Safari World Bangkok
This one’s for the animal lovers and families in search of a full day escape from Bangkok city life. Safari World in Bangkok has its very own open-concept zoo where its animals are allowed to free-roam as though they’re back in the wild – well, kinda.
In any case, if you’re looking for a safari experience which gives you and the kiddos a chance to get up close and personal with all creatures great and small, read on to find out more about our day trip to Thailand’s biggest zoo and marine park.
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Massive open-concept zoo is a combination of 2 large parks
Though much has been said about Safari World Bangkok, when we heard this was Thailand’s biggest zoo, we weren’t quite sure on what to expect. Sure enough, when we finally got to take a look at the map, the park was absolutely massive and we didn’t even know where to begin!
The zoo itself was split into 2 parks: Safari World and Marine Park, home to land animals and the beloved creatures of the sea respectively.
We observed that the park seemed to be well-loved by both tourists and locals alike. During our visit, we saw crowds of local students coming out of the marine park. It was definitely an endearing sight which brought back some nostalgic childhood memories of visiting the zoos back home.
For potential guests, we’d definitely recommend coming in some comfy shoes as we had to navigate the park mostly by foot. So if you’re looking to make the most out of your visit, make sure to come prepared. I’m not sure about you, but I definitely exceeded my 10,000 step count goal that day.
While there were so many pitstops we wished to make – from the giraffe terraces to bird menageries – we had arrived just in time for their daily Sealion Show at 2PM. Not wanting to miss a minute of it, we rushed over. And boy, was it worth it.
Family-friendly animal shows & plenty of fun photo-ops
Settling into the top most rows of a pretty packed arena, we waited with bated breath for the animal show to begin promptly on the dot. Once our main stars, an energetic pack of sealions swam – or waddled – onto the stage, they definitely stole the show in no time at all.
Just look at the fully-packed seats and everyone being absolutely captivated by the charming sealions performing!
What we loved was that their smooth moves were accompanied by an upbeat playlist of funky music. The main characters – the sealions – also seemed to be treated with care by their trainers and were rewarded generously for performing tricks – like balancing a basketball on its nose like a pro-NBA player.
With the trio nailing every trick in the performance, it was hard not to be in awe of these majestic sea creatures as the show drew to a close.
But for us, it was onwards and quite literally upwards to our next exhibit, the Giraffe Terrace.
Close encounters with critters at the Giraffe Terrace & bird menagerie
While we did not take part in their safari ride through their open-concept microcosm of the animals’ wild habitat – guests will be housed in moving cages, rather than the animals who’ll get free reign over their habitats. We got a glimpse of it from their giraffe terrace. Does this not look like a scene straight out of Lion King? *cues the Circle of Life OST*.
My experience here definitely re-defined “up close and personal” for me. Never in my wildest dreams did I think I’d be able to get so close to a giraffe, after having only seen them on Nat-Geo documentaries.
Guests will be able to feed these giraffes their favourite fruits using a bamboo stick if they so desire. Do note that you’ll have to pay a small fee at the entrance of the terrace, to get this chance.
Even without us offering them fresh fruit, we found that the giraffes were incredibly tame and friendly. Just look at me enjoying my 1-on-1 time with this giraffe right here. Someone call me the animal whisperer right now.
If you missed your chance to take a 1-to-1 picture with your desired animal however, keep a lookout for these impromptu photo-ops between enclosures. We stumbled upon this imposing bird on our way to the giraffe terrace, among many other wild beasts – patiently awaiting interactions with visitors along with their caregivers.
Getting to Safari World & ticket prices
There’s a ton of things to do at Safari World Bangkok, so we’d recommend setting aside a full day to explore both parks thoroughly. In retrospect, we probably should have gone to the park a little earlier so that we could maximise our time there. Well, I guess you could learn from our mistakes, dear reader.
As for prices, expect entrance fees of ฿1,500 (~USD42) to visit both parks, if you want to spend an entire day here. If you’re looking to enjoy some deals, book your tickets in advance for pretty generous discounts.
The park is situated a little further from the city centre so you can consider getting a private hire car to bring you to the park or opt to take a taxi – like we did – to get here.
So here’s wishing you all the best on your zoological journey here at Safari World, especially to all the budding giraffe whisperers out there.
Safari World
Address: 99 Panya Indra Rd, Sam Wa Tawan Tok, Khlong Sam Wa, Bangkok 10510, Thailand
Opening Hours: Tues – Thurs, 9AM – 4.30PM / Fri – Sat, 9AM – 5PM (Closed on Mondays)
Telephone: +66 2518 1000
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Cover images adapted from: The Smart Local