The Edinburgh Zoo is a wonderful, large zoo with a lot to see. I would suggest arriving early to…read moreavoid queues and large school groups. The property is really large and you will certainly get a workout in as it has plenty of steep hills. I was disappointed that the pandas weren't out for viewing during my visit. I wish the zoo would have made that information available before I bought my ticket. The highlights of the zoo were the giant anteaters and the tiger sleeping pressed up against the glass viewing window! The view from the top of the hill at the back of the zoo was great too. Overall, I was really pleased with this zoo. The only thing I would change would be adding more signs around the property. Everything is so spread out, so it can be quite tricky navigating your way around. There weren't many staff out and about, so there aren't many opportunities to ask for directions.

I'm not sure how I feel about the Edinburgh Zoo; I don't think it's a destination spot if you're…read morevisiting for the first time. If you live locally or come to the city often, sure, make your way to the zoo eventually. They have some great events: social for new parents to meet other new parents, afternoon teas, photography workshops, and more. They are home to more than 2,500 animals including: camels, monkeys, pelicans, zebras, highland cows (...obviously), giraffes (a four back of bachelors named Arrow, Gerald, Fennessy, and Gilbert), a red panda, tigers, meerkats, a bear, a very large penguin pool with LOTS of gentoo, king, and rockhopper penguins (you can watch them live on the zoo's website!), flamingos (their oldest one was born in 1961!), and more. Unfortunately, you won't see all of them when you visit: I would say about 30% of them weren't there (for various reasons: rehoming, new structures being built, vet visits, it was the wrong time of day, etc.) when I came. There is, however - and this won't make sense unless you've seen it - an unexpectedly LARGE dinosaur presence here. IYKYK. Thankful for the conservation work they do here and in the protection of endangered species around the world, but I'm not sure this is a spot I need to have repeat visit at.

East Links is a nice farm/theme park/petting zoo just outside Dunbar. You just can't miss it…read morebecause there is a large brown castle with 4 towers sporting the English, Scottish, Welsh and Irish flags. They have various animals that I have never seen before like lamas, rheas, wallabies and even a highland cow! A newborn baby donkey was born on Monday and it was so cute when I saw it while we whizzed past on the train. You even get to feed baby lambs in the petting area which is the cutest thing ever! The fortress is good and has large freefall chutes going to the bottom which are really fast and I actually had to hold onto the sides to slow me down a bit! There are rat tunnels (which are very dark and scary), nets, bridges, ropes and a ramp to the top if you feel lazy. On the 4 towers, there are cannons which you can shoot tennis balls out of. There are 3 go-kart tracks, 2 of which are for small children but the one behind the fortress is for hardcore teenage drivers, like me! There is also mini golf (tokens are required to hire balls) and an indoor ball shooting arena. The prices are a bit ridiculous for the size of the place. It is about £15 per head and you will need to pay even more once you get inside (the tearoom, shops, animal feeding dispensers and golf ball dispensers charge you.) The tearoom was actually quite nice for a theme park café but the prices were quite steep! I was charged £4 for a bottle of Irn Bru and a honeycomb traybake. Ridiculous prices. The food was good though and it was the first time I had ever tasted Irn Bru. It doesn't taste as orangey as it looks. It's like Fanta with a weird vanilla twist to it. The toilets are straight ahead as you enter and they were clean with no bad smells, plenty of soap and hot water that was actually hot. The Dyson Airblade dryers worked fine too. I will be back at East Links in the summer because I didn't actually get to see everything in one day! The sweet shop on the way out is not to be missed too.

East Links farm is a brilliant, well priced day out for all the family…read more At first glance it seems quite small, but further investigation proves differently! There are animals to see, horses to feed, a train ride to be taken, trampolines to be jumped on, a hay barn to be hidden in and much, much more. You can buy animal feed and bird feed to use at your discretion I believe it was only around 25p a portion which was great. The onsite shop is small but lovely with a small range of reasonably priced items. There is a huge barn with tables for picnic consuming which is a blessing with Scotland's weather! We really enjoyed our visit and would go back any time. Highly recommended!

Absolutely love this zoo, although it's a bit far out it's worth the journey. There is so much more…read moreto see and do here than at Edinburgh zoo. You.are able to get up close to the animals and pet them like we did with the goats and ponies. I loved the bears and watching them play fight was amazing and the parrot say 'come on then'' in a Scottish accent was hilarious and it just seems that the animals here have much more character and are well looked after which is great to see. As well as the animals there is also go karts, trails, beautiful gardens and more and it is such a fantastic day out!

I love it here - I work a couple of miles away so I bought an year's pass for £45 and now I try and…read morego at least one lunchtime a week. The zoo isn't massive but there's a lot to look at. The enclosures are big and well laid out - they all have indoors spaces so the animals can choose whether to be indoors or outdoors and there's been a lot of effort put in to making each enclosure resemble the animal's natural habitat. If the weather is less good when you go, you might find the animals huddling indoors and sometimes you won't see something if it's hiding in a heavily wooded enclosure (it took me several visits to see the Scottish wildcat) but on nicer days most animals will be outside and there's so much to see that you won't care if you miss one or two. Anyway, good zoos should be there for animal welfare first and human 'entertainment' last - this place definitely seems to follow that approach, which is why it gets a big thumbs up from me. They have a number of rescue animals - the bears and lions are all ex-circus animals who have been rescued and brought here with the help of public subscriptions. The bear enclosure is really just a massive bit of forested hillside that they've fenced off and I think it's great that these animals have such a large and natural space to wander around in. They have a few walkthrough enclosures which are fantastic and let you get a bit closer to some of the animals. There are plenty of information boards telling you what you're looking at, with details of where each animal is from and its conservation status. They have daily handling sessions (£2 extra) and feeding sessions (£5 extra) which are clearly advertised. I don't have children but the play area is massive and looks quite good fun, and the staff I've spoken to have all been really friendly too.

This place is lovely, set in the Perthshire hills the scenery alone is spectacular…read more The wildlife centre is roughly 10 miles west of Crieff so if you don't have transport it is difficult to get to. They have a varied range of animals consisting of lots of types of birds from around the world, Prairie dogs, deer, Llamas and many more, to many to mention. They have a large area where you can go in and pet the animals within as well as the usual pens holding the other animals. There is a Falconry Centre, which is paid for separately (only if you want to hold and have your picture taken with one) as well as a hatchery, woodland walks, barbeque area and a massive playing area for the kids, indoor and outdoor. There is also a gift shop and cafe a lot of the produce being home made. When your there it feels like your on a large farm with amazing animals that are always friendly and looking for a bit of attention, you can even buy bags of food so as your trotting around the centre you are able to feed them as well. Entrance fee is £6 per adult and £4 per child; family tickets available, so it is excellent value for money and you could spend the whole day there. Staff are very friendly and always at hand to help or answer ant questions you may have. If you do have transport this is a brilliant day out for kids and adults and with ample free parking you wont miss out on a wonderful day. Sturdy footwear is advisable

I have been here, can show you some photos of the many wonders of this place. It was particulary…read moregood for us as having a blind partner it was so accessable, and the animals making noises was good for my partner. We loved the Tartan sheep.it was unusual, and the cheeky parairie dogs, just made our day and we would highly reccomend this to anyone who loves animals

We had been to Camperdown years ago when our daughters were still small. This time we went for a…read morequick visit on a birthday with the two of us. Camperdown remains a lovely little and unknown zoo. A nice selection of animals in nice enclosures. The bear exhibit is the star of the show, the Scottish wildcats are lovely, but the whole zoo is very much worth the visit.

Amazing! Loads of animals and lovely gift shops would really recommend to any animal lover!…read moreBut WARNING loads of wasps in the summer

We went to Blair Drummond this Sunday, not for the first time, but for the first time in a while…read more We went without booking tickets, but ended up making an online booking standing in front of the gates. So, book! The weather was nice and that made sure we had a lovely day. The safari drive through was good, the individual displays nice. We finally saw the tiger (jumping down from a tree), the chimp viewpoint is a good addition and the lemar walkthrough always nice. We spent a very nice 4 hours.

This farm was right next to our Airbnb and so we just had to visit! It's not too big so this is…read moregreat if you want to squeeze in a visit while you're exploring. There is a cafe but it was closed when we were there. Entry is free, and there are stations to wash your hands. I didn't see any employees while I was there though, just a couple of other tourists. It was pretty empty so I felt like I had everything to myself. I saw some cows, sheep, chickens, ducks, lambs, and they were all adorable! You can't feed them but they are so friendly they sometimes let you pet them.

was a lovely warm sunny day visiting Gorgie City Farm &…read moreCafe 8/8/19. I think I came here a very long time ago so it was great to see all again. Walking around seeing all the animals was great and taking some photos of my experience. The weather was so hot, it felt like my head was burning a bit. Very impressive what I saw from goats, chickens, pigs, birds and many more. The young goats where so cute, I wanted to fit one in my pocket lol. I would recommend this place to anyone, if you love the outdoors and animals. You can get a Lothian Buses number 25 from Princess Street in Edinburgh and it will take you straight there also Gorgie City Farm is free to anyone too. Check out my article on Gorgie City Farm on my Blog below https://socialsandi1.com/2019/08/08/gorgie-city-farm/

Went here today as suggested by the bf as a wee cheer me up day and im so glad he suggested it as i…read morehad so much fun. Its a bit fiddly to find at the moment with the diversion due to the new forth rd bridge but if you follow the diversion you will be ok. Cost was £14 per adult however if you book in advance online its slightly cheaper. We got to see sharks being fed and a giant turtle but for me the best thing was seeing the seals being fed. They are so cute and clever and the tricks the handlers have taught them are briliant! There are tv screens dotted around the place that show you the times of all the feeds so you dont miss anything. The underwater tunnel is a brilliant way to get up close and personal with the sharks too. There is a cafe but we didnt visit that. The gift shop has all your usual cuddly toys and gifts. Plenty of parking available on site too. A great day out for young and old alike!

Deep Sea World is a great day out for all the family. I came here with my friend and her two little…read morecousins a few years ago and they were fascinated by everything, I've never seen them so well behaved. They even saw a bit of seaweed move and ended up mesmerised by it for ages. They were also huge fans of Finding Nemo and started screaming at the top of their voices when they were faced with Nemo in the flesh living it up in his Coral Reef. There are also plenty of sharks to marvel at and you can even dive with sharks... I don't know if I fancy that though. My personal favourite underwater critters are stingrays and was pleased when I saw a good few swimming around. Tickets are rather pricey, £12 adults and £8.25 but it's an excellent day out and there's so much to see and do and it's only a 20 min drive from Edinburgh city centre.