Visitors asked for ‘voluntary donation’ on top of ticket price

VISITORS booking a slot to see the pandas are being asked to fork out an extra £1.55 per ticket on top of the normal admission price at Edinburgh Zoo – to help fund its conservation work.

Anyone booking online is being asked to pay the “voluntary charge” over and above the £13.95 normal admission as a donation, which the zoo can claim back through gift aid.

The extra could generate up to £500,000 for conservation projects. The Royal Zoological Society of Scotland says the charge has to be a voluntary donation to enable it to claim gift aid on the money raised.

The zoo is not receiving any public funding to accommodate the pandas, with the costs estimated to be around £1 million a year, including an annual £700,000 payment to China for the loan of the animals.

Just 3,386 visitors a day will be able to see them, at 10-minute intervals.