Tropikariet: It’s always tropical in southern Sweden

A tropical experience isn’t far away if you’re in Sweden this summer. A visit to Tropikariet will transport you to exotic surroundings with rainforests, wild animal encounters and memories to last a lifetime.

It began in 1994, when founder Magnus Lindqvist opened the doors to an indoor zoo he financed and built himself, and which had its genesis back in his school years – though he didn’t realise it then. Instead, he wanted to become an animal researcher, but couldn’t find the time required to sit still and study.

Founder Magnus Lindqvist, with a ring-tailed lemur.

Only a few weeks in, he dropped out of upper secondary school and decided to open his own zoo – as you do. Today, almost 30 years and 30 staff members later, the facilities have grown. “Our anniversary is next year, in July 2024,” Lindqvist says. “It’s gone by quickly! Tropikariet can be described as a tropical, indoor zoo. And being indoors means we obviously can’t have animals like lions and giraffes. We have many free-roaming animals, everything from poison dart frogs, to bats, crocodiles and lemurs.”

A broad-snouted crocodile.

Apart from the wildlife experience, Tropikariet offers education, research activities for the conservation of endangered species, facilities for smaller conferences and for birthday parties. “We have a lot of other things going on, other than the zoo area,” Lindqvist adds. “Once we even had a wedding here! But events are not our specialty – we have live animals here, and they need rest.”

Inside the zoo, visitors will experience something they’ve never experienced before. “At least not in Sweden,” he continues. “And our main goal is that our visitors leave with a better understanding of animals and nature. This is what we want to inspire at Tropikariet.” Asking him which animals leave the biggest impression, he tells us that the leafcutter ants and sharks are among the top candidates. “Those are the animals our visitors find the most fascinating.”

Before you leave for the day, you can pass by the souvenir shop, or have a coffee at the café. And looking ahead, Tropikariet are already planning future projects. An extensive renovation is already underway, which will see the shark tank double in size. “We have constant plans and visions,” Lindqvist says. “Now, we are focusing on renovating and making our facilities even better than before.”

Up close and personal with free-roaming creatures in Tropikariet’s walk throughs.

Web: www.tropikariet.com
Instagram: @tropikariethelsingborg
Facebook: tropikariet