Crocodiles of the World
The UK's only crocodile zoo, tucked into the Oxfordshire countryside near Brize Norton, surprising everyone who visits.
The UK's only crocodile zoo, tucked into the Oxfordshire countryside near Brize Norton, surprising everyone who visits.
We nearly didn't bother the first time, assuming a crocodile zoo tucked away near an Oxfordshire airfield would be a bit of a gimmick. It isn't. Crocodiles of the World sits on Burford Road near Brize Norton, a straightforward run of about half an hour south of the cottage, and it turns out to be the UK's only crocodile zoo. Step inside and the air goes warm and close, and within a minute you're a few feet from Nile crocodiles, caimans and alligators, with keepers who clearly know and love every animal in the place.
It's the sort of outing that works for a whole mixed-age group, which is why we keep coming back with different visitors. The collection is genuinely serious, but the scale is friendly: a couple of hours covers it comfortably, and because it's all under cover it's the first place we reach for when the forecast turns against us. That combination of a short drive, a manageable site and something none of us has seen before is what has made it a quiet favourite with guests. Below is roughly how we plan a visit.
Watching a saltwater crocodile explode out of still water for a feed is the kind of thing our younger visitors talk about for weeks afterwards. The indoor houses keep the animals close and active, and the keepers are generous with questions, so it never tips into the passive trudge that some larger attractions can become. There's a café on site for a hot lunch, and you're welcome to bring a picnic, which buys you a breather when the youngest have had their fill of scales. For the truly keen there are bookable animal encounters and keeper experiences, where you get behind the scenes and, in some cases, handle smaller crocodilians. Those sell out, so if someone in your party has their heart set on one, book it well before you travel.
Entry is ticketed, and while you can sometimes pay on the gate we'd always book online first, both to guarantee entry on busier weekends and holidays and to lock in any encounter slots. The zoo is open daily year-round, but hours and feeding times do shift with the seasons, so we check the official site the night before rather than relying on memory. Because it only asks a couple of hours of you, it pairs naturally with lunch or a wander in Burford on the way back, which makes for a relaxed half-day rather than a whole one.
If you've a wildlife-minded group, it slots neatly alongside the other animal days in this corner of the Cotswolds. The Cotswold Wildlife Park is close by and works well on a separate day, while Cotswold Farm Park gives younger ones the hands-on, lambs-and-goats side of things. For the full list of what's within easy reach, our things to do guide gathers it all in one place.
“Our kids were mesmerised. It's one of those slightly unlikely places that turns out to be genuinely world-class.”
All of this on the doorstep, and your own thatched cottage to come home to. Sleeps seven, less than a mile from Soho Farmhouse.