Tropical Birdland — Attraction in Hinckley and Bosworth

We love visiting here and have visited several times a year over the past 10 years. It’s not expensive, plus they have concession rates and are free for carers if you have the relevant evidence. They have a large, gravelled car park with a couple of disabled spaces by the entrance, so if you use a wheelchair, you don’t need to go onto the gravel for more than a few feet. There are some beautiful owls by the entrance. They have lots of different parrot species, some caged and some free-flying. Once, a large macaw landed on my shoulder while queuing to pay! I’d advise buying food while getting your ticket because some animals enjoy it. However, if it’s late in the day, especially on a busy weekend, don’t be disappointed if they are already full and don’t want much. So, if you’re taking children and they are excited to feed the animals, I’d recommend going earlier in the day. They have bags of whole peanuts plus bags with just fruit. One of my children has a peanut allergy, so we were very grateful they had these bags of fruit. They also have a goat, a wallaby, and a very inquisitive emu, who thankfully is fenced in, but it’s adorable and always up for being fed. Just watch your fingers! Along with a wide variety of parrots, the cheeky and loud cockatoos are my favourites; they also have a little forest walk-through, so you might get to see other birds, etc. We find this bit a little boring, so we tend to skip it, but it’s worth it if you have younger children and it’s only a tiny section. It’s well laid out, with a clear directional system, which ensures you don’t miss anything. There’s also a nice little water feature with a bridge to walk over. It clearly states which animals and parrots you can feed and what they like. During the walk around, There are several opportunities to get a bird or parrot to sit on your shoulder or hand if you so wish. At the end, they have a big open space of uncaged parrots, with branches for the birds to stand on, and you can feed them. Many will occasionally try to walk on your shoulder, even your head! There are staff in this area, so if you’re struggling to get a parrot off you, they often come and help you. A STATEMENT OF CAUTION: I’d advise not to wear jewellery, especially earrings. I’ve seen parrots regularly try to peck at these. One parrot bit my husband's ear, causing blood and a nasty wound because there was a group of children wearing earrings nearby, which this particular bird was attracted to. We can only presume this parrot thought my husband had an earring in. Bites like this are very rare! This is the first time this has happened to us, and we have been dozens of times. We did make staff aware of this particular parrot and the injury. Most of the parrots are very friendly if you aren’t acting threatening, and we have always felt very safe here with our children; even when they were very young, they used to handle the parrots. Hopefully, this was a one-off incident, and as this particular bird was also picking other people’s ears, I’m guessing that staff have removed it from the open area now.I’d also advise wearing a top you don’t mind getting nibbled by a parrot! But, it is a lovely area to finish with, and if the kids get bored during this party, there is a reasonably big playground with a beautiful set-up of climbing equipment and slides just opposite. There is a little cafe by the play park with seating inside and out. You can bring your picnic food to the tables outside if you want. The cafe sells hot and cold drinks and food, plus a nice selection of cakes and chocolate bars. They also have a freezer with ice-creams inside. I’ve only ever bought their delicious cakes, but I’ve never eaten a meal there, so I can’t comment on the quality of the food. They have a small shop at the exit, selling the usual stuff kids like, e.g. books, toys, etc. They have toilets, handwashing facilities, and a large open parrot area. They also have an alcohol gel point at the end of the...

Tropical Birdland is an amazing and unique day out, whether you have a day to yourself or wish to take the entire family.

I'm a big bird fan so this place is always amazing! But I'd also recommend it to: Anyone thinking of getting a bird of their own (you can learn so much here about care and the differences between species); Or even anyone that may have a phobia of birds, this is a good place to overcome it, to be as near to the birds as you want (or keep a distance and just watch!), then you can hold or play with them if you start to feel more comfortable.

At the start you'll walk around the aviary section, with various birds including owls, various macaws, toucans, kookaburras, african greys, caiques, keas, cockatoos and more. Some aviaries you can go into - such as parakeets, exotic wild birds and fowl, cockatiels. The parakeets especially are very playful! Also as you walk around you'll see flamingoes, goats, koi carp...plus there's a peaceful wild woodland walk at the top of the site. Throughout all this there will also be free flying parrots around, and even some wild birds such as sparrows and robins will visit.

After that, you'll pass into the Parrot Path, the large open area full of various kind of free flying parrots and even some doves. These birds love to interact and play - the species here include various caiques, conures, cockatoos, lories, parakeets, galahs, macaws, greys... make sure you have treats (which you can get at the entrance booth or in the shop later).

The cafe is great with really good food and drink - if you take it outside the birds might ask to share (or...not ask haha). Towards the exit you'll find a gift shop which has souvenirs, toys, gifts and parrot food (if I could make one recommendation it would be to also sell parrot toys and treats we could take back to our own birds!). Also on site are a kids play area, seating, toilets, sinks, and sanitisers.

There are lots of staff throughout the site that are always friendly and helpful - this is especially good on the parrot path where they can chat about any individual bird or species (and even help return birds to their perch if they've become a bit too comfortable on you!). Some birds can be a bit nippy, if not used to that then ask the staff which are the more gentle ones to hold, or best way to interact with them.

We are also in the sponsorship program which I highly recommend, if you support their work and want to visit more often. For a monthly cost you'll get an admission pass, treats, your names on a board (you choose the location on the site) and maybe other benefits. Prices differ but basically works out at £5 per person per month. As a charity, sponsors and donations are a huge help to them. Even when I can't visit as often as I'd like it's always good to know I'm helping the birds each month, and with each visit I see improvements such as new aviaries built etc!

Location is easy to find in Desford in rural Leicestershire. Be aware to dress for the weather as it's outdoors and there may be a bit of mud at times! Also if you want to interact with birds then consider your clothing before you head there, birds are fascinated by things like buttons, sequins, straps, etc...and also they love jewellery so remove...

When are on the off chance by recommendation, what is my suggestion and I was not disappointed it was absolutely fantastic very well recommended and not too far away from aylestone where we live. I don't know if other people will agree but it seems like when you get your camera out some of the animals will pose for photos. Absolutely fantastic place to visit lots of stuff around for help, support, assistance and advice. Particularly enjoyed handling the bigger birds in the open area - this was close to the entrance not far from the cafe handling the larger macaw birds the African grey some of the smaller green parrots they were also tame and so nice they were happy to hop onto your arm and sit on your shoulder for a few minutes yes some of them wanted bribery with some bird food but it was so adorable. Very well recommended there are toilets on site and plenty of sanitation stations around the site. A couple of areas where you can enter the enclosures to feed the birds really really enjoyed it I went with family members, we went around half of the area and then went to the cafe for a drink which was reasonably priced. The toilets nearby were of a good standard and they were clean with toilet paper and working hot and cold taps. None of the areas we visited were dirty or unkept. I did meet a red macaw halfway through the visit sitting next to another one - I was laughing with a family member about the cuteness of the meerkats nearby I'm sure I heard the Macaw copying me laughing, it's clear these birds are very very intelligent no sooner had I opened the bird feed bag, than I had two macaws close by waiting to be fed and they were not snatching or being aggressive, instead they were so gentle to take the nuts out of my hand - this was brilliant to see so well done to the staff that trained the birds if that's the case you have all done a fantastic job the birds are absolutely fantastic 😍😍😍😍... I hadn't been somewhere like this before and it was fantastic it was a real treat so thank you to everybody at tropical birdland for making this one of many many experiences we will see you again soon thank you so much!!!! PS I don't really know the name of the big macaw on my shoulder but he/she was lovely there was another one nearby that was squawking so he/she had to be handled as well.... he/she even spent a few moments on my 5 year old nieces arm and there's a direct result she now wants a bird...