The Blackpool Zoo opened in 1972 on a site which had previously been the Stanley Park Aerodrome.

2005 saw the opening of the 'Dinosaur Safari', a walkthrough exhibition featuring models of 32 life-size dinosaurs around a trail. "Amazonia" opened in 2006. This is a walk-through enclosure of South American animals and birds including squirrel monkeys.

Giraffes were re-introduced to the zoo in 2008, after an absence of fourteen years, and over £0.5m was invested in the new giraffe house and pens.

In summer 2009, penguins were to be added to the list of animals at the zoo, with the arrival of twenty Magellanic penguins from two Spanish conservation centres. A£1m sealion pool was opened in May 2010 along with the addition of a male sealion from Spain. 2011 saw the opening of a new Children's Farm and the expansion and refurbishment of the main restaurant.