Lake District Wildlife Park — Attraction in Great Britain

We went on a slightly drizzly day but the weather did not dampen our enjoyment of our visit to the Lakes Wildlife Park. We didn't expect much but thoroughly enjoyed a great day here. A great mix of birds, reptiles, endangered and more domestic animals that meant there was something of interest for us all; from red Pandas and Otters to Scottish wildcats and Lynx, plus an active herd of Zebra!

Don't be put off by the unfriendly woman at the entrance desk, the remainder of staff that we encountered were so friendly and clearly enjoyed their work looking after the animals. They were happy to answer questions from us and our children (9yo & 12yo). Food to hand feed some of the animals is a reasonable £1 per bag and a great experience for our kids.

Highly recommend catching as many of the free (included in your ticket price) talks on the animals or birds of prey as are of interest to you; they definitely make the entrance fee price worth the expense. We loved the Danish keeper's talk on the Red Pandas and Otters, entertaining and informative; he had so much time and patience to answer questions from children in the audience and was humourous too. The gent who did the two birds of prey displays was very funny and informative, we learned so much about caring for birds of prey in captivity; he was the highlight of our day at the park!

We took a picnic and ate under the covered picnic area; located next to the donkeys which isn't ideal for the smell but tolerable. The playarea alongside was a great bonus for our daughter who enjoyed navigating the wooden equipment.

All in all, a very enjoyable and informative day out seeing and learning about animals in a way that you don't get an opportunity to at larger zoos or parks. Thanks to all the staff in the park who made our...

A reasonably priced entrance fee. There is a very, very marginal saving for a family of 4. I can't say I actually noticed a map anywhere in the park, we chose not to buy one at an additional cost of 50p. The walk around the park is easy, you won't miss any places if you don't buy a map. There are talks all about the place at times noted on their enclosures. I can't say I noticed a list on the way in for the times. We spent 3-4 hours here including ordering and eating lunch, we don't have a young child to utilise the play park so hanging around all day for the talks would have been too much, there is only so much time you can stand looking for animals before you have to resign yourself to the fact that maybe that animal is also on holiday. My child is a picky eater, which I find frustrating to the point where I just want to give up, she has started to eat tuna sandwiches, but they have something called tuna savoury. Tuna savoury? If this a lake district thing? It's a ready made concoction of tuna, pepper, cucumber and onion. Just why? You have the usual ham or cheese sandwich for the kids, I would have thought tuna was a nice safe bet, but no. Oh, and it's quite expensive, pack a lunch and eat it there. There is 1 disabled toilet and 1 set of toilets at the very start, but should only take you 5-8 minutes to walk back to them from the other side of the park. Going through the gift shop to exit, there is 1 till for entrance and exit. There was a family coming in as we were leaving asking the only lady on the till many questions while the exit que was getting longer and in the way of everyone wanting to get out, this could be...

I think the simple fact that the kids newly built play area is significantly larger than around 90% of animals enclosures says a lot about the owners mindset. Rather than focusing on the monetary gain that the animals bring, maybe focusing on their needs and wellbeing. I seen a lot of unethical practice here and really hope that the animals are able to one day feel the freedom they deserve in a space they deserve.

A few examples: birds being tied to a bar by their foot with no food / water around (on a warm day). a sheep which was separated in a tiny enclosure, again with no fresh water or food.

I understand that these animals are probably domesticated animals and never known life outside of a zoo/wildlife centre. However, this does not seem like any life for these poor animals, there seemed like a lot of wasted land for people and little space for animals to roam free. If there is a conservation side to these animals, then the story needs to be shared with proper signposting - (there was alsolittle signposting telling you what animals you could/couldn’t feed). However, if they’re there for entertainment purposes only, then proper measures should be taken to ensure that these animals have the best possible life instead of being stuck in the little cages watching the world go by.

I have also read a lot of replies off the wildlife park suggesting that people should’ve spoken to a worker etc. Unfortunately, we didn’t see a single worker around the park in the 2 hours we were there or I would’ve asked the questions. I really hope to hear of a change to the above, as witnessing this today was...