The best UK safari parks with kids

If your family are animal lovers, there’s no more fun day out than a visit to one of the country’s wildlife parks – especially getting to see some of the wonderful creatures living at the best UK safari parks with kids.

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From lions and tigers to bears, rhino, wolves, elephants, a whole host of smaller furry favourites, and too many others to mention, it’s never hard to fill a full day, with extra experience, play areas and even dinosaurs as a bonus to keep the entire family happy.

With a chance to get closer to the animals than a lot of zoos, a drive-through safari park can be fun with younger kids who get tired at bigger sites, while many of the top UK safari parks have walking safaris as well, to give you chance to go at your own pace near anything from meerkats and lemurs to red pandsas.

West Midlands Safari Park

Located close to Birmingham, there’s a fun mix of drive-through safari encounters, walk-through exhibits, and fun family experiences at West Midlands Safari Park 

The safari park has over 600 animals, including 170 species from all over the world, with the likes of big cats, elephants, zebras, cheetahs, and many exotic birds, as well as white rhino in the African Plains area and African elephants in Elephant Valley.

If you’ve got your own vehicle, you can drive around the park at your own pace, but there’s also the chance to jump on a guided minibus safari, where the knowledgeable staff will entertain you with stories and facts about the park’s many animals. 

The park also has several foot safari sections offering more up-close encounters. Discover giraffes and rhinos on the African Walking Trail or adorable Red Pandas and Humboldt penguins on the all-weather Discovery Trail.

Try to time your visits to line up with the park’s many animal talks and shows so little ones can learn more about their favourite species too.

But what really makes West Midland safari park one of the UK’s best safari parks for families is its wealth of other fun exhibits and experiences for kids of all ages. 

You can step back in time and walk among woolly mammoths in the Ice Age exhibit, or encounter prehistoric creatures at the Land of the Living Dinosaurs. Older children and teens will also love the park’s Adventure Theme Park, with many thrilling animal-themed rides and rollercoasters. 

You can even turn your visit into a once-in-a-lifetime family holiday with an overnight stay at one of the luxury Safari Lodges – a lovely option if you’re planning a short break rather than a day out.

For more things to do in Birmingham with kids, check out my top picks

Knowsley Safari Park

You’ll find the UK’s longest safari drive at Knowsley Safari Park in Merseyside, spanning five miles across its 550 acre reserve. Along the drive, you can see many of the park’s 750 animals, including the likes of lions, zebras, and baboons, plus one of the largest ‘crashes’ of white rhinos in the country.

The expansive park means there’s plenty of space for the animals to roam freely too. One of the highlights is the baboon jungle, where these mischievous creatures often entertain visitors with their playful antics.

Buy day tickets with free cancellation here

If you’re worried about damage to your car, drop it in the car park and jump on the Baboon Bus instead. The buses have ropes and ladders for the baboons to play on, so you’re guaranteed an exciting up-close encounter without worrying about your windscreen wipers as you visit the baboon enclosure.

Once you’ve experienced the safari drive, you can also explore Knowsley’s foot safari trails. Take a walk through the Amur Tiger Trail and come nose to nose with big cats. Or take the pathways through the enclosures and meet mischievous meerkats, giant giraffes, and amazing birds of prey.

The park also has daily animal talks and displays, several kids’ play areas, face painting, and amusement rides for younger children, making for a fantastic family day out.

Check out my top picks for the best things to do in Liverpool with kids, if you’re combining it with a city break, plus you’re also just a half-hour drive from Chester Zoo

Blair Drummond Safari Park & Adventure Park

It’s not just England which has one of the UK’s best safari parks. In central Scotland near the city of Stirling, Blair Drummond Safari Park is home to over 350 exotic animals from across the world.

Journey through the park’s small animal reserve in your car to see many of the usual safari park favourites, including lions, elephants, rhinos, antelope, and camels.

But it’s the foot safari that’s the real highlight of Blair Drummond. Here you’ll find many fascinating and unusual animals, including bison, wallabies, llamas, alpacas, free-roaming lemurs, and cheeky chimps – who even have their own private chimp island. 

Plus, don’t miss the adorable shaggy-coated Highland Cattle and the friendly Highland Ponies, both of which are native to the Scottish Highlands.

The Pet Farm lets kids get up close and personal with the likes of pygmy goats, sheep, and deer, while the Sea Lion displays and Bird of Prey shows are sure to keep the whole family entertained.

Beyond the wildlife, the family-friendly safari park also has free pedal boats on the central lake, an adventure play area with a giant play fort and pirate ship, amusement arcades, and a mini-funfair with dodgems and teacups. 

Port Lympne Safari Park 

Port Lympne safari park in Kent is the closest you’ll come to a real African game reserve experience in the UK, with over 900 animals across its 600 acres, Land Rover safaris led by expert rangers, amazing close-up animal encounters, and safari-lodge-style accommodation.

Unlike most other safari parks in the UK, Port Lympne doesn’t allow you to drive your own car within the animal zones. 

Instead, you can hop on the African & Asian Experience safari ride or there’s the option to pay for a small-group safari experience truck tour to see free-roaming animals in the African, Asian, and South American reserves. Some safaris even include the opportunity to hand-feed the friendly giraffes. 

The rest of the park can be explored on foot. Large enclosures house a variety of rare and endangered species, including western lowland gorillas, tigers, black rhinos, and spectacled bears, not forgetting a prehistoric treat in the Dinosaur Forest as well.

Conservation projects are at the heart of everything they do at Port Lympne. Working alongside the Aspinall Foundation, the reserve is a breeding sanctuary for many endangered species. The aim is to reintroduce the animals into their natural habitat when possible.

Port Lympne also has a range of interactive animal experiences for an additional fee, including animal encounters, keeper experiences, and feeding sessions. Some have a minimum age of 5, although you’ll need to be 7 years old or more for the majority though.

You can even opt for a full safari break by staying in one of the park’s many accommodation options. From spacious lodges with floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking the enclosures (Lion Lodge is hard to beat) and treehouses tucked into the canopy to cosy shepherd huts and family glamping pods, there are plenty of unique stays to choose from if you’re planning short breaks as well as day trips.

Check out my review of a visit and stay at Port Lympne with kids

Longleat Safari Park

Set in the beautiful grounds of Longleat Estate in Wiltshire, Longleat Safari Park is one of the UK’s largest safari parks and most famous animal attractions – and the first Safari Park to open outside of Africa, back in 1966.

The 900 acre park offers a fascinating drive-through safari with many exciting animals, including lions, rhinos, elephants, giraffes, and wolves, all with special commentary to play – you’ll want to download the app in advance, with the narration by Kate Humble triggered as you get to different points.

From the first stop in the African village through to Tiger Territory, Cheetah Kingdom and Lion Country, you’ll see a whole string of different species in the different zones. Monkey Mayhem is one of the most popular zones, with its troupe of rhesus macaques renowned for their mischievous behaviour – as I know from experience, be careful of your car trim and windscreen wipers here!

Other than the drive-through safari, which you normally need around two hours for, you can also explore the large safari park by foot, train, bus, and boat. 

The narrow gauge miniature railway runs through the park’s scenic woodlands and past many of the enclosures, while the Jungle Cruise boat ride takes you out onto the large lake to see Californian sea lions and possibly even spot the resident hippos.

There are plenty of exciting animals to discover in the foot safari zones, including England’s only koalas and giant Cuban crocodiles. The Family Farmyard allows kids to meet many friendly farmyard animals, from fluffy bunnies to playful goats.  

Besides the animals, you can enjoy a tour of Longleat House, the UK’s most impressive stately home, or get lost in the country’s largest hedge maze.

There’s lots going on to keep younger visitors entertained too. Kids can let off some steam in the huge Adventure Castle play area, hang out in the Little Explorers Garden, and take a ride on the Rockin’ Rhinos. Not forgetting some special events during school holidays – it genuinely is tough to fit everything into a one-day visit!

Check out my review of a visit to Longleat Safari Park with kids

Woburn Safari Park

One of my own personal favourites, as I got married a stone’s throw from Woburn Safari Park, we’ve visited more than once over the years with a mix of self-drive safari, a walking safari and other animal experiences to try.

Start with the road safari, heading past Bactrian camels on the Northern Plains before heading into the Savannah grasslands, with Southern White rhinos, antelopes and buffalo grazing as you go.

Then you arrive in the Kingdom of Carnivores; the eight-acre enclosure is home to Amur Tigers, North American black bears, Canadian timber wolves and African lions. Keep your car window very firmly closed in this part!

Moving through Giraffe Junction to the African Forest, there’s a chance to brave monkeys once again here too – the whole thing takes around 60-90 minutes depending how busy the safari park is, but you can repeat the circuit as often as you like.

The road safari route finishes at the Foot Safari, with red pandas and lemurs among the furry occupants, as well as Asian elephants in their meadow enclosure, plus penguins and sea lions too.

There are also keeper talks throughout the day – with something every 15 minutes or so, you’ll struggle to fit it all in, so it’s worth checking out your must-sees in advance and planning your day around it.

You’ve also got various play areas here, including one for the youngest visitors, outdoor and indoor options including the Mammoth Play Ark, plus the Giraffe Trail high ropes, dragon and swan boats on the lake and the Great Woburn Railway, which takes you past the alpacas. Not forgetting the VIP animal experiences, with some options suitable for age 5+.

Check out my review of the animal experiences at Woburn Safari Park

Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links – any purchases you make are unaffected but I may receive a small commission. All opinions on the best UK safari parks with kids are my own

Port Lympne/Longleat/Woburn images copyright MummyTravels, Knowsley courtesy of Depositphotos, West Midlands/Blair Drummond courtesy of Picfair

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