The kids have been wanting to visit the safari park ever since it reopens in October 2020. We always pass by the humongous signboard at it’s entrance when we go to International City and the kids were always asking when are we bringing them. My initial plan was to visit over the December school holiday but unfortunately the combo ticket were sold out before I could get my hands on it.
The combo tickets includes an air-conditioned bus ride into the explorer village where one could have close encounter with animals such as lion, tiger, oryx, cheetah, zebra etc. The ride takes approximately 45 mins so do plan your day. There is a staff that will give some fun facts on the animals along the way which makes our trip more fun!
Did you know that there is no female lion in the safari park? And the reason is not that the male lion looks nicer with their mane but rather because the male and female tends to fight when they are kept together. However, I don’t see this issues with other zoos though, they must have kept them until control somehow 🙂
Also, I did not know that oryx actually changes colour according to season. They are white in winter and slowly turns darker shade of brown in summer. So, the oryx is now half white and half brown, interesting facts indeed.
The weather is a little too hot and humid on the day we visited so we did not enjoy fully but rather looking for shade and some cold drinks to cool down.
I have to say that their food and beverages in the park is very reasonably priced. We had fried rice at the Thai food truck and the price range is DHS 20-25 for the rice that comes in a pretty big portion.
Ice cream at the Thai store are sold between DHS 3-8 , hence we could not resist but had some for our dessert after and they are really good.
Do bring lots of water as the weather is turning warm and the park is pretty vast so definitely needs lots of hydration. However, if you ran out of water, a 500ml mineral water sets you back at DHS 2 and it is not exorbitant. Do bring some coins to purchase the mineral water.
Kids enjoyed the kids farm as they can interact with the friendly parrots. Safe distancing is in place and they limit the amount of people and time inside the aviary.
My favourite part is the ride though the Arabian Desert in an open air tram, although it was not a long ride but I just love the feeling of looking out and seeing the deers and oryx roaming freely in their habitat. This tram ride is available to everyone and you can enjoy it without having to purchase the combo ticket.
The official website definitely can do more in their information section. I could not find any information on the animals show on their website or at the entrance. We only got the information by asking the staff.
Some info below on the animal shows for those who plan to visit:
- Bird show at 11am. Location: Explorer Village Theatre
- Animal show at 3pm. Location: Asian Village Theatre
The zip line and huge playground that you can see as you drive in the park is not open at the moment. If anyone of you visit the park in the future, do let me know when the zip line is open as that would warrant another visit from us.
Overall, it was a good experience and definitely one of the nicer zoo in the UAE. It would help if there are more trees planted to give shade as the summer in UAE is pretty harsh. The overall design and architecture are great and gives a majestic look to the area. Definitely give them a visit if you have time, whether you are visiting or residing in Dubai. Children do learn a lot especially during the explorer village bus ride!
To purchase tickets, do visit their official website as it gives a cheaper price. If you purchase them from head out website, they charge additional service fees.
Dubai Safari Park tickets:
This map will come in handy when you are planning your trip:
https://dubaisafari.ae/DubaiSafariPark_Map_V2.pdf
Learn. Enjoy. Explore.
