This is probably a little unfair as a review, as it's winter in an African themed Zoo;
Price☆☆☆☆☆- Were super reasonable, 21 quid for 2 adults probably the best out of all the zoos in the area, especially considering its variety of endangered animals.
Guest Facilities☆☆☆- some were shut due to it being mid week/winter which is completely fair. Toilets were clean and standard. There is a restaurant, we didnt go in but looked fine. There seemed to be a lot of animal talks around the zoo, assumingly for busier periods, which again is fine. Bins were a little sparce, especially on the north side of the zoo.
Education☆☆☆- Boards and reading information on every exhibit. Zoo keepers didn't really interact much which is neither here nor there really, but is nice when they do.
Animals☆☆☆☆- I was actually super excited when i saw the amount of rare animals advertised, it definitely has the best collection of endangered and different animals in the area, and of any zoo i've visited so far. The only problem really was not being able to see the animals, mainly on the north side of the zoo. A lot of animals were in their sleeping enclosures (it being winter) some of them had windows you could see into, but the buffalos/deer species and lemur species did not have this. So there was a few empty habitats, which is to be expected since its winter, but more viewing areas would be great!
The south side where the smaller animals are was very good though.
The animals all looked healthy, a little tired maybe but again, it is VERY cold today. Habitats were all clean and reasonably large though.
Accessibility ☆☆☆- I'm a part time wheelchair user. It was 98% accessible, the park is very flat so nice and easy to get around. Though a lot of grass that sometimes we wanted to cut across. Ramps for most viewing areas. Most of the north of the zoo is gravel pathways which were a little bumpy and uncomfortable. Viewing areas with doors were manual, as they usually are in zoos, so little assistance is needed with those.
Overall, nice big zoo. My first time going, I believe we didn't get to see it at it's best due to it being winter, which is to be expected with animals that prefer the warmth. Loved the quirky selection of animals.
Gift shop was good, not full of random crap like other zoos. Had a REALLY good selection of quality plushies (personal preference, but it's rare these days)
Staff encountered were polite. Would recommend going in the summer :) 🦓🦏🦒