Safari Hotel Beekse Bergen

The animals were fantastic, with the biggest collection I've seen, and they were all out and about. We were greeted with smiles everywhere. At the safari park, bring extra water bottles and drinks. Our chalet was clean and had a kitchen coffee machine, a sauna, and bathrooms. Bring some extra toilet rolls to get started. We had time to do the drive-through safari before the door code became active, using the inclusive QR code. Despite the safety briefing, we saw other drivers letting passengers hang out of cars to take photos and touch the animals. Poor animals, who knows what people might carry. For Easter we returned to the Netherlands with our small family, since the English climate and the cost of school holidays made staying in England prohibitive. We travelled through the Channel Tunnel and stayed overnight at Folkestone Premier inn, so we arrived feeling fresh and relaxed for a change, apart from a few tense moments when the driver and sat nav disagreed. Based on earlier reviews, we expected poor signage on arrival. Tip: aim for the resort and hotel. The king haired general had already entered our car details in the system, so we drove straight to the barrier and found the chalet.

The rooms are great quality, and Safari rocks is included for both arrival and departure days. We had an incredible room overlooking lion enclosures, or rhinos and giraffes. The restaurants were good and reasonably priced, and the ordering system made service easy.

We visited the light safari in the evening with the kids, and it was a lovely trip. The light sculptures were beautiful. It was busy, though, with a steady stream of people shuffling along the path. We could also visit the elephant exhibit while they were having dinner.

We had a great two-night stay. Lodge 459 was opposite the animal house, so we could watch the animals go to bed and come out in the morning. The Safari Lodge was very clean, and supplies like toilet paper, towels, linen, dishwasher tablets, and bin bags were all provided. The pool area was much better than expected. Pizza delivery was tasty, though the app wouldn't take British cards, so we went to the main centre to order. Breakfast was tasty too, but expensive. The app didn't work for Visa payments, so we had to order breakfast and pizza at the main desk. They said breakfast should have been booked more than a day ahead, which would have been easier to do in the app without a fuss. The safari park was very easy to access. The shop covers basics like milk, pasta, sauce, and bread. Prices are high, but not excessive for a two- or three-night stay. In late October the animals weren't out until 9:30 and were back in their houses at 4, so don't expect them outside your lodge from breakfast through after dinner. Public transport signposting is terrible. It doesn't feel like the site encourages people to arrive that way, which seems odd for a place that should support the environment. From Tilburg, take a bus to the Safari Park stop; buses run every 30 minutes, or hourly on Sundays, and the trip takes about 20 minutes. Ignore the sign directing you along the cycle path to the entrance, since that route takes you onto the road. Instead, go straight into the safari park, then left for about a 15-minute walk through a gate to the resort.