Whipsnade Zoo Review
Whipsnade Zoo
Dunstable, Bedfordshire
Reviewed by Katherine Christensen
We were fortunate enough to have a fantastic sunny day for our trip to Whipsnade Zoo this Easter, our party consisted of an almost four year old boy, a seventy something great aunt and a thirty something mum just about holding it together.
On arrival at the zoo we entered via the car entrance, there is ample parking outside of the zoo but on this occasion we decided to take the car in, we proceeded at a leisurely pace to a parking area inside the zoo and decided our plan of action… Our first stop were the lemurs where we were able to ask some of the volunteers a couple of questions that we had about our day, the volunteers were friendly, approachable and knowledgeable and seemed to be all around the zoo so a friendly face was never too far away.
We ambled here and there before making our way towards the sea lion show, after a small bit of gentle persuasion we managed to avoid the blue splash zone and thoroughly enjoyed the show, we became big fans of Dominic and his shark impression was a sure fire hit never mind the hose tricks!
From the sea lions we went into the new wooden playground where my little boy was keen to explore the Hullabazoo Adventure Playground, the range of equipment was fantastic and the rubber flooring perfect for the falls and stumbles that occur, the only negative about the area that the great aunt pointed out was that there were no benches in the play area for the oldies to have a sit down whilst supervising. As we moved through the adventure playground, we did see some fantastic picnic tables all themed and at perfect heights! We decided not to go into the indoor play as the weather was beautiful and we didn’t want to wear out my little boy this soon into our day out as we had plenty more walking to do.
We then headed into the new Hullabazoo Farm where you can see the miniature donkeys, Trevor and Tulip, along with lots of other farmyard animals such as sheep, pigs, goats, bunnies, guinea pigs, ferrets and as it is Easter – newley hactched chicks. Again there were volunteers and staff on hand to answer questions and help to pet the animals. It was lovely to see so many hand washing points and also such clear signage about what time the talks and animal handling was on.
After lunch we wandered towards the giraffes passing the beautiful rhinos, the giraffes were a massive hit with us all and the raised viewing platform was fantastic, you truly felt close to the magnificent creatures and could clearly see the smaller members of the group. What was also lovely at most of the areas we went to there were glass screens in the fences so the small member of the party could see without having to be picked up. Penguin feeding was fun and the staff gave a lovely presentation and were available afterwards to answer any questions.
We examined the map and headed towards the cheetahs, zebras etc… Again all the exhibits were clean and well maintained, there were a couple of areas of the zoo where the smaller exhibits were empty as the animals had been moved but this certainly didn’t hinder our enjoyment.
After seeing all we could we took the car to the elephant area and truly fell in love with the baby elephant having its mummy milk, they were mostly all inside when we got there so we had a lovely times being able to see them so closely.
Our final stop of the day was the shop! Well a souvenir is always nice, the shop was busy as it was 5pm but well stocked with a lovely selection of gifts for all budgets!
In conclusion we had a thoroughly lovely day, the zoo and all of its facilities were clean and well signposted, we were most impressed with the amount of staff and volunteers around all of whom were happy to help.
A great fun day out.
Rating: 5/5 
Open 7 days a week (except Christmas Day) from 10am to 6pm (last entry 5pm).
Tickets cost (online prices): Adult – £23.50, Children (3-15 years) – £17, Family – £72.90
For more information or to book tickets visit www.zsl.org/zsl-whipsnade-zoo.
ZSL Whipsnade Zoo, Dunstable, Bedfordshire, LU6 2LF | 01582 872171
