Oldest Zoo in Malaysia Review

So one of the days when we cross over to JB for a friend's wedding, Y wanted to do something different apart from the usual shopping and cafe hopping, as he came across this zoo as one of the listed JB attraction. Though the sky was gloomy, Y and I took a trip down to the zoo for a little peek. 

JB Zoo is located just behind the streets of cafe that we usually patronize. We took a bus down from where our friend's wedding was and alight in the middle of the streets where we walked a fair bit into the entrance of the zoo. 

Although reviews in the various websites scored this zoo as 1 out of 5, we were greeted by so many local families queuing up to pay for the entrance fee. And guess what, 

The entrance fee was only 2RM!! 

Johor zoo is perhaps one of the oldest zoo in Malaysia, opened in 1928 by Sultan Ibrahim.  There were more than 100 species of animals living in this 12.5 ha sized zoo. Although this zoo was not highly marketed for tourists, it was highly catered for the locals there. 

More than just speculating, there are also simple activities spread out for the patrons, ranging from photo taking to animal feeding, and also pony riding for the children. 

The children were filled with excitement as they dash across the pavement, pulling the hands of their parents towards the direction where they wanted to go to. 

But because safety was highly compromised in this place, we get have a really close up contact with the animals. As we stroll past enclosures after enclosures, the animals were all mingling in close views of the patrons. This experience was totally different from my experience in the Singapore Zoological Gardens as we could only catch a glimpse of the animals there in a bird's eye view. 

Here are some of the animals in a really close up view: 

Enclosures for the lions, tigers and bears. 

As run down as it seems, this was perhaps one of the reason why it was only rated 1/5. The living conditions of the animals were really sad as they were poorly maintained. Rusty gates, wilted grass and muddy grounds were homes to these animals. It looked more like an animal shelter, a place where the animals sought refuge. I went to do a research about this zoo and found out that it was even being labelled as the "most dangerous zoo in Malaysia"! But I guess it will not be so bad if you protect your kids well and don't tryna act to some weird stunt for your social media, it is still in a safe proximity. 

However, if you want to catch this rare opportunity to have close contact with the animals, yet with a safe proximity, do drop by Johor Zoo after your cafe hopping and do something different with your friends and family! 

Address: Jalan Gertak Merah, Taman Istana, 80000 Johor Bahru, Johor, Malaysia

Things to bring: umbrella, shades and lots of insect repellent