Is there anything more festive than sleeping next to a lion enclosure?
Probably, but it is certainly a different way to get into the Christmas spirit.
This year ZSL has unveiled its Christmas at London Zoo light trail which weaves between its enclosures and paddocks.
After a festive walk through the central London Zoo you can stay overnight at the Gir Lion Lodges.
Get ready to be woken up by the sound of the lions, one of the 19,000 animals youll be bedding down with.
The lodges are located just metres from the home of four Asiatic lions because – as I learned – lions arent just from Africa.
The nine chalet-style homes have a bedroom and bathroom. Theyre snug, but are all you need for the overnight stay.
Once settled in the zoo staff inform you about the two alarms the zoo has and how to react to them both.
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Should the fire alarm sound, you must leave the affected area as quickly and safely as possible.
If you hear the other siren – gulp – you must stay inside or get to a building as quickly as you can, remaining indoors.
It wasnt clarified if the lodges are lion proof.
The stay begins with a nocturnal animal tour, a chance to see some of the animals who dont make an appearance during the day.
This includes a peek at your sleeping lion neighbours and watching the flamingos and pelicans bicker as they settle down for the night.
The stars of evening are the immediately endearing porcupines Lana, Nancy and Polly, who scamper out when called by name.
You get the chance to create toys for these spiky rodents by hiding nuts in egg boxes for them to break open.
Youre basically a zoo keeper within the first hour.
Warning: Expect an odour similar to your childhood guinea pig but ramped up by ten notches – porcupines like to weaponise their spines by rolling in their own faeces.
For the second part of the evening you can rejoin the masses and walk the Christmas lights trail.
This takes you through the park with stunning displays, such as the snow sledge Christmas tree and luminous flamingos, next to actual flamingos.
There are also carousels and rides for children and the young at heart to ride on, plus plenty of places to stop and top up on hot chocolate.
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The lights are out of the way of animals who would be upset by them.
Youll find a lot of festive sheds throughout the route, which after the fifth one was slightly baffling but you will be sated by mulled wine and toasted marshmallows.
Father Christmas and his trusty elf Peppermint have traveled from the North Pole to feature in the trail too.
And the Grade I listed penguin house has had a light show makeover, blasting out all your favourite Christmas hits.
Included in your stay at the lion lodges is a two course meal from the Terrace Resturant, near to the zoos exit.
There is a good selection of food including burgers and fish and chips to keep the picky kids happy, but of course we had to go for the Christmas dinner.
Followed by festive cakes and biscuits.
And more mulled wine.
It is Christmas and 100% okay to indulge.
Once youre suitably fed and full, it is time to make your way to the former elephant and rhino house for the behind the scenes tour of your evening.
This is the animal kitchen were you can help the keepers prepare treats and enrichment to give to the animals in the morning.
Food charts line the walls with likes and dislikes of each inhabitant.
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The pygmy hippos are a mood – very lazy by nature, enjoy being pampered – while the bearded pigs also remind us of people we know – very active, busy and nosey.
The elephants and rhinos no longer live at London Zoo and now reside at its sister park Whipsnade but the stunning 1960s architecture of the building remains.
Here youll get the chance to create enrichment for the tigers, by rubbing their favourite spices on sacks to hide in a box they must break open.
Plus hide wriggling meal worms inside twigs for the allusive lemur-like creature, the aye aye, to fish out with its long middle finger.
By about 10.30pm it is bedtime.
Get ready to wack up the heater and crack open your window because here is the most amazing part of your stay, enjoying the sounds of the zoo at night.
You can totally forget youre in central London and have fun trying to guess who and what you are hearing.
We discovered one particularly noisy resident is Jimmy the white cheeked gibbon who loves to sing.
The sleepover also comes with a complimentary lion alarm clock. Bhanu is the only male Asiatic lion at the zoo and will attempt to wake you up – before 6am – by roaring, which actually sounds more like a bark.
He likes to amplify this by standing in the tunnel between the enclosures getting the maximum echo effect.
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He lives with three lionesses; sisters Rubi and her younger twin sisters Heidi and Indi.
They were joined by male lion Bhanu in 2016 and as a species they are endangered with just over 600 left in the wild in the Gir Forest and surround area in Gujuart, India.
After the morning visit to the lions, who love nothing more than to lie on their hot rocks, it is time to do the morning rounds.
First its a trip to feed the very happy bearded pigs who wag their tails like dogs and excitedly welcome nuts thrown into their pen.
Other highlights including peeking in on the dwarf mongoose, meeting the allusive and fear aye aye and prepare to be splashed during feeding time at penguin beach.
The final stop is Tiger Territory to see your enrichment from the night before be torn to pieces by Jae Jae and Melati, the Sumatran tigers.
Chicken thighs are placed around the enclosure for the magnificent big cats and watch as the ginger cats go wild for your ginger scented box.
And so ends your sleepover, but you have the rest of the day to explore the zoo and see the animals who werent on the tours – we recommend a trip to the gorillas.
Enjoy your stay, wrap up warm and dont be the idiot who uses a flash to take pictures of the nocturnal or sleeping animals. No one likes you.
Christmas at London Zoo
The light trail and Christmas experience will run on 34 non-consecutive dates until January 2019.
- Thursday 22 – Sunday 25 November
- Wednesday 28 November – Sunday 2 December
- Wednesday 5 – Sunday 9 December
- Wednesday 12 – Monday 24 December
- Wednesday 26 December – Tuesday 1 January
Advance ticket prices: Adult £16.50, Child £10.50, Family £52.00, Under 3s & carers free.
For full details and to book tickets visit: christmasatlondonzoo.co.uk
Sleepover at Gir Lion Lodge
Included:
- Complimentary drink on arrival
- Three exclusive after-hours tours of the Zoo at sunset, after-dark and in the morning
- Overnight stay in a private lodge – double or twin bed, en-suite, complimentary toiletries
- A delicious two-course buffet dinner
- Full English breakfast
- Free entry into ZSL London Zoo and ZSL Whipsnade Zoo for two day of your evening stay
- Free car parking
- Exclusive discounts on Keeper for a Day and Meet the Animals experiences
Gir Lion Lodge is open from February until December.
A lodge for two people costs from £378 per night, with each additional child place £50 each.
Call for reservations on 0344 225 1826 or visit www.zsl.org/zsl-london-zoo/gir-lion-lodge.
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