Blair Drummond Safari Park, it’s somewhere we ALWAYS said we would visit and just never got round to it. Life just got in the way. But we managed it this week and had the best time! Now i’m sad we didn’t visit sooner!
We chose the best day for it, the sun was shinning, the kids were in smashing fettle & so ready to explore the whole park. Ruby was excited to see her first ever real life Giraffe, so we did a little walk of the grounds and visited as many of the animals as we could before our bear making slot. The Giraffes proudly roam in the fields infront of the most gorgeous manor house and the entire park is just stunning to look at. We wandered along the boardwalk and spotted some lions and elephants, we passed zebra’s too. The kids spotted the boat ride to Chimp Island, where we had a lovely little educational lesson with 2 frisky little chimps.
The spook tent was everyones favourite part of the day. Slime (for obvious reasons) is banned from our house. I’m not sure who many times I’ve had to pick it out of hair or sofas, but when you get the chance to make some in the spook tent, you can’t say no. Even the adults were getting stuck in and making a mess. It was the simplest of ingredients and washed off super easy, with hand washing stations right at the back of the tent.
We then braved the Fright Rooms. Spooky illusions and eerie little rooms, you are greeted by real life actors and a bit of a fright. Ruby was a bit of a scaredy cat, and I was holding her had rather tight. It was SO good… the ‘wait’ was almost as terrifying as the actual scares. I never put myself down as a bit feardy, clearly I am. My heart was racing for a good while after we left. Steve Hardie & the Scare Scotland team did an amazing job, the characters were brilliant, the costumes are so detailed and the surprises are really worth waiting for. Smaller children are allowed but its not suggested the take part, so I braved it with Ruby and left the little ones outside with Daddy for a bit.
The fun didn’t stop there! We also got to pick some pumpkins in the sweetest little yard by the tents. Ruby took approx 20 minutes to choose the absolute best pumpkin. Only to change her mind when she seen ‘the one’ on the way out the gate. 2:30pm was our make a bear (other animals are available) time slot. We were lucky enough to be gifted the experience as part of our day and Lucy was thrilled to get a unicorn! The kids loved making and stuffing them, making secret wishes on their hearts and giving them all the special hugs, they all came with their own certificate and little bag so you could carry them easily the rest of the day. It was a busy little stations, so I would really suggest booking your time slot online before you go.
The only thing my husband wanted to see was the Bird of Prey show. You can imagine… I rolled my eyes at the thought of it. I couldn’t have been more wrong. We got to be inches way from Owls, eagles and hawks. The arena overlooked one of the most stunning lakes I think I’ve ever seen and the staff were brilliant and funny. Adding fun jokes in for the kids (and adults) throughout the show. but, for me, Lemur Land was a winner. Its an open enclosure and all kinds of Lemurs roam around freely, watching the kids and jumping across fences. They all came within inches of us and we managed to take a little family selfie with one too, it absolutely made the entire day.
We couldn’t have had a better day out and STILL didn’t manage to make it around the entire park, so will most definitely have to take another trip back in the spring time. We took a picnic with us this time but you can book a lovely little BBQ spot or visit the restaurant if the weather suits either.
So, if like me you thought Blair Drummond was a 20 minute ride around some animal enclosures in the car… you are so wrong! The park closes at 5:30pm (with last entries at 4:30pm) and we were having so much fun we didn’t realise it was closing and were the last car out!
Hallowild is running until 13-28th October and can be booked online. I was kindly invited along to Blair Drummond Safari for the day in exchange for an honest blog review. All views are my own. My children cried when we left, they didn’t want to go home. It was the best.
You can visit Blair Drummond here for more information and booking: blairdrummond.com
