Australia Zoo

Australia Zoo gets so much publicity, and I wasn't sure whether I really wanted to go there.  Theme parks and bright lights are not really what our trip is all about.  A zoo, however, involves animals and that would make the children happy, so we went. 
It cost us over $170 to get in- that was the family discount rate for two adults and two children.  A basic lunch of hamburgers would have cost us $60, not including drinks, so it was a good thing I'd packed a picnic! 
The talks and presentations at various points were very informative, but much of it was too complicated for the children and they tended to become restless.  We spent a good part of the time trying to find our way around and rushing to get to the next keeper talk or feeding time, so they (and we!) were tired. 

Advertisements for the "Australia Zoo Experience"-online, in brochures and on billboards- promises close encounters with the animals.  We have been to a number of small animal sanctuaries and centres where the children have had the opportunity to handle, hold and feed different animals, and I had similar expectations here- especially at the price!  We did meet several handlers with animals walking around the zoo, but if they stopped the children were only allowed to look and ask questions, not touch the animals.  The staff we met were all cheerful, informative and friendly, and took the time to listen to the children's comments and answer questions.

One creature they were allowed to touch, but not hold- a baby alligator.

There were people who had paid extra for private animal encounters, but feeding the elephant was free and we queued for twenty minutes to have this opportunity.  When it was our turn we were allowed to give the elephant one piece of fruit and move on quickly to give the next person a turn. If we had wanted to, we could have rejoined the queue as often as we liked, but it was a long one... The children didn't seem disappointed- esther's face was beaming wheh she said to me, "I can't believe I've really touched a live elephant and it ate from my hand!"  Later we watched a presentation about the elephants It was interesting to see how those big, intelligent creatures bond with their handlers.

In the kangaroo enclosure, the children could have fed the animals, but it wasn't till we left the zoo that we found where to purchase the feed (no-it wasn't included in the entry price), so Esther nad Arthur had to be content with patting them.  The koalas, of course, were mostly sleeping (it's what they do) but many other animals were active.

There were water dragons running loose everywhere in the zoo, and signs warned visitors not to try and catch them or risk being sent home!  Just as we were leaving we came across a particularly tame one, who let us come really close.

The zoo itself is well laid out and beautifully kept. We concentrated mostly on the Australian animals, and missed out on seeing "Africa" and much of "Asia" (except the elephants). I would have liked the time to enjoy the lovely Raiforest Aviary for longer, too.  Nonetheless, my feet were very glad to rest for a while as we drove home...