@Ituri and whoever else wants to chime in: do you prefer the old monorail experience or the current African tram tour? I personally really miss the monorail and its leisurely pace through the back hills to see animal behavior as natural as can be replicated in any zoo. I know that attention spans have shrunk, but it was a unique experience and its absence really diminishes Safari Park experience, at least for me.
If they ever did build an equivalent Asian exhibit experience to restore access to the parts of the park that are no longer accessible then maybe that would change. I'd be really interested in hearing the opinions of others on this who have experienced both the monorail and the current African tram tour.
The final sentence sums up most of my feelings, and the new Africa Tram tour is not as impressive as the legendary WGASA monorail journey.
An excerpt from my 2011 review:
Africa Tram – This is the relatively new tram tour (2007) that replaced the old 50-minute WGASA monorail tour. The tour that I was on lasted almost 35 minutes in length, which was longer than I expected, and it ventures through the African Plains section of the park. Species list includes: southern white rhinoceros, northern white rhinoceros (the park has two left), black rhinoceros*, cape buffalo, cheetah*, wildebeest, Ankole cattle*, Barbary red deer*, Grevy’s zebra*, Somali wild ass*, reticulated giraffe, Rothschild’s giraffe, East African bongo, blesbok, gemsbok, fringe-eared oryx, scimitar-horned oryx, sable antelope, roan antelope, Patterson’s eland, South African springbok, Thomson’s gazelle, red-fronted gazelle, Soemmering’s gazelle, Grant’s gazelle, greater kudu, Uganda kob, ellipsen waterbuck, defassa waterbuck, red lechwe, Nile lechwe, greater flamingo, western Rueppell’s vulture, lappet-faced vulture, yellow-billed stork, European white stork, saddlebilled stork, sacred ibis, Dalmatian pelican, great white pelican, pink-backed pelican, blue crane, southern ground hornbill, black spur-winged goose, East African kori bustard, ostrich, goliath heron, East African crowned crane, West African crowned crane and mule deer (running wild).
I can honestly say that I saw almost every single one of those animals that I listed (including an almost extinct northern white rhino) as the guide was extremely informative and he pointed out practically every single new species that the tram passed. Except for the bongo I think that I saw every mammal species on my list, and the ones with asterisks were definitely in separate exhibits along the right-hand side of the trail while those without asterisks were in the massive central range. The Africa Tram tour (the name Journey into Africa is no longer used) is a tad disappointing as it is essentially one large loop around a central enclosure that I believe is at least 100 acres in size. On my previous visit to the park (2006) the old monorail was still in existence, the tour was 50 minutes, the Asian paddocks were seen, and even the now-elusive bonobo habitat was briefly driven past. Now the tour is shorter, costs money, includes no Asian animals and it is simply a big loop. The only real way to see the Asian Savanna area is to pay around $100 and zipline over it!
The nice thing about the tour is that the guide is well informed, stops to allow people to occasionally stand up to take photos, rattles off a tremendous amount of data on the weight, height, location and characteristics of many of the animals, and it is a very educational experience. I’m always amused at how the many species of hoofstock all stick together in a herd, so that there would be little pockets of gemsbok, and then a gap and a group of Cape buffalo, etc. The park really does need to either add a second loop through the Asian paddocks or else add in some walking trails as there is a wonderful animal collection hidden from view.
To be honest, I went to the park this most recent time expecting to be massively disappointed, not only with the tram but with the park in general. However I was pleasantly surprised with what I found. I understand the reason for replacing the old monorail was cost. The old WGASA was simply dying with no cost effective way to revive her. What I found in the Africa Tram Safari was an experience that tried to capture the original feel in a more focused way. The tram seats are comfortable and I especially enjoyed the storage in front of them. While the Asian field exhibits really need to be accessible again, the heart and soul of the old Wild Animal Park still lives on.
Edit:
As an addendum to snowleopards review, the large central enclosure is in fact three enclosures. The first is East Africa which the tram skirts along the edge of but is largely visible on foot as well, second is south Africa and third is Central Africa which is made up of the lower portion of the old Eurasian Waterhole. The tram now goes along the dam, bisecting the old Waterhole exhibit. The upper part is still visible as the African Forest enclosure.
