I visited the zoo on the weekend and it was so much fun! It wasn't my first time being there but what made the whole difference this time was that I visited it with a group of friends.
We got there in the afternoon and our visit only started after the heavy rain stopped. I will advise you to go with an umbrella during the rainy season because the umbrellas provided on the public seats couldn't protect us from the rain. The umbrella wasn't big enough to reach the seats.
After taking refuge from the rain under the shelter of one of the offices (which we were lucky to be standing near when the rain started) our self-guided visit of the zoo began.
I was excited because of two reasons; I was going to blog about my visit and secondly, there was a new animal in the zoo.
The Animals
I was so happy to see a new animal was added to the zoo. It is a beautiful parrot that reminds me so much of the cartoon Rio!
There wasn't any detailed information provided about the bird yet. It's a very beautiful bird. So nice to see and I love the bright red, the blue and the yellow feathers it has plus its long tail. On my classification, it has become the most beautiful animal of the zoo, taking the Mandril to the second position.
Other animals in the zoo include lions, various species of monkeys, birds, tortoise, crocodile, snakes etc.
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| The Mandril |
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| The Olive Monkey |
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| The African Parrot |
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| The Red River Hog |
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| The Nile Crocodile |
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| The African Lion |
These are not all of the animals of the zoo. There are many others but it wasn't a sunny day so the cages were quite dark and the pictures were not good as well.
There are also a few highlighted plant species. The pictures I took of the plants weren't bright enough as well so I'll just give some of their common names; Bubinga, Ylang, Azobe, etc.
Facilities & Services
The entry fee is as follows:
- 500frs for Cameroonians,
- 1000frs for Residents,
- 2000frs for Tourists,
To take pictures:
Cameroonians;
- 1000frs for Phones,
- 2000frs for Cameras.
- These prices go up to 10000frs for residents and tourists who want to take pictures in the zoo.
- We were at least ten of us in the group and we were allowed to use just two phones to take pictures and we paid 1000frs for that.
- A visit with a tourist guide comes with an extra fee of 500frs. You don't necessarily need one in my opinion because the names and details of the animals are written on a board in French and English. These boards are found around the cages.
- Access to the children's playground is 1000frs per child.
- There are seats in the open air between the cages where you can sit alone or with your loved ones.
- There is also a restaurant and a swimming pool which is being renewed. Access to the pool is 1000frs per person and there is a shallow pool for kids to swim.
- Access to the taxonomy centre is 200frs per person. There are animals and their parts that have been preserved by a technique of drying them. This technique keeps the animal in the same form or shapes like it's still alive. It also preserves some parts like the bones and skulls of animals for a very long time. I didn't go in to visit the taxonomy centre this time guys so I have no pictures.
- If you come with your car you may have to park it out of the zoo. There are also toilets which the visitors can use.
* In my opinion, the place is improving a little because the restaurant is now functioning, the toilets have been renewed, the swimming pool is also going operational as well. The last time I visited before now all these facilities were not working and all that there was to it was only the animals.
There has also been some repainting of the walls and now both of the entrances are functioning as opposed to before when people were allowed to use just the main entrance. This was usually annoying because the main entrance is far from the main road and most public transporters will not go inside except you pay them extra.
- Access to the taxonomy centre is 200frs per person. There are animals and their parts that have been preserved by a technique of drying them. This technique keeps the animal in the same form or shapes like it's still alive. It also preserves some parts like the bones and skulls of animals for a very long time. I didn't go in to visit the taxonomy centre this time guys so I have no pictures.
- If you come with your car you may have to park it out of the zoo. There are also toilets which the visitors can use.
* In my opinion, the place is improving a little because the restaurant is now functioning, the toilets have been renewed, the swimming pool is also going operational as well. The last time I visited before now all these facilities were not working and all that there was to it was only the animals.
There has also been some repainting of the walls and now both of the entrances are functioning as opposed to before when people were allowed to use just the main entrance. This was usually annoying because the main entrance is far from the main road and most public transporters will not go inside except you pay them extra.
The Ambiance
The environment is calm and natural. It's fun to watch the kids play and to see families parents bond with their kids on the playground. The monkeys are fun to watch too.
The baby monkeys sometimes come out of their cages and it's interesting to look at them closer. They even follow people around which scares some visitors.
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| This Monkey had us running when it suddenly jumped on this board we were reading. |
My recommendations if you want to visit The Mvog-Betsi Zoo:
- Like I said before, take an umbrella if you are visiting in the rainy season. The weather can suddenly change in Yaoundé.
- Wear long trousers and shirts to avoid mosquitoes and itches from the grass around some of the cages.
- It's a fun outing for a group. Like I mentioned this is my third or fourth time being there but it's my first time being there in a group and it was so much fun. It's easy to organise and really affordable.
- There's a restaurant but you can take your own food along. Like we did. We had our own snacks prepared that we brought along.
- Apparently, the zoo has to be completely rehabilitated by 2019. I guess this is against the 2019 African Nation's Cup to be organised in Cameroon. I hope that after this the place will be well maintained and that we will not have to wait to host another sports competition to renew it.
I hope to visit again and do another review after the renovation is done. While waiting for that I'll say it's still an interesting place to visit.
If you are in Yaoundé and you want to escape the urban life for a moment or you want to get in touch with nature without travelling to a far place then you should visit The Mvog-Betsi Zoo. It's the perfect place for family, lovers and friends to spend quality time together.
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