When it comes to Safari Parks and the whole experience, it’s almost always equivalent to African countries. While nothing beats such an adventure, you still won’t fall anything short even if you don’t leave your country. Thus, if you want to experience wildlife and all the other things in Safari adventures, you may want to check the best safari parks in the USA.
The ten best safari parks in the USA are San Diego Zoo Safari Park, Lion Country Safari African Adventure, Lee G. Simmons Conservation Park and Wildlife Safari, Out of Africa Wildlife Park, Virginia Safari Park, Pine Mountain Wild Animal Safari, Disney’s Animal Kingdom, The Wilds Safari, Northwest Trek Wildlife Park, and the Six Flags Great Adventure and Safari.
Safari parks aren’t just about the wildest beasts you can spot, such as lions or bears. It’s more of the beauty of the wild and its natural life system without modernization happening around.
In this article, we’ll cover each of these ten safari parks and give you a gist of what you can get with these places. This way, you can find the best option to consider and give you or your loved ones the safari experience without going out of the country.
Without further ado, let’s get into it!
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San Diego Zoo Safari Park
Located in San Diego in California, this is the oldest of all safari parks in the country. Moreover, it’s also the best-known park of all.
This park covers 1800 acres of land, providing a home to hundreds of animal species you can find in the six continents.
One thing to note about this safari park is that it’s completely safe with a guided bus or tram tour. Thus, you can have your kids enjoy such an adventure without worries.
The park offers a variety of animals such as cranes, rhinos, buffalo, and big cats. Moreover, it doesn’t fall short when giving the wildlife feel due to its vast lands. It’s also the home of the infamous California Condor.
Location: 15500 San Pasqual Valley Road Escondido, CA 92027-7017
Lion Country Safari African Adventure
Another one of the best safari parks in the USA is the Lion Country Safari African Adventure. It’s quite a mouthful, but it boasts of several features you would find enjoying. Among these features are the two ways of safari experience.
In short, this park can offer an on-foot tour through the SafariWorld. At the same time, it also offers tours through seven particular African destinations.
The park offers more than African scenes. It also has African food, information, and activities. You can check it out on West Palm Beach in the state of Florida.
Location: 2003 Lion Country Safari Rd Loxahatchee, FL 33470
Also Read: Best Safaris in India
Lee G. Simmons Conservation Park and Wildlife Safari
Situated in Omaha, the Lee G. Simmons Conservation Park and Wildlife Safari is also a go-to place for wildlife enthusiasts. This park boasts of an educational approach when it comes to the preservation of animals.
Here, you can see several animal species roaming around. You can spot elk, pelican, wolves, black bears, bison, and others among the animals.
It also has a picnic spot for group travelers and a hands-on place where you can have your kids feed animals.
Location: 16406 292 Street Ashland, NE 68003
Out of Africa Wildlife Park
Out of Africa Wildlife Park offers a combination of fun and educational displays. Located halfway between Flagstaff and Phoenix, it’s also a bush safari and a wildlife preserve.
It’s a great safari park where you can take your family if your kids want to see a tiger swim or an armadillo called Tucker strut his things.
The place also offers visitors the opportunity to feed their tigers (in the safety, of course). Here, you can find various animals such as antelopes, zebras, and other wildlife you can spot in any African safari.
You can choose to experience all these things in a 40-minute bus ride or a 2.5-hour zipline experience if you’re feeling it.
Location: Camp Verde, AZ 86322
Virginia Safari Park
The Virginia Safari Park is famous for being a drive-thru wild animal safari park. It’s small compared to other parks with only 180 acres of land. However, it’s home to at least a thousand animals of different species.
In this place, you can have a three-mile drive as your tour. Or, you can also walk around the Safari Village. The said village has a petting zoo wherein you can let your kids interact with the animals around.
The Virginia Safari Park is a great place to spot reptiles, birds, llamas, giraffes, and tigers. It also has a picnic grove where you can spend some time bonding and have fun.
Location: 229 Safari Lane Natural Bridge, VA 24578
Pine Mountain Wild Animal Safari Park
This place is the home of several animals, but the most popular among the rest is the American Bison and the African Giraffes. The park covers 250 acres of land and houses around a hundred species of animals.
It includes animals such as parrots, lemurs, lizards, and wallabies. You can rent a van or a bus to go for the 3.5-mile safari tour in the park. If you a personal car, you can use it instead.
The park also has a stroll-friendly part where you can even feed some other animals.
Location: 1300 Oak Grove Road Pine Mountain, GA 31822
Disney’s Animal Kingdom
Disney isn’t just about the fantastic and memorable theme parks. More than that side, they also have an animal kingdom, which you won’t miss. It’s the world’s biggest animal park since it’s home to almost 1700 animals of 250 species.
If you visit the place, you can go on a safari trip or walk through its recreated jungles. The place also has a wildlife express train for those who want to visit DinoLand.
Location: 2901 Osceola Pkwy, Bay Lake, FL 34747
The Wilds Safari Park
The Wilds is one of the safari parks in Ohio, a state where you won’t likely realize it as a good one for animal parks. Still, the place boasts of a vast 9000 acres of land, giving it an expansive room for its animals.
This park is home to several animals such as cheetahs, wild horses, and camels. Besides the usual safari trips, travelers can also tour the place through their ziplines or a horseback ride. Other activities you can enjoy in this safari park are biking, fishing, and bird-watching.
Location: 14000 International Road Cumberland, OH 43732
Related: Best African Safaris for Seniors
Northwest Trek Wildlife Park
The Northwest Trek Wildlife Park offers a unique safari park experience to its guest with its narrated 50-minute tram tour. Such a tour exposes all the wildlife beauty it offers. Among these are animals such as moose, mountain goats, and the elk.
One thing to note about this safari park is that it makes visitors move and interact with the place and animals. Thus, you can do so and encounter animals you can find in Northern America, such as beavers, porcupines, etc.
Location: 11610 Trek Drive East Eatonville, WA 98328
Six Flags Great Adventure and Safari
The last one on the list doesn’t fall short when it comes to giving a Safari experience. Located in New Jersey, this park boasts of more than just safari animals like rhinos, kangaroos, lions, and elephants. Further, it has coasters for fun rides and other souvenirs and food to purchase and enjoy.
Location: 1 Six Flags Boulevard Jackson, NJ 08527
Summary
The ten best safari parks in the USA are San Diego Zoo Safari Park, Lion Country Safari African Adventure, Lee G. Simmons Conservation Park and Wildlife Safari, Out of Africa Wildlife Park, Virginia Safari Park, Pine Mountain Wild Animal Safari, Disney’s Animal Kingdom, The Wilds Safari, Northwest Trek Wildlife Park, and the Six Flags Great Adventure and Safari.
While it’s true to say that African safaris offer a unique experience, the safari parks in the USA fall nothing short of the goal of every Safari. That main goal is to give people a doorway to see the beauty of wildlife and nature.
Thus, even if you can’t leave the country, you can still appreciate wildlife and nature in all their glory through the best safari parks near you.
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Image credits – Canva
