Vogelpark Ruinen wants to open again for a few days in the summer. The park was closed all year last year because it was no longer profitable. The owners are working on a plan to turn the tide.
That will start next summer when the doors will temporarily open again. “A falconer will come to tell you about birds of prey and their properties,” says owner Wilco Versteeg.
At the same time, the park is being renovated this year. Bird enclosures are being built, a canteen is planned and even a playground is in the offing. The park should be fully open again in the spring of 2027.
Versteeg expects that around 50,000 euros will be needed for the plans. “We hope that with the education lessons this summer, money will come in, but more is needed.” He hopes to find that through sponsors.
According to him, the fact that the renovation costs a lot of money has to do with stricter rules from the government. “One of those rules is that animal enclosures must be larger.”
In addition to birds, the park also intends to introduce agricultural animals, such as pigs. “It should really be about the animals. In addition, visitors should be able to learn something about them, for example how farming was done in the past.”
The park previously had mainly tropical birds, which had to remain heated indoors in winter and were invisible to the public. Versteeg hopes to tackle that problem with a broader offering.
According to him, it is a possibility that reindeer and penguins will be added. The entrepreneur hopes to find volunteers who can help with the transformation of the park.
Wilco Versteeg and his partner Arike took over the park from Henk Dietz in 2022. The latter opened the attraction in 2000 and six years later it officially became a (small) zoo.
