We were invited down to Twycross Zoo and we had such a lovely day there. I went with my 10 year old and my nearly 2 year old and they both found loads to do each! Here’s a review about our day trip and all the exciting activities we did during our time at Twycross Zoo.
Twycross Zoo 60th Anniversary
The zoo is celebrating an incredible 60 year anniversary right now, so there were many different 60’s events going on during our visit. These included extra character meet and greets, shows, swinging 60’s music, themed dancing, crafts & so much more. In fact, Twycross Zoo hold exciting events like this throughout the year. That’s on top of everything else that is here!! Perfect for families and great value as part of your normal admission price.
There are many different areas across the park including The Gruffalo Discovery Land, Wet n Wild play and other areas such as outdoor play areas and soft play which I will go into more detail below.
The Gruffalo Discover Land
The Gruffalo Discovery Land which consists of an interactive journey is amazing. There’s so much for younger kids to see including pop up characters and interactive buttons you can press. These feature all the voices from the story, with shows on throughout the day. We even got to sing, dance and meet with the Gruffalo!
Meet Gruffalo Characters
The trail takes you on a journey through the deep dark woods, meeting all the iconic characters along the way – you can then see the real life animals throughout such as snakes, owls and the butterflies. Also there’s even a Gruffalo themed cafe along the way with themed foods and coffee (most important!) Best of all there’s a Gruffalo gift shop for all the little fans. In this same area they have a little goat petting area, and a small play area which is also great for young kids.
Animal Kingdom at Twycross Zoo
As part of the Animal Kingdom, we saw so many different kinds of monkeys including chimpanzees, orangutans, gorillas, and bonobos. I learnt that Twycross is the only place in the whole of the UK where you can see the 4 great apes. How amazing is that?
There are also plenty of various other animals to see including flamingos, birds, lemurs, tigers, leopards & meerkats. Plus lots more! You get to walk around the butterfly enclosure, which is really cool especially if one lands on you! Also you can even hand feed the lorikeets with little pots of nectar (available for an extra £2). We loved it when they were sitting on our hands feeding!
Learn about animals
Our favourite animals to see here were the snow leopard, the tiger, the giraffes and the bonobos which I also learnt are the closest living cousins to the human race – you can see this as well by how human-like they are, it’s so amazing!
I also learnt that the tigers are critically endangered which is so sad! But they have a great space here including a visitor tunnel that you can stand underneath, if you’re lucky the tigers will come stand on it above you!
All of the animals looked happy which was really lovely to see, and they have such big enclosures which most of them have indoor and outdoor areas for them to enjoy a bit of everything.
Soft Play and Face Painting at Twycross Zoo
A big soft play area can be found inside the main building at an additional cost of £6 per child. This can be pre-booked or can be booked when you are there. There are certain time slots throughout the day and you get given a timeslot to return.
Outdoor Play Area
If you don’t want to do this, there are various outdoor play areas and sand pits situated around the park. We particularly loved the little sensory trail that you can find here where children can take off their shoes and socks to feel the textures underneath their feet. I also noticed that you can have soft play parties here that look really fun!
Face Painting
Don’t forget to get your children’s face painted as soon as you come into the main entrance building so they can be their favourite animal for the day!
Animal Talks and Experiences
There are lots of different animal talks going on as well – you can find out the schedule when you arrive and see the daily talk times. We loved hearing about the penguins. But there are plenty of others including meerkat talks!
Animal Encounters
We also saw some people hand feeding the giraffes, so I had a look into it and there are lots of animal experiences and tours that you can do for an additional cost. Other experiences include a tiger experience, an Amur leopard encounter, a great ape tour, a primate tour, a big cat tour, a tortoise encounter, a meerkat encounter, a snow leopard encounter and so many more!! These sound absolutely incredible.
Food and Drink at Twycross Zoo
The main entrance is also home to various family friendly eating areas, a gift shop, and a costa coffee kiosk. This overlooks the snow leopard enclosure. So, you can eat and drink with an incredible view.
Snack Kiosks
There’s also a fish and chip shop in the middle of the zoo and many different snack kiosks around. I think there’s one in every area. So, you can always find snacks, drinks and ice creams. Another option is taking a picnic.
Twycross Zoo is such a great day out full of family fun for everyone to enjoy. There are so many things to see and do and activities on offer that we can’t wait to come back.
Twycross Zoo New Annual Pass Offer
Perfect for the Summer holidays Twycross Zoo have introduced a NEW annual ticket. Visit from £17.10. Pay for a day and visit for 12 months when you gift aid your purchase! Gift Aid is no extra cost for you but has a huge impact on Twycross Zoo as a charity, for every £1 you spend they can claim 25p back from the government to support conservation.
We hope you found this review helpful. When you are planning your next family day out you have everything you need to know to organise a trip with your Twycross Zoo tickets!
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