Roaring lions, balancing pink flamingos and cute cuddly meerkats, what could be more exciting than a day out at the zoo? Zoos give you chance to see some of the most amazing, friendly and beautiful animals that nature has to offer, without having to travel far and wide! And with so many options within a giraffe’s neck’s reach of Brighton, you’ll be dazzled by these amazing animals before you can say rhinoceroses.
Drusilla’s Park
For the ultimate zoo experience and more, Drusilla’s Park offers one oof the best zoo trips and family days out in Sussex. Located just a half-hour drive from central Brighton, Drusilla’s park is nestled in the beautiful Sussex countryside, meaning you can get to know all of the wild animals in an equally wild setting!
With hundreds of animals to discover, including red pandas, giant anteaters and sloths, as well as cute and cuddly meerkats, lemurs and monkeys, animal lovers of all kinds and all ages will find an amazing animal to admire. And if you fall in love with an animal, why not choose to adopt it, and support Drusilla’s park to care for it?
If you want to get even closer to the animal guests, why not book on to one of Drusilla Park’s ‘Close Encounters,’ where you can get hands-on, one-to-one time with one of the amazing animals, from armadillos, beavers and capybaras or even tarantulas! Help the Zookeepers with their daily care of the animal, including feeding it, and enjoy the magical experience of getting up close and personal with your favourite animal friend.
If you can’t choose just one animal to spend time with, then why not book on to a ‘Keeper for the Day’ experience, where you can enjoy exclusive access inside the animal enclosures, the chance for magical close-up photography and one-on-one time with a dedicated Zookeeper, as long as you’re happy to roll up your sleeves and help the Zookeepers to prepare meals for your animal buddies and clean out their enclosures!
But the fun doesn’t stop at hanging out with the animals! The whole family can enjoy the huge range of exhilarating rides on offer, such as the spinning, whizzing Toucan Twister, or a a soaring ride above the treetop canopy, before plummeting back to ground level on the Amazon Skyrise. Little explorers can enjoy taking the wheel on a ride on the jungle jeeps, or a trip on the safari express train.
So, for thrill-seekers, animal enthusiasts and wannabe Zookeepers, Drusilla’s Park offers a wonderful day out for all the family.
Website: https://www.drusillas.co.uk/
Address: Drusillas Park, Alfriston, East Sussex, BN26 5QS
Telephone: 01323 874100
Tilgate Nature Centre
Tucked in the beautiful Tilgate Park in Crawley, Tilgate Nature Centre aims to offer guests an affordable and educational experience with animal welfare at the heart of everything they do. Home to 500 animals housed in 6 geographical zones, Tilgate Nature Centre cares for all animals, ranging from domestic animals such as pygmy goats, Shetland ponies and Mabel the Pig, to the Africa zone, home to mischievous mongooses, tortoises, meerkats and servals.
Guests are sure to be delighted by the stunning reindeer in the Europe Zone, or the huge array of owls, including Fezziwig the barn owl, Gustav the snowy Owl and Scrooge the Bengal Eagle Owl. But don’t worry, they are kept safely away from the Tilgate Nature Centre’s adorable harvest and spiny mice!
Tilgate Nature Centre also offers a huge range of educational activities, including topics like Adaptations and Habitats, Classification, Minibeasts, Conservation, Reproduction and Life Cycles and Evolution. Check out their website for a variety of educational videos, activities, experiments and creative writing ideas for the budding animal enthusiast or biology star among you.
With a huge focus on conservation, sustainability and caring for endangered species, Tilgate Nature Centre is the perfect way to support a future for the beautiful nature on planet earth, as well as to encourage the next generation of animal conservationists to save the world. And you’ll be sure to have a blast along the way.
Website: https://tilgatenaturecentre.wordpress.com/
Address: Tilgate Park, Titmus Dr, Crawley RH10 5PQ
Telephone: 01293 521168
Huxley’s Birds of Prey Centre
For the aviary afficionados among you, look no further than Huxley’s Birds of Prey Centre, home to a huge happy family of well-loved birds. While you might think that the centre’s namesake Huxley is the founder of the park, Huxley is actually a beautiful owl, who enjoys sunbathing in his aviary and overseeing his kingdom of fellow birds. As the longest-standing resident of the Centre, Huxley hatched in 1974, making him almost 50 years old!
The centre has sat in its current location since 1993, and was originally a private collection of birds belonging to founder Julian. His legacy lives on in the impressive range of birds, which can be watched flying around in the display lawn.
In addition to a huge range of aviaries, the centre is also home to beautiful gardens and tropical plants. Guests can enjoy exploring palms, tree ferns, acers and bamboos around a beautiful Japanese water feature.
Bird-lovers can also enjoy a range of unique and exciting experience days, including a Hawk Walk, an Owl and Raptor Afternoon, or a full Raptor Day. Get hands-on time with the elusive birds of prey, with tiny owls and huge ones alike. Learn all the information you could dream of about owl hunting, flying and habitats, as well as first-hand experience in flying and handling these fabulous creatures.
Website: https://www.huxleysbop.co.uk/
Address: Huxley’s Birds of Prey Centre and Gardens, Hillier Garden Centre, Brighton Road, Horsham, RH13 6QA
Telephone: 01403 273458
Blackberry Farm Park
For a cute and cosy experience getting up close to some of East Sussex’s fuzziest friends, Blackberry Farm Park is a fun-filled day for all the family just 40 minutes out of Brighton. This petting zoo offers a huge range of animal experiences, outdoor play and rides for all the family, making it the perfect place for an animal-themed birthday party, or a family day out to the zoo.
The whole family can enjoy interacting with the park’s adorable farm animals, including Alpacas, Pigs and Highland Cattle, just to name a few. Or, take a visit to the Small Animal Barn, where you can spend quality time with some of the smaller furry friends who call the park home, such as rabbits, guinea pigs and tortoises.
During the frequent Animal Handling Sessions, children can even enjoy a cuddle with these cute creatures, and enjoy getting as close as possible to these fabulously adorable animals. Visitors can also buy animal feed from the kiosk and café, meaning for just £2 you can give the beautiful farm animals a snack by hand or trough!
Blackberry Farm Park also offers a huge range of experiences, including little lamb parent and toddler sessions and the farmer experience, where children can, with the help of an experienced team member, learn how to feed and groom the animals, collect fresh egg and even muck out enclosures.
So whether you’re after a cosy cuddling session with some smaller creatures, feeding alpacas, birthday parties or hands-on experiences, Blackberry Farm Park has got it all.
Website: https://blackberry-farm.co.uk/
Address: Blackberry Farm Park, Whitesmith, East Sussex, BN8 6JD
Telephone: 01825 872912
RepTylers
Fancy bringing the zoo to you? RepTylers are a small, family-run business who bring the magic of unusual creatures to your birthday party, school or youth group. Offering expert presentations and handling experiences, RepTylers will tailor their events to your personal needs, with packages including a Large Snake encounter, or sessions with up to 8 animals.
Their age-specific sessions will provide friendly, memorable and hands-on time for the children to engage with the animals, as well as heaps of educational information about each unique species. Expect creepy-crawlies, amphibians, snakes, lizards and mini-beasts, as well as your traditional furry friends.
So, if you want to enjoy the magic of the zoo from the comfort of your own space, then RepTylers may be the perfect opportunity for you.
Website: https://www.reptylers.co.uk/
Telephone: 07724 486591
So, whether you’re after a high-octane, adrenaline-pumping trip to the zoo with roaring lions and thrilling rides, a relaxing day cuddling cute creatures at a petting zoo, or the full zoo experience at home, all of these delights can be found within a stone’s throw of Brighton. Animal lovers of all kinds can enjoy hands-on experiences, zookeeper days and farmyard experience to get up close and personal with their favourite furry (and not so
