Croc City Crocodile & Reptile Park — Attraction in Johannesburg Ward 96

We arrived at just before 10am by walking into the Visitors Centre which was filled with all kind of Crocodile & Reptile goodies for us and for kids... so basically all for us. Admittedly we just threw a passing glance (this would change) before we were greeted by a couple of friendly faces behind the welcome desk.

After passing through we arrived at the outside seating/restaurant area. Fortunately, it was a perfect sunny winters morning, and sitting outside was very pleasant to say the least as we ordered and finished a very welcoming cup of coffee... this is where the first "incident" occurred. I kept on feeling as though I was being watched... as I glanced to my right, I saw it... a Tortoise (Lizard in a Box).

Every hour on the hour they have a Guided Tour, which includes animal interactions, which is fun, unless you have a fear of Snakes (Danger Noodle) … although part of the tour is to make you understand snakes and their behavior. We were there on a Sunday, which is a good day along with public holidays, as on these days between 11am and 12noon they have an additional Venomous Snake show which is awesome, and for obvious reasons does NOT include animal interaction. Close to where the Guided Tour stops for the Snake (Danger Noodle) show, they also have Spiders (Land Octopus) and Lizards (Safety Dragon) on display with a few baby Tortoises, which I could simply not get my wife to leave alone. Her voice immediately climbed a few bars and she started talking to them in a baby voice … women sigh We followed Brendon as he guided us to the next stop in the tour… but as we exited I saw THE tortoise again… it was only after the 5th sighting and my amazement at his stealth and speed that my wife pointed out that it was in fact not the same tortoise, and that there are numerous ones all over the property…. Relief.

Brendon stopped at the first enclosure to show us and talk about the Alligator (American Murder Log), unlike in other parks of this nature you have a perfect view of the specimens at a very close distance, yet still allowing the animals the space to move should they feel crowded or disturbed. We then moved on to the first of 3 Crocodile (African Murder Log) enclosures, where the teeth just got bigger as we progressed from one to the next. And once again we had amazing views of these beautiful (in their own way) reptiles. Brendon went on with his very informative talk and never lost my interest for a second… except when I caught a glimpse of the stalking tortoise, which I have now dubbed “Keyser Soze” (some of you will understand). Just a little-known fact as to how you can tell the difference between an Alligator and a Crocodile, the Alligator you will see later, whilst the Crocodile you will only see in a while.

On the way we passed the rather expansive children play area, which will easily keep the kiddies entertained while you have a relaxing meal. I opted for the Pizza which is made the traditional way in a wood-fired oven and was excellent, thin crust, plenty of topping… what else do you need. My wife opted for a Tramezzini, of which I also had a bite… you know… for review purposes of course, and I was not disappointed. Plenty of filling (Chicken Mayo) and tasty above all, and to drink, a good thick Milkshake.

Before we left, we were persuaded to try the Zipline which sounded adventurous, then they added … over the Murder Logs!!! The Zipline consists of 3 platforms with 2 x 75m lines suspended over the Crocodile enclosures.

In closing, Croc City Crocodile and Reptile Park is a great option to go for a lunch with your partner and even more so with the kids. Schools should really consider this as an outing, very informative and I can absolutely guarantee that the kids will love it and remember it for a long time afterwards.

Thank you to Anton Lötter for the opportunity to visit and experience Croc City - Crocodile and Reptile Park Review by Leon Petzer at...

We decided to take our 3 children)on a family outing, as we arrived we were told to go and watch the reptile show, which we excitedly did. The venue was filled with families of young children, just like mine, however the handler, Brandon, did not make the experience pleasant as he could not handle when the kids got excited and shouted to keep quiet. He then proceeded to scold the family of the little boy, who was being a typical toddler, not throwing any tantrums, not being unpleasant, and then told the family to leave...this made everyone else who had young children extremely uncomfortable and nervous, that they too may be scolded, many kept shushing the kids, many families left soon after. You would think, seeing as this is a family venue and people like myself who have young children are told to go watch the show and that the handlers would be more experienced in dealing with children.I can't comment on the entire reptile show as we also decided to leave as my kids were getting bored. Overall my kids enjoyed looking at the crocs, and playing on the jungle gym. But many parents could not believe the behavior of the handler which made the entire...

I'd been to this park years back without realising it was the place until I took my little boy - there is a big difference to my experience years ago and now, in 2020. I know Covid has taken its toll on many businesses and organisations but it was a little sad to see the owners and guides of this place seem so down, almost like they have given up. The property itself is overall in a decent condition and the crocs and tortoises seem well taken care of but the overall appeal of the place is sad. I really hope this changes for the better as we need organisations like these to teach our children about wildlife and to protect these gracious animals from Human predators. There is also the ability to interact with some snakes and a baby croc but not the whole show that was available years back. This isn't a bad thing either as I don't think generating income off animals is the best way to go about things but yea, that's just my opinion. Overall it was a pleasant experience but one that was over far too quickly. Almost like a "been there, done that" kind of experience which isn't great because you would want people to keep coming here and learning...