Kolmarden Zoo in Sweden is planning to open an entire new area dedicated to the popular Swedish cartoon character Bamse in 2015.

Set to coincide with the park's 50th anniversary celebrations, Bamse's World will be spread over 20,000sq.m.

The area will include fully themed rides, play areas and environments, where visitors will be able to meet Bamse and his friends.

Dutch theme park design company Jora Vision, which was involved in the design and build of the Kolmarden's Safari ride in 2011, was asked to help combine the strong brand attraction of Bamse with the zoo's desire to keep finding ways of expanding visitors' experiences.

"Bringing Bamse's world to life, including his friends and their adventures made sense," said Sjors van Roosmalen, creative director at Jora Vision.

"The Bamse IP was already in use by Kolmarden Zoo. Expanding it to an entire area seemed very natural. The character from the comic books – recently brought to life in a movie – not only lives in a Swedish forest which looks similar to Kolmarden's scenery, he also reflects the timeless values that visitors, young and old, can relate to."