A special thanks to York’s Wild Kingdom for providing my family with free passes in exchange for my honest review!

I spent this past Saturday visiting one of my most favorite places of all time, York’s Wild Kingdom. As a native Mainer, I remember visiting this wonderful place during my childhood and I could instantly hum the tune to their commercial if asked. This was the perfect year to bring my family since our youngest is old enough now to truly enjoy a trip like this. Upon arriving to the park, you are immediately submerged into the zoo life as the long path through the woods displays animal trivia for your enjoyment. With ample amount of parking, we were out of the car in no time, anxious to visit with the animals!

There are approximately 78 species of animals to observe at York’s Wild Kingdom, making it the perfect place to spend the entire day. In addition to their large animal exhibit, they conveniently provide numerous places to purchase food, drinks and much more. There is even a covered picnic area to cool off and enjoy your lunch. My husband and I enjoyed their special of the day, which was a delicious fried haddock sandwich.  The children enjoyed hot dogs and we all loved the crispy french fries. The food was great and the prices were shockingly decent for an amusement park! There are also several other places to enjoy some extra fun with the family, such as the gift shops, camel and pony rides, go cart races, batting cage and more. If you are feeling as brave as my seven year old daughter, then visit the snack shack where you can have your photo taken with the boa constrictor!

The zoo employees were extremely informative and when I approached one to ask about the monkeys and the green devices attached to their cages, I was delighted by the answer! Apparently most animals spend 90% of their time forging for food in the wild. York’s Wild Kingdom attached these devices in or next to the animal’s cages, where they must figure out how to get their food. This simple device allows the many animals to receive the brain stimulation they need. I was entranced while observing this adorable monkey as he spun the green circle, peeked in the hole, then grabbed for some food.

Here is our journey though the zoo! Amongst my excitement and love for animals, I managed to take over 300 pictures on this trip. I was able to narrow it down to a few of my favorites, enjoy!

Out of all the places we visited at York’s Wild Kingdom, I would have to say that the Butterfly Kingdom was by far my favorite! This is a 5500 sq foot exhibit that contains butterflies of numerous species. Observing butterflies flying over your head and landing delietcally on flowers was an amazing experience. We were grateful to have come at a time where fresh fruit was just put out for them and we watched in awe as the butterflies gathered for a feeding.

 We truly enjoyed the experience of observing the many species of animals at York’s Wild Kingdom and were all extremely impressed with the amount of places there are to visit. We must have spent hours just in the zoo area and could have spent many more, but alas the gates were prepared for closing and we were one of the last ones to exit! We left with smiles on our faces and my children couldn’t speak fast enough to tell us about all their favorite animals. We made a quick bathroom break (in a very clean restroom) and a grabbed couple drinks, then we were ready to venture towards the amusement park!

With a couple dozen rides for young children, a few fun houses, an arcade, a miniature gulf course, bumper cars, a Ferris Wheel and much more, you will find yourself feeling like a little kid all over again! I found myself skipping from ride to ride with my children, anxious to see their faces on the next ride they hopped on to! There are plenty of rides and activities to enjoy with your family in the amusement park and the Ferris Wheel allows you the see the beautiful beach scenery. The amusement park is very clean and family friendly, I would highly recommend you bring your young children for some rides!

Our trip to York’s Wild Kingdom is most definitely one of the highlights of our summer and I am thankful to have had the opportunity and memories created on that day! My children continue to tell anyone that will listen about their visit to the zoo and It makes me so grateful to be only an hour away from this great attraction!

So what are you waiting for? Visit York’s Wild Kingdom today and create some of your very own family memories because summer will be over (and the children will be back in school) before we all know it!

Visit their website for full details and directions! Make sure to like them on Facebook!