Longleat

stashmycash

We're going to Longleat soon. How long does it take to go round the Safari park and are the other attractions there worth the money?
Advice please.

monkeyspanner

Its a self drive tour so you can take as long as you like, but I'd say 2 hours is about the mark if its not too busy, if it is it will take you longer. The safari on its own is £10(adult) £7(child). Passport tickets cost £9 more adults and £8 more child With the passport all the rest of the attractions are thrown in plus you can revisit all season (only one entry to each attraction but unlimited entry to the grounds & gardens).
The other attractions depend on the age of the visitor.
The safari boats are worth a trip but the queues can be long.
The house depends on whether you like stately homes I wouldn't recommend it for young kids.
The butterfly garden is small, entry is via a shop, there are some interesting butterflies but its very run down.
The maze is good fun.
The simulators are fine but nothing special.
The Pets corner is fine and there is a parrot show which is quite entertaining for younger kids.
The railway is really for the kids.
The grounds are country mansion style but fine if you want to picnic on a good day.
Life and times of Lord Bath is museum style exhibits but there is an interesting section on Lord Baths Nazi Collection from his time in Wartime Germany.
The adventure castle is good for the kids and there is some shade for the adults to chill out for a while.

I'd say the passport option is probably the best way to go and if you don't use all of the exhibits there is a market for the unused portion on e-bay.

If your priority is the safari and seeing animals I would strongly consider the West Midlands Safari park which I think is a better selection of animals although not in such a pleasant setting. Its cheaper (less than £10 a head) you can go round the safari section as many times as you like and last year they were offering a second visit free if you visited with the same number of people in the same vehicle.

stashmycash

Wow! that's for all the info.

photome

I think you can get the passport tickets with tesco vouchers, i think it is £4.75 of vouchers per adult.

Willxx

We used tesco vouchers for longleat, well worth it but we "did" everything in a day, pretty much agree with monkerspanner as far as the review goes all I'd add is that safari parks sound interesting but in reality wild animals generally sleep most of the day and don't actually do anything most of the time!

BTW Longleat is hosting the redbull air races again which was fantastic last year, 1 ticket covers as many people as can fit into your car and they are issued free by ballot on the redbull site.

THERESA

If You Email Any Local To Longleat Tourist Information They Will Send You A Discount Ticket Giving You £2.00 Off, Maximum 6 People!

windym_2

THERESA wrote:

If You Email Any Local To Longleat Tourist Information They Will Send You A Discount Ticket Giving You £2.00 Off, Maximum 6 People!

Thresa, who did you email? I emailed Wiltshire TI and they just referred me to the Longleat website. Any more info would be appreciated. Thanks.

monkeyspanner

windym wrote:

Thresa, who did you email? I emailed Wiltshire TI and they just referred me to the Longleat website. Any more info would be appreciated. Thanks.

Try Salisbury tourist office.

windym_2

tried that too, but just got referred to Longleat website.

monkeyspanner

windym wrote:

tried that too, but just got referred to Longleat website.

Try ebay there are usually part used passport tickets for sale, sometimes with just the safari part used. Then just buy the safari part on entry.

windym_2

Monkeyspanner, I emailed again last night to Salisbury and another reply came back saying they have a voucher for £2 off per 6 people which they have put in the post. So thanks again. Persistence really pays off!