“Now make sure you grab onto something – their tongues are so strong it can pull you out of your seats if you aren’t careful,” the ranger told me.
I have to say I never thought I would be playing tug of war with a giraffe on a Saturday morning.
I had booked a day out at Port Lympne Hotel and Reserve with my dad for a Father’s Day treat to remember.
We are both – admittedly – big kids at heart.
The wildlife park near Hythe is one of the largest wild animal reserves in the country and houses many rare and endangered species.
It works with the Aspinall Foundation, a charity set up for the conservation of endangered species and aims to return as many of its animals back to protected areas in the wild.
We had upgraded our standard safari, which comes with the entry ticket, to include a special giraffe experience (£90).
This entailed a two-hour trip through the park’s 600-acre “savannah” – home to giraffes, zebra, wildebeest, ostrich and camels.
We and six others hopped on the back of a large jeep and headed through the park.
Despite a bit of light rain and wind, we were excited to come face-to-face with these amazing animals.
It was led by Casey, a ranger who had been at the park for six years and had a wealth of knowledge.
“The rhinos over there are mum and daughter,” he said, smiling.
“One of them looks to have funny skin, but she has one of my favourite nicknames. We call her Claudia Wrinkleman!”
He added: “The best bit of news I can tell you is that we sent eight back into the wild and they had 60 babies.”
I was hoping to come across the new additions to the park’s family – two energetic lion cubs that were born last month.
Sadly I couldn’t spot them, but it’s nice to know that their eight-acre enclosure gives them plenty of space to do what they want.
After passing two gorillas and some camels, we got to the giraffes.
Casey had warned us these animals were stronger than they looked and would use their tongues to strip bark and leaves off branches.
We were instructed to wave our tasty twigs around and look like a “big tasty treat”. One of them – named Gary – trotted over and was quickly followed by three others.
You had to make sure you held the branches with two hands, as the sheer force of the animal would pull you out of the seat if you weren’t careful.
Heading up to the top of the enclosure, you could see some stunning views of the coastline.
I can imagine on a good day you can see for miles, but it was slightly too overcast and windy to appreciate.
After adventuring around the park on foot, we headed to a cheetah encounter (£65) which was around 30 minutes.
I didn’t know what to expect, but I knew I would be getting up close and personal with the fastest land animal in the world.
Keeper Mike laid out the ground rules – you can’t be too careful when you’re next to something with razor-sharp teeth and non-retractable claws.
Less than a metre away and slightly nervous, I was able to feed them chunks of horse meat using tongs through the mesh.
It was a mum and her three girls, Nova, Hope and Star, all named during the height of the pandemic to honour the NHS.
Whilst we were handing them the food, they were making all sorts of chirping, howls and growls.
They even barked at each other – it was amazing to watch.
“Don’t worry about the growling and fighting, this is completely normal,” Mike explained. “They are just figuring out between them who is going to get the next bite.
“This is just a little treat for them – tomorrow they will be getting a whole turkey each.”
He also told us that there are around 7,000 in the wild and are in the “vulnerable” category.
They face several threats, including losing their prey and habitat to human activity, human-animal conflict and illegal animal trade.
For both lunch and dinner, we visited the Garden Room restaurant, which was originally the mansion’s stable yard.
Exposed brick and a grass wall effect gave it a quirky and modern feel, as well as a big glass roof, which helped brighten the room and provide a warm environment.
They also have just launched a new brasserie-style menu for 2024.
We decided to go for ciabatta sandwiches – I went for the mozzarella and rocket (£15), with my dad going for salt beef (£16).
Despite seeming a little pricey, it does come with a portion of fries and a salad as well.
The restaurant has a bigger menu for dinner, with plenty of gluten-free, vegetarian and vegan options.
For drinks, my dad had a Peroni Zero (£4.50) and I went for the Garden Mocktail (£9).
It contained Seedlip Garden 108, lemon juice, peach syrup, Frobisher sparkling apple and elderflower.
At the end of a long yet enjoyable day outside, a refreshing drink was just what I needed.
We went back for dinner and my dad thoroughly devoured the chicken and ham hock pie (£22) served with grain mustard mashed potato and spring greens.
He said the presentation alone was worth the price tag but also loved the pairing of flavours.
I wanted to go for something lighter and picked the gorilla bowl (£19). A quirky touch was knowing the dish was inspired and made using a gorilla’s “favourite produce”.
I had spotted the huge apes today and now I was going to eat like one!
But don’t panic, it wasn’t as odd as you may think – the animal had very good taste.
The salad had grilled broccoli, fennel, pomegranate, giant cous cous and don’t forget the banana crisps.
You could pick from chicken breast, salmon fillet, halloumi and tofu to go with it – I went for the grilled cheese.
I would never have thought to put all of those items together, but it went really well and felt healthy.
Being able to spend a whole day at the park was an amazing experience and one that I won’t forget any time soon.
You can book tickets to a day out at Port Lympne Hotel and Reserve here.
Entry typically costs £32 for an adult and £28 for a child – this includes a standard safari.
