Loro Parque Zoo Tenerife | A Family Day Out

During our summer holiday in Tenerife we had a family fun day out visiting the Loro Parque Zoo in Puerto Del La Cruz, Santa Cruz de Tenerife, the kids have a natural love and interest in animals and they were super excited to visit the zoo. We booked our tickets from one of the many ticket operators on the island and we decided to drive ourselves to the zoo, in our hired car from the resort of Los Gigantes, rather than on a tour bus. The drive took around one hour and twenty minutes and it was a very hairy ride to say the least up the winding and at times, very narrow roads, on the edge of the high hills. However, the views were breathtaking and surreal all in one. We drove  so high up through the clouds and pretty little towns and villages towards Puerto Del La Cruz, on the north of the island.

A few quick facts

The Loro Parque opened in 1972, initially a home dedicated in caring for parrots.

Since then then Loro Parque has become one of the most well respected zoos in the world known for ‘the excellence of it’s facilities and absolute respect for nature’.

It holds the worlds largest and reserve of parrot species and subspecies becoming the ‘leading international entity in breeding’.

The Loro Parque history and mission has ‘remained committed to nature conservation and has worked every day to share its mission with its visitors: to protect and conserve animals and their natural habitats for future generations.’  Click here to find out about the Zoo’s history.

The Loro Parque is ranked the worlds #1 attraction on the official Trip Advisor website.

On arrival we joined the pre booking ticket queue and were quickly escorted into the zoo where you had the option of having a family photo taken by the parks photographers. Also on entry you can purchase tickets for the behind the scenes tour however,  we decided to stick to the regular shows the zoo provides, as these type of days out usually whizz by pretty quickly and it’s quite hard to fit everything in a one day visit.

The first presentation we saw was the Orcas Whale show, where you can sit close up to the magnificent mammals but be prepared and ensure to wear a blue waterproof gown as the main part of the show is when the whales bounce around at the edge of the pool with the intention of making a big splash to drench the audience.

The next show we saw was the sea lion presentation,  The show was packed with funny sketches and the close bond between the humans and the sea lions was very endearing.  After the show we stuck around and continued to watch the beautiful sea lions elegantly swimming as they were not in hurry to leave the pool,  we enjoyed a personal show as they were enjoying a carefree play splashing around gracefully in the pool.

We strolled around the zoo in between presentations to see some of the amazing animals, fish and mammals including the white Tiger, Hippos, Gorillas, chimpanzees, Alligators, Sloths and so many more. Click here to find out about all the many different species of mammals, birds, fish and reptiles in the zoo.

Our favourite part of the zoo was definitively The Planet Penguin, where you discover the artic and feel the polar climate in the world’s largest penguinarium. The Planet Penguin is considered the best human reproduction of natural living conditions.

The Dolphins presentation is another favourite of ours and this show is a very calm an intimate experience. The bond and loving relationship between the marineologists and the beautiful mammals is very plain to see.

The Aquarium is truly beautiful, all the water used to feed the aquarium is obtained directly from the Atlantic Ocean.

The final show we saw was the Parrot show which deffinitely entertained the children with the birds funny scripts and antics involving a vending machine and a fire fighter to the rescue in a parrot sized fire engine.

Final Thoughts

The Loro Parque provides a real close up opportunity to admire some of the most beautiful animals, mammals, fish and reptiles we’ve ever seen.  However, It was extremely busy when we visited in August so it was sometimes difficult for the children to get a good view.

The park has the animals, mammals, fish and reptiles welfare at the heart of their mission and it is easy to see how much love, respect and care goes into the management of the zoo.

Click here to read more of the zoos animal welfare and conservation facts.

Top Tips

1 The Zoos official carpark is pretty small and gets full quite quickly in the morning so get there early. We arrived just as it was full and had to park outside the Zoo on the road side which also gets very congested. 

2 Also be aware of some local guys helping us and other zoo visitors to find parking spaces nearby the zoo then requesting 5 euros for their time however, they scarpered fast enough when the police drove by.

3 We were told the restaurants were expensive and there would be plenty of picnic areas however, the zoo was super busy and we struggled to find a spot to sit and eat our lunch. We ate mostly on the go wishing we hadn’t bothered preparing our own lunch and eaten at the quite reasonably priced restaurants.

4 Plan your visit, the Lorro Parque official website is an excellent site which which can help guide you through the zoo. If we had planned better we would have avoided wasted time such as, in the cinema. As informative as it was, it used up a big chunk of precious time.

5 If possible consider buying a second day ticket at the reduced price if you want to make the most of all the attractions without rushing around all day.

6 Be mindful of what you wear on your visit. The zoo is quite enclosed and on our visit it was quite hot, sweaty and humid.

7 Also, take lot’s of water to drink you will need it. We were very thirsty and thank goodness we took lot’s of ice water in a cool bag with us.

8  The park is vast and involves a lot of walking so wear your most comfortable footwear.

9 Use the time-table and map to plan your day to ensure you don’t miss any of your preferred shows and presentations as, it is impossible to fit every experience in one visit.

10 Make sure you get to the presentations and shows early to get the best seats, we found some of the seating had limited views and the layout made it difficult to see everything and tricky to take pictures or record movie footage.

 

Have you been to the Loro Parque Zoo or do you have any theme parks you have enjoyed and would recommend in Tenerife? I am always seeking inspiration, I would love to hear of your experiences.

Lot’s of love

Dana x x

 

*This post is not sponsored or gifted. We paid for everything ourselves. We wanted to share our experience  and offer useful tips and insights for others looking for holiday inspiration.