San Diego Wild Animal Park

A couple of weeks ago on a Saturday the four of us headed down south on the 15 to the San Diego Wild Animal Park. We got there a little past 11 and the crowds were actually not that bad. Okay first things first- Make sure you bring great walking shoes, a great stroller, plenty of sunscreen and of course water!!! We did have to wait a bit for parking and parked a bit away from the entrance. You can either hike up from the parking lot or take the tram up to the entrance. We figured it would be more of a pain to take the tran with the stroller and decided to just hike up. It actually wasn't too bad since the weather was only in the low 80's. We went ahead and bought our tickets -( make sure you buy the one with the journey into Africa tour!!!)and decided since the line was too long for the season pass that we would upgrade on our way out. This is definitely the way to go.. If you live in So Cal I would go ahead and get the season pass. It's only 20 dollars more and you have access to both the Wild Animal Park and the San Diego Zoo. You also get two free tickets to either the Zoo or the Park. Just keep your ticket stubs and present them on the way out.. we waited all of 5 minutes.. It was easy and fast.

First thing we headed off to was the Journey to Africa Safari Tour. I would go there first. The lines tend to get long - sometimes up to an hour and a half but if you head there first you will get it out of the way. It's about a 20 minute ride that tours the animal enclosures. My two year old got a kick out of it and so did I. Make sure to bring a pair of binoculars for this adventure. After we finished the tour we just checked out the park. One of our favorite parts was the Lorekeet Landing exhibit. You can buy nectar in teeny cups and feed the little birds. They land on your head, arms, shoulders, etc... It was fun but beware, one of those little stinkers bit me for no reason. It kind of hurt a little but not enough to make me stop feeding the birdies. My two year old was squealing in delight. Your kids will love this.

We stopped and watched a couple of the exotic animals. The animals actually look happy. I think it's because of the enviroment they are in. We called it a day at about 3:30 because my hubby got sunburned badly. I can't stress enough to bring plenty of the sunscreen. It's a must. Oh almost forgot the food is not too bad. We ate at the Mombasa Island Cooker and the food was pretty good for theme park standards. Also if you like soft drinks make sure to buy the souvenir cup. I think it's 9 dollars but you get free refills throughout the day.. We had a great time and can't wait to visit again soon

San Diego Wild Animal Park

15500 San Pasqual Valley Road, 35 miles north of the San Diego Zoo and east of Escondido

Park hours (The Wild Animal Park is open every day of the year, including all holidays.)
Current hours//Park At Dark (now–September 3):9 a.m.–8 p.m. (grounds close at 9 p.m.)
Fall hours (September 4–December 6):9 a.m. to 4 p.m.(grounds close at 5 p.m.)

Parking is 8 dollars...