Normally, halloween for twenty somethings is full of costumes, alcohol and scary movies but this year I wanted something a little more mellow. The Spooky Spectacular at West Midlands Safari Park was the perfect chill halloween for me with three of my favourite things; 1. Animals 2. Rides 3. Dinosaurs. RAR!!!
We arrived at the park just in time for the opening. The drive through safari is first. With a mix of wild animals from Africa and Asia, there's a huge mix for everyone to enjoy. The herbivores are roaming free for you to feed and pet if they wander over to the car. The lions roam freely too but you obviously don't want to wind your window down in their enclosure.
It took about two hours to drive around, pausing for photographs and petting animals. By that time it was lunch time so we paused for food. We'd brought a packed lunch which we ate that at a picnic table before enterring the main park. It was all adorably decorated for Halloween with dressed up scarecrows and pumpkins everywhere. Plus all the little kids were dressed in super cute costumes (and some adults too). My efforts were reduced to a low key villain t-shirt.
Two of my favourites greeted us at the entrance, penguins to the left and bats to the right. The bats are free flying in their twilight room and then there's the reptiles and mini aquarium in the same building. Back over by the penguins is the sea lion show. The Halloween special show is amazingly called "The sea lion, the witch and the waterhole." The show itself isn't all that original but whoever thought of that title deserves a medal.
The other animals are on the far side of the park, beyond the theme park. The hippos are hidden through a gift shop which is only noticeable from a sign in the window. Over at the African village, there's the super popular meerkats, a walk through lemur exhibit and the beyond adorable goat petting area.
And then there's my favourite area, Land of the Living Dinosaurs. The walk through area transports visitors back in time to a pre-historic land where dinosaurs come to life. Be warned, there were a few crying kids, petrified of the life like dinosaurs and even a few adults jumping at the T-rex roar. It's like being in a 100% safe Jurassic Park and just for Halloween it is open in the dark for an extra scare factor.
It is a great alternative way to spend Halloween and best of all it includes a free return ticket for the winter season. Santa safari anyone?
