Loro Parque, Tenerife

For those of you who read my previous post you will know I have recently come back from Tenerife.

It was a last minute getaway for us, so unlike normal, not a lot of planning/research went into our trip, we did however decide one thing, and that was to visit Loro Parque. None of us are animal lovers by a long shot, but the area we were staying in was really quiet with not a great deal to do, so this helped break the week up.

We got talked into buying VIP passes which entitled us to priority seating at all shows,  lunch as well as a behind the scenes tour with a guide.

Upon entering (after having standard photo taken with 2 parrots that you could later buy.. the photo that is.. not the parrots!) we walked round the park and began to notice how well kept the park was... all grass lawns looked perfect, cleaners were inside animal areas cleaning the glass, there were staff watering plants everywhere.. it just felt like it was really looked after which is always nice to know.

Because we were VIPs (its not often I can say that!) we were given a recommended schedule on which shows to watch at certain times.. we stuck to this because it was just easier. We took a slow stroll round the park, seeing a huge range of animals. The monkeys were my favourites as always - one older monkey came up to the glass (we were the only ones viewing them at this time) and he had a huge staring match with us, then picked up some mud and threw it at the glass right where we were stood. Safe to say if it wasn't for that glass, we would have been a little dirty! It was funny nonetheless.

Guy in question!

Our first show was the Dolphins, and they were so cute. Very intelligent too. My favourite moment was when a little girl was in a boat and the dolphin pulled the boat round the pool with some string, giving the girl a ride. We then went straight to the Orca show which I really enjoyed too.. the entertainment beforehand was really good as well.

After this was lunch time. Our package consisted of a 3 course meal. Luckily none of the courses were that big, so I managed to eat it all! We then had to go and find our tour guide for the next hour. She was really informative and I learnt loads that afternoon. We got to go behind the scenes into rooms which 'normal' tourists haven't got access to. We even got to go see the Orca's from underwater - they got so close to the window that you could see every detail on their skin. I'm no animal lover but I was pretty impressed! Down here was were the trainers hung out between shifts too. We got to see what they fed the monkeys each day, and also their bedrooms.. they're all so well looked after!

I know animal based parks create a lot of controversy but the tour guide stated how a lot of the animals that come here, because of their natural habitats and the way the climate is, as well as lack of food etc, wouldn't have survived long. However coming to Loro Parque has prolonged their lives by many years... They often do release many back into the wild too, but was adament that they get better treat there than probably most of us do!

After the tour we saw our last show of the day, the sealions. These didn't appease me as much as the other 2 but I still enjoyed it.

All in all, a very good day. It's classed as the No 1 attraction on Tripadvisor in Puerto De La Cruz, and I can see why.

This post is not paid or sponsored. All opinions are my own, as always.