Bad weather and the Pope's visit kept almost 100,000 people away from Dublin Zoo this year.
The Beast from the East and very hot conditions in the summer reduced visitor numbers to just 1.1 million.
But the Zoo's director Leo Oosterweghel said a three-day closure for the papal mass had "pulled the rug out".
It shut down for three days as a huge security operation kicked in for the Papal mass in August
