The zoo is at 71 Rama V Road, next to the old Parliament building in the quiet Dusit area of Bangkok.

It was originally the botanical gardens for King Rama V, and part of the Dusit Royal Palace gardens. In 1954 the Zoological authority took it over and have been caring for it ever since.

In all there is an area of 47 acres, including 12 acres of water, making it a very attractive park to visit in the humdrum of Bangkok.

The collection of animals in the zoo features 288 mammal types with the elephant a favourtie attraction.

Its most significant collection is the Gibbon, with this being the largest collection worldwide.

Over 1,000 bird types and nearly 300 reptiles make up the statistics for this very calming part of Bangkok.

In the park there are plenty food outlets and brightly coloured foot paddle boats for hire on the lake. It all, makes for a great family day out and many Thai families spend a day there at weekends.

To get to Dusit Zoo the best way to get there is to take the BTS Skytrain to Victory Monument and then a taxi for the remaining part of the journey. The admission fee is 50 baht for adults and 10 baht for children.

Pictures of Dusit Zoo, commonly known in Thai as 'Khao Din'. The zoo is open daily from 9am - 6pm.