Photos courtesy of www.willowbank.co.nz
Willowbank Wildlife Reserve
- 60 Hussey Road, Northwood, Christchurch 8051
Willowbank Wildlife Reserve is a large open-air wildlife park in Northwood, on the north side of Christchurch, where kids can wander through native bush and farmyard areas getting close to the animals. Kiwi are the big drawcard, viewed with no glass in a darkened, forest-like enclosure, and there's also kea, tuatara, eels you can feed by hand, and a farmyard of pigs, sheep and other livestock kids can pat and feed.
It suits a wide age range, from babies in a pram right through to older kids keen on the guided kiwi tours or paid encounters with lemurs and capybara. Paths are pram-friendly and reasonably flat, though it's a big site so budget a couple of hours to see it properly. There's a cafe on site for a break, and animal food is sold if you want the kids to hand-feed the birds and farmyard animals.
No booking is needed for general entry, though the special animal encounters and guided tours are worth booking ahead if you want a spot. It's an outdoor experience without much cover, so it's more of a fine-weather outing than a wet-day fallback.
Opening hours
- Sunday Today 09:30 – 17:00
- Monday Today 09:30 – 17:00
- Tuesday Today 09:30 – 17:00
- Wednesday Today 09:30 – 17:00
- Thursday Today 09:30 – 17:00
- Friday Today 09:30 – 17:00
- Saturday Today 09:30 – 17:00
Location
Willowbank Wildlife Reserve
60 Hussey Road, Northwood, Christchurch 8051
Similar places in Christchurch
Groynes boat hire
International Antarctic Centre
McLeans Island Miniature Trains (CLS)
