The oldest zoo on the Arabian Peninsula is set to close this doors this weekend as the Dubai Municipality prepares to move its animals from Dubai Zoo to the long-awaited Dubai Safari.

The zoo has come under fire from animal rights activists for the conditions some of its animals have been housed in.

Home to more than 230 different species of animal, it first opened its doors in 1967, with management taken over by the Municipality in 1971.

In 2003, plans were announced to spend AED205m (US$55.6m, €47.6m, £42.4m) building a new, modern version of the zoo at Dubailand. Since that announcement, the project has been scrutinised, reworked and revised multiple times for a method of relocating around 1,000 animals from their existing habitats.

Initial plans were drawn up in 2005 and then again in 2007, but those collapsed in the wake of the global recession. Work finally started at the third time of asking, with development getting underway in September 2012, when it was announced that animals in the overcrowded zoo would move to the new Dubai Safari.

In its final iteration, the park, located in Dubai’s Al Warqaa district, is divided into three different sectors – African, Asian and Arabian. Spread across 120 hectares of land – compared to the zoo’s existing 1.5 hectare parcel – the new development also also features an open safari area themed around different world locations, with architecture to match.

To combat high temperatures for its inhabitants, the park will use a number of unique technologies to accommodate the animals in the arid desert climate, including rocks fitted with air conditioning to keep temperatures down.

Financed by the Dubai Municipality, the AED1bn (US$272m, €233m, £208m) project by design and construction firm Cape Reed will include the zoo and safari, as well as a butterfly park, botanical garden, hotel and golf course, in addition to educational, conservation and veterinary facilities.

"Dubai Zoo has been a testimony to the leadership's commitment and keenness all these years to be ahead in wildlife conservation and providing entertainment services to the local community,” said Khaled Al Suwaidi, director of Leisure Facilities Department at Dubai Municipality.

"We'd like to thank all the employees of the zoo for their valuable efforts in the past years. We wish all of them the very best in the new project and we look forward to benefit from their expertise in the service of Dubai Safari.”

The Municipality has invited the public to visit Dubai Zoo for free this weekend, with a closing ceremony taking place on Sunday (5 November), when officials and workers who served the zoo will be honoured. Dubai Safari will open on 2 December – The UAE’s 46th annual National Day.

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