Drusillas Park
Latest Reviews
Had preordered tickets, but still had to queue with everyone else, which was a shame and delayed my entry by some 20 minutes. On entry to the park it was very busy, with the zoo path being very cramped. I escaped that area to do the park 'backwards' which appeared less busy. The zoo animals are good, but I was disappointed with the size of some of the homes for them (The Camels - who usually travel for miles - had hardly any room). The food available was good and fairly priced. Rides good, and didn't have to queue for too long. Wet park area was overcrowded and lacked shade. I had a serious problem keeping track of my kids due to this, and it didn't help that the play area from the water park then linked to an even larger play area. Parents weren't supervising their kids, which led to them keeping water cannons to themselves and not sharing, or just generally pushing in obvious queues. We didn't remain in that area for long due to this.
I have certainly been to better zoos/parks that are less crowded and provided a better environment for kids and adults to enjoy!
Despite the above, the kids loved it - the adults maybe not so much.
I have certainly been to better zoos/parks that are less crowded and provided a better environment for kids and adults to enjoy!
Despite the above, the kids loved it - the adults maybe not so much.
Source: tripadvisor.co.uk
Visited with grandchildren aged 5 and 10 and spent about 5 hours there. Great variety of animals and all of them had large enclosures and were all very active. Went into the lemur area but they were too busy sunbathing to take notice of us humans! What struck me most was the cleanliness everywhere you went, and how happy the staff all seemed to be. We took a picnic but there are plenty of places to eat and get drinks. The kids loved the splash park, so take swim gear and towels. Went on the train which was fun as were the free rides in the very large play area. The animals take centre stage though, and loved watching the beavers, giant ant eater and all the different monkeys and their cute babies. The fresh cooked doughnuts are very good, which we has as we walked back to the car. Highly recommend Drusillas and will definitely return.
Source: tripadvisor.co.uk
It’s the hottest august bank holiday every and as expected everywhere is packed, so you have to expect there to be people around or else the place would not make any money and shut down. However, we originally came on the Sunday before the bank holiday and again on the Monday as we had such a good time on the Sunday, we upgraded out tickets for the annual pass (2 adults and a child cost less than 1 merlin annual pass). It’s great for young kids (pre-teens) but I would imagine older kids would not enjoy it as its clearly aimed at the younger ones.
Its half a zoo with plenty of smaller animals (no big cats, elephants or Giraffes etc but that’s ok for our little one anyway, and the other half is made up of some rides (tea cups, hippo ride, hello kitty rides etc), a kids play area with a play ground and a mini water park when its hot. There is also food etc at very reasonable prices for a captive audience (around £6-£9 for a meal) and the food is also surprisingly good.
As for the queues, considering it’s the busiest time of the year, we didn’t have to wait more than a couple of minutes to go on any rides, and there where plenty of tables around and the queues for food in the larger (canteen style) of the two main areas was very short at 2pm when we went, however the first one you come to (Oasis) was busy as it was more of a fast food burger place.
All in all a very nice day out for the kids and parents (happy kids = happy parents) and daddy’s wallet liked it too. We could have gone to one of the big theme parks like Chessington and spend an hour just queueing to get into the car park then another one to get tickets and get in, then hours waiting for each ride before finally giving up and queueing to leave. But luckily you don’t have any of these problems at Drusillas. I have probably put my foot in it now and encouraged people to visit and it will be packed the next time we go!
Its half a zoo with plenty of smaller animals (no big cats, elephants or Giraffes etc but that’s ok for our little one anyway, and the other half is made up of some rides (tea cups, hippo ride, hello kitty rides etc), a kids play area with a play ground and a mini water park when its hot. There is also food etc at very reasonable prices for a captive audience (around £6-£9 for a meal) and the food is also surprisingly good.
As for the queues, considering it’s the busiest time of the year, we didn’t have to wait more than a couple of minutes to go on any rides, and there where plenty of tables around and the queues for food in the larger (canteen style) of the two main areas was very short at 2pm when we went, however the first one you come to (Oasis) was busy as it was more of a fast food burger place.
All in all a very nice day out for the kids and parents (happy kids = happy parents) and daddy’s wallet liked it too. We could have gone to one of the big theme parks like Chessington and spend an hour just queueing to get into the car park then another one to get tickets and get in, then hours waiting for each ride before finally giving up and queueing to leave. But luckily you don’t have any of these problems at Drusillas. I have probably put my foot in it now and encouraged people to visit and it will be packed the next time we go!
Source: tripadvisor.co.uk
We’ve visited Drusillas many tines before, last visit about 10 years ago, and with fond memories and glowing reviews on here we were excited to be returning whilst on a family holiday to the area. So we were surprised and saddened to leave disappointed - and over £100 lighter on entry fees alone.
Appreciating it was a sunny bank holiday weekend, queuing for half an hour with young children having purchased tickets online wasn’t a great start. However, this reflected that very quickly the park was was too packed, too soon, with limited space to move around in the zoo area and beyond. Popular areas, like Get Wet, were far too busy to get into or enjoy. It all felt very cramped - which isn’t something we’d remembered or have really experienced at other zoos and attractions.
Shade was very hard to come by, food outlets provided limited healthy choices (perhaps they’d run out) and drinking water involved more queuing. For an attraction targeted at young families this feels like basics.
Am sure this would be a different experience with babies and toddlers on a week day, as seeing the animals was lovely; however with slightly older children the lack of space made it far less enjoyable.
It was so busy we gave up and left after 3 hours - which was an expensive half day. Having returned home and read comments and responses on the entry fees we’re just as disappointed - Drusillas ticket prices are very similar to London Zoo, Chester Zoo, Port Lympne and others, all far larger and brilliant for young families. Sadly I’m not sure we’ll be back.
Appreciating it was a sunny bank holiday weekend, queuing for half an hour with young children having purchased tickets online wasn’t a great start. However, this reflected that very quickly the park was was too packed, too soon, with limited space to move around in the zoo area and beyond. Popular areas, like Get Wet, were far too busy to get into or enjoy. It all felt very cramped - which isn’t something we’d remembered or have really experienced at other zoos and attractions.
Shade was very hard to come by, food outlets provided limited healthy choices (perhaps they’d run out) and drinking water involved more queuing. For an attraction targeted at young families this feels like basics.
Am sure this would be a different experience with babies and toddlers on a week day, as seeing the animals was lovely; however with slightly older children the lack of space made it far less enjoyable.
It was so busy we gave up and left after 3 hours - which was an expensive half day. Having returned home and read comments and responses on the entry fees we’re just as disappointed - Drusillas ticket prices are very similar to London Zoo, Chester Zoo, Port Lympne and others, all far larger and brilliant for young families. Sadly I’m not sure we’ll be back.
Source: tripadvisor.co.uk
What a lovely place ! We weren’t sure what to expect but we had a lovely family day out. A lovely combination of animals to see, exhibits to handle and then rides to enjoy! What more you could ask for for a younger family! Polite friendly helpful staff and a lovely clean environment! Would definitely come back if we were on holiday in that area again ! Keep up the good work!
Source: tripadvisor.co.uk
I used to go to this park when I was a child and now I take my children too.
There is so much to see and do and the animals are so well looked after and look so happy.
The children loved being able to get soaked in the water fountains - kids, sunshine and water a great combination!
The restaurant was good and the gift shop had a great choice - we came away with a Meerkat called Mikey :-)
There is so much to see and do and the animals are so well looked after and look so happy.
The children loved being able to get soaked in the water fountains - kids, sunshine and water a great combination!
The restaurant was good and the gift shop had a great choice - we came away with a Meerkat called Mikey :-)
Source: tripadvisor.co.uk
Took our grandson who is 5 what a great experience to be able to get close to the Lemurs a walk through enclosure then learning about Farm animals and how to milk a cow Then be running through the water in the park after riding on the fairground rides included in the admission price of £49 Which included a half price deal for our boy He said he had the Best Day ever so that was good enough for me
Source: tripadvisor.co.uk
Went with five kids under 8 in the middle of the holiday and had a brilliant day. Good value for money when you take into account what you get. So much variety: surprising range of exotic animals, big playgrounds, excellent splash park and rides that my kids couldn’t get enough of. The new rainforest carousel is spectacular. Eating areas good for families, whether picnicking or buying food on site. We were there from 10.30 to 4.00 with zero whinges, except when we had to leave! Also a good educational angle for children - detail on animals, endangered species, etc. Staff friendly and helpful. Bit of a queue to get in - but drop an adult off when you arrive, then park and you’ll be in quickly. Thank you!
Source: tripadvisor.co.uk
There are so many animals to see and things to do at Drusillas. We had an amazing time taking my three year old nephew.
Source: tripadvisor.co.uk
We’ve had a lovely day at Drusillas today - my daughter loved the water play area and rides (tip: definitely do these first as the queues were a lot shorter). We loved the animals and will definitely be going again soon.
Source: tripadvisor.co.uk
Educational quiz to follow, probably for children aged 4 -8 good for keeping the interest and there is a certificate at the end if all completed.
Source: tripadvisor.co.uk
Drusillas is a zoo/mini family-friendly theme park without the hecticness that you would associate with the regular theme parks. We didn't have to queue for longer than 10 minutes to get onto any of the inviting and tame rides which varied from the carousel to flying cheetahs. There was so much to do and see with our kids, aged 5 and 6, and we all had a fantastic day out. The park is clean and beautiful, with staff who were really kid-friendly and helpful. On one of the rides,our daughter realised that it wasn't her thing and became upset - the operator stopped it so that she could get off and then restarted it for those already on there. Just an example of how caring they are there. There were places to eat and drink if you wanted to buy there or take your own picnic.
We were so impressed with the range of things to see and do at Drusilla's. There were interactive things to do everywhere in the zoo and our children have remembered things that they learnt. We didn't have time to go to the splash park unfortunately but we plan to come back and arrive earlier next time so that we can do everything.
This was a great family day out with young children and we'll definitely be returning.
We were so impressed with the range of things to see and do at Drusilla's. There were interactive things to do everywhere in the zoo and our children have remembered things that they learnt. We didn't have time to go to the splash park unfortunately but we plan to come back and arrive earlier next time so that we can do everything.
This was a great family day out with young children and we'll definitely be returning.
Source: tripadvisor.co.uk
We arrived in trepidation. The large car park was crammed. It was mid day.
I dropped the family at the entrance and parked. After a long hike back I was surprised that there were no queues. In we went. Even though it was busy it didnt feel over crowded. We managed to see everything my Grandson wanted too including someone called Ben Ten, (or was it Ten Bob). The five hours flew bye we had a meal which was reasonably priced. Served by cheerful and very helpful staff. In fact the noticable part of the day was how professional the young staff were. Well done everyone.
Thank you
I dropped the family at the entrance and parked. After a long hike back I was surprised that there were no queues. In we went. Even though it was busy it didnt feel over crowded. We managed to see everything my Grandson wanted too including someone called Ben Ten, (or was it Ten Bob). The five hours flew bye we had a meal which was reasonably priced. Served by cheerful and very helpful staff. In fact the noticable part of the day was how professional the young staff were. Well done everyone.
Thank you
Source: tripadvisor.co.uk
great place to visit plenty to see and do with loads of animals lovely picnic area food in the cafe very good and reasonably priced
Source: tripadvisor.co.uk
Took my daughters for the zookeeper for a day experience (one at a time on different days). They both loved it. Staff were knowledgeable, enthusiastic, and attentive. Really couldn't have asked for anything more!
Source: tripadvisor.co.uk
The zoo is great and the facilities for children also. Unfortunately this was overshadowed by having to pay full price for my 2 year old (being the only honest person in the queue about their age). It therefore cost us £82 for three adults and the little one. I personally think that's too much and they should rethink that. It was a Sunday so not sure if that price runs on other days as well.
Source: tripadvisor.co.uk
This is a lovely animal park that also has lots of other activities, which are both fun and educational, for children. They are obviously looking after the animals well as there were several babies too.
Source: tripadvisor.co.uk
Visited Drussilas Park this summer with my 8 year old granddaughter. It was a lovely day and she really enjoyed it.
Lovely zoo with lots of animals that she loves..she pretended milking a cow too. The monkeys were carrying their babies in their back so small and cute..the funny and sweet meerkats etc. Too many to mention.
Huge amount of entertainment to keep children amused.
She lives in Australia so she was surprised to see the kookaburras that she normally sees in her garden. A fantastic day for all of us.
It’s so much to do..that if you have children to entertain Drussilas is best place. Toilets very clean. Restaurant good.
Lovely zoo with lots of animals that she loves..she pretended milking a cow too. The monkeys were carrying their babies in their back so small and cute..the funny and sweet meerkats etc. Too many to mention.
Huge amount of entertainment to keep children amused.
She lives in Australia so she was surprised to see the kookaburras that she normally sees in her garden. A fantastic day for all of us.
It’s so much to do..that if you have children to entertain Drussilas is best place. Toilets very clean. Restaurant good.
Source: tripadvisor.co.uk
My 6yr old daughter took part in the kids photography day as a birthday present. I can not recommend this enough. Due to her age I went with her into most of the enclosures until she got her confidence and that was all OK. Keeper Sam was our guide for the day and he was absolutely brilliant. There were four kids ranging from 6 to approx 13 and he kept them all engaged and was able to ensure each child was able to take a full part in the day. He was very knowledgeable and was able to communicate this is an appropriate way for the kids and the parents. The whole day was an amazing experience and my daughter took some very good pictures on her simple “point and shot” camera.
Source: tripadvisor.co.uk
Took our Grandchildren ( 7 and 21 months) Monday afternoon. Entrance fees are uite high, although under 2’s free. Even with 2 senior tickets and 1 child it was £59.50. However we used our Tesco Clubcard vouchers which cost us £20.00 in vouchers. However, there’s loads for kids to see and do. We first followed the Zoo trail, which took us to see all the animals. There is a wide variety of animals to see from all over the world and they are housed in suitable enclosures, which allows good opportunities to see the animals whilst providing good animal welfare. There was interesting information about each animal group plus a ‘stamping station ‘ that allowed our enthusiastic granddaughter to stamp her booklet (provided ) to show that she had seen that particular type of animal. She loved this, After seeing all the animals, we then moved onto the play areas. These were great and included huge adventure climbing frames, swings, zip ropes, a fun water area and mazes. There were also numerous rides suitable for both our little ones, plus a train for a trip around the site, all included in the entry price. The usual types of food outlets completed the offerings, including one with an indoor soft play area suitable for young toddlers. We were lucky with lovely weather as there isn’t so much to do it it’s raining, other than to wander in the wet. Although we visited during the school holidays there weren’t any real queues so we quickly got on the rides quite a few times as they were a big hit.
Source: tripadvisor.co.uk
Huge variety of activities- zoo, farm, water play, play areas, rides designed to provide a full and fun day out for pre school and primary ages children. Very clean, lots of picnic areas and helpful friendly staff.
Source: tripadvisor.co.uk
Lovely place to go with young children. Lots for them to do and see.
After going through the zoo there is a play park which the children thoroughly enjoyed.
We had a meal here and a drink got spilt, they cleaned it up and replaced it without charge.
All the staff we met were polite and helpful.
After going through the zoo there is a play park which the children thoroughly enjoyed.
We had a meal here and a drink got spilt, they cleaned it up and replaced it without charge.
All the staff we met were polite and helpful.
Source: tripadvisor.co.uk
We visited here on a warm August weekend and whilst the place was busy it did not feel crowded. Did not queue for more than a couple of minutes for any ride or food.
The zoo has nice fun activities like a speed gun where you can measure your speed compared to other animals or a phone box where you scream as loud as you can and it compares how loud you are too other animals. Kids loved it.
There is a large play area and splash pad. The food was the usual hot dogs, burgers and jacket potatoes and was better than the usual theme park fare. Plenty of seating everywhere.
3 or 4 of the activities you have to pay extra for but there is enough in the park not to have to if you prefer.
The zoo is for all ages but the rides mainly cater to the under 8s.
The kids had a fun day out. We were there for about 5 hours. The park is spotless, the animals well looked after, staff are friendly.
The zoo has nice fun activities like a speed gun where you can measure your speed compared to other animals or a phone box where you scream as loud as you can and it compares how loud you are too other animals. Kids loved it.
There is a large play area and splash pad. The food was the usual hot dogs, burgers and jacket potatoes and was better than the usual theme park fare. Plenty of seating everywhere.
3 or 4 of the activities you have to pay extra for but there is enough in the park not to have to if you prefer.
The zoo is for all ages but the rides mainly cater to the under 8s.
The kids had a fun day out. We were there for about 5 hours. The park is spotless, the animals well looked after, staff are friendly.
Source: tripadvisor.co.uk
We visited Drusillas as a big group made up of several families with young children. It was a lovely day out. There are activities along the way to join in with and little books to fill in and stamp. The splash zone was a big hit but one downfall is the slide and climbing frame joins onto the main park outside the splash bit so the kids kept disappearing and getting stuck on the big climbing frame.
There is a little train to go round on which the kids loved. We didn’t have time to do all the activities such as the maze or big inflatables but we will be back again no doubt.
We used our Tesco vouchers for entry so all in all a great free day out.
There is a little train to go round on which the kids loved. We didn’t have time to do all the activities such as the maze or big inflatables but we will be back again no doubt.
We used our Tesco vouchers for entry so all in all a great free day out.
Source: tripadvisor.co.uk
A day we had been looking forward to for a long time and we were not disappointed. Plenty to do and see with a great mix of activities, rides, play areas including a splash area and of course plenty of Animals to see.
Look forward to coming back.
Tim, Amy & Margot xx
Look forward to coming back.
Tim, Amy & Margot xx
Source: tripadvisor.co.uk
