This weekend we finally broke free the of the school/work routine and started the school half term with a visit to somewhere that has been on our radar for a while but we had yet to visit as a family.
Twycross Zoo & The Gruffalo Discovery Land
Based in Nottinghamshire we have an abundance of family friendly locations on the doorstep but we frequently forget is that living so centrally in the country we are only ever a short distance to another county and after our drive to Twycross Zoo today I am sad we haven’t don’t it before.
It was immensely easy to get to, it was well signposted and when we got there we discovered it also offers the option to upgrade your tickets on the day to 12 month tickets so you can visit as many times as you like in a year which I thought was super!
We were invited to visit Twycross Zoo as they had recently undergone a renovation of their Gruffalo Discovery Land just in time for the Half Term school holidays. Initially I had reservations that my children were a little too old for this at age 13 and 8. However, both boys had loved the Gruffalo as little tots and with the experience within the Zoo itself we were eager to see if this place could cater for families like mine with children at different ages.
The Gruffalo Discovery Land was well thought out with wide flat pathways that made it easy for my boys to get around but would also make it easy for buggy pushing parents too. It meandered around the venue with animal attractions and areas to visit within its pathway.
The boys were given the opportunity to stamp cards along the journey in each area which they loved.
The meandering pathways led to interactive activities along the way with digital games, animatronics, physical games and also sites that tested senses of smell and video clips. All these build the interactive experience for children.
Along the way there were opportunities to hear and watch pieces from the book and along the trail there were buttons to press that brought the story to life even for the youngest of children.
We were able to visit a green room studio and capture a family photo that we would have a Gruffalo background and there were places along the Gruffalo journey that you can stop and take some photos of the kids or even the adults if you fancy it!
Initially I had reservations this being able to keep both kids entertained but I can confirm that both enjoyed the Gruffalo Discovery Land and it was a lovely part of Twycross Zoo.
As part of the ticket price the Gruffalo Discovery Land and the Zoo are combined so while visiting yesterday we were thrilled to get to visit the animals on the park along with visit the Gruffalo Discovery Land.
Where we were able to spend time looking at the fabulous animals and even get to feed some!
The boys loved having a range of animals to see and in various settings from walk through enclosures and even visited inside and outside enclosures. Which we found really interesting. Especially as fact about the animals, where they live in the wild and other information are on boards around their enclosures.
There were a large range of animals to see from tigers and rhinos to giraffes and even penguins.
Personally I loved the primates the best! There were so many different species and some were real show offs while others were not interested in the people gawping at them through the glass. They were truly fantastic
The giant tortoises were also mind blowing! – Did you know they could live to up to 200 years old!
The final stop before heading home was the water park. Jacob was so excited when he realised that we had brought extra clothing! he was in there like a shot.
At the venue there are lots of places to pick up a gift, buy snacks, food and drink. There is also a soft play area that you can pay extra for so there is more than enough to do to pack in a full day at Twycross.
We will be back Twycross Zoo!
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