15 Isle of Wight zoos, animal attractions and wildlife parks

There's a good choice of animal related days out and zoos on the Isle of Wight, with plenty of free things to do as well as paid attractions such as Tapnell Farm Park, Amazon World and Isle of Wight Zoo.

Here's our guide to 15 of the Isle of Wight's zoos and animal attractions. These things change all the time, so please contact us if you find a dead end.

You may also want to see our guides to cheap accommodation, discount ferry travel and free days out.

1. Isle of Wight Zoo

We used to call this Sandown Zoo and my mother always tells the story of the time that my young brother happily toddled up to a tiger cub being taken for a walk along the seafront. In the 1970s it was described by the Sunday Times as ‘The Slum Zoo of Britain’. It specialises in big cats, but when we visited there were also raccoons, wallabies, owls and farm animals. Thanks to car insurance adverts, there is also a meerkat encounter.

I may be a tiger, but I'm just lion down for a bit...

See our guide to discounts to Isle of Wight attractions, which includes Isle of Wight Zoo or the blog about our visit to the Zoo.

2. Tapnell Farm Park

Life is full of ups and downs, and so is the jumping pillow

Tapnell Farm Park opened to the public for the 2016 season with many of the animals being adopted from Seaview Wildlife Encounter and Coleman's Farm (both of which closed in 2015). There's a petting zoo with farm animals, as well as wallabies and meerkats. There's also an indoor play barn and a bouncy pillow for younger children, as well as an adventure barn for junior school aged children and a classy cafe/restaurant (Cow Co).

Read the blog about our visit to Tapnell Farm

3. Amazon World

Amazon World (PO36 0LX) has plenty to do, including a fair amount of indoor stuff. In case you're trying to complete an i-spy animals book, the highlights include monkeys, meerkats, otters, bats, ocelot, anteaters, sloths, lemurs, tortoises, lizards, snakes, turtles, parrots, toucans and fish (all subject to availability of course).

They also advertise that they have cockroaches and ants but then again, so do some caravan parks. For more advice on saving on entry tickets, see our guide to discounts on Isle of Wight attractions.

4. Monkey Haven

Monkey Haven has (as of 2018) various primates include lemurs, gibbons and macaques as well as owls including tawny, snowy and teat (that last one is a joke). Presumably the need for an owl sanctuary is in part because of all the Harry Potter fans who decided they wanted their own Hedwig.

Mum on an Island has written a useful review and we enjoyed our day out. As well as the animals, there's a play area for younger children and a tea room.

There are occasionally ways to save money on admission in our guide to discounts to Isle of Wight attractions

A busy schedule at Monkey Haven

5. Quarr Abbey (free)

Quarr Abbey is a working Benedictine monastery near to the Fishbourne ferry port, which welcomes visitors of all ages and has some pigs which you can feed (with food purchased from the Abbey). There's a nice coffee shop which offers cream teas and about once a week they offer free tours of the grounds (donations welcome).

Quarr Abbey sounds like a headline in the Sun about Peter Crouch's wife

Parking is free as well - all in all, a great value outing. The current Abbey is early 20th century, but there is a ruin of the original 12th century monastery. There's also a nature trail through some woods, which leads to the Abbey. We managed it with an off-roader pushchair.

Read Quarr Abbey reviews on Trip Advisor or See our other free days out on the Isle of Wight

6. Search for a red squirrel (free)

The Isle of Wight is one of the few places in England where you can still see red squirrels. They are much shyer than grey squirrels making it much more of a challenge to spot one - they certainly won't approach you to steal a sandwich.

Parkhurst Forest is a good (and free) place to start your search as it has got a 'hide' for visitors. The nearest postcode to the hide is PO30 5UL.

I've also seen them at Ventnor Botanic Gardens and Robin Hill, though those both have an entrance fee. Brading Marshes, which is the RSPB's first reserve on the island, is another free place to try.

7. The Isle of Wight Donkey Sanctuary (free)

Free parking and free entry makes the Isle of Wight Donkey Sanctuary a fantastic value day out. It's obviously a charity so they do appreciate visitors making a donation or adopting a donkey (you have to leave it there though - it turns out their understanding of adoption is different to mine).

Looking for Isle of Wight hotels? Try our guide

8. Carisbrooke Castle Donkeys

One of the highlights of Carisbrooke Castle (PO30 1XY) is the deep well, which has a bucket which is pulled up by donkeys walking around a huge wheel.

All the donkeys have names beginning with J, apparently because it was the letter that King Charles I signed off his letters with whilst held captive at the Castle.

Carisbrooke Castle is home to some well good donkeys

You can also see the donkeys in their field by walking around the dry moat at the castle (you don't need to go into the Castle to do this).

You can get in free with English Heritage membership. See our guide to discounts for Isle of Wight attractions.

9. Butterfly World

If the thought of confronting a monkey or a lion at one of the Isle of Wight's other animal parks seems a bit much, then you might consider a trip to Butterfly World (PO33 4RW).

According to their website, they have hundreds of butterflies and a wide range of Japanese Koi Carp, which gobble your hands. You can also watch butterflies emerging from their chrysalis.

10. Robin Hill Country Park

Animals are only a small part of what's on offer at Robin Hill, so it's probably not worth going just for the animals. However, when we visited there were carp which you can feed (it's more entertaining than it sounds), peacocks and geese roaming the site, some caged birds and raccoons. They also have Owl and Falconry displays.

Read the blog about our visit to Robin Hill

11. Horses!

Riding a horse along the beach always looks great fun in slow motion on films, so presumably it is several times more fun in real time.

Options for getting into horse riding include Island Riding Centre, Newport, Sally's Riding School, Bembridge and Hill Farm Stables, Freshwater

Be honest, have I got a big nose?

12. West Wight Alpacas

Have you ever wanted to trek Alpacas around the Isle of Wight? Perhaps not, but that doesn’t mean it’s a bad idea. West Wight Alpacas in Wellow also has a fancy farm café and shop and gets good reviews on TripAdvisor.

You can visit the farm for £7.50 or you can take an Alpaca for a walk from £14 (2018 prices).

"It's going to be cold on this walk" "Don't worry, alpaca coat" (ha!)

13. Rockpooling (free)

Searching for crabs and other watery creatures is a great free day out. The general advice is to head over to Bembridge, where you’ll find a variety of crabs, anemones, sea snails and prawns. If all that fails, there's a nice pub in Bembridge which will do you a packet of prawn cocktail crisps.

Other locations include St Helen’s and Freshwater Bay (the hidden bit round to the right as you face the sea, rather than the stony bit). See our beach map if you're lost.

Between Priory Bay and St Helens

14. The Isle of Wight Reptilarium and Terrapin Sanctuary

Slimy creatures with forked tongues don't just occupying Mrs Thatcher's Cabinet (note to self, update satirical references). You can now see them at the Isle of Wight Reptilarium and Terrapin Sanctuary which is a smallish attraction in Fort Victoria in Yarmouth. They've got a selection of snakes, chameleons, geckos and frogs. It costs about £5 for adults.

The-Isle-of-Wight-Guru-Don't-Blame-Us-Disclaimer™ All the information on this website is correct, as far as we know, but please do check opening times and details with attractions directly if you are planning a long journey - and please contact us if you find anything inaccurate.