Park regulations

Park regulations Planckendael ZOO

Dear visitor,

We wish you a warm welcome to our park. Our employees will ensure that you have a pleasant day and can fully enjoy our animals and the garden.

In everything that the VZW KMDA does, it wants to show respect for people, the environment and society.

In order to guarantee your safety and that of our animals, and to ensure that all visitors to ZOO Planckendael can enjoy a pleasant stay, there are some rules as set out in these regulations.

By entering this park, you unconditionally accept these park regulations.

General

  • Our animals are wild animals. Therefore respect borders, barriers, canals, fencing, glass areas, etc. You may only use publicly accessible paths. An exception to this is a guided visit behind the scenes led by a staff member or guide whose instructions you must carefully follow in that case.
  • If you wish to submit a complaint about your visit, you can contact the reception where you can fill in and submit a complaint form.
  • Any undesirable behavior towards the animals, visitors or employees of Planckendael ZOO will not be tolerated. This can lead to removal from the park without reimbursement of any costs.

Admission to the park

  • You must be in possession of a valid admission ticket during your entire visit to our park. You can be requested to provide this at any time at the simple request of a staff member. This admission ticket is only valid during the opening hours of the park, which are indicated at the main entrance.
  • The admission ticket loses its validity upon leaving the park. If you have a good reason to leave and re-enter the park, please report this to our reception staff in advance. If you have a valid reason for this, they will provide you with a valid stamp to allow you to re-enter the park.
  • The management reserves the right to close the park or partially restrict access to the park, if there is a good reason to do so, such as: renovation works, a situation that endangers the safety of visitors or animals. Such a measure does not give rise to a refund of the admission ticket, neither in whole nor in part.
  • All parents and supervisors of children and / or groups remain responsible for those they have in their care and this during the entire visit, also during guided walks with guides.
  • Children under the age of 16 must be accompanied at all times. Without supervision, they will be refused entry to the park.
  • Our reception staff has the right to refuse access to people:
    • who are in possession of weapons, dangerous objects, alcohol, drugs etc.;
    • who have already been found in the past in one of our parks or in the vicinity of it in possession of weapons, dangerous objects, alcohol, drugs, ...;
    • whose conduct is suspicious or raises suspicion of being involved in drug trafficking;
    • who are under the influence of alcohol and/or drugs;
    • that cause difficulties;
    • who have already caused difficulties in the past;
    • who refuse to submit to these house rules.
    • If such persons are already in the park, they will be removed without refund of the entrance ticket. If the situation requires, the police will be notified.
  • Smoking is prohibited in the park. Smoking is only allowed in the designated smoking areas.

Safety

  • For security reasons, there are several cameras in the park and in the parking lot. The images are only used for the purposes provided for in the Camera Act. You can mail all questions about this to camera@kmda.org.
  • The regulations posted in the park, such as eg. no access, route indications, warnings, age limits, maximum number of visitors, etc. must always be observed.
  • To guarantee the safety of you and our animals, it is strictly forbidden to cross physical boundaries (fences, canals, etc.). It is also strictly forbidden to put hands, fingers, sticks or other objects through bars or fences or to throw objects into animal enclosures.
  • It goes without saying that weapons or dangerous objects are not allowed in the park. The police will be contacted when this occurs.
  • It is strictly forbidden to feed the animals in the park. They are fed balanced diets, so any other form of food can harm the animals.
  • It is forbidden to pet the animals.
  • Pets are not allowed in the park. Nor does the park provide shelter for your pets during your visit.
  • Guide dogs for the blind and assistance dogs may enter under the supervision of their owner, provided they have official certification (passport). Please report this to our reception staff upon arrival and follow their instructions carefully. They may ask you not to enter certain buildings in order to avoid shock reactions in our animals.
  • To make the park as safe as possible for every visitor, bicycles, roller skates, rollerblades, skateboards, etc. are not allowed. Only children's bicycles with support wheels, balance bikes and scooters for children up to six years old, strollers, wheelchairs, walkers are an exception. However, scooters for children are not allowed in the buildings. Motorized vehicles are prohibited unless permission has been obtained from the management. The speed in our parks is limited to 5 km/h.
  • To avoid inconvenience to visitors and animals, radios and other sound equipment may not be used.
  • Any undesirable behavior towards animals, visitors or employees of the ZOO will not be tolerated. In view of their animal welfare, we expect that visitors themselves do not make any contact (including eye contact) with our animals. Animals that seek contact (or eye contact) on their own should be ignored. Undesirable behavior can lead to removal from the park without reimbursement of costs, cancellation of the subscription and an access ban to ZOO Antwerp and ZOO Planckendael.
  • Swimming or bathing in the ponds or water features is prohibited. Only in certain play zones paddling is allowed under certain conditions. These zones and the applicable regulations are posted on site.

Clothing

Hospitality

  • You must wear appropriate clothing so that you do not disturb other visitors.
  • In order to avoid fright reactions in animals, visitors are forbidden to enter the park in dress-up costumes (carnival clothes, animal suits ...). Only certain persons working in the park on behalf of the VZW KMDA are authorized to do so.
  • The Law of 1 June 2011 (B.S. 13.07.2011) “establishing a ban on the wearing of clothing that completely or largely conceals the face” applies and must be complied with. In case of non-compliance with these rules, you will be denied access to the park or asked to leave the park, without reimbursement of costs.
  • In our toilet areas there are facilities for changing babies. Please use them correctly.
  • There is a smoking ban in all our catering areas.
  • Picnics are allowed on all seats (indoor and outdoor) in the park. Visitors are responsible for leaving the picnic area tidy. They take all waste with them, or deposit it in the garbage bins that are present in the park. Picnics are allowed inside the restaurants and on the terraces of the restaurants, subject to the purchase of 1 mandatory consumption per person. A responsible employee may deviate from these regulations if deemed necessary.
  • For food safety reasons, it is forbidden for visitors to bring their own food into the areas where we prepare food.
  • Unauthorized persons are not allowed in our kitchens and storage areas.

Recordings

Sales, propaganda, etc.

  • You may take photographs, film and make sound recordings in the park as long as this is for your own use. However, this should never cause any nuisance to other visitors. It should also be taken into account that not everyone wants to be photographed.
  • Taking photos and recordings for professional and / or commercial use is only permitted after written permission from ZOO Planckendael's communications department.
  • During your visit to ZOO Planckendael there is a chance that you will be filmed or photographed. The photos and video images on our websites, social media and in our publications were taken during regular opening hours. Do you see our cameraman or our photographer taking pictures of you or your family and would you prefer not to be included? Then let the cameraman or photographer know on the spot. The photos taken or the film material in which you appear will be immediately deleted. You can submit further objections to the use of certain photos or video images via privacy@kmda.org with the best possible description of the images in question and where you encountered them. The KMDA will take the necessary action as soon as possible after receipt of the withdrawal or objection.
  • It is prohibited to distribute or post printed matter and to conduct opinion polls without the prior written permission of the management.
  • It is prohibited to hold meetings and / or speeches, conduct propaganda, collect funds, advertise, hand out, exchange or sell objects in the parks without prior written permission from the management.

Parking

  • If you use our parking as a visitor, this is done at your own risk and you must act as if the regulations of the Highway Code apply, out of caution.
  • Without being exhaustive, you should in any case:
    • Respect a maximum speed of 15 km/h
    • Park your car in the designated places
    • Remove valuables from your vehicle
    • Respect the indicated traffic guidance if present.
  • The VZW KMDA can under no circumstances be held liable for accidents in the car park or for theft of objects from your car or damage caused to your car.

Claims

  • In the event that the VZW KMDA is liable for certain damage towards visitors, the compensation to which it is obliged can never exceed the maximum amount of 2.500 EUR.
  • The VZW KMDA cannot under any circumstances be held liable for damage caused to visitors by third parties, not even within the park.