| Birds of Eden | |
|---|---|
 The aviary | |
 | |
| 33°57′47″S 23°29′01″E / 33.963°S 23.4835°E | |
| Date opening | 2005-12-15 |
| Location | Western Cape, South Africa |
| Land area | 2.3 hectares (5.7 acres)[1] |
| No. of animals | 3000+[1] |
| No. of species | 280+[1] |
| Website | www |
Birds of Eden is the world's largest free flight aviary and bird sanctuary, located in Kurland village near Plettenberg Bay in the Western Cape, South Africa.[2] The mesh dome of the sanctuary was built over 2.3 hectares (5.7 acres) of indigenous forest, and is up to 55 metres (180 ft) above ground level. 1.2 kilometres (0.75 mi) of walkways, about 75% of which are elevated, let visitors see the birds at all levels of the aviary.
Birds of Eden is one of the four Sanctuaries under The South African Animal Sanctuary Alliance (SAASA). As a member of SAASA Birds of Eden was honoured with four major tourism awards in 2014. The four awards are namely the Lilizela Tourism Visitor Experience of the Year Award at a 'Wildlife Encounters',[3] the Skål International Sustainable Tourism Award,[4] Overall winner of the World Responsible Tourism Award as well as the Gold Award in World Responsible Tourism in the category of 'Best Animal Welfare Initiative'.[5]
