Safari Niagara — Attraction in Fort Erie

Disappointing Experience at Safari Niagara

I recently visited Safari Niagara, and I have to say I’m deeply concerned about the conditions the animals are kept in. First and foremost, the enclosures are far too small for the animals. Every single animal we saw was just walking back and forth in a very limited space — often no more than 10 feet in any direction. It was heartbreaking to watch, and you could see they were clearly stressed and agitated. After doing some research, I learned that this behavior is a classic sign of zoo psychosis, a psychological condition caused by the stress of confinement in small spaces, which can lead to repetitive and abnormal behaviors. The whole experience felt more like a zoo than a safari. What’s supposed to be a more natural environment for animals instead felt like a money-making operation at every corner. There are vendors everywhere, hawking food and souvenirs, and it’s clear they’re using the animals for marketing. I was particularly disturbed by how much emphasis was placed on selling food, with signs and animals featured on packaging, which feels exploitative and disrespectful. The kid's play areas, by contrast, are massive — far more space than the animals are given. The monkeys, in particular, seemed to be suffering the most, with constant crying coming from the sheds where they were kept. It just doesn't feel like these animals are being treated with the care and respect they deserve. Overall, Safari Niagara is more of a commercial zoo than a safari, and it’s disappointing that the welfare of the animals doesn’t seem to be a priority. I would not recommend this place to anyone who cares about the well-being of animals.

Follow-up to Safari Niagara’s Response:

Thank you for taking the time to respond and explain your facility’s background, accreditation, and conservation work. I truly appreciate the care and effort that goes into your operations and animal rescue initiatives. That said, while your explanation helps clarify your structure and goals, it still doesn’t address my main concerns about the quality of life for the animals currently at Safari Niagara.

Enclosure Size: You mentioned redesigning exhibits and providing indoor/outdoor access, but that doesn’t clarify whether the current spaces are truly large enough for wide-ranging species like lions and primates to live fulfilling, enriched lives. Watching animals pace repetitively suggests the space or stimulation may be insufficient.

Psychological Well-Being: The behaviors observed—repetitive pacing and agitation—are widely recognized signs of zoo psychosis, a stress response caused by confinement. Enrichment and scatter-feeding are good practices, but they don’t fully explain how the facility ensures animals aren’t suffering psychological distress.

Space Priorities: It’s difficult not to notice that the children’s play areas appear larger than many of the animal enclosures. If the goal is to provide rescued animals a better life, shouldn’t their environments reflect that same priority for space and stimulation?

My review wasn’t meant to dismiss your conservation work but to raise awareness and encourage transparency. It’s one thing to save animals—but equally important to ensure they are thriving, not...

No to the gator train making the park inaccessible to those with disabilities for Boo in the Zoo.

Saturday the 12th we were excited to go to Boo in the Zoo at Safari Niagara. We were looking forward to seeing everyone dressed up but our true goal was to see the baby hippo. After a summer of heat it was wonderful to be out in the cool fall air. Having MS makes me very heat intolerant.

Sadly it was not meant to be. We had checked the website for updates and details before leaving. We arrived got a great disabled parking spot to park. We went to customer service to use my Access 2 Card. Entered the park went to the Gator Train Stop sat and waited with others for a good 20 mins before asking staff when the gator train would arrive. My heart plunged. Using my walker I can walk approximately 25- 50 m at a push. It is at least 2 kms to the hippos. I was really saddened to learn I would not be seeing the baby hippo.

Seeing the crowds of kids. Parents with buggies and carts, yes I can understand the logic. However it was really disappointing nonetheless. We had driven over an hour from Hamilton. I had waited all season for the weather. This was my last chance to see the baby hippo before they will be all grown up.

Accessibility is a tricky thing because it means so many different things to folks. Yet a simple note on the website stating the gator was not working could have saved that disappointment, the expense and time. Sadly with chronic illnesses you do not get many energy spoons to spend and I spent a lot on this due to really wanting to see the hippos. When we purchased our tickets there was no mention of the gator not running even though I was there with my walker. When we got to the Gator Stop again there was no signage indicating the gator was not running wasting another 20 mins of our time and energy.

As we left. I have to say the most disappointing factor of the whole experience was the staffs reactions. There honestly was zero empathy for our disappointment and frustration. It was generally a big “oh well”. Which was rather disheartening after being a loyal customer for well over a decade, a season holder when I was more mobile. I know no slight was intended but I truly felt discarded and an inconvenience by the response of staff.

I appreciate I am a grown up and I will get over it. However what about the families and children this causes a barrier to. Especially when there is zero communication regarding this change. The Gator Train is what makes this place so special to me is that we can bring everyone and we all can be included. We all can usually access the whole park with ease. This was taken away with zero communication was saddening. In over a decade this is the first negative occurrence at Safari Niagara but one I feel strongly needs to be addressed. As no one should feel discluded from participating. I appreciate abled folks don’t always consider these things and that is why I am taking the time to share a barrier to accessibility perspective. So Safari Niagara may consider how you will better communicate with folks about the changes you have chosen to make, that make your park un accessible to some or even better look at how you can make the event more inclusive and accessible.

Warmest...

Entrance tickets are quite a bit excessive, incomparison to what they actually wrote here online,it cost $39.95 for adults, and if you have kids older than 3 years old, it will cost another $32.95. Some other areas entrance fees are free for atleast 5years old and below. Luckily, they have this mini swimming pool that has it all together, like 2 in 1 splash pad and pool. There's some minor dirt in the water, but you can see a bunch of kid enjoying themselves with a splash of water and swimming with the water atleast 1foot depth. You'll need to go there earlier if you want to see the entire place by foot, as it's a very large area and can take you 3-4hrs atleast to see all the animals. However, i didn't see much of those animals on the cage like the jaguar or leopard or cougar, maybe their sleeping who knows. I like the idea that the trail heading towards the animals is surrounded by trees, which is great during summer, especially when the weather is very hot. There isn't much mosquito as well. There's train that goes on and off if you don't want to spend on walking, however the downside will be, you can't really see much as it doesn't take you to those trails heading to the leopard, if your lucky enough to see one. The train doesn't go either on the reptile area, where it only passes the boardwalk. The reptile place is kind of nice, you can see snakes & turtles, after that you can pass by the ostrich and birds house, I'm not sure if you'll have to pay going inside the bird house but you can see the birds from the outside. They have 2 playgrounds for kids and a fairies wheel plus a climbing area for adult. They also have a place for some concert that you'll need a ticket. Lost of washroom pretty much everywhere. They have lots of birds, a hippo, rhino, giraffe, and so on. They also have this small lake where you can canoe, they provide canoe inside. I guess it's worth the pay if it's your first time visiting and managing to catch up with all the ventures and like walking. Otherwise, you can use the train, i think it's free. It stops pretty often on different sides of the area. Not to mention, the train area and pedestrian walking are the same, so it can be a little bit annoying because you have to stop and allow them to pass you. Workers with small cars are also driving on and off the pedestrian area. Luckily, the trails are the only place they don't pass by, so take your time walking there and enjoy those...