Drusillas Park
Drusillas Park
4.5
10:00 AM - 6:00 PM
Monday
10:00 AM - 6:00 PM
Tuesday
10:00 AM - 6:00 PM
Wednesday
10:00 AM - 6:00 PM
Thursday
10:00 AM - 6:00 PM
Friday
10:00 AM - 6:00 PM
Saturday
10:00 AM - 6:00 PM
Sunday
10:00 AM - 6:00 PM
About
Widely regarded as the best small zoo in Europe. Drusillas Park offers a fun finding-out day out where hundreds of animals are only half the fun! Experience the Rainforest Adventure attraction with four rides: Toucan Twister, Jungle Jeep, Amazon Skyrise and Junior Jeep. Brilliant play areas including immersive sensory experience SPARK, Go Wild!, Go Bananas! and soft-play Amazon Adventure. Plus a splashpad and African-themed three-ride attraction Go Safari! Get nose to nose with nature with our close encounters. It’s no ordinary zoo!
Duration: More than 3 hours
Meets animal welfare guidelines
Suggest edits to improve what we show.
Improve this listingFull view
What is Travellers’ Choice?
Tripadvisor gives a Travellers’ Choice award to accommodations, attractions and restaurants that consistently earn great reviews from travellers and are ranked within the top 10% of properties on Tripadvisor.
Revenue impacts the experiences featured on this page, learn more.
Top ways to experience nearby attractions
The area
Address
Reach out directly
Best nearby
We rank these restaurants and attractions by balancing reviews from our members with how close they are to this location.
Restaurants
27 within 3 miles
Attractions
75 within 6 miles
See what travellers are saying
- Lynn B1 contributionA great day outMy four year old granddaughter and I had a wonderful day at Drusillas. It was just after the schools had gone back in September so it was nice and quiet and we had lots of space to see the animals and play and we got on the rides easily. I love the way that they keep reinvesting and improving the park, each time we go there is something new to explore.Thanks very much for taking the time to leave us feedback. We're so pleased to hear you spent such a great day with us and it's wonderful to hear you noticed and appreciated to improvements we have made to the Park. Thanks again for leaving us a review, we hope to welcome you back again soon. Best wishes, DrusillasWritten 9 October 2023This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.Visited September 2023Travelled with familyWritten 6 October 2023
- JammieDodgerQueenLondon, United Kingdom35 contributionsWorth a visitWe took our baby to Drusillas to introduce him to animals. There were a wide variety of different animals to see and the zoo was well maintained. We ate at the Oasis cafe, there were lots of different options and it is quick fast food. It was a little flavourless but it was not terrible either. The doughnut factory was excellent, it was really busy so there was a big queue but it was worth the wait. It was a lovely day out but quite expensive and the cafe was a little disappointing. It is worth a visit though as you can see the animals are well looked after and that is of course what you go for.Thank-you so much for taking the time to leave us feedback. We're so pleased to hear you all enjoyed your son's first zoo experience and our delicious donuts. We look forward to welcoming you and your family back again soon. Best wishes, DrusillasWritten 9 October 2023This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.Visited October 2023Travelled with familyWritten 7 October 2023
- Alison H10 contributionsWhat a great placeWhat a great place!! Just wanted to pop in and have a quick look around. We stayed for 2.5hrs. The amount and range of animals were fabulous. The cleanliness was very good. Access fit for all, we saw alot of prams and wheelchairs. Staff were friendly and knowledgeable. Everybody seemed like they were having a good time. We arrived at 10am and were in the park within 5mins (no waiting in long ques). If we had visited with children we would have stayed a lot longer as the play areas were large with plenty to do. Like I said at the start of this review "what a great place".Thank-you so much for taking the time to leave us such lovely feedback. It's wonderful to hear you enjoyed your visit meeting all our animals and enjoying our attractions. Thanks for your kind words about our staff and the cleanliness of the Park which we will pass on. We look forward to welcoming you back again soon for another visit. Best wishes, DrusillasWritten 30 October 2023This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.Visited October 2023Travelled as a coupleWritten 25 October 2023
- Excursion058805508121 contributionExcellent place, well worth a visit!I don’t usually write reviews but felt the need to let the owners/managers of Drusilla’s know that I was so impressed with the members of staff working there when we visited on Sunday. The staff in charge of the rides were polite and spoke so nicely to the children (which is rare in my experience - in other places like this, the staff can be rude and dismissive) and the staff in the zoo area were so knowledgeable and welcoming to us. Really well done for this, please do give them the praise they deserve. Drusilla’s is a really great place and the staff working there made it a brilliant experience.Thank you very much for taking the trouble to get in touch and pass on this wonderful feedback about our staff. We have passed on your kind words to our management team and will ensure the staff on duty on Sunday are given recognition for their excellent customer service. Thanks again for your feedback, we look forward to welcoming you back to the Park again soon. Best wishes, DrusillasWritten 30 October 2023This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.Visited October 2023Travelled with familyWritten 25 October 2023
- rob a75 contributionsLots of rare and endangered animals to look atOne of the best animal experiences this family have ever had. there was so much to look at I didn't think we would have enough time to enjoy it. lots of fun activities and playgrounds, great for kids from 3-13 I'd say. The animals were a wonderful sight to look at and my 9 and 11 year old kids loved it.Many thanks for getting in touch with feedback about your visit. We're absolutely delighted to hear you had such a wonderful day with us and enjoyed everything the Park has to offer. We look forward to welcoming you back again in the future. Best wishes, DrusillasWritten 30 October 2023This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.Visited September 2023Travelled with familyWritten 27 October 2023
- Kitticat1971Hastings, United Kingdom6 contributionsA great way to see some interesting animals and spend a couple of hoursA great variety of creatures, huge anteaters, cute monkeys and fun penguins amongst everything else. We most loved the meerkats. Friendly and knowledgeable staff. Easy parking and entry. We only went round the zoo and didn’t use the other facilities such as the rides and food options. Took us an hour and a half although could have been longer if we’d stayed for more of the feeds/ talks.Thanks so much for getting in touch with this brilliant feedback on the Zoo - and our cheeky meerkats! We’re delighted to hear you enjoyed meeting all our wonderful animals and hope to be able to welcome you back to the Park again soon. Best wishes, DrusillasWritten 13 November 2023This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.Visited October 2023Travelled with familyWritten 7 November 2023
- Steph DEastbourne, United Kingdom3 contributionsA great day outWhat a great day out this was. I thought my boys 12 yrs and 10 yrs might be too old how wrong was I , they loved it. They really enjoyed the animals and interesting facts that were accompanying the enclosures. They had great fun in the play park and enjoyed the fun rides. We had a wonderful day. Thank youThanks so much for taking the time to leave us a review. You’re never too old for a day out at Drusillas! We’re so pleased to hear you and your family enjoyed your visit. We look forward to welcoming you back to the Park again soon. Best wishes, DrusillasWritten 13 November 2023This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.Visited October 2023Travelled with familyWritten 7 November 2023
- jfairless1East Sussex, United Kingdom29 contributionsBirthday at DrusillasWe had a fabulous day at Drusillas. It was my four year old granddaughter’s birthday. She was the perfect age and enjoyed everything about the day - the animals, the play park and the rides. I highly recommend a day at Drusillas for the family. We took a picnic which saved money.Thank-you so much for taking the time to leave us feedback and for choosing Drusillas to celebrate your granddaughter's birthday. We're delighted to hear you all enjoyed your day with us and wish your granddaughter a very happy birthday! We hope to welcome you back to the Park again soon. Best wishes, DrusillasWritten 27 November 2023This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.Visited November 2023Travelled with familyWritten 23 November 2023
- philip tBorehamwood, United Kingdom26 contributionsChristmas visitWent today 3rd December 2023. Paid to see santa for our grandaughter. Lovely santa and great day. Huskies so sweet and singing reindeer fun. Weather was awful which was a shame for the park as they made so much effort on the Xmas event but we enjoyed it still and will be back soon!Many thanks for taking the time to leave us feedback. We're so pleased to hear your family enjoyed our Christmas event, in spite of the weather trying to spoil everyone's festive fun! We hope to welcome you back to the Park again soon. Best wishes, DrusillasWritten 4 December 2023This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.Visited December 2023Travelled with familyWritten 3 December 2023
- peter w14 contributionsThe best Santa visit!!!Took our Grandson to meet Father Christmas yesterday, Was absolutely the best we’ve done! The Elf was really chatty to Ruairi, who is very shy, and when he took us in to the Grotto both him & Santa were really good at putting him at his ease, & when Ruairi was too shy to sit on his lap Santa came over & stood behind him for photos. We know where the Grandkids are meeting Santa next year!!Thank you so much for taking the time to leave us feedback about your visit. We're absolutely delighted to hear that you had such a wonderful Santa experience! We very much look forward to welcoming you back to the Park again next year.Written 18 December 2023This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.Visited December 2023Travelled with familyWritten 13 December 2023
These reviews are the subjective opinion of Tripadvisor members and not of TripAdvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.
Contribute
Most Recent: Reviews ordered by most recent publish date in descending order.
Detailed Reviews: Reviews ordered by recency and descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as waiting time, length of visit, general tips, and location information.
Popular mentions
We perform checks on reviews.
Tripadvisor’s approach to reviews
Before posting, each Tripadvisor review goes through an automated tracking system, which collects information, answering the following questions: how, what, where and when. If the system detects something that potentially contradicts our community guidelines, the review is not published.
When the system detects a problem, a review may be automatically rejected, sent to the reviewer for validation, or manually reviewed by our team of content specialists, who work 24/7 to maintain the quality of the reviews on our site.
Our team checks each review posted on the site disputed by our community as not meeting our community guidelines.
Learn more about our review moderation.
4.5
2,329 reviews
Excellent
1,623
Very good
444
Average
131
Poor
61
Terrible
70
Elaine j
2 contributions
Jul 2020 • Couples
Loved seeing the animals there was all good
But was shocked when we went to gates to pay and found that the gate price was £48.00 for two adults instead of £36.00 online when sure it stated on the site that gate price would be the same as online price. Tried to book it online but would not go through the payment so had no choice but to pay on gate. Asked also about discount (vat) on price as part of the government scheme was told no we don't do it. When we got in the park it was packed out so much so we had to park in the overflow car park. We thought it was meant to be limited numbers of people due to Covid 19 obviously not!! Just looked like the normal amount of people that would be there if not more then normal!! No social distancing going on inside the park, children running everywhere parents not caring and most of them not even worrying about doing it. Spoilt the experience some what as we could not stop for long and look at each animal properly because of all the people so rushed through. All the children's rides and play area were open which we also thought was surprising considering the current situation still. The only thing they did do was have plenty of hand wash stations about the park but appart from that safety of people and numbers was out the window. Would have given a reasonable review but because of the safety aspect could not. If you do go make sure to wear a mask!! They need to reduce the number of people coming in alot more then what they were doing in order to make it safer.
But was shocked when we went to gates to pay and found that the gate price was £48.00 for two adults instead of £36.00 online when sure it stated on the site that gate price would be the same as online price. Tried to book it online but would not go through the payment so had no choice but to pay on gate. Asked also about discount (vat) on price as part of the government scheme was told no we don't do it. When we got in the park it was packed out so much so we had to park in the overflow car park. We thought it was meant to be limited numbers of people due to Covid 19 obviously not!! Just looked like the normal amount of people that would be there if not more then normal!! No social distancing going on inside the park, children running everywhere parents not caring and most of them not even worrying about doing it. Spoilt the experience some what as we could not stop for long and look at each animal properly because of all the people so rushed through. All the children's rides and play area were open which we also thought was surprising considering the current situation still. The only thing they did do was have plenty of hand wash stations about the park but appart from that safety of people and numbers was out the window. Would have given a reasonable review but because of the safety aspect could not. If you do go make sure to wear a mask!! They need to reduce the number of people coming in alot more then what they were doing in order to make it safer.
Written 16 July 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Hi Elaine,
We are really pleased to hear you enjoyed seeing the animals on your recent visit
We are only accepting a very limited amount of ‘at the gate’ entries and are recommending that everyone books their tickets online in advance of their visit. Our online prices are heavily discounted from the gate price to encourage visitors to book online and this information is on our website on three separate pages including our Online Tickets page, Staying Safe at Drusillas page and our COVID-19 FAQ page. We have made this information as clear as possible as we would prefer visitors to buy tickets online in advance rather than turn up on the day.
We are really disappointed to hear you found your visit uncomfortable, especially when we have worked so hard implemented loads of new safety measures throughout the Park. The safety of our visitors and staff is our number one priority and we are strictly adhering to all government guidelines. We have reduced our capacity to under 50%, so we are nowhere near our usual capacity. As well as reducing or capacity we have also introduced a one way zoo route, floor signage throughout the whole site, hygiene screens, more space around seating areas, asking visitors to pay by contactless, we have added over 70 new sanitizers stations throughout the Park and have employed more cleaners with a rigorous new routine with a focus on touch points. Our play areas and rides are open in line with government guidelines and these are cleaned on a regular basis but it is each person’s individual responsibility to decide for themselves whether they are comfortable with their children using them. We have a lot of new signage around the Park clearly displaying our guidelines and asking people to play their part too by; washing their hands regularly, following the one way zoo route, not touching the glass and asking people to social distance from others, as they have to everywhere around the country. We are trying incredibly hard to encourage our visitors to follow all our guidelines within the Park. It is not possible for us to monitor every family or individual so its therefore very important that anyone who is visiting Drusillas or any other attraction or shared public hospitality venue, understands that they may well come across some visitors who do not take social distancing as seriously as others. We are asking visitors to consider this before they decide to visit.
Written 17 July 2020
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
luke14ott
Hampshire, UK136 contributions
Oct 2020 • Family
Drusillas is ok if you have children under 4 or 5. We took our 16 month old here on monday 19th oct. We knew she could only go on a few rides which was fine with us and great for her first experience with rides. She did love them and the few animals it has. I understand why the owners wish to cut back on staff during the week when it’s quiet so they can pocket more money for their Christmas booze. But the staggering of times for rides makes the waiting so much longer. Especially if the operator is late getting to the other ride and then you try get to the other ride in that time slot and approach the rides with 3 minutes left in the slot to be told its closed until the following hours slot. Was little frustrating but luckily at 16months our daughter wouldn’t understand, still not good practice though... The cafes are disgustingly overpriced and we didn’t purchase any food at all. The prices are more then anywhere ive seen of similar places.
I do feel they could have more animals maybe. I dont get the new dinosaur bit. Kinda unnecessary but hey ho maybe another ride or animals instead... £19 advanced ticket is a fair bit but overall we thought wasnt a bad day out. Think £16/17 is ample and especially when its same price for a child over2. Kinda feel children should be reduced rate... £23:50 on the day is extortionate.
As said was a good day out and good to take our daughter on her first rides. But feel prices maybe should be slightly lower.
We are around 1hr45 mins away and similar from cotswold wildlife which has no rides But is only around £16 and is massive zoo. We can take her to kids rides for £1 each at nearby leisure park near the sea..
Also staff were very friendly
I do feel they could have more animals maybe. I dont get the new dinosaur bit. Kinda unnecessary but hey ho maybe another ride or animals instead... £19 advanced ticket is a fair bit but overall we thought wasnt a bad day out. Think £16/17 is ample and especially when its same price for a child over2. Kinda feel children should be reduced rate... £23:50 on the day is extortionate.
As said was a good day out and good to take our daughter on her first rides. But feel prices maybe should be slightly lower.
We are around 1hr45 mins away and similar from cotswold wildlife which has no rides But is only around £16 and is massive zoo. We can take her to kids rides for £1 each at nearby leisure park near the sea..
Also staff were very friendly
Written 21 October 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
We are pleased to hear your daughter enjoyed seeing our animals and going on our rides. We hope that you did manage to see more than just a few animals as we have over 100 species at the Park including anteaters, camels, red pandas, sloths, fennec foxes, flamingos, a large variety of primates, penguins and meerkats, to name just a few.
During term-time weekdays our rides operate on a rotational basis which we advertise on our website. Our pricing therefore reflects this as it is cheaper to visit during this time than it is on a weekend or school holiday day. Our new Jurassic Jungle area has been a real hit and we’ve had lots of brilliant feedback, so we are surprised and disappointed to hear you didn’t enjoy this area.
With regards to our food prices, we do regularly review and compare our food prices to other visitor attractions and we know that we are in line with most.
We're sorry to hear you were disappointed with your visit but hope this helps to answer some of your comments.
Kind regards,
Drusillas
Written 27 October 2020
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
Sue M
Eastbourne, UK12 contributions
Apr 2021 • Family
Although our visit was in April it was not in the school holidays.
It was difficult to believe COVID regulations were in place as the Park was very very populated.
Adding to the crowding issue was the fact that only the carousel and train were open all day. The teacup ride was open for 10 minutes every hour and all the other rides for short times. As a consequence the queues for all the rides created bunching of people making COVID safety most tenuous.
The playground was as busy as a summer day pre COVID and if one tried to self distance adults and children filled in the gap. The trampoline for 6 year olds and younger kept being invaded by 9 and 10 year olds who were causing the little ones to be knocked over and frightened. I did not see it as my role to ask children how old they were but for health and safety issues someone had to do it.
Few people were adhering to the sign outside the toilets stating only 2 families should go in at any one time.
I spoke to numerous discontented parents today who were appalled at the crowding issues and short times the rides were open. At £28.50 entrance I would, at least, expect all rides to be functioning all day.
Although announcements were made re distancing and hand cleanliness there were no staff to ensure people were adhering to these rules. Yes, hand gel was available but this did not compensate for crowding.
I don’t know what has happened to Drusillas but it does not seem to have the standards it used to.
It was difficult to believe COVID regulations were in place as the Park was very very populated.
Adding to the crowding issue was the fact that only the carousel and train were open all day. The teacup ride was open for 10 minutes every hour and all the other rides for short times. As a consequence the queues for all the rides created bunching of people making COVID safety most tenuous.
The playground was as busy as a summer day pre COVID and if one tried to self distance adults and children filled in the gap. The trampoline for 6 year olds and younger kept being invaded by 9 and 10 year olds who were causing the little ones to be knocked over and frightened. I did not see it as my role to ask children how old they were but for health and safety issues someone had to do it.
Few people were adhering to the sign outside the toilets stating only 2 families should go in at any one time.
I spoke to numerous discontented parents today who were appalled at the crowding issues and short times the rides were open. At £28.50 entrance I would, at least, expect all rides to be functioning all day.
Although announcements were made re distancing and hand cleanliness there were no staff to ensure people were adhering to these rules. Yes, hand gel was available but this did not compensate for crowding.
I don’t know what has happened to Drusillas but it does not seem to have the standards it used to.
Written 19 April 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Thanks for taking the time to share your feedback and we are very sorry you were disappointed with your visit.
Although the day you visited was not the school holidays, it was an inset day for a lot of East Sussex schools, so for many children it was their last day of the Easter holidays. The Easter holidays (along with the Summer holidays) are always the most popular times of the year, that coupled with the fact we’ve just come out of lockdown and families are keen to get out meant demand was higher than we anticipated. On a usual non-school holiday day our rides operate on a rotational basis due to lower demand but the day of your visit ended up being a more popular day than we expected and we apologise for any queues being too long.
We are restricting capacity as per government and industry guidance and on 19th April we can confirm that our capacity was at 39%, so nowhere near a pre-covid Summer’s day. We do know there are some pinch points at Drusillas and we have done our best to alleviate these by creating three alternatives routes - avoiding the zoo foyer, the squirrel monkey walkway and the owls. Generally people spread out across the park and things work well but there are also hot spots such as the train and play areas in the early/middle afternoon. Along with following all our social distancing floor markings, our only practical advice is to recommend people move away from areas they feel are too busy and come back later on.
We have over 100 signs and floor messages asking people to social distance, over 70 hand sanitisation stations for visitors to use as well as extra cleaning staff. As well as the extra staff employed we have also put cleaning stations up, so visitors can clean any equipment they feel the need to. We have a one-way system in the zoo which works well but it’s impossible to have a one-way system in the play areas and rides. We do have some key staff as social distancing monitors but ultimately, we have to rely on people being sensible and responsible. Our most recent signage encourages visitors to wear masks in any areas they might feel vulnerable, and we have made it clear that its compulsory in all our inside areas including our catering outlets, shops, toilets and corridors.
We are disappointed to hear you did not feel happy in the Park but do understand and appreciate that visitors have differing comfort levels. We can only reassure you that we are doing everything we can to strike a very difficult balance at a very difficult and challenging time.
We do hope that we can welcome you back sometime in the future.
Written 21 April 2021
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
David M
West Sussex, UK330 contributions
May 2021
Expensive family day out, considering it very much a child based animal and child park. To do several things inside the the ark extra cost , and a good selection of pay for children’s rides just inside the entrance , so after paying £100 to get family in I have to say no to my children wanting to have a ride .. no need to have coin activated rides out side your shops , roll the coin activity’s dotted around.
Food was basic and expensive.. £7.25 for a jacket potatoes then drinks , it’s a. Potato with cheese or beans,
In poor weather picnic area is no good at all lack of under cover bench’s , if it raining you have no place to have a picnic , so if your going and weather looks iffy expect to put £45 on the day for food ,
Druscillas is starting the season looking a bit tired ,
Staff were great very helpfu,
Explorer cafe need to sort out better COVID catering system as moment there’s a que or weather turns you can’t give you COVID practice
Decent selection of animals up to kids of say 10 after that nothing really to excite them
Any kids over 10 would get bored in 1/2 a day and considering the cosy I don’t find that good value
Food was basic and expensive.. £7.25 for a jacket potatoes then drinks , it’s a. Potato with cheese or beans,
In poor weather picnic area is no good at all lack of under cover bench’s , if it raining you have no place to have a picnic , so if your going and weather looks iffy expect to put £45 on the day for food ,
Druscillas is starting the season looking a bit tired ,
Staff were great very helpfu,
Explorer cafe need to sort out better COVID catering system as moment there’s a que or weather turns you can’t give you COVID practice
Decent selection of animals up to kids of say 10 after that nothing really to excite them
Any kids over 10 would get bored in 1/2 a day and considering the cosy I don’t find that good value
Written 23 May 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Thank you for taking the time to share your experience of the Park. We learn a great deal from listening to what our visitors say. We are glad you found our hardworking staff helpful.
While we’re aware we may not be the cheapest day out we do always strive to provide value for money and we think we provide a great offering for a full day out, with our market research showing visitors spending, on average, 4 to 5 hours here at the Park.
For the entry price we offer the entire zoo with more than 100 species of animals, unlimited rides on our Safari Express train, Hippopotobus, Flying Cheetahs, Rainforest Carousel, Hello Kitty Hopper, Hello Kitty Car Ride and Hello Kitty teacups. We also have our two large adventure play areas and our splashpad- Get Wet!, a Zoolympics activity trail and an animal spotter book to use around the Park.
We are sometimes contacted by people who feel adults should be charged more than children for entry and some people who feel children should be charged more than adults, as the park is designed for kids. We made the decision a long while ago to charge everyone equally and believe we are clear and transparent with pricing policy. We re-invest heavily at Drusillas and are proud to be continually making improvements to the Park for the enjoyment of our visitors, such as our new dinosaur walk-through- Jurassic Jungle.
We are also disappointed to hear you felt the food was quite expensive- we often get very positive feedback about our food being well-priced.
We have two large undercover seating areas available for picnics outside our Amazon Adventure soft-play and in our Events arena which is usually more than enough, however, if the weather is particularly wet then these can fill up quickly.
We very much hope we will welcome you back in the future.
Best wishes,
Drusillas
Written 24 May 2021
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
Johnthefence
Bognor Regis, UK99 contributions
Aug 2020 • Family
We took our 9 year old daughter and her friend here for the day to celebrate her birthday, we had a great day. There are many animals to look at, and learn about, as well as many rides to suit all ages. This is the first time we have been anywhere with lots of people for months due to Covid-19, and I was very impressed with the measures Drusilla’s have in place, obviously there are visitors that don’t quite get the socially distancing thing, but on the whole Drusilla’s are doing really well.
We booked the Meerkats encounter for the two girls and it was well worth the cost, to begin with we jumped the massive queue to get in the park, as you can enter through the members gate if you have an encounter booked.
A keeper came to meet us and took us through the animal kitchen for a brief tour and chat about what the different animals eat, then for a walk to the large Meerkat enclosure to see the little baby ones, and throw some crickets to them.
Then to the smaller enclosure, the girls sat on some rocks and the Meerkats came straight over, they were very friendly and were very happy to climb on their laps and eat crickets.
A great day had by all.
We booked the Meerkats encounter for the two girls and it was well worth the cost, to begin with we jumped the massive queue to get in the park, as you can enter through the members gate if you have an encounter booked.
A keeper came to meet us and took us through the animal kitchen for a brief tour and chat about what the different animals eat, then for a walk to the large Meerkat enclosure to see the little baby ones, and throw some crickets to them.
Then to the smaller enclosure, the girls sat on some rocks and the Meerkats came straight over, they were very friendly and were very happy to climb on their laps and eat crickets.
A great day had by all.
Written 23 August 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
We are so glad your daughter had such a special and memorable 9th birthday!
We really appreciate you taking the time to share your experience and leave a review and very much hope we will welcome you back in the future.
Best wishes,
Drusillas 😊
Written 24 August 2020
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
Huffnpuf
Romney Marsh5 contributions
Aug 2020
Very disappointed, after spending over a £120 to get in there appeared to be no social distancing. Markers were in place but no one policing it anywhere. The indoor areas and one way system should have had the numbers limited, so it was impossible to enjoy a lot of areas. It spoilt what was our first day out in 5 months. It was also disappointing to find that all food outlets were doing the same menu and thank goodness for the ‘Eat out to help out’ promotion, it cost £49 for meals and drink (£3.00 for a can of Tango, reduced to £1.50 was extortionate). Won’t be going again!
Written 6 August 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Hi there,
We are really sad to hear you were disappointed with your visit to Drusillas. We’ve worked incredibly hard putting in so many social distancing measures in place including over 100 new signs around the park asking people to keep their distance, ‘Keep Your Distance’ floor signage throughout the one-way zoo route, we have social distancing markers for queues, we have extra staff acting as ‘social distancing monitors’ and also public announcements being broadcast throughout the park via speakers. Unfortunately it is just not possible for us to monitor or supervise each person or family whilst in the Park and therefore we have to rely on our signage and our visitors being responsible.
We are limiting the number of people into the Park and are strictly adhering to all government guidelines (which are 50% capacity slowly moving to 75%). We have been consistently between 40% and 50% on a daily basis and have no plans to increase this in the foreseeable future.
We are pleased you managed to benefit from the current Eat Out to Help Out Scheme which we are running. We just wanted to clarify that the Tango you mention has never been £3, it’s £1.50 and you would have paid 75p through the Eat Out to Help Out scheme as it’s 50% off the original price.
We have had some wonderful feedback from visitors who have said how safe they have felt and how positive they feel the measures are. We are really disappointed this wasn’t your experience this time but hope you will return when things have calmed down and you feel more comfortable.
Written 7 August 2020
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
Kausar B
Crawley, UK107 contributions
Jun 2020 • Family
First visit to anywhere since the lockdown, long wait to get in but understandable due to safety measures. Rides were closed but as we didn’t have children it didn’t matter. The zoo bit was fine and we enjoyed our visit. It’s not a very large park so if we had paid the full £23 per person, I’d be disappointed.
So the reduced pricing of £13 per person seemed reasonable.
So the reduced pricing of £13 per person seemed reasonable.
Written 30 June 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Emily M
Haywards Heath, UK38 contributions
Aug 2020
We went to Drusillas mid August to go around the zoo, on the rides and I paid for a meet the meerkats experience. Despite the rain my two 8 year olds and myself had such a great time! We haven’t visited for a while and I was pleased to see how the park has continued to modernise and keep the attractions relevant. The one way layout of the park lends itself to social distancing and there were plenty of signs, radio announcements and hand sanitisers around. Meeting the meerkats was a highlight despite the weather, with the lady who showed us around clearly loving her job 👍 Made me realise how much food the park needs to buy in to feed the animals, so I would encourage people to support otherwise parks like this one won’t survive. Throughly recommended! 😁
Written 21 August 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Thank you so much for taking the time to leave your review and sharing your experience. It makes us so happy to hear what a brilliant time you had at the Park and even meeting our meerkats!
We really appreciate you recommending us and really look forward to welcoming you back soon!
Best wishes,
Drusillas 😊
Written 24 August 2020
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
katrina196
Turners Hill, UK108 contributions
Jul 2020 • Family
Fantastic day at Drusillas, can not fault it. A few things were closed due to current situation but plenty of other things to do. Not crowded apart from near the playground with parents etc sitting while kids had their fun.
Social distancing not a problem. Rides are taking smaller number of people which if busy would make queue more, but today wasn't a problem. Longest wait probably a few minutes.
Plenty of hand sanitizer stations and staff (who all wore masks) encouraged everyone to use.
Didn't use any of the food outlets as we took a picnic.
Park very clean with staff going round cleaning the interactive places where the children had touched. Although didn't see anyone cleaning as we went through the zoo the glass looked very clean and no finger marks so they were obviously cleaing on a regular basis.
Will definatly visit again!
Social distancing not a problem. Rides are taking smaller number of people which if busy would make queue more, but today wasn't a problem. Longest wait probably a few minutes.
Plenty of hand sanitizer stations and staff (who all wore masks) encouraged everyone to use.
Didn't use any of the food outlets as we took a picnic.
Park very clean with staff going round cleaning the interactive places where the children had touched. Although didn't see anyone cleaning as we went through the zoo the glass looked very clean and no finger marks so they were obviously cleaing on a regular basis.
Will definatly visit again!
Written 14 July 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Hi Katrina,
Thank you so much for taking the time to give us such a lovely review, we are so pleased to hear you enjoyed your visit and found there was lots to see and do.
We've worked really hard to put in lots of new safety measures around the Park in order to protect our staff and visitors and are really pleased to hear you felt safe and relaxed throughout your day. Please be assured our zoo glass is cleaned on a regular rotation throughout the day by our lovely and hardworking zoo keepers.
We can't wait to welcome you back and thank you again for your kind comments.
Best wishes,
Drusillas
Written 16 July 2020
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
Sarah U
6 contributions
May 2021
I have always been a big fan of Drusillas, but my recent visit had left me severely disappointed. Considering the weekends and school holidays can be very busy at Drusillas I decided to go during the week, only to find almost everything was shut because it wasn't the weekend or school holidays. Seeing as I was charged £24, I would have expected at least the Explorer's Cafe to be open to sit in or the Doughnut shop be open which my friend and I have always loved going to.
I used to go during the week when I was younger and there was never any problem with places being shut.
Unfortunately seeing as there was little left to do after seeing the animals (which was quite quickly, as many of the animals had disappeared whilst there areas were being cleaned!), we decided to leave and spend our money elsewhere in terms of food.
Very disappointed. A lot of money for very little!
I used to go during the week when I was younger and there was never any problem with places being shut.
Unfortunately seeing as there was little left to do after seeing the animals (which was quite quickly, as many of the animals had disappeared whilst there areas were being cleaned!), we decided to leave and spend our money elsewhere in terms of food.
Very disappointed. A lot of money for very little!
Written 29 May 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Hi Sarah,
Thanks you for your feedback and we are sorry to hear you were disappointed with your trip to Drusillas.
During your visit the whole zoo was open with over 100 different animals species to see including red pandas, sloths, penguins, monkeys, servals, meerkats, bats, flamingos, anteaters, otters to name a few. All our rides were open and operational (on a rotational basis) including Go Safari rides, Hello Kitty rides, our Rainforest Carousel and our Safari Express train. The Go Wild! play area was open as was our Get Wet Splash pad, as well as our new Jurassic Jungle pre-historic area. Oasis Cafe was open and two retail outlets open.
Although the majority of the Park was open and running during your visit, there are a few areas that are closed on a term-time weekday due to lower demand and lower visitor numbers on these days, including The Doughnut Factory, Candyland and some additional paid for activities. We are as clear and transparent about this as possible and display this information on our brochure, on display boards at the front gate and on our website. We have currently have a 'What's Open' page, linked from our website homepage, which lists what is currently open on what days - we are sorry you missed this.
We are disappointed to have not met your expectations this time, but do hope you will return again in the future for a more enjoyable visit.
Best wishes,
Drusillas Park
Written 3 June 2021
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
Is this a good place to visit for older people with no kids ? please
Written 4 July 2023
I went with my family today and met a lovely older couple on the carousel- they were there by themselves and having a fabulous day!
Written 29 August 2024
What’s the top secret attraction there
Written 18 September 2021
Can anyone PLEASE justify why I have to pay £28.50 for our 2 year old granddaughter to enter Drusillas for the same amount as us adults?
Written 18 May 2021
Drusillas Park
Alfriston, United Kingdom
Hello,
While we’re aware we may not be the cheapest day out we do always strive to provide value for money and we think we provide a great offering for a full day out, with our market research showing visitors spending, on average, 4 to 5 hours here at the Park.
For the entry price we offer the entire zoo with more than 100 species of animals, unlimited rides on our Safari Express train, Hippopotobus, Flying Cheetahs, Rainforest Carousel, Hello Kitty Hopper, Hello Kitty Car Ride and Hello Kitty teacups. We also have our two large adventure play areas and our splashpad Get Wet!, a Zoolympics activity trail and an animal spotter book to use around the Park.
We are sometimes contacted by people who feel adults should be charged more than children for entry and some people who feel children should be charged more than adults, as the park is designed for kids. We made the decision a long while ago to charge everyone equally and believe we are clear and transparent with pricing policy. We re-invest heavily at Drusillas and are proud to be continually making improvements to the Park for the enjoyment of our visitors, such as our new dinosaur walk-through- Jurassic Jungle.
We very much hope you will visit us in the future.
Best wishes,
Drusillas
Written 24 May 2021
If we want to visit in may will you need to wear masks outside in the zoo and on the rides etc?
Written 7 April 2021
You don’t have to wear a mask on the rides but in the shops you might need to but on the rides you can wear one to stay on the COVID safe side
Written 18 September 2021
When doing the penguin experience are you allowed to get your phone out to take photos or can the zoo keeper help us take photos?
Written 16 December 2020
I don’t think there were any penguins there when we went during the summer...
Written 16 December 2020
Hi, I am thinking about buying one of the close up animal encounters for my daughter. are there any that she is allowed to stroke? She is 8 and very sensible and desperate to stroke one!
Written 22 November 2020
ps I'd check handling questions with Drusillas direct by email now to clarify Covid/animal handling just in case.
Written 28 November 2020
Are there similar places (fun and we'll organised) places visitors recommend in and around London? We've moved now and looking for closer alternatives. Thanks!
Written 25 July 2020
I've always liked Leeds Castle - this is just outside Leeds village, Maidstone, just off the M20 motorway. It is very beautiful, the grounds are exquisite and you can get tickets just for the grounds or for the castle and grounds. They often have events going on so it is worth checking their website to see if they have anything going on there around the time you'd like to visit.
Written 1 August 2020
Cruiser646444
Eastbourne, United Kingdom
Hi I am an OAP and have my 1 year old grandson once a week and would very much like to take him to Drusillas. Could you tell me are there concessions for over 70's and what is the cheapest way that I could do this and do I have to pay for him? I don't mind buying a season ticket if it is within my budget.
Written 4 July 2020
Drusillas Park
Alfriston, United Kingdom
At the moment online tickets are the cheapest way of entering the Park. We are not currently running any offers but online tickets are greatly reduced as not everything in the Park is open at the moment (take a look at our What's Open page on the Drusillas park website). Due to COVID-19 we are running at less that 50% capacity so we strongly recommend you buy your tickets online to guarantee your entry . Tickets bought at the gate, on the day are not discounted. Children Under 2 are free of charge. We also offer Annual Membership. For full details please visit the Drusillas Park website.
Written 5 July 2020
I used to take my kids here, when it was very “Thomas the Tank Engine” themed. My younger nephew who is completely Thomas mad is visiting next week, I took a look on the website and it seems like Thomas isn’t there anymore? There was a train-ride, lots of engines/faces around the park. Are they gone now?
Written 27 October 2019
Thomas still there when we visited.
Written 15 February 2020
…
Showing results 1-10 of 32
Revenue impacts the experiences featured on this page, learn more.
Is this your Tripadvisor listing?
Own or manage this property? Claim your listing for free to respond to reviews, update your profile and much more.
Claim your listing