Monarto Safari Park

Monarto Safari Park is a non-government conservation charity, every visit, adoption, donation and ticket helps to save species from extinction.

Excited explorers will now arrive using the new entrance at 63 Monarto Road

Monarto Safari Park, 63 Monarto Road, Monarto SA 5254

At the new Visitor Centre, you’ll step inside a spacious heart space where you can buy tickets, experiences, a hearty snack and even a cuddly lion before boarding the bus and starting your adventure.

Capture the beauty of the Boab tree, take in the breath-taking view over the park and visit the new exhibition space showcasing the history of Monarto Safari Park.

Book now

 

New ways to explore

Now a trip to Monarto Safari Park can be for a whole day or just an hour or two.

For the first time ever, visitors will be able to access the café with breathtaking vistas over the park, a large and airy retail space and the playground, without purchasing a ticket to the park.

Meet up with friends coming from Murray Bridge, Strathalbyn, the Adelaide Hills or the city, and forget the hassle of finding a park. Enjoy shopping, snacks and a space for littlies to let off steam.

Experience the wild

With over 50 species of native and African animals, a visit to Monarto Safari Park brings species and their stories to life!

Come face to face with a giraffe, feel the throaty roars of lions reverberate through your chest and see a rhino crash roam and wallow.

Breathe in the fresh air, stretch your legs and explore the open plains of the park and its abundant flora and fauna. With 12kms of walking trails between the new Visitor Centre and our platforms, you can walk the entire trail or combine a walk with the bus.

 

 

Wild Africa accommodation and safari experiences – coming soon!

Soon you’ll be able to sleep nestled in the wilderness under a blanket of stars at the park’s Resort or retreat to luxury at the Glamping accommodation.

Construction on the hotel continues and Zoos SA is working closely with the accommodation developers. The Resort hotel, set to open in the second quarter of 2024.

With the opening of the accommodation, we will also launch exciting new safari experiences in a precinct known as Wild Africa.

Until then, follow the call of the wild for a glimpse of the new Wild Africa precinct, and book a limited spot in our first-look sneak peek experiences. Book now! 

Set off on an open-sided vehicle tour through herds of roaming animals and watch as they gather, graze and wallow at the waterholes.

Join our journey as a member

As we expand, join as an annual Zoos SA member for 365 days of unlimited visits to Monarto Safari Park and Adelaide Zoo, discounts on experiences and at at the shops and cafes.

Join our wild family

 

 

The vision behind the building

The design by local architectural firms Intro and Studio-gram is a celebration of cultures and how the connection of Indigenous land and African fauna have been designed to create a place for interpretation, exploration and to instil Monarto Safari Park’s messages of conservation.

The building organically sweeps around a central outdoor ‘heart’ space designed as a place to gather, interact, play and relax after a day of exploring.

The design includes a gallery, seminar space, café, gift shop and an elevated balcony overlooking the open air amphitheatre and the Safari Park.

Design and sustainability

The Visitor Centre blends beautifully with the Monarto Mallee plains with the use of natural materials such as rammed earth and corten steel. Rammed earth also provides passive cooling and insulating properties with little to no ongoing maintenance.

Working with the designers and builders Mossop Construction + Interiors, we maximised optimal orientation with high performance double-glazed windows amongst other materials to reduce unnecessary energy consumption.

The centre is fitted with high efficiency heating and cooling units which, along with the rest of the building, are run by electricity provided by renewable technology initiatives. Rainwater is collected and used for the toilets and irrigation delivered through water efficient taps and fixtures.

 

 

Sign up to eNews to stay up to date on the development of Monarto Safari Park




Take a virtual tour of the wild

We’re excited to be transforming into the largest safari park that will exist outside of Africa.

Complete with a resort and luxury glamping facilities, Monarto Safari Park will soon offer longer visits and a range of new and wild safari experiences in an area known as Wild Africa including open-sided vehicle tours through herds of roaming animals and a huge walk-through lemur habitat.

The $40 million accommodation development is made possible thanks to a private investor, who will build and operate the resort and glamping facilities, giving our visitors the extraordinary opportunity to experience a luxury sleepover at Monarto Safari Park for the first time.

Key announcements include:

  • A new Visitor Centre and world class entry to the park opened on Friday 25 March 2022
  • A resort to be completed by late 2023
  • Glamping facilities
  • Conference and function facilities

The accommodation development will compliment the new safari experiences which include:

  • Open-sided vehicle tours
  • A huge walk-through lemur habitat in an area known as Wild Africa

The new Visitor Centre is located on the northern side of the park and opened to the public on Friday 25 March 2022.

From 25 March, adventurers will arrive via a brand new entrance off Monarto Road.

The Monarto Safari Park entrance is now located at 63 Monarto Road, Monarto, South Australia 5254.

The new accommodation facilities and wild safari experiences will be built and operated in an area known as Wild Africa, a 560ha property which adjoins the existing Monarto site and is adjacent to the existing African Lion habitat at Monarto.

Get completely immersed in the sights, smells and sounds of the savannah as you travel across the open plains through herds of animals seemingly free to roam – safari style! You’ll enjoy an unforgettable off-road safari in Wild Africa at sunset and escape the hustle and bustle of the city.

The accommodation will be funded with the help of a private investor and the Federal and State Government has provided funding for our new Visitor Centre.

That’s right. As part of the redevelopment, we’re building a resort and glamping facilities to be completed by early 2024.

Sleep nestled in the wilderness under a blanket of stars or retreat to luxury after a day of exploring the park. The expansion includes a resort, conference, function and restaurant spaces, as well as luxury eco-glamping facilities.

We anticipate you’ll be able to book directly with our resort operators or through the Zoos SA bookings team.

Our valued members will continue to enjoy unlimited free visits to Adelaide Zoo, Monarto Safari Park, and most major Australian zoos for 365 days a year. Like any of our experiences, members will have access to members prices and discounted experiences within the park.

Just like you need to purchase a Lions 360 ticket or any of our special animal experiences, you will need to purchase an additional ticket to enjoy our safari and accommodation experiences.

Our hope is that our safari and accommodation experience guests will leave changed, having found a stronger connection to nature and its habitats, knowing that their visit has made a meaningful difference because we are a non-for-profit zoo-based conservation charity.

We anticipate that Monarto Safari Park will become a multi-day experience, combined with overnight accommodation, dawn, dusk and daytime tours.  We already encourage our visitors to spend a day at Monarto as there is so much to see, so with more experiences available, it will be a challenge to complete all in one day.

A small fee per night per room will be added to each accommodation booking which will directly go to our conservation activities. The revenue from the additional safari experiences will be invested into improving facilities at both Monarto Safari Park and Adelaide Zoo.

This project has been supported by the Australian Government and the Government of South Australia.

AustGovt_logo

Accessibility and Fitness Levels

Basic: Basic terrain, suitable for all fitness levels*.

Intermediate: Walking upstairs, getting in and out of high vehicles and walking on uneven terrain; suitable for intermediate fitness levels.

Advanced: All day tour, which includes laborious work, getting in and out of high vehicles, walking upstairs and walking on uneven terrain; suitable for Advance Fitness levels.

* Not all basic Behind the Scenes are wheelchair friendly.

About Zoos SA

Zoos SA is a not-for-profit conservation charity that exists to connect people with nature and save species from extinction.

Zoos SA acknowledges the Country on which we stand always was, and always will be, Aboriginal land and we pay our deepest respect and gratitude to Kaurna (Adelaide Zoo) and Ngarrindjeri (Monarto Safari Park) Elders, past, present and emerging.

We undertake critical conservation work throughout Australia and acknowledge the traditional custodians of these lands.

Sign Up to Our Newsletter

Stay up to date with zoo news and sign up to our Zoo Times eNewsletter