Some time ago, we headed off to South Wales for a red panda encounter.
Red Panda Experiences
Since our red panda experience post has become one of our most popular, we’ve been a asked quite a few times about it.
We’ve even convinced a few people that red panda experiences are a good thing to do at the weekend.
Like us, Tenby in South Wales is some distance to travel, so we’ve compiled a list of 5 of the best places in the UK to do a red panda experience.
Note that they are in no particular order!
Red Panda Experience at Manor Wildlife Park in Tenby, Wales
Okay, so predictably we are going to start with the place that we actually visited for our red panda experience.
You can read all about our experience with the red panda by reading the blog post.
The experience lasted a little over half an hour in total.
We were treated to a guided tour around the red panda enclosure at first and our guide told us a little more about red pandas in general, and their resident red panda sisters – Betty and Cherry.
Afterwards, we spent the rest of the time feeding apples, carrots, and pellets to Betty the red panda.
In the wild, around 70-95% of their diet consists of bamboo, but we can tell you that Betty definitely prefers apples!
She was an absolute beauty and you will definitely get all the photos and videos that you can handle!
Betty was very eager and extremely comfortable around us.
When we visited, Betty’s sister Cherry was perhaps feeling a bit shy, so we didn’t get to meet her during the feeding experience.
However, you might get lucky on your visit!
Please remember that pre-booking is essential because this is their most popular animal experience. Once you purchase your experience, book in via email.
See our Red Panda Experience Gallery
How Much Does the Red Panda Experience at Manor Cost?
This experience costs 90 pounds and includes the admission cost into the Manor Wildlife Park itself.
We thought this was very reasonable and is at the cheaper end of the experiences on this list.
Click here to visit the Manor Red Panda Experience booking page
Red Panda Experience at Chester Zoo, Chester
Next up, the Chester Zoo red panda experience.
This has to make the list because it’s absolutely one of our favourite zoos to visit.
We had the pleasure of visiting earlier in 2022 and you can read about our visit to Chester Zoo here.
In this red panda encounter, you’ll step inside the enclosure for a total of 45 minutes.
Initially, you’ll be shown the den area and the keeper will tell you a bit more about these amazing animals.
About 20 minutes of the 45 will be spent with the red pandas themselves.
You hand feed the red pandas from a feeding station within the enclosure. Like all of these encounters, you’ll get some great pictures for your Instagram 😉
The minimum age for a participant is 11 years old for this one.
How Much Does the Red Panda Experience at Chester Zoo Cost?
Chester Zoo’s red panda experience costs 125 pounds and this includes the admission price into the zoo.
This isn’t too bad considering the standard adult entry price to Chester Zoo is £32 (with gift aid).
The price also includes a special gift and even an experience certificate to show off to your friends.
As a one-off birthday present or similar, we think this is a pretty good deal considering the amount of time with the animals and the extras included.
The red panda experience can be booked directly online here – there is limited availability so book well in advance.
Red Panda Experience Near London – Paradise Wildlife Park
Heading to the South of England next and just north of London is Paradise Wildlife Park.
The red panda encounter at Paradise Wildlife Park actually starts with welcome drinks and a meet-and-greet with a keeper.
You’ll head over to the red panda enclosure afterwards armed with a bowl full of food.
For the red pandas, not you.
Once inside the enclosure, you will have the opportunity to feed the red pandas by hand.
As with the other red panda experiences, your keeper will tell you all about the resident red pandas and general information about the species.
There are a few notable restrictions with this one.
The minimum age is 8 years old for this red panda experience.
Children under 10 must be accompanied by a participating adult and participants under 14 must be accompanied on site by an adult with a valid day ticket.
Face masks are now optional to participate.
Red Panda Weekend
We would also like to mention that Paradise Wildlife Park does hold a Red Panda Weekend event each year. It takes place in August, but they are yet to announce the dates for 2023.
It’s usually a Red Panda filled family extravaganza with Red Panda themed merchandise, treats and much more.
Better yet, it’s all included in your park admission price!
You can find out all about last year’s event at https://www.pwpark.com/events/red-panda-weekend-2/
We’ll update this page when we have more info about 2023.
How Much Does the Red Panda Experience at Paradise Wildlife Park Cost?
The red panda experience at Paradise Wildlife Park costs £99 per person.
This price includes standard entry into the park, which is normally priced at £24 per adult (including gift aid).
Like Chester Zoo, you will also get an experience certificate to remember the day by.
Booking is required in advance and can be done so by visiting their booking page here.
You can also give them a call on 01992 470 490.
The Red Panda Experience at Longleat Safari Park
We both absolutely loved watching Animal Park on the BBC which was based around Longleat Safari Park.
So, it’s only natural that we would include their red panda experience in our list – as well being the UK’s number 1 safari park.
Longleat is located in the South of England in the county of Wiltshire.
The red panda experience at Longleat gets you up close for an amazing and memorable experience.
Longleat has several Red Pandas and their habitat just off our main square.
As with the other red panda experiences, you’ll be toured around the red panda enclosure and be hand feeding their red pandas.
Emma and Lionel are two of the resident red pandas here.
How Much Does the Red Panda Experience at Longleat Safari Park Cost?
The red panda experience at Longleat costs £105 per person and this includes entry into the park at £34.95 per ticket.
Your price also includes a souvenir guide book, which is a really nice addition.
The experience may be shared with other guests up to a maximum of 4 people.
Really great value and well worth including this into your visit.
The Red Panda Experience at Yorkshire Wildlife Park
It’s been some time since we have visited Yorkshire Wildlife Park but it is a really good one to visit.
This red panda experience is a reasonably recent addition to their animal experience catalogue and one we are eager to try for ourselves!
This is a 30 minute experience and gives you the opportunity to join one of the animal keepers at the wildlife park in the Red Panda reserve.
This is a red panda feeding experience, where you’ll be feeding the little cuties their staple diet of bamboo.
However, unlike the red panda experience at Manor Wildlife Park (for example) – they don’t allow hand feeding or stroking the Red Pandas on this experience.
How Much Does the Red Panda Experience at Yorkshire Wildlife Park Cost?
The experience is priced at £180 for two people person – it looks like they don’t provide a single priced option unfortunately.
Like the other experiences, this does include entrance into the wildlife park.
Check out their website here to find out more and to book >>
The Red Panda Experience at Drusillas Park
Heading to the South East of England for this red panda experience, Drusillas Park is located in Afriston, East Sussex.
Their red panda experience lasts between 30 and 40 minutes and is available to anyone over the age of 5.
Drusillas Park offers a behind the scenes experience, helping to prepare the red panda’s food, before heading out to feed them. Afterwards, you will get a red panda experience certificate to remember your day by.
The keeper will also be on-hand to answer any and all questions about red pandas too.
How Much Does the Red Panda Experience at Drusillas Park cost?
The red experience at Drusillas Park is priced at £105 for one person or £160 for two people.
The price of the experience includes your entry into the park, non-participating guests will need to buy an entry ticket though.
To find out more and to book your experience, head to the website here >>
The Red Panda Experience at Shepreth Wildlife Park
Next, we’re heading just south of the University City of Cambridge in England for the next red panda experience.
Shepreth Wildlife Park offers a red panda feeding, meet and greet experience, allowing you to get close to your red panda friend during a half an hour time slot.
There a couple of restrictions to be aware of, firstly you have to be over the age of 16 to participate and (unlike the other experiences in this article) there is weight limit of 150kgs.
This is because the participant(s) will have to climb over a wall and a ladder in order to get to the red panda enclosure.
How Much Does the Red Panda Experience at Shepreth Wildlife Park cost?
The red panda experience at Shepreth Wildlife Park costs £100 for one person. An additional adult can participate for £75, up to a maximum of 2 people.
With this experience, you have to buy the voucher and book the specific day once you receive it. Follow the instructions on the voucher or email office@sheprethwildlifepark.co.uk for more info.
Like most out of the red panda experiences out there, this one includes entry into the wildlife park and a certificate of participation to remember your day by.
To find out more and to book your experience, head to the website here >>
Thank You
Thanks for reading our list of red panda experiences in the UK, if you have your own amazing encounter to share, feel free to leave us a comment!
You can check out all of our cute red panda pictures from our experience by visiting the gallery below.
Red Panda Experience Gallery
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Dylan
Hi there, thanks so much for putting this together! I am looking for my wife as a birthday present and one of the things we want to know is the level of interactivity with the pandas e.g. can you stroke them (respectfully and gently) the feedback intimacy etc. and whether there is a particular one you recommend with those things in mind? 🙂
Reply
tanithandben
Hey Dylan, thank you for stopping by and we’re so glad you liked the article! Such a great idea for a birthday present. We can only speak genuinely to the red panda experience at the Manor Wildlife Park since that’s the one that we did. It was brilliant though. The pandas Betty and Cherry are perfectly comfortable with you stroking them gently (they have been trained to allow this) while you feed them. We’re sure that some of the other experiences will allow this too. It’s a great thing to do.
Thanks again for stopping by and for commenting on the article.Reply
