Zoos in Tenerife: Loro Parque, Jungle Park and Monkey Park compared

8 July 2026

Is there a zoo in Tenerife?

Yes, three of them, and none is actually called "Tenerife Zoo". That confuses a lot of visitors who search for one big zoo and find three different parks in different corners of the island:

Loro Parque in Puerto de la Cruz, in the north. The big one, and the one most people mean.
Jungle Park in Chayofa, in the south near Los Cristianos. An animal park set in a botanical garden.
Monkey Park on the outskirts of Los Cristianos. A small, family-run primate zoo.

If you are staying in the south, note the distances before you decide. Loro Parque is about an hour away by road, while Jungle Park and Monkey Park are ten minutes from Los Cristianos.

The three parks at a glance

Loro Parque: the heavyweight

Loro Parque is one of the most visited attractions in the Canary Islands and has been rated among the world's best zoos on Tripadvisor. It started in 1972 as a parrot park, and its parrot collection is still the largest in the world, but today the headliners are the orcas, the dolphins, the sea lions and the penguin house with its iceberg and real snow.

Plan a full day. The park sits in Puerto de la Cruz, in the north of the island, so from the southern resorts you are looking at roughly an hour each way. Our tickets skip the ticket-office queue, stay valid for any day within 6 months, and the park opens 09:30 to 17:30 every day of the year.

Two ways to save if you plan more park days:

The Twin Ticket combines Loro Parque with Siam Park from 78€, cheaper than the two entries bought separately.
Both parks belong to the same family. If you have children who want slides AND animals, the combination covers the whole holiday.

Jungle Park: birds of prey in a real jungle

Jungle Park is a different kind of day. The park is carved into a hillside in Chayofa, ten minutes from Los Cristianos, and you walk through dense botanical gardens with bridges, tunnels and caves between the animal areas. Lions, penguins, crocodiles, lemurs and one of Europe's notable birds-of-prey collections, with free-flight displays where eagles and vultures pass close over your head.

It is smaller than Loro Parque and much closer if you stay in the south. Entry is from 35€ with a free shuttle from the southern resorts, and it opens 10:00 to 17:30 daily. There is also a 2-park combo with Aqualand from 51€ if you want to pair it with a water park day.

Monkey Park: small, cheap and hands-on

Monkey Park is the one many families end up loving most, precisely because it is not big. It is a small primate zoo on the edge of Los Cristianos where you can buy approved food at the entrance and feed some of the animals yourself. Lemurs and squirrel monkeys come close enough to touch, which for a small child beats watching an orca from row 40.

We do not sell tickets for it, and you will not need any: entry is 10€ for adults and 5€ for children from 5 to 12, with under-fives free, paid at the gate (official site). It opens 09:30 to 16:00 every day of the year. Count on about an hour and a half, which pairs well with a beach afternoon in Los Cristianos.

Which one should you pick?

One zoo day, doing it properly: Loro Parque. It is the reason "zoo Tenerife" is worth searching at all.
Staying in the south with limited time: Jungle Park. Ninety percent of the animal-park experience, ten minutes from your hotel.
Toddlers and small kids: Monkey Park first. Cheap, close contact, short. Add Jungle Park if they want more.
Animals plus water parks: the Twin Ticket (Siam Park + Loro Parque) or the Aqualand + Jungle Park combo.

One more thing worth knowing: the biggest animal experience in Tenerife is not in a park at all. A resident colony of pilot whales lives a few kilometres off the south coast, and boats go out to see them every day. If that sounds better than enclosures, read our guide to whale watching in Tenerife.

Frequently asked questions

Is there a zoo in south Tenerife?

Two: Jungle Park in Chayofa and Monkey Park in Los Cristianos, both about ten minutes from the Los Cristianos and Las Américas resorts. The island's biggest zoo, Loro Parque, is in the north in Puerto de la Cruz.

How much does Monkey Park Tenerife cost?

Adults pay 10€ and children from 5 to 12 pay 5€ at the gate; children under 5 enter free. It opens 09:30 to 16:00 every day of the year.

Is Loro Parque worth it from the south of Tenerife?

Yes, if you treat it as a full day out. The drive takes about an hour each way, and the park is large enough to fill the hours between: orcas, dolphins, penguins, sea lions and the world's largest parrot collection. Tickets are open-dated for 6 months, so a rainy-forecast day is easy to reshuffle.

What is the difference between Jungle Park and Loro Parque?

Size, setting and stars. Loro Parque is the big international zoo with marine mammals and a full day of shows. Jungle Park is half the size, built into a jungle-like botanical hillside in the south, and its signature is the free-flight birds-of-prey display. If you are based in the south and short on time, Jungle Park wins on convenience; for the complete zoo experience, Loro Parque.

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