Chester Zoo to close from tomorrow due to month-long lockdown as their Xmas event is cancelled in November

Chester Zoo is to close from tomorrow for a second time due to the month-long England-wide lockdown announced last week.

Between 4pm on Wednesday 4 November and Wednesday 2 December, Chester Zoo will be closed to the public as they are deemed a non-essential venue.

Chester Zoo’s annual Christmas event, the Lanterns, was supposed to start from 13 November but has subsequently been pushed back to 3 December and will finish on the original date of 23 December.

Tickets for the Lanterns have now sold out.

For people who have a ticket booked between the lockdown dates, the zoo will automatically move the booking to a new date in December.

They will be in touch before the end of the week to allocate said dates.

A spokesperson said: “If you have a booking with us from Thursday 3 December onwards, there’s no need to get in touch with us – our plan is that you will be able to visit the zoo as normal and The Lanterns will continue as planned. Should this change we will get in touch with you directly to let you know.

“To our amazing members, we’re determined to bring you online events and zoo updates while we’re closed but understand that this disruption to your zoo visits is really disappointing. We will be in touch with you very soon with more information, but your ongoing support is greatly appreciated.”

To help the zoo out during their time closed, people can alternatively donate the price of the tickets to help with their conservation work.

The ‘Save Our Zoo’ campaign was launched in response to the first lockdown to help with outgoing costs Chester Zoo has to upkeep.

It is estimated the zoo brings in a total economic contribution of £83.1m and supports 1,750 jobs – it was also explained the zoo was heading towards more than £24m in debt by the end of 2020, needing £1.6m per month to help keep it going.

“We will continue to bring as much joy and warmth to your inbox and social media feed throughout the next month, as we head into winter,” the spokesperson said.

“So, be sure you follow us on social media or sign up to our e-newsletter to hear the latest animal news and zoo updates.”