The Beginner's Guide to the San Diego Zoo Safari Park
The Beginner's Guide to the San Diego Zoo Safari Park
THE BEGINNER’S GUIDE TO THE SAN DIEGO ZOO SAFARI PARK
In this video you’ll get an idea of what to expect, what you might spend, what extra experiences the Safari Park offers, along with a full breakdown of every major animal attraction in order of how you would see it in reality.
Safari Park Map:…
source
Reminder!
For most weeks you will be getting more and more consecutive same-zoo tours so you don't have to watch just one feature, and have to wait a whole year to see the next. So for the next few weeks, it'll be all San Diego Zoo Safari Park!
Tour Schedule (for the time being, this will definitely change)
2024: 1. Walkabout Australia 2. Condor Ridge 3. Tiger Trail
2025: 4. African Woods 5. African Outpost 6. Lion Camp
2026: 7. Elephant Valley 8. Asian Savanna
2027: 9. Nairobi Village 10. Gorilla Forest 11. African Plains
Safari Park Map: https://sdzsafaripark.org/plan-your-visit
Tickets: https://sdzsafaripark.org/tickets
Wildlife Safari: https://sdzsafaripark.org/safaris/wildlife-safari
Cart Safaris: https://sdzsafaripark.org/safaris/cart-safari
Behind the Scenes: https://sdzsafaripark.org/safaris/behind-scenes-safari
Camping Safaris: https://sdzsafaripark.org/safaris/roar-snore-safaris
Flightline Safari: https://sdzsafaripark.org/safaris/flightline-safari
Species List of the Field Exhibits: https://www.zoochat.com/community/threads/san-diego-zoo-safari-park-field-exhibit-species-list-28-april-2023.487441/
THE ZOO CREW GIFT SHOP (Look at the top of the website for the PROMO CODE)
1. Full Store: https://my-store-ba2df3.creator-spring.com/
Yesss!!! 😁
I was here in 2017 and BARELY bothered to take ANY pics for some stupid reason. Wish I remembered it better!
Quick question so when visiting the safari zoo is there a tram you can take and view the park or all trams are an add on?
Just got back. This was like every zoo I’ve ever been to.
I went there today 🙂
If you walk down to Heart of Africa, you eventually have to walk back up the hill. Plan wisely
As a SoCal resident, I'd add on the recommendation that in making your decision of Safaripark or SDZoo… consider what animals are on your bucket list. Between the two, the diversity lineup is immense, but specific animals are in specific locations, and that definitely can change your perspective of where to go. I love both, equally, but as I'm a huge fan of platypus and marsupials, I kindof lean more towards the safaripark. But there are also things at the zoo that I just can't get anywhere else, so it's a win either way.
An incredible park. The old days, the tram took 50 minutes to complete, it was a great place to nap.
In short time you won’t have to go to San Diego to see a platypus
I take the Photo caravan truck for close up encounters
Been going since park opened. Go down the Africa hiking trail & I take photos of rhinos, a fav. 🦏 worth bringing zoom camera
As a local: The only thing that i’m surprised you didn’t emphasize are the Okapi! Such a rare animal that most people don’t even know exists.
Thank you so much 😊 very helpful for my family vacation coming up next week we can’t wait for the loads of fun 🤩
If i don't buy any extra tour, just my regular entre fee, do i walk along the whole park or there are tramp/cars or something that will take me for point a to point b?
As a San Diego native, imo the zoo is better for 6- hrs, WAP for 8+ hours. That being said the plants in the sd zoo are top tier. Like what’s above s tier?
They have senior day where seniors get in free
Can you sine for every safari tour?
As someone who has worked at the Safari Park for the last couple of years and a fan of this channel, this was such a fun video to watch! Definitely recommend going on a Wildlife Safari if you come back. I try to make sure to go on one at least every few months.
I'd like to see more zoo exhibits featuring ungulates. I think they're underrated and can make interesting displays, especially when they're kept in large, multi-species enclosures.
One of the best channels!
🦁🦓🐘 + 🤩😉👍
I first visited in March 2019, so the platypi were not there yet. However, my encounter with the lions at Lion Camp and viewing the baby elephants in Elephant Valley made it one of the greatest experiences ever for me. Plus it was my first title seeing Cape Buffalo in a zoological setting.
Ok, you have redeemed yourself with your updated take. Such an incredible park.
Snore and roar was a fun night
Something you might have missed during your visit is there’s a secret exhibit way up at the end of the trail through the world gardens area, near the top left of the map. There’s no signs for animals, which makes me think it’s just a rotating holding pen, but last time I was there a year ago they had Somalian wild asses, which we didn’t see anywhere else in the park
The Safari Park is amazing, I prefer it over the zoo actually because of the perfect exhibits like Tiger Trail and Walkabout Australia to convey the conservation messaging. Elephant Valley is going to be stellar when it opens and from what I’ve heard the Gorilla Forest section is next in line for an expansion.
Asian Savanna rep for the win!! The coolest and most underrated part in the whole park! (Now if only they could allow us to see it without paying extra🫠) I can’t wait to see more of how your tour went. The Nilgiri tahr and Javan banteng are my personal favorites!
I love the park, but one disappointing aspect, after I t changed names from the Wild Animal Park, is that the tram isn’t what it once was. From opening in 1972 until probably the 2010s (?), there was an electric, silent, non-polluting monorail that ran on a single track, all along the entirety of the large savanna exhibits. Now you only see less than half of it, and it’s only 25 minutes. And it’s one of those parking lot-style trams. Lol. Back in the day, the monorail tour was nearly an hour long. According the zoo, it was 50 minutes, but depending on where and how often you stopped, it would be about an hour. Now you either have to pay extra ($$$) to take a private hiking tour around the fields, or pay an arm and a leg to ride in a flatbed truck, out into the fields. The second option, the "photo caravan tour", is probably more fun, since you get to feed all the animals. I’ve always wanted to do that.
I live in SoCal and grew up going to the Zoo and Safari Park. I know one of the designers for the new elephant enclosure and the plans for it look amazing. Possibly a new global standard.
Yay, my hometown/county! And possibly my favorite zoo I’ve ever been to.. we do consider it an offshoot of the San Diego Zoo, although it’s hundreds of times larger. The Zoo is located in uptown, so only has 100 acres. The Safari Park has, I believe, 2500 acres, of which only 1800 acres are accessible to the public? 🤔 Something like that. The rest is hidden in the hills behind the park, large expanses for cheetahs and rare undulates, among other animals. It’s an amazing place.
But many people who visit our city from elsewhere don’t quite understand or expect the rugged topography here, unless they’re forewarned… I don’t know what’s more "challenging", the Zoo or the Park! It’s nothing new to me, but both places are situated atop rather flat and level areas, where you enter, but inside they gradually start weaving and dipping in and out of canyons, valleys, gulleys and various "escarpments" and lookout points. Some of the pathways are VERY steep, but for those who wish, there is a great bus tour at the zoo and the safari park has a guided tram! But getting to the tram does require descending down some pretty steep paths. Just fyi. 😉
9:52 what's an african elk?
whats African elk
Cool
I went to the Safari Park 3 times during my trip in March, and is for sure tied with the zoo as my absolute favorite Zoo outside of Florida!
The habitats were beautiful themed with many having immense spaces for the animals to roam, giving you that feel of being in the wild. And as a species list hunter, it was where I hit the jackpot!
I did the Deluxe Safari tour to get an up clpse view of the animals of Africa and Asia, and the Africa Cart tour to see the Rams alot better
This is definitely a place I'd want to visit over and over again in the future, and this video helped to build up the hype. Thanks for another amazing tour, bro!
Heart of Africa was the best addition to the Park for the longest time but that area hasnt really been maintained with interesting species. The grounds are still very beautiful, particularly around the stream.
I’m so looking forward you shall present species that you haven’t did before
Really strange they don't have spotted hyenas at this kind of place. I know they used to have striped hyenas as animal ambassadors here, but the lack of a proper hyena exhibit is extremely weird for this kind of setting.
I would love to visit San Diego Zoo Safari Park. As I am a lover of hoofstock this would be an amazing collection to see
Eeeeeee!! Been there 2 times way back!! Which attraction are you gonna visit there, Zak? I suggest the Tiger Trails! And also, here are 2 zoo trivia questions for you & your girlfriend….
1) How many years ago did the San Diego Zoo Safari Park originally house dholes?
2) What years did the San Diego Zoo once house warthogs in an exhibit?
Yet, the African Tram ride rocks!!🚃
🐘🐘🐘🐘🐘🐘🐘🐘🐘🐘🐘🐘🐘
I love the platypus. When I was there, I climbed up that hill six times to see them. I was getting worried that I wasn’t gonna be able to see him but thankfully on the six time I got to see them. It was such an honor to see a real life platypus
I'm am from Brazil and one day i want to have this opportunity
I'm so excited to see the tours!
I’m glad that you had a change of heart about the San Diego Zoo Safari Park