The Lodge at Bristol Zoo
A two-bedroom private apartment, all animal-print fabrics and earthy tones, with views of the tapirs and hippos from the balcony. Guests wake up to the near ultrasonic whistling of goeldi monkeys and the ‘pad-pad’ of plump-bellied capybara rodents roving around the grass. Expect out-of-hours zoo tours and a picnic breakfast in a glass enclosure beneath the gorillas.
Rooms from £125pp, basedon six sharing.
0117 974 7300
Read more: the best hotels in Bristol
Durrell Wildlife Camp at Durrell Wildlife Park, Jersey
Canvas pods sleeping four that come with luxurious linens, en-suite showers, and wood-burning stoves. Visitors can watch the wildlife park’s lemurs and choral-mouthed howler monkeys lolling in trees from their private deck. Plenty of outdoor facilities too, from loungers to barbecues.
Rooms from £170
01534 860090
Read the full review: Durrell Wildlife Camp
Lookout Lodge at Whipsnade Zoo, Bedfordshire
Timber lodges with beehive-shaped roofs that overlook the establishment’s herd of white rhinos and the chalky Chiltern grasslands. It’s more rustic than the other options, with shared showers and lavatories rather than en suites. Stays include a two-course dinner and three private tours when the zoo is closed to the public. Guests might find themselves paying a visit to the bongos at sunset, or feeding the animals their breakfast after tucking into their own.
Rooms from £338; £40 supplement for child’s sofa bed
0344 225 1826
Read more: the best hotels in Bedfordshire
Treehouse Hotel at Port Lympne Reserve, Kent
Glass-fronted, futuro-minimalist apartments clamped to a hillside that sleep four, and offer vistas of the resident black rhinos browsing the bush below. The experience includes safari drives — the gorillas in particular are not to be missed. You also get the private use of a golf buggy — handy for whizzing between the reserve’s many attractions, and nipping to one of the on-site restaurants at dinner time.
Rooms from £300
01303 802648
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Zebra Suite at Paradise Wildlife Park, Hertfordshire
The Snooze At The Zoo VIP package features a stay in the Zebra Suite, an apartment splattered with jazzy animal prints that comfortably accommodates six. Breakfast in the Tiger Treetops café, which overlooks a certain family of big striped cats, is included. So is a guided tour that ends with an interaction with bearded dragons.
Rooms from £249 for up to two adults and one child; £299 for a family of up to four
01992 470490
Read more: the best hotels in Hertfordshire
Gir Lion Lodge at London Zoo
Think sleeping in a Gujarati-inspired wooden hut next door to a pride of Asiatic lions, roaming the zoo at night after it is officially closed, and feeding pygmy hippos their supper during a private tour. An overnight stay includes a generous two-course dinner, and three out-of-hours zoo walks. You could find yourself feeding aardvarks live grasshoppers, watching the lions feast on a breakfast of raw chicken wings, or meditating with the lemurs in the early morning sun.
Prices from £378 per couple; £50 supplement for each child
Read the full review: Gir Lion Lodge
