The local animal park was founded in 1752 by Emperor Francis Stephen of Lorraine, husband of Maria Theresa, in order to invite his noble guests, and simply to show them what his summer residence Schönbrunn could offer. Since those times a lot of time have passed so today’s zoo elegantly combines baroque menagerie with the most modern pavilions for animals. From historical events could be mentioned that in 1906 the first elephant in captivity was born here, which was a rarity as it was previously considered impossible.

The staff in Zoo Schönbrunn do their best to get customer satisfied and Zoo offers even night tours with a guide and a night vision device. Such kind of visit you have to book in advance and the maximum number of participants is 20 persons.

The Day Pass costs €14 for adult, but there are discounts for children, family, and Year Pass.

Zoo Schönbrunn is one of the best and most modern in the world. Visiting it either in day or night means you take a lot of experiences, impressions and knowledge.

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River bores or tidal waves are a rarity. There are only sixty known bores that occur around the world to date. Owing the formation of the Severn Bore to the shape of the river’s estuary, the tidal waves are able to form and flow down the river. The bore maintains an average roughly 14 knots as it makes its way down the river. People who visit the river banks during this even can hear the roar of the water as much as twenty two kilometers away from the head.

Severn Bore, UK by Audrey Hudson

In Avonmouth, the River Severn estuary is nearly 9 kilometers wide. By the time that the river reaches Sharpness, the estuary is a little more than 1.4 kilometers wide. Where the river passes Minsterworth, the estuary is less than a hundred meters in width and maintains roughly the same width until it reaches Gloucester.

People wanting to view the power of the Severn Bore, should visit the area during the spring time. Since the bore is caused by the tides, the Environment Agency is able to publish regular occurrences of the bore and its expected height.

One of the best viewing locations of the Severn Bore is on the eastern banks of the river in Stonebench. Some say that the best place to see the bore is from the Severn Bore Inn which is located in Minsterworth. Here there is a pub, food a car park as well as floodlights for nighttime viewing of the river bores. Some say that the best time to witness the bores is in the dark of night when you have to use a floodlight to see the water.

Countless people stop at the Over Bridge which crosses the River Severn. From this viewpoint, you can watch the tidal waves as it surges directly under your feet. You can feel the force of the water rushing under the bridge as the entire ground shakes. The feeling of having witnessed the Severn Bore “Over the River” is an amazing one.

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