Wild Animal Park: Any recent visits?

[Quest4Kingdom]

Hi, we are attempting to take a family trip outside of the usual semiannual DLR trip. We are a bit hesitant, afraid that we may be disappointed... Should we be? I do not know much about this park, however, some of our other family members from out-of-state suggested this park.
I would really appreciate any thoughts or feedback... We have children ranging from 9 yrs old to 2 yrs old and a bunch of grown-ups (big kids aka mom and dads)...
Thanks!

 

[Monkey Monkey]

Well, if your family enjoys wild animals, they will enjoy the park. If they aren't really into animals and are more ride-seekers, you should probably skip it.

I love the WAP and don't go there as much as I would like. There are some really breathtaking landscapes out there, and seeing ostriches mingle with giraffes in Southern California is a pretty amazing sight.

HTH a little bit!

 

[Quest4Kingdom]

My kids love going to the zoo, esp. SF Zoo. I heard SD Zoo is under reconstr. How different is WAP from the regular zoo? Is it just diffrent type of animals?

 

[Monkey Monkey]

One part of the zoo is under construction, but the only animals there that are off exhibit AFAIK are the giraffes, zebras, and rhino.

The WAP is a much more natural environment than a zoo. The animals roam in very large enclosures, some of them mingling with other species. There are the same kinds of animals as at the zoo, but it is a much different experience.

I'll find and post some of my pictures so you can get a better idea of the scope. The WAP is HUGE!

 

[Monkey Monkey]

Here are just some random pictures from various visits to the WAP over the last 2 years:

These open spaces are where some of the animals actually roam.

There are 4 different kinds of animals just in this one picture:

 

[Quest4Kingdom]

Hey thanks for those great pics! I see now why it's called Wild Animal Park. Is that a truck that we ride on through the parts of the park? Is it included in the entrance fee? Oh, I think my kids would love that... It looks more like a better enviroment too for the animals. Looks like a lot of walking, do you think one day here is enough? Thanks again for your help...

 

[Pucka1378]

The trucks are not included in your entrance there. But, you ride a tram around the outside. It looks like that is what those pictures are taken from. It really is an awesome place! I think WAP is less walking then the SD zoo.

One day is plenty of time to do WAP.

 

[Mrs Grumpy]

We are going the first week of June. How much time should I allow to drive there? We are staying on hotel circle.

 

[Quest4Kingdom]

You mean driving from DL, I'm assuming you're going to DL too? If so, San DIego is about 2 hours I think from Anaheim...

 

[Monkey Monkey]

We are going the first week of June. How much time should I allow to drive there? We are staying on hotel circle.

I would allow about 45 minutes to drive from Hotel Circle to the Wild Animal Park, after rush hour. It's a pretty easy route: take I-8 east to I-15 north, then follor the signs for the WAP once you get to Escondido.

 

[Monkey Monkey]

I may be going to the WAP tomorrow; does anyone have anything they would like me to investigate?

 

[Quest4Kingdom]

so how was the visit? did you post any trip reports? would love to hear anything...

 

[Quest4Kingdom]

we did end up going to WAP the other day too and it was definitely a nice natural experience... next time we;ll be doing that jeep tour, but we did enjoy the tram tour... I like best how the animals seem to be "in the wild" and my kids spotted a few rabbits hopping around lose in the park... don't know if that's part of it or not...

 

[Monkey Monkey]

That's great! The rabbits were likely just wild rabbits from the area and not ones brought in from elsewhere. I've also seen native deer at the park too; it really brings home the fact that it's a more natural setting!

I didn't end up going last week because DS was being a terrible toddler.

 

[Quest4Kingdom]

Awww, yes I know the toddler dramatics very well! Thanks tho' for the help in our visit! I found that I took similar pics as yours!

 

[pumpkin5156]

The trucks are not included in your entrance there. But, you ride a tram around the outside. It looks like that is what those pictures are taken from. It really is an awesome place! I think WAP is less walking then the SD zoo.

One day is plenty of time to do WAP.

Actually, the trams no longer ride around the out side of Africa. The only option is to pay the extra fee for the truck ride. And the giant balloon ride is open as well, which also has a fee.

There is also a fun little water park for the kids on super hot days (no fee). I like the Zoo better, personally, but if you haven't been to either, then you'd be happy with either one.

have fun!

 

[Quest4Kingdom]

Actually, the trams no longer ride around the out side of Africa. The only option is to pay the extra fee for the truck ride. And the giant balloon ride is open as well, which also has a fee.

There is also a fun little water park for the kids on super hot days (no fee). I like the Zoo better, personally, but if you haven't been to either, then you'd be happy with either one.

have fun!

Did this just happen? I was just there a few days ago and we rode the tram, that's weird, we paid a little more for our ticket to include the carousel and africa tram tour...

 

[amyamya]

My grandparents live in Escondido so we grew up going to the WAP. It is unlike any other zoo you will ever visit, as it really is a "zoo without cages." One thing we really miss is the Wgasa Bush Line (which this Disney family always called the 'monorail') which took a lengthy tour around the entire perimeter of the park. It was amazing. Even without the train you can still get pretty up close to the animals and the surrounding scenery is beautiful. Check it out!

 

[pumpkin5156]

Did this just happen? I was just there a few days ago and we rode the tram, that's weird, we paid a little more for our ticket to include the carousel and africa tram tour...

I was there a few weeks ago and I asked an employee why the trams weren't open. he said they didn't have them anymore.

I guess he was wrong!!

LOL

 

[Monkey Monkey]

I was there a few weeks ago and I asked an employee why the trams weren't open. he said they didn't have them anymore.

I guess he was wrong!!

LOL

The train is gone, and they replaced it with the tram last year.

I personally liked the train tour better.