Fabulous day, with a private Giraffe experience with our booking for my daughters 5th birthday…read more Absolutely fantastic, best experience whilst learning all about the conservation importance etc . Great informative keeper, very knowledgeable who had been there 26 years !! That shows a great place to work. Had afternoon tea overlooking the leopard enclosure. So much good fabulous spread and THE best tasting scones we've ever tried! Had to have boxes to take all the food home that we just couldn't finish. Amazing day with lovely people looking after and caring for the animals there. Thought the apes looked very sad and made us a little sad seeming them in the enclosures

A fun afternoon spent at the zoo is always a fun afternoon! Especially when you see giraffes trying…read moreto mate and all the little kids look horrified! We spent a few hours walking around the entire zoo and there were plenty of animals to keep my little guy entertained. The best part was the playground across from the gorilla sanctuary where all the little kids seemed to congregate. The highlight of the day was the Gruffalo section. It was just a series of animatronic animals and rooms with snippets of the cartoon playing but it was fun and passed the time well. Got hot dogs from the hot dog stand; although there was a restaurant on site... we just needed a quick snack and the service for it was quick and efficient.

It was a beautiful sunny day in April, and my Dad asked what I wanted to do. I had failed to get…read morehere the previous week due to train problems..so I thought now was a good time to utilise the dadmobile. When we arrived we were ushered to a parking space, which was already half full at 11am. Walking down a pathway we passed a couple of cool wonky funhouses and a restaurant bus until arriving at the entrance. Adults admissions was £9.95, this paid we went straight to the nearby cafe for breccie. The menu was basic but all fresh with jacket potatoes, cakes , Panini and sandwiches with various fillings. I grabbed a brie and cranberry panini, my dad a jacket potato..just in time as a few people piled in. To my right a show was going on outside with parrots playing basket ball. Food demolished we went to investigate. A billboard showed a regular list of talks and shows, for now we discarded this. The site itself is quite large, with a farm yard section containing goats, peacock, ducks and guinea pigs. Walking around the perimeter, displayed birds of prey, owls, vultures, stalks..several other displays contained wallaby and the butterfly house itself contained leafcutter ants, bats, crocodiles and of course butterflies. Everything seemed to surround the main stars of the show. Lemurs , meerkats and otters. I only attended two shows , one regarding lemurs, which was factual and not babyfied and one where several birds took part in free flying. Overall the site is well maintained and has several interactive parts to keep kids entertained. Random billboards that squirt water and plastic model dinosaurs inter-weaved with the scenery. The food at the cafe was satisfactory and the gift shop the usual marked up cost. Every staff member I came across was naturally fully energetic, friendly and enthusiastic. A good place to come when the weather is nice. Without the shows though there is not a huge amount to see and do.

This is a beautiful place to visit in the summer months but dont be fooled by the name…read more this is a loving home for much more than butterflys they have pigs, skunks, chickens , monkeys, donkeys and parrots to name a tiny few . They have a tropical room which is home to the butterflys as well as giant snails, ants and fish. The vast park is full of lovely animals which in most areas are free to wander around. They have falconry displays and ferrets which play games which the audience are invited to participate in. There is a relaxed feel about the place . there is a lovely woodland walk through the grounds and visitors are able to feed some of the animals with fruit and nuts etc which are supplied free of charge for the animals. the venue is suitable for all ages and disabled friendly although not much in the way of disabled parking. tucked away at the back of the gift shop is a childrens play area withich is really a a circuit with ample bikes, trikes, scooters etc suitable for ages up to around 10. they also have a circuit containg coin operated electric bikes at a cost of £1 a ride. Its a bit of the beaten track and it gets very busy especially during school holidays but definately worth a visit if you like animals

Most of the rides were closed, although those that were open were good. However, do not eat at the…read morevintage American diner. The cup had lipstick stains and the plates that the food were served on were filthy and unwashed. The salad was dry and looked unwashed also.

Flamingo Land is our local park and we always have a great time whenever we visit. The new Sik…read moreroller coaster is fantastic, a great addition to the park. We follow the Attractions Near Me Facebook Page to get notifications of the half-price family passes to help save on our tickets. https://www.attractionsnearme.co.uk/category/offers/flamingo-land-resort-offers/ The Zoo is also great with lots of animals to see and the sea lion show is always a highlight for the kids.

Blackbrook Zoo is a good family day out in the Moorlands. When the park first opened, it was called…read moreBlackbrook world of birds, and obviously, birds are still an important part of the offerings here (in fact, Blackbrook has the largest bird collection in the UK). But they have now extended their range and made this an attractive and family friendly small zoo, with animals such as lemurs, wallabies and more recently, riverhogs. The zoo is open all year round and has a strong focus on education, leading to many trips by local schools. It has free parking, a gift shop and kids play area, as well as a pretty stone built tea shop - it is well worth a visit.

Honestly love all the animals.Especially all of the parrots (there so funny).Its to hard to decide…read moremy favourite animal so I have two the parrots and pigs.I'd recommend if your in the area.

I've taken my daughter here several times and we both love it. They have a fantastic range of…read moreanimals so something to suit all children. It doesn't look much from the outside but it's deceptively large once through the gates and is very well laid out. I honestly can't single out one type of animal because there are so many great ones although the meercats are ace as are the chipmunks. The staff are really friendly and helpful giving good service and taking time to talk to people about the animals if you want to. The prices are quite reasonable too. Well worth a visit if you've got children.

If you are looking for a fab day out in Lincolnshire then give The Butterfly & Wildlife Park at…read moreLong Sutton a go. This little park started out as just a butterfly park but over the years has extended its collection and now houses birds of prey, ponies, pigs, llamas and racoons (to name but a few). The tropical house is home to the butterflies (plus some reptiles and other insects). The volume and variety of butterflies is breathtaking and the tropical house is well set out so you get plenty of opportunity to see the butterflies without feeling you have walked round in circles. Outside in the park you can explore all the other animal exhibits and catch one of the daily falconry displays. There is a new children's adventure play area and if all of this tires you out and you need to recharge your batteries then there is a lovely restaurant/cafe which serves delicious homemade cakes and lunches. The Gift shop is well stocked and the staff are all very friendly. All in all a fantastic day out.

HAve been to the park a few times over the years , and although the children really enjoyed it,…read moreeven my daughter who was 6 at the time holding some kind of tarantula spider. They do do a lovely falconry display which is llovely sitting outside during the summer. The play par kis quite extensive and even my hubby had fun playing on the zip wire. The terrapins are also interesting to watch and they have such an array of butterflys. They have a huge picnic area which caters for large parties as well as having a coffee shop and a gift store

We had a lovely day here last year with the tot, it just so happened to be a stinker of a hot day!…read morelovely! The place is bursting with animals - as you would expect, but our favourites must've been the fluffy chicks, which we were all given an opportunity to pick up and cuddle (sweeeet) and the baby goats, who we could quite happily watch for hours as they have this daft playful puppieness about them. The farm is really hands on, you can feed the animals and pet them - my daughter loved it! There is a nice little cafe too, which serves home made cakes and sandwiches, aswell as a little gift shop that sold lots of farm yard themed toys. It's the sort of place I can see myself going back to year upon year.

this is a rare breeds farm, and a place we visited often when the kids where younger…read more it has free car parking, a little cafe/shop and you can buy bags of sheep nuts to feed the animals with! and price wise not overly expensive! a picnicing area with wooden benches and tables it offers plenty to see and do, has a hatchery, a field where you can pet the animals and depending on when you go, they also do farming demonstrations. great for taking young children for a family day out! as they will love the miniature goats, as they all try pushing in for the bags of food. the hatchery is the best, as you see the little chicks in the pens with the heating lamps, and there all use to seeing people so are quite happy to hop onto your hands! so the place has cattle, sheep, horses pigs, goats and chickens.

Getting drunk and falling over can be fun. Drinking enough coffee to stay awake for a decade can…read morealso be fun. Sometimes though I need more in my life. Unfortunately Johnny Depp doesn't see it that way so I turn to something else extremely cute instead; animals. There are plenty of places in Leeds where you can get up close and personal (not too personal mind, there is a name for people like that) with various creatures of the animal kingdom and Ponderosa serves as a great example of that. What's also immense about this place are the facilities offered to disabled and able bodied children alike. Indeed, it did start off as a place to help disabled children and has grown to open it's doors to all. You'll get to see allsorts of animals. You'll even get to see llamas and an emu. How cool is that and no Orville or that silly man who sticks his hand up puppets for a living, in sight. You'll also get a chance to see pigs, peacocks, highland cows, goats, horses, donkeys and birds of prey. It's a cracking day out Wallace and one I highly recommend. Just remember to take a kid with you or you may look a bit daft like me.

Ponderosa Farm, I was delighted when a friends took me to this little gem hidden away in…read moreHeckmondwike West Yorkshire. I couldn't believe the huge range of animals they have far better than anything similar I have visited in the past. This place is really child friendly with so much for them to see. We bought a bag of feed for 50p to feed the farm animals and it was a lovely experience seeing the animals so close. The farm animal include pigs, goats and sheep as well as rabbits. But whats great about Pondarose is all other animals they keep. There were birds of prey which included a beautiful Kestrel. Also Meerkats which were just having there feed when we saw them first which happened to be baby chicks which I found a bit gross and perhaps might have been a bit upsetting for children to see but when we went back later they were playing around and were very cute I would have loved to have taken one home. There was also a reptile house which we went to. I was slightly surprised they as we walk through part of the house in the tropical plants was what appeared to be sum kind of large lizards just wondering about which did make me feel slightly uneasy but I just stayed where it was and I am a bit of wimp. They had a snake out with a handler in one room and I was too scared to go in but its a great way to get kids interested in animals we saw them handling lots of animals so its great fun as well as they learning lots too they staff we were friendly and seem to enjoying sharing all there knowledge about the animals with everyone. Also whats great is dotted around the site are many different play area's for the children with tonnes of climbing frames and slides for them. There is a coffee shop serving cold sandwiches, toasted sandwiches, ice cream & refreshments. Disabled access. As well as plenty of picnic areas. there are toilets and a nice little gift shop. There is so much to do make sure you allow yourself enough time to see everything. I recommend going on a dry day to get the most out of Pondarose. Open from 10am - 4pm 7 days a week Monday through Sunday. We are open all year round only closing for Christmas and New Year. (Dates are confirmed nearer the time). Admission 4.00 pounds adults 3.50 children under 2's are free From Manchester: Come off the M62 at Junction 26 - turn right onto the A638 - Follow this road through Cleckheaton - Turn right at the clock tower in Heckmondwike centre. The centre is sign posted on the right. Turn down Station lane, under the railway bridge, past Al Murad tiles and we are the next left turn. From Leeds: Turn off M62 at Junction 27 (Showcase Cinema) and pick up the A62 towards Huddersfield. Through 6 sets of light and turn left into Heckmondwike centre - then turn right at the clock tower in Heckmondwike centre. The centre is sign posted on the right. Turn down Station lane, under the railway bridge, past Al Murad tiles and we are the next left turn