There are places that are part of a city's landscape, and others that, over time, become part of its collective memory. BIOPARC Fuengirola celebrates its 25th anniversary this year by looking back: to the people, the animals, and the stories that have accompanied the transformation of that old municipal zoo into the conservation, environmental education, and species protection project it is today.
Starting this Tuesday, the Los Boliches seafront promenade is hosting an open-air photography exhibition that offers a journey through the past 25 years through images. This exhibition provides a window for residents, tourists, and passersby to discover how BIOPARC Fuengirola has changed and what lies behind a project that has been an integral part of the city for a quarter of a century. The exhibition will remain on display until October 18th.
The exhibition brings together photographs of some of the most emblematic species that have been part of this history, but it also focuses on those who make the day-to-day life of the park possible: caretakers, veterinarians, conservators, educators, technicians and other professionals whose work usually remains away from the view of the visitor.
The exhibition thus offers a journey through different moments of these 25 years, from the evolution of the park itself to some of the stories featuring its animals. This perspective allows us to understand how the concept of a zoo has changed and how concepts such as conservation, research, environmental education, and animal welfare have become increasingly important.
25 years of a history that also belongs to Fuengirola
The choice of the seafront promenade as the setting is no coincidence. Over the next few weeks, the images will be on display for those strolling along Los Boliches, transforming an everyday space in the city into a small open-air museum.
The exhibition, in a way, invites you to stop and look. To recognize species, discover others, and remember that many of the animals that have passed through BIOPARC Fuengirola have become part of the collective memory of several generations of families from Malaga.
For those who have known the park for years, the exhibition will also be an opportunity to reconnect with some of those stories. For those discovering it for the first time, it's a way to learn about a project that began in Fuengirola and that, over these 25 years, has transformed its relationship with nature.
And all this comes at a particularly significant time for BIOPARC Fuengirola. The park has just been ranked number 1 zoo in Andalusia in TripAdvisor's 2026 rankings , a position based on traveler reviews and preferences, and has also received the platform's Travellers' Choice award.
This recognition comes precisely as the park celebrates its 25th anniversary and puts a contemporary finishing touch on a story that the exhibition now invites visitors to explore through its images.
A celebration to look back and move forward
The opening was attended by the mayor of Fuengirola, Ana Mula; the president of Rain Forest, José Maldonado; and the director of BIOPARC Fuengirola, Francisco de Asís García, who toured the exhibition.
More than an exhibition about animals, the proposal aims to be an exhibition about stories: those of a city and a park that have grown together; those of the professionals who have dedicated their work to caring for and protecting species; and those of animals that, during these years, have also become part of the memory of those who have known them.
BIOPARC Fuengirola is an animal park dedicated to species conservation and environmental education, and is part of the Rainforest Network. Since its transformation from the former municipal zoo, the park has developed a model based on recreating natural habitats and prioritizing the care and well-being of its animals.
