Day Trips from Manchester

In Brief. Peak Wildlife Park is a compact Zoo in the countryside in Staffordshire. Featuring a variety of birds and mammals, most of which are small and unthreatening; a distinctive feature is that there are quite a few walkthroughs, for example allowing visitors to share a space with the penguins and the very tame wallabies (if not the Polar Bears!). A wallaby with joey. What's Here? The Peak Wildlife Park is a green space, traversed by paths that pass enclosures that host a variety of species, from Polar Bears to Tortoises. As many of the species are quite small, they often seem to be close by, whereas in some zoos with larger animals that need bigger enclosures, the animals can seem quite far away ... though I never saw the red squirrels even though you can walk through their enclosure. The animals and enclosures seem to be in good condition, and there is more information provided about the individual species than is sometimes the case. For me, the highlight of the day was the ...

In Brief. The Yorkshire Wildlife Park is essentially a Zoo in a rural setting. Thus the site is particularly green, like an area of countryside, that happens to contain a variety of fenced-off enclosures. These house a wide range of animals from throughout the world, as diverse as Polar Bears and Tigers. The enclosures are typically substantial, often with different types of terrain, and there is a large wetland area for local wildlife. Lunchtime for the giraffes. What's Here? The Yorkshire Wildlife Park was established in 2009, and thus is a modern take on the traditional zoo.  This translates into enclosures that include fields and/or wooded areas, with little use of concrete and absolutely nothing resembling a cage.  The park is entered through a new area known as The Hive, which includes a modern shopping centre and a hotel. This includes the expected Safari Store with cuddly wildlife and animal themed merchandise, but there are also a variety of clothes, craft and househ...

In Brief. In the suburbs of Blackpool, Blackpool Zoo  hosts a wide variety of animals, large and small, from air, land and sea, from across the globe. Not as vast as Chester Zoo , there is still a lot to see. Although the map says there are Aardvarks and Zebras, as suggested by the title, in fact my alphabetical range was from Alpacas to Wolves, so even though I was trying to be thorough, I certainly didn't see everything. You can get close to some marsupials in the Wallaby Walkabout What's Here? I guess that Blackpool Zoo provides the sort of experience that one expects from a modern Zoo. Clutching a map, there is the chance to seek out a variety of habitats round winding paths, such as Gorilla Island, Big Cat Habitat, Lemur Wood and Wallaby Walkabout.  You can enter the same space as the animals in the last two of these, though unsurprisingly not in the first two.   As you wander around, there are a few key facts provided on each of the species encountered, along the li...

In Brief. Chester Zoo is a substantial modern zoo, with a remarkable collection of animals of all sizes, from land, sea and air. The Zoo is divided into several zones, for example there is an islands zone and a Madagascar zone, though it's hard to sense that you are really focusing on anything in particular with such diversity on hand.  The zoo itself is a pleasant environment, with lots of greenery, there are eateries spread across the site, and the enclosures seem in good condition and not too cramped. The flamingos What's Here? This is rather a formidable zoo, with everything from an aquarium and a butterfly house to large mammals (elephants and rhinos) and predators (jaguars and lions). There is so much to see that any day trip is unlikely to do it justice, and you can't help but find yourself wandering past potentially interesting things on the way to something you spotted on a sign or in the app.  For a typical animal, there will be some signs highlighting area of or...