Woburn Safari Park | Winter Safari Shenanigans in the UK

We desperately needed a safari fix to see us into 2026. Woburn Safari Park was a great way to start our year, offering the chance to see lions, tigers and is the only driving safari in the UK that holds a North American black bear. Despite it being winter - you'll be surprised to hear that we did manage to see most animals across the park and if you dress warmly enough (and crank the heating on for the driving part of the attraction), you won't regret visiting Woburn Safari during the off-season.

The North American Black Bear is currently in a state of torpor, which is similar to hibernation - only shorter, meaning that you can still see the North American Black Bear during the winter periods if you'd still like to visit the park during the off-season. We were able to see the black bear, however - just in sheer excitement and distance from the bear, we were unable to get any decent photos (typical of me whenever I see a bear - this is not the first occasion).

Upon arrival, you're greeted by the Eastern Mountain Bongo - an ornately striped antelope, and a rare sight with only 100 being located in the Kenyan wilderness. You may also spot the Blesbok, which is another antelope, endemic to South Africa, with a stark white stripe across their face and pointed ridged horns.

Whilst smaller in comparison to its competitor, West Midlands Safari Park, Woburn is still a strong contender with its array of fauna, displaying animals of apex, smaller mammals and all of those in between.

Some of our best photos at Woburn Safari

The Red Panda

The site offers a chance to drive around the safari multiple times, alongside a walking safari where you can see sea lions, the red panda, lemurs, bird life, otters, reptiles, meerkats, mongoose, and my ultimate favourite, the bush dog.

I'd never seen a bush dog in the real life (or of what I can remember) and found these illusive and curious creatures to be at the top of my favourites. If you'd like to see the bush dogs, I'd recommend climbing up the wooden stairs to the platform where you can get a panoramic view of their hilly enclosure. The bush dog we saw was particularly cute - I didn't realise how much they resembled tiny little bears rather than dogs. Unfortunately, I was also unable to get a photo, mainly due to my battery failing from coldness...

Bush dogs are small mammals native to South America and hunt in packs, similar to wolves, only tiny in comparison. Sadly, they are listed as Near Threatened on the IUCN Red List due to predation and habit loss, so conservation efforts are integral, with numbers dwindling to less that 10,000 bush dogs found in the wild.

Even during the winter period, Woburn Safari Park was a great memory made for me and Rich and we'll be visiting again with our camera in hands. It was a great chance to take some photos which are now available via my photo journal.

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