Birmingham Wildlife Conservation Park

Love this place, they’ve got meerkats, red pandas, various monkeys! So great to go on a hot summers day, great place to go for families

The Birmingham Nature centre (now the Birmingham wildlife conservation park) is a wonderful little gem of a place in Edgbaston. Just next to Cannon Hill Park you can while away an afternoon in the company of red pandas, ocelots and monkeys. Whilst not on the scale of local zoos in the vicinity, the nature centre is small and perfectly formed for a fantastic day out.
Parking is plentiful, entry is reasonable and there are regular new additions and revamps to keep it fresh. It’s open 7 days a week with regular feeding times so you’re bound to see something interesting. There’s a small play park to tire out the little ones and as you’re just next to Cannon Hill and the Mac there’s more than enough to keep you entertained round that neck of the woods, if you’ve forgotten your picnic you can always pop into the adjacent aldi to stock up on supplies.
We went back on Sunday and noticed a recent couple of tiny additions to the ring tailed lemur family! Well worth popping down to check out these tiny furry guys!

The «Birmingham Nature Centre» rebranded last year to become the «Birmingham Wildlife Conservation Park». As well as changing the name, it had a bit of a facelift and tweak and got several new exciting additions to the variety of animals it homes as well! But before we go into that, let’s have a look at what it is, shall we?
The BWCP is a small zoo situated on the corner of Cannon Hill Park. In terms of what it offers, it’s a total steal to visit (with an adult entry being priced at £5.50, a child at £3 and a family day ticket starting at £12.00). It has it’s own parking area, but this can become overflow for Cannon Hill, so can get very busy. Parking is free and there are regular bus services which drop off by the cricket ground (which is just over the road).
It’s a really lovely little place to visit. It has a large variety of animals to see and offers keeper experiences, children’s activities and a picnic area (if you would prefer to take your own lunch); but it does also sell food if you would rather rock up and go.
My personal favourites are the Ocelot’s and the Lynx’s (being a bit of a fan of Cats), but there are loads of small mammals, monkeys/​apes, reptiles and things which are a bit more interesting (like the porcupines). The enclosures aren’t massive here, but the animals seem very happy and the keepers are very proactive in their care meaning there is a nice atmosphere as you walk around the park.
If you’re wandering around, expect a visit to take a couple of hours to see everything (more if you’re taking a group of small children). With it’s close proximity to Cannon Hill, you can also take a wander around the park and maybe have a game of minigolf, grab an ice cream or book a peddle boat afterwards for the most fun day out ever!
This is such a gem of a place in the City. It’s a shame that more people don’t know about it and if you haven’t been, I urge you to take a morning and pop down to see what you’re missing!

Being a Brummie, I’ve grown up visiting the Nature Centre on the edge of Cannon Hill Park. Now in my 20s I still think it’s a great place to spend a sunny afternoon, and this weekend I took Adam S for a look around.
This place is a bit of a hidden gem. It is easily overlooked but at only a few pounds entry (£5.50 for full adults) it is well worth a visit. Inside, there’s a real variety of exotic animals, including porcupines, meerkats, ocelots, otters, antelopes, snakes, red pandas, spiders, monkeys (loads of different kinds), lemurs… I could go on. Most of the animals, especially the meerkats and lemurs, are quite active and inquisitive, especially when the centre staff are nearby. The enclosures are all well maintained and leafy, and the centre is really nice to wander around, with wooded areas and bridges crossing the river Rea.
Facilities for the nature explorer include a cafeteria at the centre of the park and a play area for children.
Well worth a visit!

If you’re in Birmingham with children and stuck for ideas for things to do, this place should be on your list!
It’s been revamped recently and they have a lot more animals and enclosures which most children should love to watch such as squirrel monkeys and the red panda.
My favourites are the red panda and the meerkats (they have two lots of meerkats, one by the otters, and the other in with the porcupines, the latter is the most interesting to watch and they have a lot more space).
I feel that some enclosures are a bit small though and it looks like the animals are quite bored which can be a little distressing sometimes. Especially the reptile house where I’ve seen lizards banging their heads repeatedly against the side of the enclosure.

I took my mom and my daughter to this after receiving the Unilocal Newsletter :) I never knew it existed until reading the Newsletter, then when we arrived, my mom told me she used to bring me as a small child!
We had lunch in the café, which was very reasonably priced and quite tasty. There was a soft play area for toddlers and they provided high chairs too, which isnt always a given i can tell you!
It was a cold day so we didn’t spend a long time outside but we got around quite a few of the animals, the lemurs seemed to be my daughters favourite! The gift shop was very reasonably priced too, all in all a good day out and great value for money.
We would definitely go back again but will choose a warmer day next time!

The Nature Centre which can be found right next to Cannon Hill Park is a wonderful day out for young and old alike. I have spent many wonderful days there as a child and adult and have always wanted to go back. For ludicrously low prices you get to see a wide array of animals from reptiles to farm yard and even red pandas which are rarely found elsewhere. This place is like a miniature zoo in the heart of the city and offers people a chance to experience wildlife they may otherwise miss out on. They also have an excellent café which houses a children’s play area and provides a wide range of hot and cold food. On the whole this place is a real family winner and on a hot Birmingham day a trip here followed by a visit to Cannon Hill Park is a truly enjoyable experience.

Everyone in Birmingham and every visitor to Birmingham ought to pay a visit to the Nature Centre. It is the ultimate experience Birmingham has to offer. It’s home to a wide variety of animals from goats, beavers and pigs to reptiles including some endangered species from around the world. If you’re a nature lover and a lover of animals you’ll simply fall in love with this place. It’s perfect for the kids too and how about this for a special present; Sponsor an Animal, you can sponsor one or more of the residents for a year, it’s a minimum of £50.00 for which you will receive a pack of information about your animal, a certificate that you can proudly display at home, you get a plaque at the nature centre acknowledging how supportive you’ve been and you’re entitled to two free visits. The members of staff are fantastic.

If you have small kids then this place is a MUST. It’s a mini zoo! Everyone loves the zoo, right?
You may have driven past it hundreds of times and never given it a second glance, but you really should investigate. It’s only a few quid to get in (take cash) and it’ll provide for at least 2 hours entertainment for the little ones. There are all sorts of animals there, but nothing too big or fierce that might scare them. Best of all are the monkeys, of which there are several kinds.
My son particularly likes the porcupines, for some reason, so we spend most of our time in the Nature Centre near that enclosure. There are also emus, goats, insects… all sorts of things, cute or otherwise.
As we’re into the lovely summer months I would recommend making a packed lunch and heading over here for a lovely morning. You can stroll in Cannon Hill Park afterwards and then get a bite to eat in The Mac.

Where else meerkats can be seen in Birmingham area? Not the only good reason for visit this facility but just in case you have ever been there, Birmingham Nature Centre is on Pershore Road, behind the Cannon Hill Park, in Edgbaston. The tickets cost £ 4 (adults) and children from 5 to 15 years (£ 1.50), but the little ones (under 5 years old) have free admission.
I have been a couple of times, and a part the cockroaches, it always a pleasant spending some hours contemplating wild life and nature over there. The most popular animals are still the meerkats, but obviously that the wildcats, guinea pigs, among other exotic animals also add to the whole experience.
Definitely a children’s friendly spot, perfect for a picnic in family, if you fancy bringing your own snack. If not, there is a café on the site. A better way of finding more information about the Nature Centre is visiting their facebook page because their page at Birmingham City Council website is very simple and just provides basic information about the locale.

We went on a visit here last year, was a great day out and good value, would recommend a visit, see my full review here

Visited for the 2^nd time and wanted to say how much myself, my wife and 2yr old daughter enjoyed our visit. Superb value at only £4 per adult and children under 5 are free. Well done Birmingham City council for this excellent attraction. I’ve taken a few pictures which I’ve posted. I hope that you all enjoy them.

Growing up in Birmingham, i’ve been here ALOT throughout my whole life, i’m now 21 and recently went back to see what the place was like now, its EXACTLY how i remember it, with some changes to animals, this isn’t exactly a huge zoo, or an animal park, but a decent sized center for some pretty cool animals, including Lemurs, small moneys, snakes, rodents, lovely otters! porcupines. Its a great half a day out for anyone, you cant help but smile at how enthusiastic the otters are, and watching the lemurs bound around is great, toilets are good, café is great, and you can enjoy it no matter what the weather! id highly recommend it!

I don’t know anyone in Birmngham who hasn’t been here at least once. Located close to Birmingham city centre the nature centre is knda like a city zoo. It has a variety of different animals from farm animals to wild cats to snakes to monkeys. It costs £3 for adults and I think children under the age of five go in for free as do carers if they are supporting a disabled person. The walkways are very clean as are the animal enclosures and the staff are very knowledgable about the animals and when you speak to them you can tell that they are passionate about conservation. There’s a café where you can have a bite to eat and adequate parking. A great cheap day out for the family!

This place is fantastic if you have young children. It is very cheap, so much so that I never bother buying the membership. It is located next to Cannon Hill Park. Do note though that it is only open at weekends during the winter.
The range of animals is good enough for young kids — I particularly love the meerkats and the goeli monkeys (think that is how it is spelt) and the otters but the centre also has hamsters, birds, deer etc. It also has a decent enough outdoor play area, ideal for 1 — 6 year olds in my experience. The only bit of the nature centre that disappoints is the café. It smells of greasy food and the food offer is not exciting at all. I would never plan to buy lunch there — prefering to take a picnic on a nice day and eating outside. The soft play area is also problematic for very young children as although the height limit is clearly marked, many parents do not bother to enforce it (ie keep taller/​older children out of the soft play area) and the staff don’t enforce it either. Don’t let this put you off though as I think the nature centre is a Brummie treasure.

This little zoo in the heart of Birmingham makes for a lovely day out.
Although small, it houses a good collection of animals and birds, from goats, sheep and geese to lemurs, meercats, otters and red pandas. There is also a reptile house, small insectarium and an aquarium to look round on your visit.
Entry to the park is phemoninally cheap. If you tire of looking at the wildlife the children can burn off some energy in the play area or you can pay a visit to the café for a drink and something to eat. There is also a gift shop to buy little mementos of your visit.

The Nature Centre is a great place for any animal lovers to visit. There is a wide variety of animals to be seen, whether you admire the cute, the cuddly, the sly predator, the scaly or the insectoid. I liked seeing the otters! The birds there were also wonderful to see. It was difficult to see some animals because of the enclosures being as accurate representations of their natural habitats. But we returned to the particular enclosure later in the day so we managed to see everything by doing that.
The day may be influenced by the weather but there are places to shelter, either admiring animals in the reptile, rodent and spider/​millipede/​etc houses, the café or the shop.
The staff were friendly and helpful.

The nature centre is great for young children. Its very cheap to get in around £1.75 for an adult and child there is also a small gift shop. There is quite a few animals, a soft play area and café.
The animals seem happy and well cared for. There are sheep, goats, small monkeys, birds, spiders, small mammals etc.
In warmer weather you might want to take a picnic as there are areas where you can eat.
You could quite easily spend a day there

I love this place! I go at least once a month when it is open during the week which is from April to the first week in November (i think) For such a low admission price at £1.70 when you are with children under 5 or £2 if with older kids.
There are lots of great animals to see here, from the Lemurs, mercats, otters, porcupines, wild cats, red panda, giant rabbits, aquarium fish, turtles (or tortoises!), Mara which I have seen lots recently in the guinea pig village, other animals to monkeys, rodent hut, creepy crawlies hut, sheep, goat.
There is also a soft play area in the café for under 5’s and a play area outside by the guinea pig village. They have plenty of areas where you can enjoy a picnic as well as the café to buy some sandwiches, baked potatoes and burgers, chips from and all at a reasonable price.
Really great way to spend a morning or an afternoon.

Easy to get to and certain fun for little ones. The centre has many animals within but you have to be careful of the times you visit as they don’t come out at certain times and in certain weather aswell.
It is a very educational place, so you can both delight and teach the kids at the same time. With such cute animals and friendly staff, you can’t go wrong here.

A great little place to take your young children on a lazy afternoon. They’ll just love pointing out all the little animals whilst you leisurely walk along encouraging their discoveries.
You definitely need pleasant weather for this one though, as with the exception of the gift shop and the cute canteen style cafeteria its strictly outdoors.
The café serves up a selection of sandwiches and quick snacks, but if thats not your thing then there were plenty of people tucking into picnics on the grassy areas.
Remember to check the opening times as its only open weekends from November through to March.
For just a few pounds addmission fee, this really is a lovely little gem in the heart of the city.