Four Moretons Go West EASTER 2018 - Day 13 - Safari Park

[LLKJDisney]

Day 13 - Friday 5th April – San Diego Safari Park

We had a bit of late-night drama last night, the bathroom door in our bedroom locked from the inside last night and we couldn’t get in it!
There was no one inside and we have no idea how it locked but try as we might we couldn’t open it. We left it until the morning to sort out.

The beautiful view from our bedroom

Despite this we all had another good night’s sleep and did not get up until 7.45am, we would have stayed in bed longer if we were not going to the safari park. Lee emailed the management company about the bathroom door, while I took a more traditional approach and asked people on Facebook what to do 😊. We managed to get it open ourselves using a credit card down the side of the door! Note for future!

We had our breakfast and set off around 9.30am which was a little later than we would have liked. It was around 30 miles to the Safari Park and it was a smooth journey down the I-15 which has 8 lanes in some parts!

We arrived just after 10 and parked up in section 11. We had visited this park on our last visit and we knew how big it was.

We headed straight for the Africa area of the park so we could go on the tram for the safari around the park while the animals are still active. Very similar to the AK safari but I would say the animals are a lot more active in San Diego. We had to wait 25 minutes for the tram but we saw lots of animals moving around the area, we even had to wait for a herd of Wildebeests to cross the road. The guide was ok but was very monotone and didn’t really go off script much. You do have great views across the plains and the train does go through a tunnel for a while which the kids enjoyed.

From the Safari, we went over to see the Lions who were very active and walking about. Jacob was very inquisitive and asked the staff questions when ever he saw them.

We spent along time looking at the Elephants and watching them socialise with each other, they all came to the water which was right in front of us. The viewing area is brilliant and we did stand for a while admiring these beautiful animals. A favourite of mine.

In need of refreshment we all had ice cream $28 for 4 ice creams, which is not unusual for us paying (I think we must have been overcharged). As the afternoon went on the animals definitely became less active, so I would advise you to get here early if you want to see the animals moving around.

The tigers were very sleepy although the Gorilla’s were quite funny to watch so much so I don’t seem to have any photos of them. I think because we had visited before we took less photos and tried to enjoy the animals more. The boys burned off some energy on the little play area at the top of the tiger trail and by 2pm we were done and headed to the exit via the gift shop. It had been a good day but looking back I am not sure visiting this park for a 2nd time was worth it, but I would say if you haven’t been before then go as it is very different to seeing the animals in the zoo.

We decided on the Outback Steakhouse for dinner which we found in Claremont about 7 miles from La Jolla. The restaurant was very quiet but that didn’t bother us. I am not a massive fan of Outback but the boys love it and so does Lee so I was out voted. I had the Alice Springs chicken, Lee had a Sirloin with Mash & Fries, both the boys had steak and fries. We did have cheesy fries with bacon to start and 3 portions of bread, so we were definitely full afterwards. The bill was $75 including tip. During the meal I had spotted a Krispy Kreme’s next door, I couldn’t resist and we popped in to get one each to have with a cup of tea later 😊.

As it was still very early, we headed to La Jolla Cove, which is one of Lee’s favourite places but unfortunately there was an event on and we could not find a place to park anywhere so we headed back to the house. The boys were happy as it meant they could go down to the beach again. They were determined to go in the sea this time so put their swim stuff on and grabbed the body boards.

However, they soon found out the water was very cold and spent most of the time playing on the beach instead. We stayed there for well over an hour, just playing, people watching and wishing we could stay here forever. The sunset was beautiful, and the beach filled up for people to sit and watch it.

When we got back to the house we chilled out, ate our doughnuts, played some games (Yahtzee) and watched Coach Carter which always seems to be on when we are in America.

[smithlane]

Another fab day.
The safari park looks great, the animals look like they’ve got loads more space compared to a zoo.
We’ve never visited an Outback Steakhouse as we’ve always gone to a Longhorn instead. I do love the bread they bring out at the start in these type of restaurants.
Beautiful sunset pics again

[LLKJDisney]

Originally Posted by smithlane

Another fab day.
The safari park looks great, the animals look like they’ve got loads more space compared to a zoo.
We’ve never visited an Outback Steakhouse as we’ve always gone to a Longhorn instead. I do love the bread they bring out at the start in these type of restaurants.
Beautiful sunset pics again

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Yes the Safari Park was a nice surprise in how good it was.
An outback steakhouse usually gives me tummy troubles tbh but the others love it
I do Miss those sunsets