What is everyones favourite wildlife parks, zoos, aquariums to visit?

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morgsyswife12@reddit

The butterfly house in Lancaster is really nice, has a few other little animals outside. However Lancaster is lovely for its history etc but not that much for kids near by if you’d be staying. However morecambe is just down the road so amusements, beach etc and there’s a place there called Happy Mount Park that is awesome for the kids, it’s free to go in and walk around, to use the playgrounds (one has a zip line) however there is also extras you can pay for like swing boats, mini golf, they have a splash park there too and a cafe. They also sometimes have other things going on with re enactment (hoping that’s the term) etc. we all really enjoyed it. However not much in the way of shade if you’re not under the trees in the play park bit.

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strawberry-squids@reddit

The Lancaster mini zoo/butterfly house was so cute but it's been closed for ages for repairs :(

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morgsyswife12@reddit

Oh no I didn’t know this and promised my little one we’d go again when we next go to Lancaster in the summer. Fingers crossed it’ll be fixed by then but I’ll keep checking for updates. Thank you for letting me know!

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morgsyswife12@reddit

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Key_Produce2617@reddit

Welsh mountain zoo.

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jobunny_inUK@reddit

Good to know, we are heading up that way this summer.

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Careful_Adeptness799@reddit

Have an upvote. Pengiun parade is great. Love a penguin

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MisterD90x@reddit

Personally I'm a big fan of "Jimmy''s Farm" in Ipswich

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adequatemum@reddit

Peak Wildlife Park! We fed the penguins there and it was fantastic

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laser_spanner@reddit

I love Peak! I haven't been for a while but I need to because they have Capybaras now.

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Chinablue_@reddit

Paignton zoo, Bristol Wild Place and Cotswold Wildlife Park all worth a visit.

Oxford has two museums - Natural History and Pitts River which are great.

We liked Jodrell Bank visitor centre if that's your thing too.

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Itsamefranknfurter@reddit

Try Africa Alive in Lowestoft Suffolk and it's sister zoo Banham Zoo Amazonia Zoo in Cromer is another one

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rolfeadog@reddit

Adding Jimmy's Farm to the East Anglia list. The polar bears are incredible!

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C0nnectionTerminat3d@reddit

Chester zoo is a must see. It’s a not for profit zoo so even though it’s rather expensive you can guarantee your money is going towards funding for its charity events, wildlife conservation and the upkeep of the animals.

Liverpool world museum has a great invert / bug exhibit and aquarium. I haven’t been for a couple years but i heard they refurbished the bug floor recently. Bonus of this one is that it’s free to enter.

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stripybanana223@reddit

They didn’t refurb the bug floor and it’s knackered. The dinosaur/animals floor is newly done though and great!

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Careful_Adeptness799@reddit

Wife works there. Great free museum. Refurbished the dinos earlier this year as you say. Bugs needs doing next.

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stripybanana223@reddit

It’s a fab museum and the staff are all amazing, just suffering from budget like everything else! They’ve got some great space and you can tell they all care. If I won the lottery I’d give them a few million to do what they want!!

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C0nnectionTerminat3d@reddit

ahh i was under the impression they did both :/

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TooMuchBrightness@reddit

Port Lympne in Kent, is lovely. It has a hotel/wildlife park where your rooms can have the animals come up to the window! If you stay at the hotel you can go in the park before it’s open to the public. I thought it was very nice, clean and the animals were well looked after.

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nancy-p@reddit

if staying overnight you also get a golf buggy to whiz around the park in which was great fun, and entry to howletts zoo is also included which we went to specifically to see the elephants. great couple of days!

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TooMuchBrightness@reddit

My friends little girl is disabled and they did this and she had the time of her life! 🥰🥰🥰

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Narwhal_in_Space@reddit

Bristol Zoo Project keeps getting better and better, plus then you can also do the suspension bridge and Clifton Observatory, and Wake the Tiger which is unlike anything i've visited before! M-Shed museum is really good - lots of local history and a book covered in human skin! The SS Great Britain is great too but not cheap. Don't bother with the aquarium though. Not worth the cash sadly.

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Prize_Technician_459@reddit

I really liked the Cotswold Wildlife Park.

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Top_Cabinet_7501@reddit

Came here to suggest this. It is a truly exceptional spot and the perfect park for one day!

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Amazing-Move-8418@reddit

Colwyn Bay Mountain zoo .A lovely family themed zoo .Some beautiful views a great day out for a picnic .

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whodunnit20@reddit

Whipsnade Zoo in Dunstable.

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Morganx27@reddit

I went to Chester zoo the other weekend and it was incredible. It was so big I didn't even go to the Africa section, it got to 4:30 and I was more bothered about seeing the bears than zebras and giraffes which I've seen a million times. The sun bear was the cutest thing ever. It was a boiling hot day so we took it VERY slowly and stopped every half hour-hour for a sit down and a drink.

We got early access to the zoo with the Jaguar breakfast (excellent treat if you haven't done it before, only costs £30 more than a zoo ticket and you get a nice breakfast and a chance to see the Jaguars before the zoo opens).

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InviteAromatic6124@reddit

Zoos: Whipsnade Zoo, Hoo Zoo, Cotswold Wildlife Park, Yorkshire Wildlife Park
Aquariums: Blue Planet, Brighton SeaLife, National SeaLife Centre Birmingham, National Marine Aquarium, Plymouth

Chester Zoo is the best zoo in the UK, and the NMA is the best aquarium imo.

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Bouckley7@reddit

Feel pretty lucky to have grown up going to Colchester zoo. I really like going there. Recently attended a 10k there that gave you free entry too

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KellysOk@reddit

Tropical Birdland just outside Leicester It's a wonderful day out and they do So much rehabilitation work with birds and education

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Dangerous-Gap-7005@reddit

Monkey World is brilliant. And has the benefit of being near the Tank Museum in case of a nuclear incident.

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SkyPilotOne@reddit

Monkey world is brilliant. My hope is that one day they have a special event where a monkey drives a tank.

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Holymolybalony@reddit

Chimpanzee that

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ThePowerfulHorse@reddit

Longstanton Spice Museum

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InternationalRich150@reddit

I adored Dudley zoo! It's a bit hilly in spots and was busy when we went in Feb half term, bonus points it's right next to my favourite place, Black Country living museum, so 2 birds, but I'd visit just for the zoo.

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Upper_Paramedic_2043@reddit

The Plymouth Aquarium is well worth a visit

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DorsetWanderer@reddit

This.

Do you know you can book an evening dinner there?

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SirDooble@reddit

The freshest fish in town.

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DorsetWanderer@reddit

"I'll have.... ... that one!"

May get a frown. Or they've heard it aw times 😄

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Upper_Paramedic_2043@reddit

I’ll have the one that looks like Bernard Manning. One for the Jasper Carrott fans 😄

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Ninjataye@reddit

They also do orchestras in front of the biggest tank under candlelight. Went to a Lord of the Rings and Game of Thrones one there and they were amazing. Thought it would seem a bit cruel on the fish but they didn't seem bothered and it wasn't overly loud which is good

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Upper_Paramedic_2043@reddit

I didn’t know, but we once went to a charity function one evening at The Deep in Hull which allowed us to wander around before we sat down to dinner. Food was excellent

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DorsetWanderer@reddit

Sit down dinner in front of the big tank... epic view.

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Short-Lingonberry671@reddit

The National Space Centre in Leicester is AMAZING if that would be of interest. When we lived locally, we took advantage of the annual ticket and took the kids when it rained

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ilovelemondrizzle@reddit

I’d say Wild Place Project (now Bristol Zoo project) off of the M5 is one of the best in the UK in my opinion.

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terryjuicelawson@reddit

It has been nice seeing this grow over the years, from an offshoot of the old fashioned city Bristol Zoo into being its outright successor.

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QuarrieMcQuarrie@reddit

Highlands Wildlife Park, Edinburgh Zoo. The Scottish Deer Centre and the Scottish Owl Centre (not the same place).

Personally found London Zoo very depressing with tiny enclosures but it's a while since I've been.

Lisbon Aquarium ( you didn't say it had to be in UK ;) and Lisbon is a great holiday)

Mull Aquarium in Tobermory. It is catch and release and very well done.

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antimathematician@reddit

Lisbon aquarium was the first to come to mind for me as well!

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antimathematician@reddit

Love longleat zoo! Expensive but you can’t definitely fill a whole day. And the herschel museum of astronomy is worth a visit if you’re in the area. ESP if they’re doing a nighttime opening with telescopes.

(No prizes for guessing where I grew up lol)

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lozzatron1990@reddit

Come to second longleat, we have an annual membership as we're not far away and go really frequently. It's great! They're always developing new bits and pieces and the new bat cave is amazing. Oh and if you go around the safari at the right time then you can pay £2.50 (I think) and feed the giraffes!!!

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antimathematician@reddit

Yes the annual membership is great! I think you’ve only got to go three times to get your moneys worth?

We get it every few years but if we have kids while we live here I suspect it’ll become a staple

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greens1117@reddit

What time do they feed the giraffes please?

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lozzatron1990@reddit

I think it's 10:30/11ish? And then sometimes at 2 on busy days.

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greens1117@reddit

Great thanks 👍

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jncb@reddit

Blackpool Zoo is great, as is Knowsley Safari Park, which has a zoo as well as the safari.

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just_a_flutter@reddit

Dudley. Very hilly but lovely. Good tropical house to feed birds.

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Pencil_Queen@reddit

The Hawk Conservancy Trust near Andover in Hampshire has the absolute best bird displays and lots of them throughout the day. The staff and volunteers are all really devoted to their animals and it's a really great day out.

https://www.hawk-conservancy.org

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GreenMist1980@reddit

I love Paignton zoo. But like all zoo's they are struggling financially so if you can, visit zoos that take part in endangered species breeding programs and help support them.

Also Tropical birdland in Desford is always great fun even if you do get Macaws trying to mug you for fun

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liluniqueme@reddit

Yorkshire Wildlife Park. It's become a lot bigger since COVID and is about 20 mins away from me.

Do love Chester Zoo but it's a trek to get there.

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A-Llama-Snackbar@reddit

Blue Planet Aquarium is a sight to behold imo

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Lynex_Lineker_Smith@reddit

What constitutes ‘best’ ?

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Snakeplanting@reddit

I've seen the usual faves that I love a lot so just throwing a something else in:

Leonard's Lee is lovely if you like huge sprawling gardens and wallaby as well as deer. Also fowl. Don't think you're allowed to feed the latter anymore because they got Too Crafty

And it's small but I thoroughly enjoyed the Horniman Museum and Gardens - they did actually have a butterfly house the last time I went but that was just temporary. Do generally have some animals though

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hamstertoybox@reddit

Plymouth aquarium is really good.

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achillea4@reddit

Port Lympne wildlife and safari park in Kent.

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95VR6@reddit

My local ish favourites are Port Lympne and Jimmys Farm.

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DontCatchThePigeon@reddit

If you want to make a weekend of varied museums, Leicester has an unexpectedly eclectic collection.

National Space Centre Video game museum (it's on a random industrial estate, but you can play on most of their machines/games) Jewry wall (newly refurbished Roman museum) Richard III museum Leicester art gallery (free)

There's others, too, but those are the biggest I think. Other than the video game museum, they're pay once and visit all year.

Otherwise, I'd recommend planning a trip to South Wales

Caerleon amphitheatre/ baths / Roman museum St Fagans national open air museum Big pit national coal museum Castle Coch Tintern abbey Wales ape and monkey sanctuary

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Theratchetnclank@reddit

Chester Zoo is the best in the UK.

Yorkshire wildlife park is really good too but not as big as chester.

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Upper_Paramedic_2043@reddit

We were at Chester Zoo last year and it is fabulous

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Careful_Adeptness799@reddit

We’re members we just popped in for the last 2 hours on Sunday it was great. 16,000 visitors every day over the weekend so be prepared folks it can get busy.

I also used to work there as a kid. Great zoo.

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ArizonaFlats@reddit

YWP is a great day out but I admit it’s not as grand as Chester, I live near by so I’ve seen it evolve from Brockle’s Farm petting zoo into the park we have today that dwarfs the two neighbouring villages

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Dramatic-Ad8048@reddit

Best zoo I've visited is Chester zoo, followed by Colchester zoo. Whipsnade and London zoo are worth a visit too. National marine aquarium in Plymouth is good. Also highly recommend Monkey world.

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Ambry@reddit

Genuinely think Chester Zoo is incredible. Huge, so many species, great habitats with space for the animals to get away from you and be secluded if they need to.

I also really like the Bristol Zoo Project - focuses on quality over quantity!

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flamingochills@reddit

Welsh Mountain Zoo in Colwyn Bay

Tenby Zoo they're both great and near beaches.

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spoo4brains@reddit

Chester is the best. Sadly I don't live near there, the best in the SE is Colchester, and I love Banham.

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YorkshireDrifter@reddit

Out on the Wolds or the Yorkshire coast near Fraisethorpe

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ratgirl9241@reddit

Yorkshire wildlife park is my favourite. Edinburgh is also good.

Looking at some of your entries on there, are you around the East Riding of Yorkshire area? There are a few mini animal attractions/ "zoos" / petting farms around. Hornsea freeport's Bugtopia, Honeysuckle farm in Hornsea, Bridlington animal park

Also Hull has a few mini "zoos" in its public parks that you can go to for free.

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YorkshireMary@reddit

Tropical World in Roundhay Park

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zentimo2@reddit

Yorkshire Wildlife Park and Chester Zoo are both superb.

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ComprehensiveAd7293@reddit

Leicester space centre

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Scary-Try3023@reddit

The sea life centre in Weymouth was the only one I’ve found so far that had Japanese spider crabs, those things are crazy!

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Still-Consideration6@reddit

Cornish seal sanctuary New forest zoo Linton zoo I like smaller less formal places really

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JoeDaStudd@reddit

Dudley zoo is well worth a visit as it's based around an old castle.\ If your ever visiting Alton Towers, nearby there is Peak Wildlife which has walk throughs and polar bears which for the size of the zoo is amazing.

For museums the big ones in London are always worth a visit.\ Oxfords Pitt museum is amazing.

But in all honesty any museum is worth a look sometimes the small village/towns ones are true hidden gems.

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justdont7133@reddit

Yorkshire Wildlife Park

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Phoenyx_wilson@reddit

There's a place where you can see capybara and pet them and feed them but I dont know what its called. Also the monkey forest at Trentham Gardens.

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Hungry_Rabbit_9733@reddit

If you love monkeys and apes, you can't miss Monkey World.

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you_aint_seen_me-@reddit

The Cotswold Wildlife Park (near Burford), is excellent. It will be busy during the school holidays, but aren't they all.

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Research_abroad_913@reddit

If you want something a bit special, the Big Cat Sanctuary in Kent is great for a birthday/special occasion. You can stay overnight and hear the lions from your lodge. You get to learn so much about the cats. We did it for a 30th! It’s not open to the general public (apart from on open days) so it feels really different.

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Worth_Gap4226@reddit

Colchester Zoo. It's about half the size of Chester Zoo, but can be done in 2/3rds of a day.

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cold_tap_hot_brew@reddit

Macduff marine aquarium is being renovated with plans to reopen this year, hopefully in Summertime.

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DorsetWanderer@reddit

London zoo is also pretty nice. You use to be able to get a nice riverboat from Camden Lock to it.

Marwell is also nice

As is Monkey World down here in Dorset

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vipros42@reddit

Screech owl sanctuary near Wadebridge in Cornwall is outstanding if you like owls

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Rallam259@reddit (OP)

can't replay to everyone individually. but thank you and keep em coming the list is growing

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cuccir@reddit

Monkey Forest is a good one for offering something a bit different. Not a huge site though.

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Chelz91@reddit

Paradise wildlife park

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Stinkiest_rat@reddit

Jersey zoo has always been lovely when I’ve been over that way

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BerryOk966@reddit

Five Sisters Zoo near Livingston. Started out as a guy who liked unusual pets. Other people then asked him to take on theirs when they were too much to handle. Now they've got loads of animals rescued from travelling circuses.

The animal living conditions are the best I've ever seen.

Take a picnic though, the cafe is very basic.

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Spunkallthemoney@reddit

Cotswold Wildlife Park is probably my favourite place! It is relatively cheap and you can bring your dog.

Chester Zoo is the best i would say.

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