They're watching you too: When to Visit Moscow Zoo
Each season at Moscow Zoo, both on site and via live streams, offers its own unforgettable moments with animals from around the world.
Moscow Zoo is fascinating in every season, whether you’re visiting in person or watching its residents online via live streams. From playful winter pandas to summer elephant baths and autumn prowls of the Pallas’s cat, each season reveals a different side of the animals’ lives. Here's when and whom to watch for the most memorable moments.
Winter
Giant Pandas
Watching a panda tumble in the snow is pure winter joy, and it's almost impossible not to smile. Native to China’s Sichuan province, giant pandas feel perfectly at home in Moscow’s winter climate. They happily play in the snow and can also be observed indoors, where they eat, nap, and play with enrichment toys — a cosy and charming winter watch.
Orangutans
These great apes spend most of the year indoors, where they actively explore objects provided by zookeepers and interact within their family groups. Viewers can observe their parenting style, playful behaviour, and the daily dynamics between adults and youngsters. At times, they feel uncannily human: thoughtful, curious, and quietly funny in their interactions.
Meerkats
During the colder months, these energetic and sociable predators move to a warm indoor enclosure under artificial sunlight. Their expressions, constant chatter, and strict “office politics” make them endlessly entertaining to watch.
Spring
Honey Badgers
Fearless and charismatic, honey badgers Neo and Trinity live as a pair and are often seen either energetically exploring their enclosure or curled up together fast asleep. From autumn to late spring, they stay indoors, where visitors can also watch veterinary training sessions.
Gorillas
Spring is a wonderful time to watch the zoo’s close-knit gorilla family indoors. With a young member under one year old, the group is especially lively: swinging on ropes, playing together, and enjoying fresh fruit and vegetables. Powerful yet gentle, their family interactions are heart-melting and surprisingly tender.
Summer
Pygmy Hippopotamus
Every year fans eagerly await the moment when Ksyusha the pygmy hippo moves to her outdoor enclosure. There, she grazes on fresh grass and cools off in an open-air pool, a seasonal change many Muscovites associate with the true start of summer.
Asian Elephants
Summer is a peak season for elephant watching. The animals spend long hours outdoors, bathing in their deep pool, rolling in sand, and interacting with one another — a powerful and mesmerising sight best enjoyed in warm weather.
Capybaras
Watching the world’s largest rodents splash in water is a summer delight. With access to a sunny lawn and pool, capybaras alternate between swimming and relaxing in the sun. Training sessions also take place here, helping them stay calm during veterinary care.
Autumn
Llamas, Vicunas & Guanacos
Unlike their capybara neighbours, these South American animals reside outside year-round. In autumn, surrounded by colourful foliage, they look especially striking as they calmly chew treats or race across a meadow.
East Siberian
Lynxes
Autumn suits these elegant cats perfectly. Their reddish coats, piercing amber eyes, and tufted ears blend beautifully with seasonal colours. With less sun for lounging, lynxes are more active, making them easier to catch at play.
Pallas’s Cat (Manul)
Autumn marks the golden season for Timofey, the symbol of Moscow Zoo. He becomes more active, walks for long stretches, and prepares for winter by gaining weight and growing a thicker coat, becoming impressively round and fluffy by the season’s peak.
While live streams are a great way to observe the animals year-round, visiting Moscow Zoo in person offers even more — spacious enclosures, unexpected encounters, and moments you can only experience on site.
Opening hours: from 7:30 to 21:00
Ticket offices are open from 7:30 to 20:00
Address: Moscow, Bolshaya Gruzinskaya St., 1