Hi! I am in my late 30s, married with a son. I enjoy reading and writing in general.
Hi! I am in my late 30s, married with a son. I enjoy reading and writing in general.
Member since:05.02.2007
Reviews:10
Loro Parque is an amazing animal park. Quite simply I do not know where to start - there is so much that can be said. I am going to concentrate on the highlights of the day as there is too much to put in a single review. I hope I cover the main attractions and that you may decide to visit after reading.
We visited as part of an organised excursion with our holiday company. The visit was expensive. But, after a day at Loro Parque we decided the entry fee was more than worth it.
There is a land train that takes visitors who are either staying in or visiting Santa Cruz to the park. When we were there a year ago it was free but I don't know whether it still is.
You enter Loro Parque through a grand entrance designed as a Thai Village. The village is said to be the largest Thai village outside of Thailand itself and the park has a close relationship with Thai royalty.
As you continue forwards there is a bridge over a lake filled with
Koi carp in all sizes and colours. The path then leads to the entrance official, where a picture is taken of you with 2 parrots (the translation of loro parque is Parrot park and the park started as a parrot sanctuary.) and your family. Your photo can be collected and paid for as you leave. The path then leads to the Gorillas area. These gorillas can sit within 3 feet of where you are standing, separated by thick glass. You feel awed by the beauty of these silver back gorillas. The day we visited one of the gorillas was sitting looking at us through the glass while another lay sunbathing. You can see their strength just by looking at them and they are both beautiful and terrifying.
Once past the gorillas the pathway splits. You can pretty much choose where you would like to visit, but the park is structured so that all paths meet back at a central point where the path leads you to the exit.
The next attraction we visited was the Penguinarium - Planet Penguin. This is one of the best attractions I have ever seen anywhere. The experience left me elated, and I have a fascination for penguins that I had never had before. The penguins live in a giant glass aquarium that is kept at a steady temperature. A conveyor belt moves you slowly around the aquarium, so you have plenty of time to see the penguins. The aquarium has a huge snow-covered rock island as the penguin's home, and it snows here. We saw penguins taking a shower of snow. The whole exhibit is see-through and you see penguins struggling to waddle across the ice but then you see their grace and beauty as they dive (or fall) into the sea water and swim and race around. The penguins are happy enough here to breed.
We then moved on and saw huge aquariums full of every size and colour tropical fish that were beyond imagination. How nature creates such bright and wondrous colours is unthinkable.
We made our way to the Sea Lion show next. This is a well choreographed and fun show that involves the audience, especially the children. The sea lion's abilities are breath-taking and they obviously have a good rapport and relationship with their keepers.
Wer had lunch in one of the many clean restaurants around the park. The service was good and the staff were friendly and helpful.
We moved on to watch the dolphin show next. Like the sea lion show it was well choreographed and the dolphin's three babies also joined in the show now and again. Children were invited into a boat and the dolphins pulled the boat around the pool. The children's safety was of utmost importance to the keepers - they were given life jackets and were accompanied at all times. At the end of their boat journey the dolphins kissed the children goodbye and gave them a round of applause.
We missed the loro show because we were running out of time, but this is a display and talk about parrotts. Children are encouraged to join in and the parrotts fly amongst the audience.
There is a Porcelain museum with an exhibit of parrott statues made from porcelain, bronze and other materials. A majority of these have been donated to loro parque.
There is a Gambian market, but this was not overly impressive, just a couple of shops with tourist-type african drums, masks etc.
There was an alligator exhibit. A glass exhibit again. On the other side of the glass was a swamp with 2 alligator. I got a fantastic photo of an alligator watching me through the glass, although in the photo you can't see there was any glass there.
I am tiger mad and we walked around tiger island. There we saw the snow-white tiger and her friend a normal tiger. They were both enjoying the sun.
Loro parque itself is the cleanest animal park you could ever hope to visit. We didn't see a spec of dirt the whole day. The paths were clear and clean - there were litter bins every few steps, all with sand-filled terracotta ashtrays for the smokers. I felt guilty every time I had a ciggy as i felt I was polluting paradise but it was good that everyone was catered for. The cages, animal enclosures, toilets, restaurants were all spotless. Loro Parque really is a paradise.
We were disappointed that the aquarium was closed for refurbishment so we didn't get to see the sharks.
Loro Parque has since opened Orca Ocean which we look forward to seeing when we go back.
If you visit nowhere else whilst on Tenerife you must budget for Loro Parque. Current prices (February 2007) are €29 for adults, €19 for children (6-11) there are reduced prices for Canary Islands residents. There is no better place to visit. The park is fully landscaped and tropical gardening enthusiasts will love the strelitzia's, banana trees and other tropical plants that line every path. Like I said before it is extremely clean, the staff are friendly and helpful and the facilities are clean and well equipped.
The one problem the park has is if there is someone in your party with limited mobility. It is a good idea to phone ahead or ask your rep to phone ahead for you to check about access. There are disabled access points for some main attractions but the slight inclines around the park may be too difficult for walking and wheelchair pushing.
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Hotel - Calle Gran Bretana - Urbanización San Eugenio, Costa Adeje, 38660 Tenerife, Gran Bretaña, s/n, 38660 Playa de las Americas, Spain - 4 Stars - 404 Rooms
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I went to Lanzarote last summer and it was amazing!!...never been to Tenerife though, it looks a little more touristy. super review. gaunty
Bollinger28 06.02.2007 20:34
I've been there a couple of times when I've been to Tenerife, and it does make a good day out. The Aguilas de Teide Ecological Park in the south of the island is well worth a visit too, if you haven't been there. There are less animals there, but it's a more natural environment for them. Lexy
elspeth334 06.02.2007 20:19
I loved this park and though I have limited mobility I never found it a problem. The parrot show was great you will need to go back and enjoy it Cheers Elspeth
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Feb 6th, 2007
very helpful by (100%):
