My visit in the Skandinavisk Dyrepark

27.4.2026 von Gerti Bichel, Source of information: Skandinavisk Dyrepark

Please, follow me to one of my favourite zoos: Skandinavisk Dyrepark! Although there aren’t many animal species here, they live in enormous natural enclosures—all stretching as far as the eye can see. Especially the polar bears and the brown bears.

The red fox enclosure at Skandinavisk Dyrepark was built in 1998 and covers an area of 1,040 m². The enclosure is designed to allow the foxes to behave as naturally as possible. They are able to dig their own dens and tunnels, just as they do in the wild. The enclosure features rocks, trees, and platforms, allowing the foxes to climb up high and enjoy a good view. This provides them with an exciting and varied environment where they can move freely and use their senses. At the same time, visitors get a great experience seeing how foxes live.

The first ferrets moved into the Scandinavian Wildlife Park in 1998, but in 2005 they got a brand-new enclosure. Here, they have the opportunity to dig and create their own tunnels, just as they would in the wild. The enclosure is equipped with small shelters where they can rest or seek shelter. This provides the animals with security and peace, while also giving our guests a good insight into the ferrets’ lives and behavior.

The white-tailed eagles Gandalf and Dumbledoor are also very impressive.

There are currently 8 polar bears living at Skandinavisk Dyrepark. Siku and Vicks share the huge enclosure at the front. And in the two smaller enclosures are the breeding pairs Nuno and Ivan (Boris) and Frida and Nanok. The latter were in the middle enclosure, where unfortunately you can only see them from a distance through the bars. Anori and Nivi, who were born here in December 2021, are still there, but they live in the rear enclosure, which is not visible to visitors, and are expected to move to Prague later this year.

At Skandinavisk Dyrepark, the brown bears live in a 2.5-hectare bear enclosure filled with dens, hills, trees, and plenty of water. The bear enclosure was built in 2003. As a visitor to the Brown Bear Park, you’ll experience the bears from the 250-meter-long walkway—and you’ll be right at eye level with these big bears.

You’ll easily spend a long time in the Bear Park, where you can be captivated by the bears as they splash and swim in the lake or play and climb in the trees. The brown bears are very active, and it can be very hard to tear yourself away once you’ve stepped into the bears’ world!

At the Scandinavian Wildlife Park, there are 10 brown bears divided into 2 groups. One group consists of our large males: the breeding male Brutus and the two young teenagers, Buller and Bobby.

In the other group, things are in full swing—it consists of our two breeding females, Bjørk and Barba, along with their five pups. In mid-January 2024, Bjørk and Barba gave birth to two and three cubs, respectively, which they now help each other care for. We can’t tell the cubs apart, so they go by the name “The Bear Gang.”

Bjørk and Barba are with the Bear Gang in our summer enclosure, which is visible to our guests, while the males are up in the back of our winter enclosure, where our guests unfortunately cannot see them, except when they peek in at the ladies through the fence.

The polar bear enclosure at Scandinavian Wildlife Park was built in 2005 and opened in 2006. The enclosure is among the largest and most renowned of its kind in the world. It spans a full 26,000 m² and is designed to mimic the polar bears’ natural habitats as they appear in the summer, when the sea ice has melted.

Ivan (called Boris when he was staying in Copenhagen)

The Polar Bear Park is divided into four smaller sections—two viewing enclosures and two enclosures out of sight of visitors. All enclosures feature large lakes, but the largest of these is located in the center of the main viewing enclosure. Here lies a large lake covering 5,000 m² with a depth of up to five meters, where the polar bears can swim and play. In addition, all enclosures feature hills, large rocks, and tree trunks, allowing the bears to move around physically and naturally.

Nuno

Visitors can experience the polar bears up close via a 220-meter-long walkway that winds through the large exhibit. From here, you can observe the bears at eye level and watch them swim directly beneath the walkway. The facility is highlighted by experts as one of the best in the world for polar bears, precisely because it takes the animals’ natural behavior and needs into account.

Siku and Vicks

At Scandinavian Wildlife Park, you’ll find one of the world’s largest groups of polar bears in captivity. In fact, there are a total of 8 polar bears living in the Polar Bear Park. The 8 polar bears consist of 4 males and 4 females.

Siku

In our large Polar Bear Park, we have the option to divide the 8 polar bears into several groups, and right now they are distributed across 3 of the 4 enclosures.

Vicks

In one enclosure are our 4 massive males, who together weigh roughly 2 tons. It is usually these 4 males that are seen during the daily feedings. The second group consists of 3 of our females—Nuno and her two large cubs—who are in the second enclosure, where you, as a guest, can get up close. Our last female polar bear is in the winter enclosure, which is not visible to our guests.

Vicks