This is the hands-in, faces-close kind of day out. Lambs on the bottle, penguins on Cave Hill, owls in a forest and rescued seals in the pools — all without leaving Northern Ireland.
The range — a hillside zoo with over 1,200 animals, Northern Ireland's only public aquarium, a wetland bird reserve, a birds-of-prey rescue centre and six proper open farms. Every entry below links to our full guide with current prices, hours and parking.
Cost — Tannaghmore is completely free, Rosepark is £7 a head, most of the farms run around £9–£12, and the zoo and aquarium top out around £15–£16. Under-1s or under-2s go free almost everywhere.
Several need checking or booking first.The Ark can hit capacity and turn walk-ins away, Exploris advises pre-booking online, and Rosepark, Mount Panther, Streamvale and the Ark all run seasonal opening days. Check before you set off.
Hands-on — bottle-feed lambs at Streamvale and the Ark, hand-feed the tame geese and swans at Castle Espie, meet dogfish and stingrays in the touch tanks at Exploris, and hold an owl at World of Owls.
Food — cafés at most of them: the Kraken Bar & Grill at Exploris, the Cottage Café at the Ark, Ruby's Tea Room at Rosepark — and the farms all welcome a picnic.
Come ready — wellies or old shoes for the farm yards, socks for the soft plays, and a coat whatever the sky's doing. Working farms are gloriously muddy places.
More than 1,200 animals stepped up the side of Cave Hill, with big views back over the city and the lough as you climb. Asian elephants, big cats, giraffes and zebras, gorillas, red pandas, penguins and sea lions — a proper outdoor day out that fills a good half day. Parking is free, cafés are dotted about the hill, and picnics are welcome. Book online and it's £15 adult, £7.50 child; a little more at the gate.
Half a day — 3 to 4 hoursFree parking · under-4s freeSteep hillside site — hard going for small strollers
Portaferry, Co. Down · From around £15.95 · family tickets ~£42
Northern Ireland's only public aquarium and a working seal sanctuary, right on the shore of Strangford Lough. Walk the underwater tunnel, meet dogfish and stingrays in the touch tanks, and spot sharks, otters, turtles and a crocodile — then visit the outdoor pools where sick and orphaned seal pups are nursed back to health before release. Mostly indoors, so it earns its keep in any weather. The Kraken Bar & Grill opens from 11am daily.
2–3 hours, easily a half-dayKraken Bar & Grill · soft play on sitePre-book online to guarantee entry — 10–11am is the quiet slot
A hands-on family farm on the edge of Belfast where the animals come first: bottle-feed the lambs, hold rabbits and guinea pigs at the handling sessions, feed the goats, pigs and Highland cows, then ride the tractor and trailer out to spot the deer. The working milking parlour swings into life every day, and two indoor play barns keep the fun going when the rain arrives. The feeding sessions run at set times — grab the day's schedule when you arrive.
2–3 hours · last admission 4pmFamily of four about £42Seasonal — holiday events run as pre-booked timed sessions
Newtownards, Co. Down · Around £10.50 adult, £10 child · under-1s free
Around 200 animals across 40 acres on the Ards Peninsula, built around a giant wooden ark you can see from the road. Bottle-feed lambs, feed the deer and reindeer, and at the timed Animal Encounters sessions hold rabbits, guinea pigs — even a gecko or a hissing cockroach if you're feeling brave. Between animals there's a huge wooden adventure playpark, a jumping pillow and the Fairytale Forest. Booking online saves a little per ticket too.
2–4 hoursFamily of four about £39.50Book ahead — it can reach capacity and turn walk-ins away
Comber, Co. Down · Around £9.36 adult, £6.08 junior online · WWT members free
A WWT wetland reserve on the shore of Strangford Lough where the ducks, geese and swans are hand-tame and come right up to be fed — bird food is sold on site, so small hands stay busy for hours. Watch the wild birds over the lough from the cosy hides and observatory, follow the woodland trails, then let them loose on the adventure playground. The main paths are gentle and buggy-friendly, and binoculars turn a nice look into a proper wildlife-spotting afternoon.
2–3 hoursBird food sold on site · café & galleryBook online — tickets cost a little more on the gate
Randalstown Forest, Co. Antrim · General entry open to all · experiences from ~£10
A working rescue centre deep in Randalstown Forest — it calls itself Northern Ireland's only owl, bird-of-prey and exotic-animal rescue. Wander the wooded site meeting rescued owls, hawks and falcons, with keepers on hand to tell each bird's story. Then go one better: hold an owl for a photo (around £10), book the Owl Experience (around £25), or take the star turn — a Hawk Walk through the trees with a bird flying to your glove (around £50). It's a self-funded charity, so every visit keeps the rescue running.
1–2 hours · more with an experienceGeneral entry — no booking neededExperiences run on set dates — book ahead on worldofowls.com
A seasonal farm park near the foot of the Mournes with a petting barn that goes well beyond the usual — lemurs, meerkats and a marmoset alongside the guinea pigs, rabbits and ferrets, plus corn snakes, tortoises and geckos in the reptile room. Grab a £1 bag of feed for the outdoor farm animals, and in summer ask about the Deer Safari: £3 a head to go out and feed the red deer, with limited slots booked on arrival. All the bouncing, go-karting play is included in the ticket.
2–3 hours, more on a sunny oneAll play included · £1 feed bagsSeasonal, spring to late October — check the day before you travel
The bargain of the list: a council-run rare-breeds farm and walled gardens near Lurgan where everything is free — the animals, the gardens and the parking. Meet the native breeds that farmed Ulster a century ago and are now rare: Irish Moiled and Dexter cattle, Galway sheep, Saddleback pigs and a yard full of poultry. It's said to be the only Rare Breeds Survival Trust approved farm park in Ireland. Add the maze, the tree-sculpture trail and the wooden play park and an easy hour becomes a full afternoon.
1–2 hours, longer with the play parkCompletely free — farm & gardensFarm closes about an hour before dusk — animals may be indoors in deep winter
Gortin, Co. Tyrone · Estate walk £3 adult, £2.50 child, family £10
A restored country estate at the foot of the Gortin Glens, deep in the Sperrins — a rare-breed open farm wrapped in some of Tyrone's prettiest scenery. The estate walk is the heart of it: firm paths looping the grounds past Glenpark Lake with the Sperrin ridge all around, no booking needed, and it costs very little. Pair the animals with the weekend farm shop, the Den in the Glen soft play, or a Sunday carvery in the licensed restaurant.
An easy half-dayRestaurant 7 days · farm shop weekendsAnimals mostly indoors October–April — phone ahead if they're the main draw
Ballymoney, Co. Antrim · £7 a head · under-2s free
Eighty acres of farm animals and big outdoor play just outside Ballymoney — hold rabbits and reptiles in the petting barn, meet the free-roaming alpacas, then hit what the farm bills as Northern Ireland's first inland beach: real white sand and clear water for sandcastles and a paddle. Add the zip line, the fairy trail and the £2 quad train, with feed bags at 50p and Ruby's Tea Room doing homemade scones. Best for toddlers up to around age 10.
Half a day · last entry 3:30pmRuby's Tea Room · picnic areas · free parkingCash only · open Easter to Halloween — check the days first
The Strangford Lough day: hand-feed the geese and swans at Castle Espie in the morning, then on to Exploris at Portaferry for the seals, the tunnel and the touch tanks.
The Belfast day: Belfast Zoo on Cave Hill first, then across the city to Streamvale at Dundonald for bottle-feeding and the play barns.
The Antrim adventure: meet the owls in Randalstown Forest in the morning, then Rosepark Farm outside Ballymoney for alpacas, the inland beach and a scone at Ruby's.
Keep exploring
Every place in this list — and about 2,000 more across Northern Ireland — is on our free map, with full guides, live events and what's-on near you.
