Fun Family-Friendly Places To Go
I remember the title of one of our daughter’s books called “Oh, Oh, The Places You’ll Go!” My little family and I have been able to enjoy a couple of family-friendly places so far, and I’d like to share them with you.
1) MANILA ZOO (and KINDER ZOO)
Location: Roxas Boulevard, Manila
Sadly, there were no longer any giraffes in the Manila Zoo. But if you and your family feel like trying out an “oldschool” place to see really old animals (like that majestic but very old elephant we saw, among others), it’s still a nice place to visit.
The Kinder Zoo is actually a mini-zoo inside the Manila Zoo compound that prides itself on being a child-friendly environment for young kids to view animals and even pet them. I’m not actually that big of a fan of petting zoos (after having heard this incident that happened in the zoo in Tiendesitas, where a white albino python bit a young girl— yikkkkes!!! Check out this link to read that story: Zoo Faces Closure Due to Snakebite) so I was still keeping a safe distance from the animals that were being placed on tables nearby (like the baby alligator and a snake I couldn’t identify).
But my fearless daughter just looked at the animals curiously and thoroughly enjoyed seeing other children react to the creatures in the cages.
There aren’t that many animals to see in Kinder Zoo, but if you have young children whom you’d like to show friendly farm animals to, there are a couple of sheep and a pony, and a few goats, apart from cute birds and turtles in what I called “the slow and steady lane.” Heehee.
It was an experience being able to “ride” on this giant tortoise with my daughter…It felt more like sitting on a rock, really.
2) MUSEO PAMBATA
Location and info:
Museo Pambata Foundation, Inc.
Roxas Boulevard corner South Drive, Manila, Philippines 1000
Tel (632) 523-1797 / 523-1798 / 536-0595 Fax (632) 522-1246
Mobile: (63)918-3822212
e-mail: info@museopambata.org
website: www.museopambata.org
Museo Pambata is the Philippines first and only hands on discovery museum for children. It houses eight theme rooms, Old Manila, Kalikasan, Global Village, BodyWorks, Pamilihang Bayan, Arts and Crafts Room, Career Options Room and the Science thru Discovery Room. Kids from 5 to 95 will definitely have a blast exploring this wonderful place for the whole family. The museum is open Tuesdays to Saturdays 8am to 5 pm and on Sundays at 1 to 5 pm.
Telephone: 63 02 523.1797 to 98
The place is also home to performances from the Anino Shadow Play Collective (1st Saturdays at 10 am), Bayanihan National Folk dance Company (3rd Saturdays at 10 am) and the Alitaptap Storytellers (all Saturdays at 10 am).
I highly recommend taking your kids to this place…It’s interactive, fun, and even adults will enjoy touring and checking out the exhibits. My husband and I enjoyed ourselves so much, and it was so wonderful seeing Drian explore the place and poke at every nook and cranny…Since it’s really a museum for kids, the colors and decorations and items on display were really eye-catching and it really stimulated her curiosity.
3) AVILON ZOO
Location: Barrio San Isidro, Rodriguez, Rizal
Map and Contact information:
Avilon Zoo Contact Information and Location Map
Our trip to Avilon Zoo was worth the distance and the fees…We had such a great time there, primarily because there was so much to see, and our zoo guide was warm and accomodating, and well-informed. Just in case you’re curious about entrance fees, you may check out this link to view the rates.
Link: Entrance Fees at Avilon Zoo
Our little family enjoyed this trip so much, we wouldn’t mind going back there again, this time bringing with us family and friends!
Trixie the Orangutan remains a big hit! You’ll also be floored by their cats (tigers, lions, leopards…) and different kinds of lizards and snakes, and crocodiles, ducks, and birds!
I know I’ve mentioned that I’m not usually the most comfortable around animals, especially birds of prey, but my hubby and daughter and I actually got really close and stayed at close range for just a few minutes with a remarkable-looking eagle and mysterious owl. It greatly helped that the zoo keepers and animal trainers made us feel secure and comfortable that it was really safe to have photos taken with the animals.
The other places still worth mentioning, though somehow left us a little disappointed are:
1) World of Butterflies
Location: Marikina Heights, Marikina City
This place would’ve been lovely to visit, but when we made our way there, we were greeted by just TWO butterflies (a plain white one and another barely recognizable one) in what they called a “world.” So sad to note that Typhoon Ondoy hit not only the homes situated in Marikina, but shook up the homes of the butterflies that we were hoping to see.
It isn’t that big a place and a tour would only probably last minutes. But if a lot more people paid some attention to this little place, it would be a good venue to take children who are fascinated by butterflies.
2) Manila Ocean Park / Oceanarium
Click this link: Manila Ocean Park Official Website
To be completely honest, I felt disappointed when we finally made it to Manila Ocean Park. We were able to get a number (we were # 351) and had to wait for quite some time before we were able to get inside to tour the place, and it seemed like there were more “tiangge” stalls that took up more space than the actual tanks of marine life that we were supposed to see. I would probably recommend that you visit this place if you have children aged 6 onwards, especially those who love fish and aren’t uncomfortable walking in the cavernous darkness that lead the way to the brightly lit tanks of fish and swimming creatures. Still, having a park like this in Manila is still something, if there are more improvements made (like better ventilation and airconditioning, and more featured ocean animals).
My Drian enjoyed the part where she could touch the starfish and the sea cucumber, though. That was, and remains to be, the highlight of our Manila Ocean Park experience, seeing and hearing her squeal in delight at that single interacive moment with the water species.
3) Residence Inn Zoo
Location: Tagaytay
Click on this link: Animal Gallery of Residence Inn Zoo, Tagaytay
Okay, there were lots of animals to see in Residence Inn Zoo…lions, tigers, birds, goats, llamas, monkeys, sheep, goats, snakes, lizards, maybe even a zebra or two. What bothered me a little was seeing this huge sleeping lion in a cage that didn’t look too secure. It made me a little uncomfortable that there weren’t any zoo guides or accomodating personnel around to walk us through the parts of the zoo. It may be a little small compared to the big zoos like Manila Zoo and Avilon Zoo, but it would have been nice to have someone like a friendly zookeeper pointing out the animals and sharing information to us when we were there.
Seeing a baby tiger cub and a white lion was nice, but it didn’t really make the whole trip a gigantic blast.
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