Yesterday we headed to Amazona Zoo in Cromer to spend a fun summer day with friends. As well as seeing all the animals and having lots of fun in the play area we also ventured across the carpark for a round of Football Golf.
It’s safe to say the kids had a blast. Whilst at the zoo they spent most of their time on the play area. With the one a system that is currently in place the free flow nature of the zoo has been lost and a few quite significant areas have been cordoned off, which for a small zoo was a big deal. This meant that once they were at the play area they were reluctant to leave as they were aware it wouldn’t be so easy to get back to. It didn’t stop the fun though.
We had a lovely time looking at the animals and because it wasn’t too busy we did get a good look at everything. The snoozing otters, the lively marmosets and the very sweet little toucan.
There is a new freshwater aquarium which can be found in the Tropical House. This is filled with fish that can be found in Rio Negro, which is a tributary off the Amazon River and the largest backwater river in the world. The fish are all captive bred, some of the species in the tank are Clown Pleco, Cardinal Tetras and Angel Fish. It’s a pretty little tank and nice to look at, it doesn’t feel quite settled in its current location on the upper level because all the other fish and tanks are downstairs but there is a lot of work happening upstairs so when that is completed I’m sure it will fit in perfectly.
When we’d seen all the animals, enjoyed a nice stroll and the laying was done we had a picnic. Despite the food at Amazona being lovey and good value on previous visits, the summer holidays are loooong and picnics do help save a little money, plus there are loads of places to sit and eat at Amazona so it was a nice little break from all the running around.
The only areas we didn’t visit on our trip were the gift shop and the Jungle Tumbles indoor soft play. The weather was brilliant so we didn’t want to be indoors and the kids are all a bit old for the soft play now. You’ve got to love that you don’t have to exit Amazona through the gift shop, hot and tired children do not make for a pleasant shopping experience so it is nice to be able to avoid the argument!
After lunch it was time to check out the new Football Golf, just across the carpark next to PYO is the new 9 hole Football Golf. The kids loved it!! Absolutely zero rules were followed, there was dribbling, kicking and throwing. We have no idea on the score. What we do know is that they thoroughly enjoyed it. It’s a decent length walk and there are some fun hazards on each hole. It was a fun way to round off our day and a real highlight for the kids.
So after a full day of fun it was finally time to head home. It’s really nice having all the different activities so close and I was even considering going to grab some raspberries form the PYO after the Football Golf but you could see how tired the kids were so I decided it was best to end the day on a high.
For more information about Amazona you can head to their website and the Football Golf information can be found on their Facebook page.
Disclosure – we were gifted our tickets to Amazona and Football Golf Cromer. All thoughts, opinions and images are my own.
