Would one say that Paignton is still a zoo worthy of a visit?
I have only visited once in 2017 - and from what I can understand, it has changed quite a bit even since then [in regards to animal collection + landscaping] though apparently the kiwi is as technically-offshow as it has ever been = S
@dillotest0 I don't really know what to say as any criticisms I make are usually immediately contradicted. But I've been visiting for a long time and I do find it disappointing these days. You might not feel the same as it's a while since you visited. No, you won't see the kiwi! If you do visit, wait until September - not because of any possible changes, but because there isn't enough to compensate for having to cope with the crowds.
I visited Paignton last summer for the first time since 2009 (I'd done almost nothing in the southwest past Bristol in that time and summer '21 was a perfect fit for a UK-based week's zoo trip!). It was certainly worth the visit, though we didn't quite spend the full day (we nipped off to Shaldon for the last bit - and then used a sunny evening to track down Cirl Buntings nearby). I think the general feeling among the group of nerds I was with was that it's perfectly nice but contrives to feel a bit less than the sum of its parts somehow. It still would earn an automatic place on a SW zoo trip, but it probably wouldn't be the one you were particularly excited for. This was before the works in the entrance area though so not sure how much that has changed things in the year since. The takin enclosure was my personal highlight!
I think now I look back, the description is rather adequate - it was by and large what I would consider a solid nice zoo - though looking back on my visit [aside from the echidna - that was special! Though perhaps now less so..] it was fairly average, perhaps I would feel similarly now. Though perhaps it'd feel a bit awkward to walk around without seeing Duchess, coatis, lechwe to name a few..
