Willows Birds of Prey & Wildlife Trail

This is a family run business. We visited during the week, even if it was half term there weren't too many people around. This place is a lot bigger than you expect.
And to make it even better they have birds of prey shows twice a day.
We attended the second show, we saw three birds of prey plus Baldric the raven. It was a great show.
The owner was explaining and doing the show, an absolute showman!
He was getting everyone involved. The explanations that he was giving were very easy to understand, which was great to see as there were lots of small kids there.
All the staff during the show were really nice. They were great at handling the birds, and made it really entertaining for everyone.
It was our first visit, and we took our cameras with us. We found many opportunities to take pictures of the animals.
The enclosures are spacious and well maintained. They have a few different types of pig pens, we managed to see llama, owls, a vulture, different types of hawks, a parrot, meerkats, sheep, chickens, birds,... And possibly I may have forgotten some others, but you get the idea 😁
They offer one to one sessions with birds of prey, also photography sessions. We saw some people in a private session, which was handled by one of the keepers.
We spoke to four employees, all of them were very informative and happy to take some time to give an explanation.
The only thing that it's worth mentioning, and it is not bad, is more of a warning for some of you who may not like to get your white trainers dirty... If it has rained, it will be muddy. So don't forget your boots! Oh yes, and there are smelly parts to it, so don't get offended by it, the animals don't have a choice but to smell us either! 😉
If you have mobility issues, some parts will be a little tricky to visit, but all the main areas are ok with a little help from a friend.

Had a brilliant bird of prey experience package for 2 people. On the day we both handled 3 owls and a hawk. Tom was extremely knowledgeable and patient. After our experience package, we had a good walk around the centre to see the other birds and animals. Plus watched a couple of the show demonstrations. A thoroughly entertaining day and would highly recommend a visit or an experience package.

Fantastic displays, superb and informative volunteers/staff. Owls and Birds of prey are wonderful spectacle. We went on a rainy cold day and staff still carried on as normal so big shout out to you guys. Thank you.

Love this place and can't believe we haven't been before. Our daughter did the Hawk Walk experience with Rio the Harris Hawk and her very knowledgeable handler, Jordan. What a fantastic experience! She got to fly and feed the Hawk and walk it back to the perch, she absolutely loved it. The rest of the centre is great too and in a beautiful woodland setting. We walked around the trail and saw owls, parrots, huge pigs, wallabies and ferrets. The garden centre next door has a nice cafe too which was a bonus. I thoroughly recommend this place, an excellent day out

We went for the birds of prey experience today and had a fantastic time. Charlie was great and very informative. His knowledge of the animals was amazing and we got to see many of them in action at the demonstration as well as hold a few. We had so many questions which he was more than happy to answer.

The animals were so cute and had their own little personalities.

Thank you Charlie and the team at willows for a lovely day!

Day out with my 2 kiddos aged 6 and 18 months and both loved it. Birds of prey are taken good care of. Ferrets are cute, loads of woodland play area. Live birds of prey shows which was awesome. Recommend wellies if weather isn't too great as there is muddy areas. Lovely cafe in the garden centre area. In order to get to the wildlife trail you have to walk through the garden centre. Spent at least 3 hours there

A lovely place to spend an afternoon!
I went for a bird experience and got to fly a wide variety of happy Owls and Hawks supported with careful advice and demonstration from the handlers who have a great wealth of information and facts about the birds.
After my experience, I had a walk around the trail which is home to many animals such as birds, pigs, guinea pigs, ferrets, wallabies, goats, and meerkats.
On my walk I noticed the centre keepers tending to the animals and all were approachable and polite and answered my questions in regard to animal behaviour, diet and other fun facts.
I would definitely visit again and I have been recommending Willows to friends and family.

Probably the BEST experience we have had. The lady Vicky was amazing she really showed how much she cared, the way she interacted with our girls making it fun aswell as educational with all her knowledge was 5+ stars all round. Such a hidden gem of a place, will cannot wait to come back and book the experience again. Vicky and the team thank you for today we have 2 very happy girls

Not expensive. 5 year old and 1 year old loved the birds and the animals. Bit muddy but thats part of the fun. Staff were friendly and interacting with my kids whilst they were cleaning animals etc.

WOW!!! What a FABULOUS experience!!!
My wife and I went on the bird of prey experience today, what a lovely day!! Tom, our guide was super knowledgeable and a genuinely nice guy. I learned so much today and really can’t recommend this experience highly enough.
If you want an extraordinary day out doing something amazing then book a day on this experience, it’s stunning and the birds are so beautiful. 5 stars all day, every day!!!

I brought my elderly disabled mother here as she loves animals. She really enjoyed it. The animals look really well cared for in nice enclosures. The woodland setting is lovely. She coped ok with the paths, there are tree roots et. So might not be suitable for wheelchair users and some people with mobility problems. Carers go free, which is good for disabled people on low incomes. Would definitely visit again and would recommend to others.

Absolutely incredible day today. Booked in for the bird of prey experience and honestly what a memorable day it's been. Vicky was our wonderful host for the day, introducing us to the birds, telling us all about them, showing us the ropes and giving us a fantastic experience flying and feeding them. I am deeply grateful for this experience and will definitely be making a return. Please give Grayson, Luna, Owlfie and Ivy an extra piece of meat from us, we miss them already. Meeka, Baldric, Neo and Hatchet also deserve extra treats for being such a delight to see.

Whether it's through buy a gift or just a visit, a trip to Willows is a MUST for a true bird lover.

Vicky, thankyou so much for making today so special for us. You were a fantastic host and we are incredibly grateful to have shared today with you. Keep on being awesome! ❤

Lovely surprise at the back of Coolings, our 2yo really enjoyed talking to the many different kinds of owl and the wallabies! We didn't catch a display or anything but the staff we did talk to were friendly, knowledgeable and obviously enthusiastic about the animals. Great for a casual afternoon out at a very reasonable price.

What a hidden gem!
We went end of November as a group of 3 for the bird of prey experience.
Having never been before we were really surprised at the size of the centre given that it's tucked away in the corner of a garden centre.
We had the talk and introduction to a few a birds first, this was open to everyone but was very quiet due to it being mid week and winter.
We then flew a number of beautiful birds in two different locations.
The centre is definitely worth a visit even if you aren't participating in an experience.
The birds are all beautiful and fantastic to learn about.
Lovely staff too and a good cuppa in the cafe afterwards to warm up.

Today, my dad had his bird of prey experience. He suffers with chronic back pain and very limited mobility. We were fortunate enough to have the very lovely Alistair leading his session. We could not have asked for anyone nicer!! They were so super accommodating of my dad and went above and beyond to adapt the session according to his limitations and even brought a chair to the different locations around the centre for him to use.
On top of being so kind, caring and considerate, their knowledge of all the animals, not just the birds he handled, is second-to-none!! Any questions we had were answered.
We could not have had a better experience and that is all down to Alistair’s fantastic manner! Thank you so very much for making it so special and accessible for my dad!

What a hidden gem!

We didn't choose the warmest of days to visit, however it still made for a brilliant experience. We got there just after 2 and still had plenty of time to walk around and it was lovely and quiet.

The array of birds here is really incredible, perfect for children and bird/bird of prey lovers as well as those more interested in furry animals like meercats and wallabies.

Will definitely return with the little one so he can enjoy it as much as we did.

Came here for the 'owl encounter' which is a fantastic experience. We got to handle and fly 3 owls: Ratchet (very small and cute), Luna (African barn owl who was very active) and Owlfie (who was very vocal). All the staff were very friendly and their enthusiasm for their jobs really shows. We stayed for the later birds of prey show too which was amazing. There were lots of families here enjoying the menagerie of animals, all in all a great day out.

Love this little Bird of Prey and Wildlife place. It's just over 1hr drive from home but it's completely worth it. My young daughter loves seeing the owls and other birds. The new meerkat pen is a nice addition. There are wallabies and alpacas as well as less exotic animals such as pigs, goats and sheep. There are also more common birds like budgies, finches, ducks and chickens.

They put on flying displays of some of the birds of prey and also do a meet and greet with one of them too.

Bonus is its part of a garden centre which also has a cafe too.

Well worth a visit and great value for little money.

I really don't think I can express how much my wife and I enjoyed our visit. Our children bought her a Birds of Prey experience day and booked us a weekend in a local B&B as a joint 50th birthday - 25th wedding anniversary gift. Unfortunately covid happened just afterwards : - (
We eventually got to go this weekend and it was definitely well worth the wait. The staff were brilliant, very friendly, knowledgeable and are obviously passionate and love what they do. Alistair, the lass who was our guide - handler for the experience, was lovely and great fun. She told us so much about each of the birds and their backgrounds it was really, really great. My wife was so thrilled at being able to get up close to and fly some of the birds, I really don't think I can ever do anything that will equal (let alone top) the whole experience.
I would definitely recommend a visit to anyone of any age 0-99 if they enjoy not only birds of prey, but animals and wildlife in general. There were lots of children there and they all seemed genuinely thrilled too.
Also the blueberry cafe was a great place to stop for a cuppa and a cake. My wife is Coeliac (strict gluten free diet) & was amazed by the choices of options available to her dietary requirements..

My daughter brought us here yesterday( Easter saturday). We had such a lovely day seeing all if the wild animals and watching the amazing displays.
My husband took these photos and thought you might like them.