The Rotterdam Zoo moved to its new location in the Blijdorp district prior to the bombing of Rotterdam in World War II, which destroyed most of the city centre.
The original zoo had been heavily damaged in a bombing two days prior to the Blitz, but it had not been touched by the main bombardment on May 14, 1940.
Some streetnames, such as Diergaardesingel (‘Zoo Lane’), still recall the old zoo.
The new zoo at Blijdorp was rebuilt slightly to the north, where it opened to the public in its current location on December 7, 1940.
The new zoo was designed by Dutch architect Sybold van Ravesteyn, who designed the central railway station of Rotterdam as well.
In 2001, Blijdorp became almost twice as large when it opened a new western part, which includes the Oceanium aquarium.
In 2007, the zoo was declared a rijksmonument.

In May 2007 the zoo appeared in the news when Bokito, Blijdorp's silverback gorilla, escaped from his enclosure and seriously injured a female visitor.
Before the attack, the woman was a regular visitor of the zoo (on average 4 times per week) and claimed to have a special bond with Bokito, regularly touching the glass between her and the gorilla, making eye contact with him and smiling at him.

In October 2010, the city of Rotterdam decided to reduce its yearly funding of Blijdorp from nearly 4.5 to about 0.8 million euro until 2015.
The zoo and its supporters protested the decision, claiming it is unclear if the zoo can continue to operate with the reduced budget.

In March 2014, the zoo made headlines when a giraffe licked a former zoo cleaner whose last wish was to revisit the zoo, as he was dying of terminal brain cancer.
The video went viral worldwide quickly.
The Rotterdam Zoo moved to its new location in the Blijdorp district prior to the bombing of Rotterdam in World War II, which destroyed most of the city centre. The original zoo had been heavily damaged in a bombing two days prior to the Blitz, but it had not been touched by the main bombardment on May 14, 1940. Some streetnames, such as Diergaardesingel (‘Zoo Lane’), still recall the old zoo. The new zoo at Blijdorp was rebuilt slightly to the north, where it opened to the public in its current location on December 7, 1940. The new zoo was designed by Dutch architect Sybold van Ravesteyn, who designed the central railway station of Rotterdam as well. In 2001, Blijdorp became almost twice as large when it opened a new western part, which includes the Oceanium aquarium. In 2007, the zoo was declared a rijksmonument.
In May 2007 the zoo appeared in the news when Bokito, Blijdorp's silverback gorilla, escaped from his enclosure and seriously injured a female visitor. Before the attack, the woman was a regular visitor of the zoo (on average 4 times per week) and claimed to have a special bond with Bokito, regularly touching the glass between her and the gorilla, making eye contact with him and smiling at him.
In October 2010, the city of Rotterdam decided to reduce its yearly funding of Blijdorp from nearly 4.5 to about 0.8 million euro until 2015. The zoo and its supporters protested the decision, claiming it is unclear if the zoo can continue to operate with the reduced budget.
In March 2014, the zoo made headlines when a giraffe licked a former zoo cleaner whose last wish was to revisit the zoo, as he was dying of terminal brain cancer. The video went viral worldwide quickly.
Diergaarde Blijdorp