Day Trip to Newquay Zoo Cornwall: A REVIEW

Just a short walk from Newquay town centre Newquay Zoo is an excellent choice for a day out in Newquay with the family. You’ll have the opportunity to get up close with over 1000 rare and endangered animals housed at the zoo. The attraction consists of 13 acres of land, great for letting off some steam.

The zoo is one of many things to do in Newquay and one of the best Newquay attractions to visit with kids. If you’re not staying in Newquay, Newquay zoo is still one of the best things to do in Cornwall/ day trips in Cornwall with kids.

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Location of Newquay Zoo MAP


Our Visit to Newquay Zoo: A REVIEW

We visited Newquay zoo on its second week of opening after the lockdown as part of a day trip from St Ives.

I’ve been trying to explore more of Cornwall with Eden recently. So far, we’ve made it to The Cornish Seal Sanctuary, Hayle including the Upton Towans Nature Reserve and Marazion. I’ve also been exploring more of St Ives, especially the surrounding South West Coast Path, where we’ve been to Carbis Bay, Clodgy Point and Porthkidney Beach.

Newquay zoo zebras, savannah
Zebras – The Savannah
Animals
Tortoise Newquay zoo
Newquay zoo
Newquay zoo swans

Lunch at Newquay Zoo

We chose to eat lunch before the zoo. However, Cafe Lemur looked really nice with a good range of kids options available as well as some local Cornish specialities. If you choose to bring a packed lunch, there’s plenty of picnic tables all around the zoo.

Animals
Lunch with a view – Nearby the picnic benches

Newquay Zoo with a baby

I visited with my 10-month old. She loved the zoo, and the majority of it is pushchair accessible. When there are steps, if you backtrack the way you came, the way won’t have steps. The paths are wide and easy to navigate with a pushchair. The barriers are built so that even sitting in a pushchair, a baby will be able to see what’s going on.


How to Get to Newquay Zoo

Walking to Newquay Zoo

The zoo is just a mile walk from Newquay town centre next to Trenance gardens and leisure park.

Getting to Newquay zoo by bus

First Kernow operates a number of services which vary seasonally to Newquay zoo. The main routes are the 85 and 87 routes which run from Truro to Newquay via the zoo.

Driving to Newquay Zoo

The location of Newquay zoo is TR7 2LZ. For the Sat Nav, you’ll need to use TR7 2NN. The zoo is within walking distance of the town centre too.

Parking at Newquay Zoo

Newquay Zoo has no official car park. Visitors will need to park in either park in the council-owned car parks nearby the zoo including one adjacent to Newquay zoo next to the swimming pool and Trenance car park, or find nearby available parking using JustPark.

To make sure you’re not rushed, I recommend purchasing the 3-4 hours option. If you want to walk into Newquay after the zoo, choose the 24-hour option.

Newquay beach, houses
Walking into Newquay after the zoo

How to get to Newquay Zoo from St Ives

Driving to Newquay Zoo from St Ives | The drive from St Ives to Newquay zoo should take around 43 minutes (traffic depending) on the A30 and A3075. Click here for detailed directions. On the way, you’ll pass Healey’s cider farm and Castellick Ice Cream farm if you fancy two attractions in a day.

Bus from St Ives to Newquay Zoo | The bus from St Ives to Newquay zoo isn’t very time efficient, and there’s no direct bus service. The fastest way to travel is on the T2 First Kernow service to Redruth (1 hour) before changing to the 88 bus Redruth – Newquay (Trenance) 43 minutes.

Train from St Ives to Newquay Zoo | Although this route is very scenic, it’s also not very time efficient. You would need to catch the St Ives branch line from St Ives to St Erth (11 minutes) before changing trains at the mainline station St Erth to Par (53 minutes) before changing for the second time onto the Newquay branch line (51 minutes).

View more day trips from St Ives here.


Newquay Zoo is one of the largest, not-for-profit charities in Cornwall, with all money made going directly back into the zoo and its conservation work.

Newquay Zoo

For more help on planning the perfect trip to Cornwall with kids, visit our Cornwall Travel Planning Guide.

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