Paignton Zoo Environmental Park has been named third best zoo in the UK, 9th in Europe and 21st in the world according to millions of TripAdvisor travellers.
The Zoo features in the Travellers’ Choice awards for Zoos and Aquariums, announced by TripAdvisor, the world’s largest travel site.
Paignton Zoo is part of the Whitley Wildlife Conservation Trust, the charity behind Living Coasts in Torquay, Newquay Zoo in Cornwall and several nature reserves.
The charity’s Executive Director, Simon Tonge, said: “We are proud and delighted to be acknowledged in this way. This is a tribute to our staff and volunteers, because everyone has tried extremely hard to balance the needs of our animals with those of our visitors while still achieving our goals in conservation and education. The result is a beautiful zoological garden which we hope will inspire our visitors to care for nature and the natural world as much as we do.
The Devon zoo, home to over 1,500 animals of over 260 species, is set in 80 acres of zoological gardens. The Zoo was the world’s first combined zoological and botanical gardens; the diverse plant collection includes the world’s fastest growing, tallest, most massive and oldest living plants as well as some of the rarest plants in the world. The charity’s education team welcomes 40,000 students each year.
Director of Marketing & Development Pippa Craddock added: “TripAdvisor represents the opinions of our visitors and it’s great to know that they enjoy a visit here as we work hard to provide a great visitor experience. It’s also wonderful to be part of an award-winning resort, as in April Torquay was voted top seaside resort in the UK.
TripAdvisor is becoming more and more popular. We think Paignton Zoo is the most reviewed attraction in Devon, with 90% of reviews rating us as very good or excellent. Living Coasts and Newquay Zoo also do well.”
The UK is home to more 2014 award-winning zoos than any other European country, with eight winning zoos named in Europe’s top 25. “These awards are based on the millions of reviews and opinions written by our global community of travellers, so if you’re looking for some inspiration for a great family day out, the UK winners are just the thing to add to your summer holidays hit list,” commented TripAdvisor spokesperson, James Kay.
Paignton Zoo Environmental Park is a registered charity. For more information go to www.paigntonzoo.org.uk or ring 0844 474 2222.
