ZOOM Erlebniswelt Booms

Nearly four months after opening the ZOOM Erlebniswelt Afrika (African adventure world), visitor feedback has been overwhelming according to the operator: three-quarter of a million guests have already travelled to “Africa in Gelsenkirchen”. Visitor feedback on the newly designed zoological adventure world has significantly outdone all expectations. Whereas around 520,000 people came to ZOOM throughout 2005, this year’s figure of 750,000 corresponds to a growth rate of exactly half a million visitors compared to 2004 (the old Gelsenkirchen Zoo had a quarter of a million visitors p.a.). Plans for the Asian adventure world are already underway and will complement Germany’s most comprehensive redesign project with an investment volume of 86 million euros, presumably by 2008. After completion of construction, ZOOM Erlebniswelt expects one million visitors a year. (eap)