Edinburgh Zoo

About a month ago me and Mr Kay took a short trip to Edinburgh.  After our first visit a good few years ago now, we were adamant we'd go back again at some point. We finally got around to booking it for his birthday, and one of the highlights was a day at the zoo!

Even though we visited the zoo last time we were in Edinburgh, and we were only at London zoo (in the rain!) last year, it was certainly on our list of must do's this time around.  Luckily the weather was much better than our rainy London Zoo visit; it was a bright and sunny day, not overly warm that the animals were hiding in the shade, but not too cold for us to spend pretty much the whole day walking round. And believe me, we must have walked miles!

One of the main reasons we went to the zoo was to see the Giant Pandas. They're a relatively new addition and so they weren't there last time. They're so in demand that we had to book our viewing slot as we booked our tickets.  We opted for the 11am slot and then had the rest of the day to make our way round the rest of the zoo, coinciding with the 'Penguin Parade' at 2pm!

I got pretty snap happy as we walked around, I mastered the art of positioning my camera so the wires of the enclosures weren't in shot.  I thought I'd use this post to share a few of my favourite snaps.

One of two Giant Pandas currently residing at Edinburgh Zoo

Can't remember what this cutie was, but love this photo!

Meerkats

Chimpanzees. Was so fun watching them

Penguins!

More penguins!

Loved watching these playing. Their game mainly consisted of pushing each other this rock haha!

Beautiful Lion. Unfortunately the Tigers were sleeping so we couldn't see them.

It was a trek and a half to see the Zebras!

Back to see the Penguins before we left. This is a Rockhopper penguin.

Spotted another monkey enclosure as we were leaving. This little guy came right up to the glass!

I'd highly recommend Edinburgh Zoo if you're visiting the city. This was my second visit and I actually think I enjoyed it more.  It's easy enough to get to from the city centre; there's buses that stop right outside, or if you're not sure a taxi isn't too pricey.  We got a taxi there and then a bus back to the city.  We spent probably about 5 or 6 hours there but you could easily spend more if you went to more of the talks or demonstrations.  My highlights were seeing the pandas as I'd never seen them before. Also the penguins were adorable, although only a couple came out for the Parade whereas last time, there was loads! We're hoping to visit Chester Zoo in the near future, although  don't think we'll get chance til next year now.

Have you been to Edinburgh Zoo? What were your favourite animals?