Venue
Riehler Straße 173, 50735 Köln, Germany
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China Lights at Cologne Zoo guide
Giant lanterns after dark at the zoo.
In short
Families can walk China Lights at Cologne Zoo from 11 December 2026 to 31 January 2027, open every evening from 17:30 for its seventh edition, themed Reise um die Welt. Illuminated figures, landmarks and interactive pieces line the paths, with recent themes touching on endangered species. The whole route is an evening walk outdoors.
Each winter, once the animals have settled for the night, Cologne's zoo hands its paths over to China Lights, a trail of giant illuminated figures made in an Asian lantern style. Families walk the grounds after dark among glowing creatures, landmarks and interactive pieces, and the theme changes completely from one season to the next.
More than half a million people came to its first six editions. The figures are big, bright and often playful, but the zoo also uses them to say something: recent shows have dwelt on extinct and endangered animals and the loss of species.
It works on two levels. Small children get giant animals and sculptures that react when touched. Adults get an unhurried evening walk through familiar zoo grounds, seen in a way they never are by day.
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Key Facts & Stats:
Ends: Sunday, 31 January 2027
Where: Cologne, Germany
Venue: Kölner Zoo
Held: Every year
Type of event: Leisure Events, Arts Festivals, Winter Festivals
Currency: Euro (EUR, €)
Time zone: Central European Time, UTC+1 (UTC+2 in summer)
Language: German
Map
Getting around
Hotels near the venue fill up around the event dates.
Rules on handcarts and dogs
- Bring a pram or a pull-along handcart if you like, but a Bollerwagen must carry its own lights so other visitors can see it on the darker paths.
- Dogs are not admitted. Assistance dogs are welcome, but announce the visit to the zoo in advance and make sure the dog is clearly marked.
- The animal houses, the aquarium and the side entrance are all closed during the evening event, so use the main gate on Riehler Straße and do not plan on seeing animals indoors.
- Hold on to small children in the crowds near the photo spots, where people stop suddenly.
Wheelchair loans and accessible routes
The zoo has wide paths, ramps and accessible toilets, and wheelchairs are lent free at the main entrance. Reserve one well ahead by phone; single chairs are handed out against a deposit and only when an adult without walking difficulties accompanies the user.
Visitors with disabilities pay the normal price, but a companion travels free if the disability card carries a B, provided the companion is at least 13. Expect a few harder stretches, including a steep slope in the elephant park, and allow extra time to get round.
Warm clothing for two hours outdoors
You will be outside for two hours or more on a winter night beside the Rhine, often moving slowly behind other visitors. Dress as if for a long winter walk: thermal layers, a hat, gloves and waterproof boots.
Charge your phone before you go, as the photo spots and interactive stations add up. Carry some money for the food stands run by the zoo's catering team, and keep a thermos in the bag if you have small children who flag between stops.
What happens on the day
- 17:00
The zoo closes to day visitors
Day guests leave just as the evening queue forms outside.
- 17:30
The lanterns switch on
The first half hour is the busiest at the gate.
- From 18:15
The best time to arrive
The zoo's own advice, especially on weekends. The opening queue has eased and there is still time for the full loop.
- About 2½ hours
The walk
The route goes continent by continent, from a 10 m Eiffel Tower at the entrance to Uluru and the Sydney Opera House.
- 20:30
Last entry
Ticket sales and admission stop.
- 21:00
Lights out
The trail closes for the night.
Choosing between dated, flex and combi tickets
Sort the ticket first, because the type you buy shapes the whole evening. The cheapest option is the dated ticket, from 22 euros for adults and 12 euros for children aged 4 to 12, with under-3s free. It ties you to one evening and is sold in a limited quota. The flex ticket costs 28 and 15 euros and works on any evening of the run, a sensible buy if the weather or a toddler might change your plans. Families who want the animals by day as well can take the combi ticket, 46 euros for adults and 22 for children, but it is sold only at the zoo box office and only until 16:30 on the day. Presale is already open, and booking early gets the lowest prices.
The 2026 to 2027 theme and the zoo's history
Each winter brings a new theme, and 2026/27 is called Reise um die Welt, a journey around the world. The route is laid out continent by continent. A 10 m Eiffel Tower greets you at the start, and further in you pass glowing versions of the Taj Mahal, the Forbidden City and the pyramids of Giza, then Rio's Christ the Redeemer, New York's Statue of Liberty, Uluru and the Sydney Opera House. A herd of oversized giraffes fills a new enclosure. Altogether there are 64 light ensembles made of more than 1,000 individual figures, lit by over 4,000 LEDs and 15,000 m of light strings.
The shows have a point beyond the photographs. The previous season filled the paths with extinct and threatened creatures, from dodos to sabre-toothed tigers, and the zoo's chairman Theo B. Pagel framed it as a nudge about species loss. That edition closed the zoo's 165th anniversary year. The Kölner Zoo was founded in 1860 by a company of Cologne citizens, with Heinrich Bodinus as its first director, and it now covers about 20 hectares in the Riehl district.
Children get plenty to do. They can follow a zodiac trail, play memory with bees, chat to a parrot that talks back and test their reflexes on a sunflower game, while some sculptures react to a hand placed on them. The previous six editions drew more than half a million visitors between them.
Getting there
Flying in
From Cologne Bonn Airport, take the S19 or RE6 to Köln Hauptbahnhof; the S19 runs every 20 minutes on weekdays. From Düsseldorf Airport, the RE1, RE5 and RE6 run to the Hauptbahnhof and Deutz. Germany is in the Schengen area, so check entry rules for your passport.
By Stadtbahn
Line 18 runs from the Hauptbahnhof to Zoo/Flora, a short walk from the entrance. Bus 140 from Ebertplatz stops there too.
Tickets for the ride
A KVB 24-hour ticket costs 9.20 euros, or 18.60 euros for up to five people together. Validate paper tickets on the platform before boarding.
Not the cable car
The Rheinseilbahn across the river only runs from April to October.
Where to stay during the festival
The Altstadt between the cathedral and the Rhine is the easiest base: line 18 starts its run north to the zoo at the Hauptbahnhof.
Deutz, on the east bank, has its own mainline station and is the other handy choice, especially if you are arriving by train from elsewhere in Germany.
Weather and what to pack
Cologne in December and January is cold, grey and damp. Average highs are about 6.5°C in December and 6°C in January, with lows around freezing, and roughly 60 to 70 mm of rain or sleet spread over 17 to 19 days each month (Cologne Bonn Airport, 1991-2020 normals).
Two and a half hours outdoors after dark feels colder than the figures suggest.
Worth packing
- A warm, waterproof coat
- Hat, scarf and gloves
- Waterproof shoes for wet paths
- A thermos of something hot for children
- A fully charged phone for photos in the dark
Car hire in Cologne
Airport transfer to China Lights at Cologne Zoo
Met at arrivals at Frankfurt Airport (FRA) and driven door to door to Kölner Zoo.
- Frankfurt Airport (FRA) → Kölner Zoo
- 183 km · 2 hr 10 min
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Need help?
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Booking
This winter brings the seventh edition. The six earlier seasons together pulled in more than half a million visitors, and each one has had its own theme and newly built figures.
Only if the evening is not sold out. The box office sells remaining capacity on the night and stops at 20:30, so buying online in advance is the safer choice.
Sixty-four ensembles made up of more than 1,000 individual figures, spread over the zoo's 20 hectares and lit by over 4,000 LEDs.
General
Yes. The zoo's own catering keeps serving food and drink through the evening event, and the Zoo Shop runs activities at the photo points for anyone who wants a souvenir.
Not indoors. The animal houses and the aquarium shut for the evening event. Visit by day, or take the combined day-and-evening ticket from the zoo box office.
Largely. The main paths are wide with ramps, and free wheelchairs are available at the entrance if booked ahead. A steep section in the elephant park is the main obstacle.
Timing & weather
The 2025/26 show opened with glowing insects, amphibians and reptiles, then led to a snowy plateau of bears and mammoths and a jungle full of birds and monkeys, before a section on extinct species.
What's included
The dated online ticket can serve as a VRS transport ticket once personalised and printed, though the zoo's wording is not entirely consistent, so check when you book. The flex ticket does not include travel.
Families & accessibility
Around 18:15. The opening rush at 17:30 has passed by then, and you still have time for the full two-and-a-half-hour loop before the zoo closes at 21:00.
Prices & payment
Yes. Zoo annual pass holders and members of the Förderverein, the zoo's friends' association, can buy reduced flex tickets online or at the evening box office.
Getting there
There is a multi-storey car park at the zoo and more space under the Zoobrücke, but both are limited and fill up on weekends. Line 18 from the Hauptbahnhof is quicker on busy nights.