Assam State Zoo cum Botanical Garden in Guwahati: visitor planning guide

Assam State Zoo cum Botanical Garden brings together animal exhibits, botanical collections and natural forest in one large campus. The zoo was established in 1957 and opened to the public in 1958.

The Assam Forest Department describes the campus as covering 1.75 square kilometres, including approximately 110 hectares of natural forest. Its highlights include a museum, a reptile house, a herbarium collection and a botanical garden, alongside animal exhibits.

North-East Indian species include the one-horned rhinoceros, hoolock gibbon, golden langur, slow loris, clouded leopard and sangai. Exotic species include giraffe, hippopotamus, hybrid lion and African white rhino.

The plant collection gives the garden its own reason to take your time. The campus has 345 plant species and the botanical garden has 280 exotic plant species, including 40 orchid species, 10 bamboo species and 12 palm species. The museum can also fit into a wider cultural visit alongside the Assam State Museum in Guwahati.

A day-long visit is considered sufficient to explore the zoo, so plan for a full day rather than trying to fit every area into a brief stop. The grounds combine animal exhibits with a botanical garden, natural forest, a reptile house and a museum.

Start by checking the zoo’s guide map, available as a visitor resource. You can use it to orient yourself and choose how to move between the exhibits and garden areas. Visitor amenities include signage, drinking water, toilets, resting shelters, juice stalls and waste bins.

For a broader city plan, the zoo can be one part of a day in Guwahati alongside other central-city sights. A practical one-day Guwahati itinerary can help you think about how the zoo fits into a wider visit.

The zoo is at R.G. Baruah Road, P.O. Dispur, Guwahati 781005, Assam. The zoo entrance is the nearest local city bus stand, making it a clear reference point when arranging local transport.

The zoo is about 23 minutes by car or about 53 minutes on foot from the hotel. Check your chosen route and local transport options before setting out.

For wider connections, Lokpriya Gopinath Bordoloi International Airport is 27 km away, Paltanbazar Railway Station is 6.6 km away and ISBT is 12.8 km away. These are distances to the zoo, not travel times, so allow for the transport arrangements you choose.