FIRST TIME at the London Zoo (honest reaction)
I arrived at London Zoo without doing any research, which meant I didn’t even know whether it had two of my favourite animals, elephants and tigers. I had a ticket, a sunny day and a fairly urgent need for lunch. That was the plan.
On this first visit in 2025, my ticket cost £35. That felt expensive compared with the free museums and galleries I often visit in London, so I wanted to see how much I got out of the afternoon. Three hours later I still hadn’t seen everything, and I thought the ticket had been worth it.
Food before animals, mostly
Coming from Kent takes a while, so it was already lunchtime when I arrived. On these solo outings I usually start with food, a drink and finding the toilets, then I can wander without immediately needing another stop. I tried to hurry past the exhibits on the way to the restaurant, although some sleeping animals distracted me.
I had a chicken Caesar salad and fresh lemonade at the Terrace Restaurant. Together they cost £16 when I visited, which hurt a little, but I thought it was reasonable for a London attraction. Both were really nice, and I sat up on the terrace in the sun while wanting to finish and get going.
Near the restaurant, I found the Giants of the Galapagos exhibit and started there. I saw three enormous tortoises, although I couldn’t tell them apart. It was so humid inside that coming back out into the sunshine actually felt cold by comparison.
Penguins, distractions and a map I should have used more
Penguin Beach was a lovely surprise. There were penguins swimming near the front and loads more gathered at the back, and I can see why they’re a crowd pleaser. After that I skipped the butterflies and tried to work out which way to go next.
The zoo had an app with a map, which was helpful, but renovations had closed parts of the route and I kept getting sidetracked. The animals I’d first thought were warthogs turned out to be red river hogs, still snoozing together when I came past again. A proper look at the map would have been sensible. Naturally, I was looking at the hogs.
I was also trying not to film other people’s children, which made some camera angles awkward. There were plenty of things I wanted to see, but I didn’t want to put every nearby child on YouTube in the process.
Tigers and lions did a fair amount of napping
At Tiger Territory I first saw a tiger resting. Then I looked into the outdoor space and another one briefly walked out. Tigers have always been one of my favourite animals, so that was a particularly exciting part of the visit, even if they weren’t planning an afternoon of entertaining me.
The lions took more finding. At the first viewing point I couldn’t see one, and other visitors were leaving without spotting one either. Eventually I found the male having a snooze in the sun. I went back later to look for the female, but never saw her.
I don’t mind an animal sleeping outside where I can still see it. The frustrating bit is when it’s tucked away in the habitat and I can’t find it at all. That distinction came up repeatedly while I wandered, rather than every exhibit giving me an immediate view.
Waiting paid off with the gorillas and giraffes
On the way back towards the entrance, I passed the gorilla area I’d missed earlier. The outdoor enclosure was empty, but keepers were scattering food, so I thought it was worth waiting. Inside was crowded and difficult to see, although there were two little ones running around.
I stayed, and then they came outside. They were adorable. After that, I went through the tunnel under the road into another section, because there was still plenty of zoo left and I particularly wanted to see the giraffes.
The giraffes were inside at first too, with keepers preparing the outdoor area. Again, I waited, and again I was glad I did. I got to see the giraffes and zebras, although by then I’d filmed so much my camera was threatening to die for a second time.
The sloths I would have walked past
In the hot, humid rainforest section, a volunteer asked whether I’d looked at the ceiling. I hadn’t. There were two sloths sleeping above us that I’d have missed completely, and other people nearby hadn’t noticed them either.
By the end I was tired, with about three hours spent exploring and some exhibits still unseen. I’d already needed a break to charge the camera and microphone, and trying to film everything had clearly been optimistic. There was enough there to make the afternoon feel worth my £35, even without ticking off every animal.
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