Granby Zoo in Granby, Quebec
During the last couple of years the topic of visiting Quebec was coming up several times in our discussions. Finally in May 2017 we booked a hotel and planned out the itinerary that would include some of the places that we thought would be interesting for everyone in the family.
The main destination was Quebec City and its beautiful downtown was so well preserved and such a distinct French heritage. We spent most of our time just strolling the streets, window shopping and watching the street performers who really amazed us with their skills – fire jugglers, drama characters and musicians…
One of the destinations that excited our kids most was the Granby Zoo, which is about 3 hours drive from the downtown Quebec, and about an hour from Montreal. We were welcomed in the nice reception hall, got our tickets and went to explore the animal world.
Granby Zoo Entrance, Quebec
Right as we entered there was a gigantic size dinosaur’s head and a line up of kids willing to climb inside of it! No matter how big or small – they were very about the opportunity to see the real size dinosaurs! And there 21 of them right in front of you, so be very careful – but don’t try to feed or pat these creatures!
DinoFUN at DINOZoo
Enough of the dinosaurs – the kids forgot about dinosaurs right at the sight of the farm animals. And there were lots of them – pigs, sheep, and goats – so friendly and ready to make friends!
Granby Zoo, Quebec
Granby Zoo, Quebec
Granby Zoo, Quebec
Children are enjoying time at the Granby Zoo. Petting a piglet
After some hugs exchange with farm inhabitants we decided to go see some of the exotic creatures on display.
Aquarium,Granby Zoo, Quebec
Up close encounter with tropical fish via aquarium glass
Watching the turtles in Granby Zoo
Granby Zoo Aquarium
Petting stingrays at Granby Zoo
Oceania seemed to be a good place to start – first the stingrays and the variety of tropical fish and then all way around the Australian continent to see black swans, parrots, emus, and kangaroos. Stingrays seem to be attracted to the hand emerged in the water – some of them will come and allow us to gently touch their backs…
The Kangaroos were too busy to discuss any matters of their life, so the visit to the Oceania Garden was quite interesting as it is extremely rare you get to see kangaroos that close and with no fence!.
Granby Zoo, Quebec
Granby Zoo, Quebec
Australian Pavillion, Granby Zoo, Quebec
We entered the aviary and right away we were surrounded by many colorful parrots! For $1 you can buy a special nectar – just hold the cup tight and they will sit on your hand and drink it!
Feeding exotic birds experience at Granby Zoo Aviary, Quebec
We spend some good time there – the parrots are so colorful and it is such a great experience to see them so close.
Colorful Exotic Birds, Granby Zoo, Quebec
Two Singing Birds, Granby Zoo, Quebec
Aviary,Granby Zoo, Quebec
Amazon, Granby Zoo, Quebec
But there was a lot see and the time was limited.
Our next destination was Africa! Who doesn’t like to observe the grace of big cats, see elephants shower using trunks, slowly moving zebras and giraffes, and the hilarious monkeys?
Big Cat resting, Granby Zoo, Quebec
Meerkat, Granby Zoo, Quebec
Zebras, Granby Zoo, Quebec
Pink Flamingoes, Granby Zoo, Quebec
Chameleon, Granby Zoo, Quebec
Our relatives, Granby Zoo, Quebec
Uncle Ted, Granby Zoo, Quebec
Philosophy Workshop teacher at Granby Zoo, Quebec
One of our major observations about Granby Zoo was the design of the areas, nice fences that imitate greenery and well maintained grounds. We later learned that Granby Zoo received an Award for the Energy Consumption Reduction Efforts project that was implemented during the renovation of 2005-2010.
The Zoo is well mapped and organized – it was no problem to find any continent or animal of interest. And yes, the zookeepers definitely speak many languages, no worries if you don’t speak French!
After Africa we had just a bit of time to make a short tour of South America. We stopped by llamas who stretched out their necks asking for treat…
Feeding Llamas, Granby Zoo, Quebec
Granby Zoo, Quebec
Llama, Granby Zoo, Quebec
it was a lot of fun to feed them some green leafs that we found on the trees around; we were impressed by the spread of the wings of the Andean Condor and spent some time waiting for the alligators to wake up from the afternoon nap; finally one of them yawned and slowly moved towards the water… at the end of the South American trail we saw a powerful jaguar, at the moment it was quite relaxed and not interested in any aggression.
Two Cats, Granby Zoo, Quebec
Granby Zoo, Quebec
On our way to South American continent we made a snack stop at “Le Marcher”. The restaurant offers a variety of foods and drinks and nice dining area; there is also a large area outside with tables under umbrellas.
Next to the Restaurant there is an Amusement Park – where kids found some free rides while we were resting our feet; there is also an Amazoo Water park that offers quite the variety of water rides, not now however… we may visit it some other time when the day will be hot enough for water fun…so long for now, the Zoo is closing and we are tired enough to get to our hotel and have some dinner.
Reviews of Granby Zoo on tripadvisor.ca