Asim, a Sumatran tiger at the zoo.
London Zoo is what it sounds like - a zoo, in London. It’s trying hard not to be an old-style zoo with animals pacing in too-small cages, but it just doesn’t have the space to be a safari park. So it’s a bit of an odd mixture of the animals you would expect from a major zoo (giraffes, lions) but with a few missing (no elephants). There’s a seven-metre reef aquarium, with clownfish and blue tangs, inside Tiny Giants, the zoo’s home for insects, spiders and corals.
5yo Anna was not very impressed by anything except the playground (when not over-run with school parties of older kids) and the penguin show, but she was a bit jaded due to the length of walk from the tube, and the amount of walking around the zoo itself. Note that the stuff she liked were the only bits that didn’t involve walking! 3yo Elsa is more interested in animals to start with, plus I’d brought the buggy (stroller), so she got a ride whenever her legs got tired and she was suitably impressed with the giraffes and other big animals. Seeing the giraffes being fed (“they eat trees, mummy!”) was a particular highlight. Unfortunately, she does have a tendency not to spot anything small or fast-moving, which rather limits the animals that she actually sees.
The zoo has an app that’s meant to help you find your way around, but it doesn’t work very well (at least, not on my phone) and a paper map worked better for us. It’s worth planning what you / your kids want to see, as it’s really too big to see everything in one day. I’d definitely recommend the shows - the penguin show we saw was pitched just right for an audience of all ages, involved some older kids dressing up in penguin costumes and (crucially) wasn’t too long for Elsa to sit through. For smaller kids, I’d go for the bigger animals - or perhaps it’s just my two who are unimpressed by birds and insects.
The entrance fee is very high (£37 for adults and £25.90 for kids at the gate on a standard day, including a voluntary donation; under 3’s free but they were strict about my only-just-three year old). It’s a bit less if you book online in advance. But unless you / your kids haven’t been to a major zoo recently and desperately want to see the animals, I really wouldn’t pay full price. For well over £100 worth of experience I want… well, I’m not sure what I want (the kids would want free and unlimited ice-cream, perhaps free and unlimited beer for me, anyway…). I’d definitely want more than a day at London Zoo.
Getting there - Camden Town (Northern line) is the nearest tube, but has no lift (elevator) which is a pain if you’ve got a buggy (stroller). You will also need to perfect your balancing-a-buggy-on-an-escalator skills - I personally think the balance of risk is better with small child strapped firmly in buggy and one hand free for older child, rather than trying to get two kids plus buggy on and off an escalator safely, but either way isn’t particularly easy unless you’re used to it. It’s a long-ish walk from the tube - about 15 minutes (more like 20 minutes on the way home, Elsa had very tired legs). It’s a bit further from Regent’s Park and Baker Street tube stations, so you might be better hopping on a bus: the 274 goes right outside, and the Transport for London journey planner will be your friend.
A meerkat perched on a log.
