Hsinchu City Zoo pioneers app-based guided tours to enhance your zoo experience

▲ Exploring Hsinchu City Zoo has never been easier. Just download the dedicated app on your smartphone to have your personal guide introduce you to the habits of the animals. Photo shows a view of Hsinchu City Zoo. (Photo / Provided by Hsinchu City Zoo)

Travel Center / Comprehensive Report

Where to go during the six-day Lunar New Year holiday? If you’d rather avoid traffic jams on long trips or crowds at amusement parks, consider visiting Taiwan’s first zoo with smart guidance via APP and NFC (near-field communication) technology — Hsinchu City Zoo — for a journey that’s both smart and rich in knowledge and emotion.

Director Hsu Hong-yi of Hsinchu City Zoo stated that the APP and NFC smart guided tour system was developed by the Institute for Information Industry’s Smart Converged Network Systems Research Laboratories. It allows visitors to quickly install the tour software on their smartphones to explore various animals and exhibits in the zoo. By using electronic tags located in the exhibits, visitors can access information through tapping, scanning, or entering codes. Even if animals are hiding in their dens or staying still, visitors can still learn about their daily lives via the “Hsinchu Zoo Guide” APP, gaining a deeper understanding and interaction with the animals and exhibits.

Additionally, Hsinchu City Zoo also announced that apart from being closed on New Year’s Eve, it will operate normally from the first to the fifth day of the Lunar New Year. The opening hours are from 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM. However, the zoo reminds visitors that animals begin returning to their enclosures to rest around 4:30 PM, so please plan your visit accordingly.