The orangutan creche
Europe's only nursery for orphaned infant orangutans, and the spot children refuse to leave.
The largest group of chimpanzees anywhere outside Africa lives not in a rainforest or a grand city zoo but on 65 acres of quiet Dorset heathland, run as a rescue centre rather than a showcase. The story began in 1987, when the American Jim Cronin took in chimps that had been used as photo props on Spanish beaches. Today the centre holds more than 250 primates of around twenty species: four chimpanzee groups, Bornean and Sumatran orangutans with Europe's only creche for orphaned infants, five kinds of gibbon, the capuchins, 88 of whom arrived from a Chilean laboratory in 2008, and assorted lemurs and small monkeys. British families know the place story by story from the long-running television series 'Monkey Business' and 'Monkey Life', which is why you will see visitors at the fences calling the animals by name. A traveller from the Gulf or the Levant will notice something else: nobody here is obliged to perform. Enclosures are big and well planted, and you can pass the orangutan house and see nothing but the corner of a blanket. The trick is to time your loop around the daily keeper Q&As, which move from group to group every half hour from midday to 2.30pm, when the animals come forward and you hear each individual's history. Almost everything is outdoors on wide paths with gentle slopes, fine for pushchairs and wheelchairs apart from the short, uneven Woodland Walk. Three adventure playgrounds will be hard to leave, there is a year-round cafe plus seasonal kiosks, and the free car park is generous. Allow three to four hours and pick a dry day: rain does not close the centre, but it hides the animals and hollows out the visit. In the school summer holidays it fills with British families; there is no timed entry, but if the park reaches capacity anyone without an online booking is turned away, so booking ahead both guarantees entry and saves a pound per adult and nearly three on a family ticket. From Bournemouth it is a day trip west on the A35 then the A31, roughly 32 km and 40 to 45 minutes by car, with brown tourist signs guiding the last few miles. Without a car, take the train to Wool and a taxi for the final 2.5 km, or the seasonal bus 55 from late May to mid-September. The smartest plan is to make it half a day and pair it with the Tank Museum at Bovington, five minutes away, or Lulworth Cove and the Durdle Door rock arch, a quarter of an hour further on.
Europe's only nursery for orphaned infant orangutans, and the spot children refuse to leave.
The animals come forward and every rescue story is told by name; daily from 12:00 to 14:30, one group every half hour, so build your loop around it.
The largest chimp population outside Africa in roomy enclosures, where patience is rewarded with real troop life.
Longthorns, Wareham, Dorset BH20 6HH
Yes if the children are over four, like animals and you have a car; paths suit pushchairs and there are three adventure playgrounds. Expect animals to be distant or hidden at times, though, since this is a rescue centre not a show. On a wet day, or with only a baby in tow, skip it.
There is no timed entry, but once the park hits capacity anyone without an online booking is turned away, which can happen on busy August days. Booking online guarantees entry and saves a pound per adult and nearly three on a family ticket, so buy before you arrive.