Lion Cubs experience…read more This my third experience now with Heythrop Zoological Gardens and yet again was a magical one. Me and my husband firstly meets Hannah who is such a lovely lady that explains all about the lion cubs and she then takes us around the forest whilst we walk the cubs along with another trainer. So we walked their new bundle of joy Nero and Lydia the lion cubs. It was a once in a life time opportunity and so unique. We walked the cubs in Heythrops private woods. The little cubs just loved to play with each other all the time whilst walking along and when they came across their favourite tree stumps they just loved leaping and playing on them as well as trying to climb up a tree or two. We could also stroke them when they were more relaxed in places and they felt so soft like rabbit fur. The markings on there fur was also so amazing Lydia the female cub had spot type markings and Nero you could see his mane coming about with his punk rocker type hair style going on. Its a tad expensive doing this experience but I highly recommend as it is so worth it and you won't be able to do this experience at any other zoo in the UK. Only reason this experience is allowed at Heythrop Zoological Gardens is because its a private zoo (not open to public however does have special open days to public 2 days in September only) and train animals are bred for TV and film. This experience only has two Saturdays left in June 2016 with a few places left so if you are interested then book asap. They do other animal experiences throughout the year that you can do from penguins to a sloth so check out there website. If you however want to do the more unique one off experiences like the lion cubs that is not available all year round then I advice you email them and ask them to keep you informed of any new additions like lion cubs, tiger cubs, other baby animals etc. The other animal experiences that I have done at Heythrop is the tiger cubs and a monkey (who starred in My Zoo a TV series). I highly recommend to anyone that loves animals.

Went to visit on this open day and it was great. There are three main enclosures with different…read morespecies of Wolves in each, and different viewing areas which allow you to pretty close to the animals. They even have holes in the fencing for photography so you can get some great shots, and a raised platform for some good unobstructed views. There are good facilities like toilets, and information area with regular talks and presentations, and a small shop for souvenirs. Finally when you have had enough there was a fresh BBQ with burger, bacon rolls, and some hot pumpkin soup. Well worth a visit especially for a very reasonable £5 adult entrance fee.

Two years after the last visit the COVID-related struggles are gone. The zoo is in a much better…read moreshape and all enclosures are in good condition again. Mar well has always had nice big enclosures for the big animals. This time, we very much enjoyed the tropical house and the aviaries and red panda at the back. The tree dwellers near the house (monkeys and lemurs) are always a joy and it is great to see the snow leopards getting an upgrade. A lovely visit.

It was very cool day! Many different animals, and beautiful arena! One minus-…read more some animals were sleeping.

Took my 15 yo nephew here today and we both enjoyed it very much. Lots to see and lots of space for…read morethe animals. We were both concerned for some of the animals that are not in their natural habitat just wondering if they were too hot. The train ride was a plus because we got to see animals on the other side of the park that would have been otherwise difficult to reach on foot. My favorite were the penguins, the the brown bear ( it was chasing a bird) the butterflies and the kangaroos.

Whipsnade Zoo has been a tradition in our family since I was a child. My own children now love it…read moretoo. It makes a brilliant day out in the Fresh Air on top of the Chilterns, with views for miles. We are members of the ZSL so can return as often as we like which makes the membership fee much better value. You can pay to enter and if you like the1 vibe, you can offset the cost of the visit against your first year's membership fee which also includes entry to London Zoo. There are elephants, lions, tigers, giraffes, and a large herd of White Rhino. The Chimpanzees have a very large enclosure. You can take the car in, which makes a picnic much easier. Go!

I cannot rave enough about Finkley Down Farm. I don't even have kids I can use as an excuse - I…read moresimply come here to relax and spend some time with the animals. The atmosphere is relaxed and peaceful and the abundance of cute greedy animals desperate for you to feed them is nothing short of delightful. Their animals range from goats and sheep to chickens to cows right over to the more unusual llamas and highland cows. Even if you're not into getting close to the animals or feeding them the buckets of food available at the ticket office, just watching them mooch around is still fun and relaxing. The llama took somewhat of a disliking to me (was it something I said?) and stormed at me, looking like it could easily clear the fence and gain its freedom. I wasn't going to hang around to find out. One look at my pathetic retreating hide running off into the distance was enough to reduce its anger to mere disdain, and instead he decided to spit all over me. In some sort of random heroic act, the pig sharing its pen flung itself at the llama as if to take the blow for me, and rather than reflect on the llama soaking I'd been given, I instead watched this pig take one for the team. Right in the eye, no less. From hereonin, I shall name this pig SuperPig. If you do have kids you can pretend are the reason for visiting, there's plenty to keep them occupied. Other than the animals you can feed, there are talks and handling sessions with some of the smaller or baby pets throughout the day. There's also a nice adventure playground and a couple of trampolines to wear them out on too. There's a small gift shop and a place to buy some food, as well as a picnic area if you're sensible enough to bring your own food. I love this place and can't wait to go back when it reopens for the season next year.

A lovely little petting farm for a day out with the family. Entrance fee is very reasonable. Farm…read moreisn't huge by anyone's standards but just about big enough for an afternoons walking about without it being too much for the little/older ones. Lots to see and many activities laid on for the children. Arm them with a bucket of food from the entrance first though or you will find yourself running back for some! On site cafe sells everything from fish & chips to ice cream or just a cuppa. Toilets well sign posted and clean. Lots of basins and hand gel dotted around for after you have touched the animals. Nice staff who are kid friendly. Congratulations to the farm for keeping the gift shop prices low, lots of souvenirs on sale for under £2.

Visited beale park the other day, the park was not busy and as far as the animal collection go's…read morethere's not much there. many of the enclosures were empty. the grounds are nice but nothing special. £9.00 adults £6.50 children

What a nice park. I would say this park is especially great if you love flowers,…read morestatues/sculptures, ponds/lakes and birds, Such a pleasant park to have picnic at. You can see many different species of birds in well designed big averies, meerkats, racoons, guinea pigs, goats, monkies etc. There is also a train for the family to go on which takes you around the park in one trip and there is plenty of play areas and even a paddling pool for the children. Also from time to time they have model boat events where you can see amazing model boats such as a war ship, titantic etc speeding along the waters. Whilst there I also ate a scone in the cafe and it was nice and hot with a good brand of jam even the tea was nice. Highly recommend.

We absolutely loved the drive thru safari. The animals look calm and happy as they stroll around,…read moreextremely close to your car. Excellent experience. The after you park your car exhibits were mostly enjoyable, sweet animals but please someone needs to clean the animals sleep areas, inside boxes and such. The Otter sleep area was disgraceful and there were babies. Looks like it hadn't been cleaned out in a month. No way AZA has been there in a while. Otherwise a very nice day.

It is great. You need to book the ticket online before your trip, it is very smooth to get in the…read morepark. Not very big but a lot to see. we stayed about 2 hour. It is a special experience to see the wildlife.

The fantastic Longleat Safari and Adventure Park in Wiltshire, England is the world's first…read moredrive-thru safari park outside of Africa. Longleat opened in 1966 on the grounds of the historic Longleat castle, a first of its kind in the UK. On the grounds one can enjoy riding in the safari tour bus to see the many exotic animals the estate has collected and bred over the years. There is quite an impressive array of lions, tigers, zebras, monkeys, parrots, grey wolves, ostriches, giraffes and rhinos, etc. In addition to the tour bus, there are walking areas, a boat safari, a railway, and the Elizabethan Longleat House castle to explore with its lush gardens and gorgeous manicured grounds. The tour takes approximately 2-3 hours and costs £40 for adults and £30 for children, from 3 years up to 16 years old. Children under 3 years old are free. There are also various kiosks and cafes around the grounds for dining or quick-bite options. Longleat is approximately 1.5 hours by train traveling from London proper, or roughly a 2 hour drive by car based on traffic. Hopefully you will have good weather when you visit. Enjoy!

I took my daughter here August '15 and it cost £60 to get in. I did not want Monkeys pulling bits…read morefrom my car so I paid the extra tenner for the bus ride around the safari park. We had something to eat ( it wasn't brilliant) so the whole day cost about £100. The place is clean and well kept, it has a butterfly house, some reptile places and a boat ride where you can feed the seals. There is also a big kids play area and maze ( reminds me of the shining!) Unfortunately the weather was not good so the play area was all wet, some of the rides were closed and it was cold and all muddy. We could not go on the boat ride it was too wet. The only draw back is that if it's cold and wet don't bother to go. We love in England so unfortunately that is most of the year. If you are an anal lover though you will like it, the annals are not just caged up and run freeley, so although it's not cheap I don't mind paying the money.

I've been coming here since I was a kid and it's still one of the best wildlife parks in the south…read more They're dog friendly and the dogs can go in most places apart from the wolf walk-through and some of the inside buildings like the bats. Most of the animals have adequate enclosures and room to roam. My dog was fascinated by the rhinos, joeys and giant tortoises! They have a restaurant but I recommend bringing your own picnic, especially if the weather is nice. There are multiple areas to set up for lunch. They also have coffee spots and nice ice cream. There's a playground for the little ones if you're doing a family trip and it's always been fun. Plus, the gift shop is a must! Definitely recommend.

We went to this zoo on a nice warm spring day. What a great decision. Yes, there were many people,…read morebut there is plenty of space. The garden like layout makes it ideal for this time of year. In addition, this zoo visit was made by the baby animals, a rhino, a camel and a giraffe. We had 3 lovely hours.

Adorable zoo about an hour to hour and a half from Central London. If you have the time and a car I…read moredefinitely recommend this zoo over the ZSL zoo. Every exhibit has multiple viewpoints here. There were plenty of opportunities to easily see all the animals here. The enclosures were extremely well kept and I think all had an indoor and outdoor area for the animals. There are multiple play areas throughout for kids here too. My kids also enjoyed the animatronic dinosaurs here (very cute). Food here was reasonably priced but we ate outside the park. Parking was free. They offer a lot of different animal interactions here. The prices for all were pretty high but for a special gift I'm sure they are totally worth it. You can also buy carrots to feed the animals in the petting zoo.

Overall great day out for the family ! I would say 50% animals 50% outdoor play for the kids (with…read moresome indoor) I did find some of the cages quite small for the animals but one of my only criticisms! There were a few extras while you were there so take additional money but to be expected at these places! ( it's set up for packed lunches which is great for families ) There is a good choice of animals to see and you can buy food which a good selection of animals to feed! They also had a lots of showing through out the day and I got to stroke a snake :). The park had a good layout where you can easily walk around and find where you are going plus you get a handy map! There have an indoor soft play at the entrance which is good and bad! Means the kids want to go these straight away instead of seeing the animals and you don't pass on the way out! The soft play was great for all ages and served your average drinks and food - one thing I will say which was disappointing was they charged me for a bit of milk for my baby! I always pay my way but this is the first place that have ever charged me for milk! Worth a visit and tickets are not expensive - look out for groupon deals!