Taronga Western Plains Zoo

Outside Dubbo in the central west, the Western Plains Zoo spreads across three hundred hectares of open country, and visitors tour it by car, bike or on foot along a six-kilometre circuit. Without bars or tight enclosures, the animals range in broad paddocks - black rhinos, giraffes, zebras, Asian elephants and a strong native collection - in a landscape that suits the open-range approach. Early morning, when the air is cool and the animals active, is the best time to go, and lodges within the grounds let visitors stay overnight among them. It is the open-plains counterpart to Sydney's harbour zoo.