This place turned out to be much better than anticipated. My adult daughter wanted to see Kiwi’s and this place delivered. I really enjoyed the eels and all of the animals wandering around. It was a calm peaceful day during our 2 month vacation. A+
We bought two gorgeous Seabright chickens about a year ago from here (yes, they sell chickens), and unfortunately, they were in a cardboard box that reeked of gasoline. We took them out as soon as we got home but thought that Willowbank would've been more caring about them.
Besides that, the zoo is wonderful and has many great exhibits. The lovely employees make sure that the animals and people are happy.
Willowbank is a great place to take your kids since you can feed some of the animals and learn more about New Zealand's wildlife.
Love the park where you can interact with different animals in close proximity (I had ducklings chasing after me which was real fun!). I went on a relatively quiet weekday and the walk in the park itself was relaxing. I was also impressed at how they tried to incorporate NZ history in their decor. Not my first time seeing real kiwis, but I liked how we could see them up close (without glass barriers) in the kiwi house. If you have time, do try the optional experiences (of course, book ahead of time - their website is easy to navigate and they reply to emails quickly too). I managed to book for the capybara encounter and it was definitely the highlight of my whole trip to New Zealand! The lady guiding us knows her stuff and was awesome with the capys (and their goose friend Bambi). I also enjoyed a banana milkshake at the park cafe served by the friendly staff working there.
I absolutely love this place. I visit every time I'm in Christchurch. It's definitely something to do if you're planning on being here the whole day. The shortest visit I've had here was 4hrs.
I've done both the Capybara and Lemur encounter. Both were amazing. Highly recommend.
Came here wanting to see the Kiwi birds (which we did) but ended up loving the other wildlife that there is to see. A MUST visit when coming to Christchurch. Highly recommend purchasing a bag of food to give to the various animals for a more close and personal experience. Just amazing.
Great place for at least 2 or 3 hours entertainment! Buy some cheap food there if you'd like to feed the birds or animals. Wait for at least 5-10 minutes for your eyes to adjust in the dark Kiwi room. We were lucky to watch a kiwi searching for food right below us for over 10 minutes. The Kea enclosure is also an awesome experience along with the Wallaby enclosure!
This was an amazing zoo / wildlife reserve lots of animals to get close to you are able to even feed some of the farm animals for an extra $4! Favorite bit when staying in Christchurch would recommend!
I think this is the only one place on NZ where you can get closest to a Kiwi bird. Generally beautiful place to take kids or even everyone who loves the nature or animals. Highly recommended
A remarkable family-friendly spot to spend three hours feeding with complete animals with constant contact with No extensive stretches of nothing to see or touch, a good supply of food, and coffee breaks to hand with a little easy backtracking for the more full meal breaks halfway around. .coffee stop and ice cream in another spot to keep the little ones happy.
If you are looking for big cats and tigers, go to Orana Park, a good combination of the two Christchurch Zoos
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Always and educational experience. Fun with a bit of exercise. Always buy the yearly pass. It's worth every penny. Awesome time of year with wee baby ducks to see
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