After staying for a couple of nights in glamping pod at nearby Andrewshayes Holiday Park we took the short drive to Wildwood Escot which is in Ottery St Mary, Devon. Wildwood Escot offers a fun family day out and can be enjoyed by all ages. You can even join for the year and receive membership for as little as £3.50 a month – find out more information here.
We certainly made use of the map!
Wildwood Escot is well signposted, easy to find and located on the Escot Estate. On arrival, we parked up in the large car park and were warmly greeted by the staff at the entrance. The ladies in the shop told us a little about Wildwood and gave us a list of the day’s animals feeds and talks. We were just in time to see listen to the red squirrel talk so we headed to their enclosure first.
Red Squirrel Encounter
The red squirrels can be seen in their walk-through enclosure. We arrived just as a little red squirrel was nibbling on some nuts being given to her by one of the parks keepers. She soon scampers off though and we had to be quick to try and track her movements! The keeper was friendly and knowledgeable and happy to answer my questions. You can have kid’s parties at Wildwood Escot (how much fun would this be?!) or get up close with some of the animals through private feeding sessions. Find out more on the Wildwood Escot Twitter page.
Peacocks and Roses
Next, we made our way further into the park admitting the roses in the gardens and the beautiful peacocks wandering around. Peacocks are such beautiful birds aren’t they – simply stunning!
Such beautiful birds
Meeting the Inhabitants
We passed wildcats, wild boar and owls to find the wolf enclosure.
The Wolves Dinner
The talk for the wolves was detailed and interesting and we got to see the 7 strong pack of wolves being fed. The wolves soon disappeared once the food had run out, so I was pleased we got to see them – I think if we hadn’t attended the feeding session it would have been unlikely we would have seen them. You can see some awesome pictures of the wolves and other animals of the Wildwood Escot Instagram feed.
Lunch Time
After looking at the list of talks for the day we saw there was a little gap before the next talk. This meant it was time to visit the Coach House Café where we sat outside and enjoyed a cheeky pasty and chips each for lunch. The café sells a range of hot food, sandwiches and cakes and plenty of drink options. There’s seating both inside and outside so you have a choice if the sun is shining.
Time for a Show
After lunch, we made our way to the bird of prey area. We took our seats on a bench and before long a falcon was flying around and being fed its lunch. The display began, and we were lucky enough to see four different birds being flown. The presenter was informative and interesting and told us lots about each of the birds and what they liked to eat and how they hunted.
Such a great show
I enjoyed the show but did worry a little bit that a bird would land on my head as this has happened previously at a bird of prey show! The show lasted half an hour and really captured the attention of the audience.
After the show, we went and had a look around the bird’s enclosures and got to see them close up.
Exploring Wildwood
We also got the chance to see the otters, lynx and termite pavilion. Each enclosure is accompanied by information detailing more about the animal, their natural habitats and how endangered they are. Aside from the animals, there’s loads for children to get involved in including a drop slide, pirate ship playground and soft play barn.
We took a nice walk along the many woodland paths and admired the beautiful flowers and trees surrounding us. Find out more about what you can see on the Wildwood Escot Facebook page and see videos of the animals on their YouTube channel.
The Saxon Villiage
We visited the Saxon Village but were a little confused by it. It was quite random and seemed possibly a little out of place at the park. Inside the village, there were people dressed up, (I assume as Saxons?) who were standing around a campfire. They didn’t acknowledge us which made it a little unclear as to whether they lived here or were part of the attraction?!
What about unattended boyfriends?!
We weren’t too keen on the taxidermy or animal furs. We did play a couple of games of who could knock the most bottles down though, with Nathan winning of course!!
Getting Lost
Wildwood Escot has a beech head maze. We attempted it but after the third time of ending up lost and back at the entrance we gave up – it was too hot! We didn’t seem to be the only ones struggling either!
Souvenir Shopping
At the end of our visit, we passed through the gift shop which was well stocked with plenty of cuddly animals, Wildwood souvenirs and children’s clothes.
We treated ourselves to an ice cream and enjoyed it whilst admitting the free-roaming peacocks once again.
Ticket Prices
Entry to Wildwood Escot is £9.50 for adults and £8.00 for children agreed 3-17 years. There’s also the option to get a family ticket for £33.00 which includes two adults and two children. I think the prices are pretty reasonable given the range of animals on display and the additional children’s activities. I think that families could spend a full day here if they wanted too. I really recommend following the timetable for animal feeding and talks to make the most of the entry fee.
Final Thoughts
We really enjoyed our day out at Wildwood Escot and spent 4-5 hours there exploring the woodland, visiting the animals and listening to the keep animal feeds and talks. There’s lots to see and do and I think Wildwood is a perfect family day out, especially those who are animal lovers and are interested in the conservation of endangered animals. I enjoyed watching the humorous otters and loved the bird of prey display which was certainly a highlight to the day.
Thanks to all at Wildwood Escot for having us and providing us with a fun and informative day!
***Whilst entry to Wildwood Escot was provided to us on a complimentary basis, all through and opinions in this post are entirely my own.***
Oo I’m always on the look out for new places to visit and this place looks like somewhere my children would enjoy exploring 🙂
It would be great for kids – lots to see and do!
What a great post! I’ve been to Wildwood Escot a few time and it’s always a great visit for all the family.
Awesome, glad to hear you have enjoyed your visits there too Jon! So family friendly 🙂
The animals look very happy and healthy in their habitat. I bet they take good care of them.Thanks for sharing, will add it to our travel list 🙂
They seemed to take really good care of them and the keepers spoke with real passion about the animals and looking after them. If you get to visit I hope you enjoy it as much as we did!
How lovely to be able to get up so close to all the animals they all look very happy there which is lovely too – looks like a great day out!
Yeah, the animals all seemed to be well looked after and happy – I think Wildwood work hard in the world of conservation and protecting animals that are endangered.
This place sounds absolutely amazing! I children would especially love watching the wolves as that’s their favorite animal right now
The wolves were so cool – they loved their lunch for sure!
Wow, this was a huge and great post! It looks like such an amazing place to visit!
So many pictures I couldn’t help but share them all! It was a fun day for sure.
What a great place! Would love to visit it. That little squirrel is so so cute!
I loved the red squirrels too! It’s crazy to hear about how endangered they are in the Uk and great to be able to walk through their enclosure.
This place looks really nice. I love the beautiful photos here. You go to some of the most amazing locations.
Thank you, I do like to get out and explore for sure! Thanks for reading!
This is a wonderful review what an enchanting venue for the kids. Although Im not too keen on the furs or taxidermy either.
We saw lots of children enjoying themselves and watching the animals. Yeah, I didn’t quite dig the furs all that much!
I always love to see animal show and interested in getting close up and interaction with animals. Really great getaway.
The birds of prey show was the best! So interesting and fun too!
OMG I LOVE THIS PLACE! Way better than a zoo! Seriously, way more exploratory and interactive!!!
I agree, way better than a zoo as feels much more like they are working with the animals for conservation reasons. I loved the owls the most I think!
What a great post! I wish we had one nearby so I could take my little boys.
Aww sounds like your boys would enjoy it! I really recommend for a visit!
We love Wildwood Escot and feeding the red squirrels is definitely our highlight, they are adorable
So pleased to hear you enjoy Wildwood Escot and feeding the squirrels too Kara!
It looks a really interesting place and very educational too. Not sure about the taxidermy but easy to bypass this bit
Yeah certainly easy enough to avoid this bit – plenty of alive and well animals to go and see!
Looks like a great place to take the kids and great value with the amount of activities on offer.
I totally agree Joanne – great value and lots to see and do!
My nephew would really enjoy this because he loves animals so much. Sounds like a good place to take him.
My niece would love it too but she lives the other side of the country. When she comes to visit I hope to take her!
I love places like this. Pretty much anything that has animals in it, you can count me in. Definitely will have to visit this place at some point.
Sounds like you would love Wildwood Escot then! Lots of animals to see and the keep talks were really informative.
We are all huge animal lovers so this sounds like the perfect way to spend the day! It’s nice to be able to spend time watching animals in such lovely environments like the walk-through enclosures.
Sounds like you would love a visit here to see all the animals then! The squirrel walk-in enclosure was a new one for me!
3.50 a month for membership isn’t a bad price. And I didn’t realize just how big some of those birds of prey are.
Yeah the falcons were pretty big!! I think for locals the membership prices are definitely a good deal!
This looks like an amazing place to visit for the family! I love seeing all the wildlife.
So family friendly, but good for all ages I think, Nathan and I enjoyed it – but then again we are big kids!
Sounds absolutely amazing! I’m a big animal lover. Keep up the good work.
Thank you! It’s certainly a place for animal lovers!
This place looks amazing! What a great day out, although I would be pretty scared watching the bird of prey show as I’m terrified of birds! The grounds look really beautiful and how incredible to be able to get so close to all the animals xx
Aww no Wendy, sounds like the birds of prey show might not have been for you! Plenty of other animals to see though. I loved the squirrels!
Wow what a detailed recap of your experiences at the Wildwood I love looking at the animals and some of them are so cute.
I always write too much don’t I! Just wanted to express how much we loved Wildwood! Thanks for reading and commenting 🙂
Although I am afraid with some animals I’d still want to see all wildlife and learn from it, I am sure my kids will love to see it also.
So much to learn – the keepers really knew their stuff and there were plenty of information boards too learn from too! A winning day out for kids I think!
This place look phenomenal! There is so much to do! I love the idea of the squirrel walk, I find them such wonderful creatures. And all the wild birds are beautiful. I love owls so always seek them out in places like this. I am going to put this down for a must visit.
The owls and squirrels were my favourites, along with the free-roaming peacocks – so beautiful! Defo check it out, you won’t be disappointed!
Oh this looks like a lot of fun! Something for everyone. Dil would love getting up close to the squirrels and the bird show sounds fun! Pretty good price too for such a busy day out.
I agree about the price as people could spend a day there for sure. The birds of prey show was defo a highlight for me!
Oh wow this place looks amazing. It seems much more homely than a zoo and really cared about. It must of been a lovely day out to enjoy.
I totally agree with you – the ethos and staff all strive to really support the animals and that really came across strongly.
Looks like a great place to visit. We love going to wild life sanctuaries with the kids so they can get an up close look at the animals and learn more about them.
Sounds like Wildwood would be a place on interest for you and your kiddies then! There’s loads of information on the animals and the keepers seem to really care about them.
What a fab family day out. Love that they have red and grey squirrels that seem to be homed in a natural environment x
The red squirrels aren’t commonly seen in the UK so it was quite special to see some – they were such a nice colour.
This looks like a wonderful day out. I laughed at the squirrels. I only have to walk out on my deck to see them romping in my front yard. They’re everywhere in my town.
No way! We see a lot of grey squirrels but red ones are endangered so you don’t see them!
What a fun trip! Places like this excite my son the most – he loves petting zoos and parks where he gets to see/feed/touch animals. 🙂
Aww, that’s nice, sounds like your son might enjoy here then, although you wouldn’t want him to touch the wolves or wildcats!
This looks like such a great place. I bet my kids would love it!
I think it’s a great day out for kids – we saw lots enjoying all the animals and added extras.
Wow this looks like so much fun! My kids love anything that involves animals or they can interact with!
Aww sounds like they would love it here then! Lots of cool animals – the wolves drew in quite a crowd!
how fun is this! a very exciting and safe way to get closer with nature!
Yes safe, fun and informative too – there is lots to learn about these animals and how to protect them.
Wow! These photos are unreal. I love the birds especially cool!
Thanks so much, Stephanie! It was hard to get ones of the birds as they were so fast!
Oh how fun…it looks like you had a blast. This is definitely a place worth visiting.
I agree!
What a lovely place to visit. You got some great photos here too. Love the top one 🙂
Thank you! It was hard to get some of the birds of prey at the right times – they were too fast!
This looks like such a fun trip and beautiful. Love the scenery.
It sure was! Middle of the Devon countryside – perfect!
This seems like a really fun place to spend the day! The Saxon village looks so interesting. I also didn’t know that wild cats like that existed . . . we don’t have them in North America!
There was just the one wildcat – I think they might be endangered, I’m not sure, I can’t remember! The Saxon Village was cool but it confused us a little!
I wanted to see a pic of the slide and soft play-that would be the but we spent most of our time in!
Sounds good though and agree about reasonable price wise, especially as it slightly different from your standard farm/zoo animals.
The birds of prey part and the peacocks reminded me of Groombridge-do you remember going there?
Funnily enough, having no children we didn’t actually go into the soft play bit – I thought Nathan and I would be too old! I can imagine Orlagh would love it though! Price was good I though and like you say it is different from zoos as it’s animals that need protecting. Yes, I remember Groombridge really well!!
Wildwood sounds like a great place for a family day out. Brilliant that you got to see the wolves and red squirrels. They seem to have a good range of animals too.
Totally! A good range of animals and those they are working hard on conservation and preservation.
Will definitely need to consider this for my next travel spot! Looks like a great place for a family outing.
I think it’s really popular with families so must be good!
What a cool post! This seems like an amazing time. I’d love to go here. Thanks for sharing! 🙂
You’re welcome, hope you enjoyed the review!
That monthly/yearly subscription is basically a steal, if you think about it the experience you get from here is all worth it. Animals and nature lovers, paradise is here!
I think it’s a good deal too! A great place for animal lovers!
This is truly a bucket lists material. I’m hoping to go next year and this would be a perfect place to start!
Enjoy!
This looks like such a fun experience! I definitely need to give this a try! xo
Yeah have a visit and see what you think!
Wow, this place looks amazing! What a great place to visit, especially that you could have an encounter with peacocks and other inhabitants. Really exciting!
Lots of fun! You can pay extra to have even closer encounters and feeding sessions with some of the animals which I bet would be really special!
Wow! So many lovely photos! It looks like a really fun place to visit and get close up to the animals. 🙂
Completely agree – you sum it up well Jayne!
Great post! Sounds like you guys had lots of fun. We like animal adventure too, there are so many things to see and do there. Thanks for sharing your adventure!
Thanks, we had lots of fun for sure!
What an awesome place to check out! My husband, daughter and I are going to be traveling full time this next year and this would be a perfect place to add to our list. Thank you for sharing such a fun place!
That sounds amazing! I hope you get to visit whilst on your travels!
We visited Wildwood Escot last summer and it was so much fun and a great visit for my family.
Ah brilliant, glad you and your family had a great trip.