TRIP TO MC (MAHENDRA CHOUDHARY) OR CHATTBIR ZOOLOGICAL PARK, ZIRAKPUR, CHANDIGARH

Brief Introduction:

Chattbir zoo, also known by the name of Mahendra Choudhary Zoological park is a zoo in Zirakpur, Chandigarh (Punjab).

It is geographically situated in Northern India.

This park is a habitat for a vast variety of mammals, birds, and reptiles. It has an area of around 200 acres.

The main highlight of this park is Royal Bengal Tiger.

This was constructed in the year 1970 and was opened for the public in 1977. It has 369 mammals, 400 birds, and 20 reptiles.

Location

This zoo is situated in the ZIrakpur district of Punjab state near famous Chandigarh, the capital city of Punjab and Haryana in Northern India.

How to reach here?

It is well connected with Roads and you can reach here by following means:

By Air: Chandigarh International Airport is at a distance of only 20 KM from Chattbir zoo and you can reach here easily by booking a cab/taxi from the airport directly.

By Road: It is located at a distance of 20 KM from Chandigarh, 10 KM from ZIrakpur bus stand, and 40 KM from Patiala city. It is well connected with road network and a wide 4-laned National highway. You can reach here by cab/taxi/own vehicle or bus easily.

Timing of Chattbir Zoo:

Timings are from 9:00 am to 4:00 PM

Zoo remains closed on Every Monday. It also remains closed on Major National holidays such as on Independence day (15th August), Republic day (26th Jan) and Gandhi Zyanti (2nd October). So check for these kinds of holidays before your trip to zoo.

Entry Fee & Camera ticket:

Entry Ticket fee: 100 Rs/ Adult and 50 Rs/- for Child above 6 years of age

Camera ticket: 150 INR

Things to Do in Chattbir Zoo

Zoo has number of mammals, reptiles and birds. The main animals are Royal Bengal Tiger, Asian Elephant, Hippopotamus, Indian Gazelle, Sambar and Swamp deer, Asiatic lion, Emu, Jaguar, Indian Leopard, Himalayan Black Bear, Sloth Bear and many more. 

You can click the beautiful photos of these animals and also observe their activities.

You can also enjoy Lion Safari here. But it was closed when I made a visit in September 2021 due to the COVID reason.

There are bird avairies where you can spend time with colorful birds.

There is a special Dinosour park where kids can enjoy.

Best Time to visit the Chattbir Zoo.

The best time to visit this park is from November to March as the weather remains cool and pleasant. In other months, the weather remains hot and humid which is not suitable. The best time of day is the morning time as most of the animals will be active during this time.

Conclusion:

The zoo is well maintained and there is a facility of electric open cabs which would cost around 500 INR for 4 people. I booked this cab and passed through zoo on this. It took 2 hours to visit this zoo completly from end to end on cab.

The food plaza is also there to taste local food items and drinks. I enjoyed my trip to this zoo very much and clicked some beautiful pictures of animals. I spent 3 hours here. One should visit this zoo to know more about animals.