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Apart from the ape exhibit most of the enclosures are fairly basic, but there's an honesty that's appealing about 'Orana Park'. I get the imoression that everyone at 'Orana' ie workers and volunteers alike are passionate and truly care about the park and its animals. The animal zoo talks were enjoyable particularly the lions. And you can feed the giraffes for free or get closer to the lions or feed the lemurs for an extra fee. It was great having the shuttle transport available too.
Very well thought out space for the animals. Allow plenty of time, the animal feedings were we'll worth the visit. Loved the giraffes. The Lion enclosure was extra, but too see them up close was amazing. Highly recommend visiting Orana Park.
First of all I booked the wrong day! And the helpful people at reception had no problem getting me in when I showed up. Thanks loads! Had heaps of fun it's great being able to interact with the keepers and see them feed the animals.
It was a unique experience, the animals are much closer to us as there are no bars confining the animals. They have space to coexist. And even though we had to walk a lot, it was a lot of fun and the stroller they rent us at the entrance to carry the child is very functional.
We spent over 5hours in the park and still didn’t see everything, had an absolutely amazing time, the gorillas were breathtaking, the giraffes so elegant and the meerkats so cheeky Loved it
I love how awesome this place is with very close encounter with the animals and feeding! I would like to compliment the team there, they are lovely, friendly and so helpful! Shoutout to Cass, Pauline and the Rhino guy from Israel (sorry I don’t think we even asked him his name), and the lady at Farmyard! I have learned so much from them! Thank you very much for a great day!
I've been to animal parks and zoos all over the world, but I keep coming back to Orana because it's just so much more special, the conservation/breeding efforts and the respect that they give the animals allows them to live in the best possible conditions (while allowing the public ample veiwing). This park is the best example of how wild animals should be kept outside of the wild (and before anyone said that wild animals should only be in the wild! Loss if habitat makes that no longer an option!)
I had an enjoyable time with the wildlife, taking in this rare experience of the open park. I sat down with 'Fuzu', the gorilla and watched the antics of the meerkats. Don't go with the idea of completing a race circuit in record time but allow yourself a couple of hours to take it in. Families of all ages can follow the presentations in the pamphlet or design their own! You will go away feeling good, especially if the weather plays its part.
We spent 5 hours at Orana. Had a fantastic time getting close (behind barriers) to animals and a highlight was feeding the giraffes. So much to see and do. NZ is very spoilt to have Orana.
There is alot of amazing animals. A fun day.
It was awesome to be able to feed the Lemurs and Giraffes
I’m not a fan of zoos in general but when one makes it it’s mission to rescue and preserve endangered species it gets a big tick. The volunteers and employees are the backbone of this place and they really care about the animals. Highly recommend a visit to this open range zoo and spend big in the gift shop so they can continue to do their important work.
Nice spacious park. Don't go when it's wet though. Most of the animals were hiding.
Orana has a good collection of wild animals and the best part is that each of them get huge enclosures to raom about freely. We had a good time at the park checking out the wild animals. The highlight was obviously spotting the native Kiwi bird in the dark enclosure. Good experience and nice staff and volunteers.
Lovely wildlife park. Well spaced out enclosures.
Absolutely amazing an the staff are equally awesome very helpful and would answer any questions would highly recommend
Very nice zoo with close encounters. Only down was that the Lion experience is closed and that was not advertised anywhere. Animals presentation and feeding is a must. A nice way to spend half the day.
Me and my family really loved it it was so cool awesome zoo totally worth it and highly recommend this place if your looking to take your kids here do it they'll love it
I haven't been to orana Park in a few years. We went as a group it was my first time taking my 3 boys! I was disappointed at the how many enclosures were empty or closed etc. I felt there was a lack of animals. We also got there just before 11. Got to the marekat inclousure at 1045 and they had already fed them. The staff were lovely. The playground was fantastic. Didn't see the cheetah, spider monkeys were gone, no tazmanian devil's. The otters had no water. But those gorilla's were absolutely amazing. Honestly if it wasn't for them I would have been disappointed. But they definitely made the experience! So it wasn't all bad. Was planning on buying the yearly family consision pass. But after our visit maybe next year we will re consider we will definitely be back though
Visited Orana Park yesterday with my girls and we had a blast. Beautiful, sunny day for it (plenty of shade around the park.) Got in early at 10am to beat the lunchtime crowd but I'd recommend timing your visit a little later as most of the animals were still sleeping or hadn't had their morning coffee yet. Zzzzz..... Speaking of coffee, one star off for the very weird tasting latte (sour milk? ... Maybe Yak milk?)
A special day, loved seeing Gorillas, feeding a Giraffe and the all th other animals. The bus ride around the park is very informative and I suggest you do that right around first. The food at the cafeteria was very good as well. Great day had by all.
Lots of room for the animals and awesome enclosures for them. Some of the enclosures were empty though which was ashame. All the animals looked happy though :)
Wow i havent been to orana park since i was around 13 Im now 31 and the experiance is still as amazing as it was back then Being in nature around animals is a magical experiance. We need buses to go there so we can go more often
Wow what a fantastic wildlife park, we thoroughly enjoyed our morning there, highly recommend a definite must do in Christchurch ?
Yesterday my Son and I visited Orana Park as soon as they were open! The staff on entrance were friendly, took interest in us and suggested what animals we should visit first and information regarding feeding times throughout the day. We went and had a drink and some cake at the Cafe which was nice. I was curious about the premade lunches as I had read online that could be accomadated but I didn't see a sign or menu with that option. Oliver and I strolled around the Park and saw all the animals, Oliver really liked the farm animals and seeing the pigs. At the end the shop is of good value and price and we came away for with toy Kiwi. All and All a good day!
amazing went to change to yearly pass but noticed they run june to june so will look at it in june :)
Well I'd have to say this is amongst the best wildlife places in NZ. Alot of walking, do be warned but there's also a shuttle incase. Saw alot more animals than expected, daughter was happy on her birthday. Definitely recommend going.
Love Orana Park I have visited many times, was happy to see some cheetah's as well as the Tigers, this is one place I would visit many times
Love to see the animals living in a safe and protected haven. You get to stand so close to the wildlife and observe them as if you are on a safari adventure! Love the cafe and the information provided by the helpful rangers. Would love to visit more frequently in future =) Thank you for the great work in sustaining this place.
Wonderful day, needed the whole day to see and do everything what great value for money
I would've liked to have given a 5 star, however there were a couple of issues. One is accessibility both to get to the park and back and also getting around the park. There really should be a bus that goes to the park and back to town that doesn't cost $40 each way if you haven't got a car. I know that's more a NZ transport metro issue. Now there is a shuttle and I was also offered a wheelchair however the shuttle only stops at certain points and to get to some enclosures it means you have to backtrack or walk down more pathways. Hence I didn't get to see all the animals up close because of all the walking. The path to me doesn't seem wheelchair friendly unless someone had an electric wheelchair. Lots of gravel and slopes. There was a Lil bit of rubbish in the gullies and some parts looked overgrown. It's hard to see the lions through all that fencing. Mind I didn't realize there was another spot around the side for them. I'd say that it was hard to see some animals up close which I guess the good thing is it means lots of room for the animal to roam. You definitely need a good camera to get good photos. On the other hand it was really amazing to see the gorillas and feed the Giraffe. I was lucky cos one decided it would come over after many missed out on feeding them. And the staff are nice. My hot chips weren't cooked properly in the Cafe and the Chai the Cafe uses doesn't taste good. May need to change it. It was a nice day just sad I didn't get to see all and be involved in all the feeding times due to walking. Thanks
Orana wildlife Park was absolutely amazing! We went at 1h30pm and wish we went earlier. There is so much to see and do. The Cafe has this beautiful view over the Giraffes and Rhinos while you enjoy your lunch. The staff were friendly and helpful especially on the shuttle. We will definitely be back!
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