At Easter we made our first cross country trip! West to East! With my other half having to work it was just myself, my best friend and my two year old. On the way to our caravan park at Kessingland Beach, near Lowestoft, we noticed signs for a place called Africa Alive! Being from Northern Ireland our animal trips were always limited to Belfast Zoo and the odd open farm.
We teamed up with my brother and his family and off we went for a day out among the animals! It is not the cheapest day out at around £70 for a family of four so make sure you pack a picnic if you have hungry mouths to feed. However it is a full day out with plenty to see and do so make the most of it and arrive nice and early.
We were given maps on arrival and the kids could collect stamps at particular points of interest and at the end receive a medal for being a Young Explorer. This proved brilliant fun and kept the kids interested in going further to the edges of the park rather than getting waylaid by the play park and ice cream!
Every hour there is something happening that gives you a bit of information about the animals and gets you some excellent viewing opportunities, especially the giraffes and lions where you get to go and see them get fed. The keepers where excellent keeping the adults and children entertained with fun facts and getting the animals to come nice and close for some great snaps!
The play park is good for the kids to run about while we adults take five with a coffee and there was something for all ages (our squad was aged 2-9). There is mini-golf too at a small extra charge and if you are feeling flush there is a decent café with reasonable food, decent coffee and inside and outside seating. There is also various shacks that house vending machines, however the picnic areas are all over the park so you do not need to feel obliged to purchase anything you do not need. For colder rainy days there was lots of exhibitions inside, an indoor play area but to be fair it does need at least a dry day to get the full enjoyment.
It was truly amazing to see these majestic animals so well cared for and wandering amongst each other, I for one had never seen a rhino walking amongst giraffes and zebras, all quite happy to share the same land. The sheep and lemurs seem to be another match made in heaven!
For those with tired legs you can get a little road train from one end of the park to another, this had no charge which was good however on busy days there might be quite a queue. There really is plenty for all ages and we left feeling we got value for money, definitely a step up from your regular zoo trip!
Mum-atron At Work 