on 10 July 2024 to mother Jonah and father Tony, and became famous within weeks for her round shape and short temper. Her name is a Thai dish of bouncy pork meatballs. She is now a young adult, far larger than in the videos that made her known, and lives at the pygmy hippo enclosure, which the zoo has developed into a themed Hippo Village area. She celebrated her second birthday there in July 2026.
She is an animal in an enclosure, not a show: she sleeps, soaks and eats on her own schedule. The best chance of seeing her moving is in the morning, when keepers clean the enclosure and feed her. At busy times staff manage the queue and keep visitors moving along the railing. Cameras watch the enclosure, and the zoo takes legal action against anyone who throws water or objects to wake her.
What are the other highlights, and when are the shows?
Shows and keeper sessions are included in the ticket. The daily schedule is posted at the entrance; the regular ones are:
- Penguin parade: 10:00 and 14:00, with an extra round at 15:30 on weekends and holidays.
- Bird flight show: 10:30 and 14:30.
- Elephant bathing: 11:00 and 14:30, plus 12:30 on weekends and holidays.
Between shows, the feeding platforms are what children remember: at the giraffe platform you stand level with the animals' heads and feed them by hand, and other feeding points are spread through the central zone. The white tiger, the orangutans, the Malayan tapir and the gibbons calling across the valley are the other stops to plan for. Food courts and cafes stand near the main animal areas, at ordinary Thai prices.
A sensible order for a morning: hippos first, the penguin parade at 10:00, the bird show at 10:30, the giraffe and zebra fields, elephant bathing at 11:00, then the big cats and primates before lunch. Each stop is a few minutes' drive from the last, so keep the zoo map from the ticket office open and group the stops by area instead of crossing the hill twice.
How long do you need at the zoo?
Four to five hours covers the central zone, two shows, Moo Deng and lunch. A quick visit by car that takes in the hippos, the giraffe platform and one show fits into two and a half hours. To see everything, including the outer zone, plan a full day from opening time. With children under six, a morning from 08:00 to 12:30 is the right length: leave before the hottest hours.
More ideas for family days are in Pattaya with kids and water parks and theme parks in Pattaya.
How do you get to Khao Kheow Open Zoo from Pattaya?
The zoo is about 45 minutes north of central Pattaya by car, by Motorway 7 or Sukhumvit Road and then inland past Bang Phra reservoir. There is no public transport to the gate. A taxi or app car costs about 500 to 700 THB one way. Do not rely on finding a car at the zoo for the return: drivers who wait at the exit ask up to 1,000 THB. The better arrangement is a car with driver for the day, which also solves transport inside the zoo, or a rental car.
The zoo is about 20 minutes from the beach at Bang Saen, and the two make a natural pair: zoo in the cool of the morning, seafood lunch and the aquarium in the afternoon. Car hire and app taxis are explained in getting around Pattaya.
Frequently asked
- What is the best time of day to see Moo Deng?
- Between 08:00 and 10:00. Keepers clean the pygmy hippo enclosure and put out food in the morning, so she is on her feet and the crowd is thin. From late morning she often sleeps in the water or the shade, and at weekends the queue for the railing grows. Go to her first, then to the 10:00 penguin parade.
- Can you visit Khao Kheow Open Zoo without a car?
- Yes, with planning. Take a taxi or app car from Pattaya and agree a price for the driver to wait, or rent a golf cart at the entrance for the visit and book your return car before you leave the hotel. The tram covers the central zone for visitors without a cart. Walking between animal areas is not realistic on the hilly roads.
- Is Khao Kheow Open Zoo good in the rainy season?
- Yes. From May to October the hills are green, the animals are more active in the cooler air and showers usually pass within an hour. Golf carts have roofs but open sides, so carry a light rain jacket, and expect the bird show to be cancelled in heavy rain. Mosquitoes are more numerous: use repellent.
