School trips & educational days out
A school trip to Port Lympne Reserve in Kent will bring your learning sessions and textbooks to life! Whether you book one of our curriculum linked school talks or set off on a self-guided adventure, your class will enjoy a fun and educational day out of the classroom surrounded by wonderful wildlife!
Port Lympne Hotel & Reserve is a proud partner of The Aspinall Foundation (charity number 326567). The Aspinall Foundation's projects protect endangered animals and their habitats as well as returning animals bred at Port Lympne to protected areas in their ancestral homelands. By choosing Port Lympne Hotel & Reserve for your Kent school trip, you and your students will be supporting real conservation!
If you would like to continue to support us after your school trip, we can provide some fundraising ideas for your school. Please contact us to learn more.
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What's Included?
Port Lympne Reserve is home to over 900 rare and endangered animals, including the largest herd of black rhinos in the UK, western lowland gorillas, big cats, primates and bears.
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Full access to the reserve
Full access to Port Lympne Reserve, including Dinosaur Forest, play parks, the Port Lympne Hotel gardens and more. School visitors are also welcome to join in our FREE public animal talks.
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Safari
Your seats on our iconic truck safari are included in your school visit (must be pre-booked in advance). Journey through the South American, Asian and African Experiences, where animals roam free.
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Free teacher tickets
To help your school trip run smoothly we offer free admission for one teacher/supervisor with every 5 paying children*. Two free familiarisation tickets are also available for teachers to visit the park and pre plan the best routes to take and complete risk assessments before your trip.
Educational Talks & Safari
Our curriculum linked school talks and workshops cover a variety of topics for all key stages. Choose from a range of interactive animal talks and book your safari tour to make your Kent school trip even more memorable!
Port Lympne School Visit Prices
We offer generously discounted prices for school visits based on a minimum of 15 paying students.
Entry + Safari |
Details |
|
School child |
£15 |
3-15 years |
Student |
£17 |
16 years+ |
Teacher or TA |
£17 |
One admitted free per 5 paying children |
Coach driver |
FREE |
One admitted free per coach |
To qualify for our school rate, the visit must be booked by a teacher from an officially-registered school or nursery. Official schools are defined as registered educational establishments maintained by the Department for Education. Official nurseries are defined
as those registered with Ofsted in the category of ‘Childcare and Early Education’.
Bookings must be made a minimum of five days in advance. Book here.
School rates are only available to teachers leading pre-booked trips and are not available to students on self-guided trips.
Other educational groups, including Guiding and Scouting, are eligible for school group rates.
Other groups which do not qualify for school rates may qualify for our discounted Group Prices.
Home-educated children do not qualify for school rates.
Important Information
Payments
Payment can be made via BACS, on credit/debit card or cheque.
The full balance of the school visit must be paid prior to visit.
Admission tickets are produced and issued upon receipt of payment.
Refunds are not issued for last-minute cancelations or no-show students.
Please note: The entire group needs to enter together to qualify for the discounted school rates. Parents, adult leaders, or other individuals arriving late and entering separately from the group will be charged full price admission at entrance.
Familiarisation Tickets
We provide teachers with two complimentary familiarisation tickets to visit the park, allowing you to plan your day and conduct your own risk assessments. These tickets are exclusively for teachers and cannot be used by friends or family members.
To qualify for these tickets, you must have an existing school trip booking. If you have already booked your trip, please contact us at info@howlettsandportlympne.com to arrange your familiarisation tickets.
Please note: Requests for familiarisation tickets must be submitted at least 14 days prior to your preferred visit date.
Supervision
The following supervision ratios are guidelines only. While students must be supervised at all times, these exact ratios are not mandatory. Please base your supervisory ratios on the behaviour of your specific students.
Children who qualify for a carer are provided a free adult carers ticket at a 1:1 ratio and therefore do not count towards your free adult ratio. Children using Annual Passes may enter free of charge but do not count towards your free adult ratio.
We are happy to admit a ratio of adults free of charge to supervise students. The ratio of free adults to children is as follows:
- Nursery: One free adult per 5 paying pupils
- Primary (years R-6): One free adult per 5 paying pupils
- Secondary (years 7-11): One free adult per 5 paying pupils
- Post 16: One free adult per 10 paying students
All children under the age of 16 must be supervised at all times. All supervisors must be adults (over the age of 18) and not students of the supervisee’s school/college.
It’s the Group Leader’s responsibility to ensure effective supervision and behaviour of all students at all times whilst onsite.
Wheelchairs
A limited number of manual wheelchairs are available to hire. These can be booked on a first come, first served basis. Please address this requirement with the booking team at time of booking.
Port Lympne has a selected number of accessible safaris running throughout the day. If any member of the group uses a wheelchair, please inform the booking team at the point of booking.
Port Lympne is quite hilly in locations.
Howletts is mainly flat terrain.
For full accessibility information please view our accessibility page on our website.
First Aid
We have qualified first aiders on site. If you require first aid assistance, please report to the nearest member of staff from any department, who will be happy to help.
If any of your pupils have severe allergies, please inform us in advance so we can notify our first aiders.
Ensure you carry all necessary medication for your pupils. The administration of such medication is the responsibility of the group organisers and cannot be performed by our first aiders.
Arrival
Upon arrival we must ensure that we have the name and mobile number of your group leader for contact whilst onsite in case of emergencies.
When arriving at our gatehouses, the group lead must:
- Know how many pupils and adults you have
- Bring any proof for pupils who qualify for free adult carers / assistance (a letter on school letterhead is acceptable proof)
- Have your booking confirmation to hand
- Present any valid Annual Passes collected from pupils / adult helpers
- Provide emergency contact details for the group lead on site
Coaches
On arrival, coaches should park in the designated / reserved coach parking area. If we were not made aware in advance of coach use any available parking space may be used.
Coach parking is free. Coach drivers for school trips receive free entry to the park. To claim this, coach drivers should report to the main entrance building with their ID and job sheet.
Park Map
The park map is available in hard-copy form on arrival at our Gatehouse. Please request a copy when you arrive if you require them.
Please note we will only issue these to group leaders. If you wish to print one for each student please see our Plan Your Day page for a downloadable version.
Group Meeting Points
When planning meeting points for individual groups of students or groups of adult helpers with children, please ensure pathways and food outlets remain clear out of respect for other visitors.
Upon arrival, please speak with a member of our team for suggested meeting points and maps.
Lunches
We have several outdoor picnic areas around the parks and a limited number of covered areas. These cannot be pre-booked and are available on a first-come, first-served basis.
Schools eating packed lunches are not allowed to eat inside our food outlets or café. If your students plan to eat at our food outlets, please inform the booking team to ensure adequate stock for your group visit.
Keeper / Daily Talks
Schools are welcome to attend any of our many keeper talks, which take place throughout the day at the animal enclosures. These talks may coincide with feeding times, enrichment activities, or simply provide a chance to hear from our keepers. Most talks last between 5-15 minutes. See the talks timetable upon arrival.
Please note that these are not suitable for a large group all attending.
These talks are separate from the bookable educational talks.
Education Talks & Workshops
Schools can book a private talk or workshop in advance, subject to availability.
To allow our team to plan your session appropriately, please advise us of any behavioural or physical needs, allergies or anything else you feel is relevant.
A maximum of 30 pupils can be accommodated at each talk and all sessions are approximately 30 minutes.
We can adapt each talk according to your year group, curriculum and any special requests.
Port Lympne Safari
Schools & Groups that visit Port Lympne are able to book access to the inclusive safari. Your seats on the safari must be pre-booked in advance.
The safari lasts 45-60 minutes and covers the South American, Asian and African Experiences, where animals free roam.
Depending on the number of students, other day visitors may be on the same safari vehicle.
No food or drink is permitted on the safari.
Groups must arrive at the departure point at Basecamp at least 15 minutes prior to the departure time.
Due to the limited availability of the safari, we are unable to guarantee an alternative timeslot if your prebooked time is missed.
Walkthrough Experiences
Both Howletts & Port Lympne have animal walkthrough experiences.
All visiting guests must not stray from the path or try to touch/feed any of the animals.
Please do not bring food or open drinks into walkthrough enclosures and avoid running or loud noises.
These are open enclosures where the animals are free to explore as much as they wish.
From time to time the animal may jump on or come into contact with guests.
Please note: Nuts and other allergens may be present within the walkthrough experiences.
Gift Shop
All students must be accompanied while in the Gift Shop.
If you are planning time in the shop, you can do this at any time during your visit and we recommend scheduling this during the middle of your visit. This will avoid you having to rush to the coach while waiting in end of day queues.
Please note: We require children to be supervised by adults while in the shop. The onsite team may limit the number of students that are permitted within the shop at any one time.
Exiting the Park
You will exit through the Gift Shop. All students must be accompanied in this shop. The exit is located in the main building where you entered the park.
The coach park and car parks are often busy at the end of the day. If you are gathering your group together, please do this before you exit (although please ensure you are not blocking the entrance to the shop). Please do not gather groups in the middle of the coach park as there will be other vehicles attempting to exit.
What to Wear
Port Lympne Hotel & Reserve is set in 600 acres, some of which is hilly. Sensible footwear for lots of walking and rucksacks for carrying packed lunches are advised. Children need to come to the park prepared for all weathers. Please note that covered areas are limited at the park.
Getting Here
Port Lympne Hotel & Reserve lies on the B2067, approximately 5 minutes from J11 of the M20. It is a short distance from Ashford, Canterbury, Folkestone and the south coast of Kent. For SAT NAV please us CT21 4LR.
Opening Times
Summer (1 April - 27 October)
Open 9:30am to 6:30pm.
Winter (29 October - 31 March)
Open 9:30am to 5pm.
On Christmas Eve we're open from 9:30am to 2pm.
Terms & Conditions
All standard day admission terms and conditions apply.
Risk Assessment
Howletts & Port Lympne provide risk assessment guidance sheets outlining potential risks and controls.
We strongly recommend that all organisers make a familiarisation visit to the park to conduct their own risk assessment before bringing a class of children. Two free familiarisation tickets can be requested after booking a school trip (see Familiarisation Tickets for details).
Student Behaviour
Before your visit to Howletts or Port Lympne, please ensure your pupils are aware of the following rules:
- School children must be supervised at all times, including while in the gift shop or foodoutlets
- School children are not allowed on the Safari vehicles at Port Lympne without supervision
- No food or drink is permitted on the Safari at Port Lympne
- Secondary and older children are not permitted in any play areas
- Litter can harm the animals if it gets into enclosures. Please use the bins provided
- To observe the animals behaving naturally, visitors must remain quiet. Banging on windows, shouting, or imitating animal sounds will frighten the animals
- Our animals are on balanced diets to keep them healthy. Please do not feed them, as this can cause harm
- Be mindful of other visitors in the parks. Please be respectful and use appropriate language
- No ball games, scooters, bikes, skateboards, or wheeled shoes are permitted on site
We take every measure to ensure a safe and enjoyable experience for all our visitors. Instances of disruptive behaviour will be immediately reported and our onsite team will take appropriate action. In extreme circumstances this can lead to whole school groups being asked to leave the premises.
We will also report poor behaviour to head teachers in writing and we reserve the right to refuse future admission to schools who have behaved in a disruptive manner during a visit.
Any replacement or repair costs due to damages caused by student behaviour will be solely the booker’s responsibility.
Cancellation & Amendments
Schools and groups can change the date of their visit up to 14 days prior to the scheduled visit date. If the new date falls within a peak period or a different calendar year, rates may be subject to change.
If you are unable to visit or need to rearrange your visit, please contact our team as soon as possible via info@howlettsandportlympne.com.
Once the invoice is confirmed and settled, tickets are non-refundable. Any balance from a reduction in numbers can be held as credit for future bookings (within 12 months).
Please contact our team to make any amendments to your numbers or timings at least 5 days prior to the arrival date.
Please note that the safari at Port Lympne and any educational talks are subject to availability and limited capacity.
Frequently asked questions
Below you'll find a list of our most commonly asked questions:
Are there any free public talks we can attend?
All the public talk times are marked on the information boards located around the park. They can also be found on our app! Please note that depending on time of year and bookings on the day there may not be any public talks on the day of your visit.
What if one of our pupils go missing?
We do ask that all children under the age of 16 are supervised by an adult at all times. However, if one of your pupils does get separated from your group please contact the main office on 01303 264647 or speak to any member of staff and we will assist you.
What if someone in our group requires first aid?
We have a number of trained first aiders in the park. In the unfortunate situation you require a first aider then please contact the main office on 01303 264647 or speak to any member of staff and we will arrange a first aider to come to your location.
I have a pupil that requires a wheelchair, would this be a problem?
Port Lympne Reserve is a combination of flat and hilly terrain. For those needing assistance, the park has an on-call minibus service which can transport you to any area required. Please contact any member of staff if you require assistance and this will be arranged.
We have toilets in four different locations around the park (male/female/disabled/baby change). Our main entrance and our Basecamp and Pinewood cafés are wheelchair accessible. A number of our safari trucks also have a wheelchair lift, should this be required please let us know.
Are we able to visit the gift shop when we visit the park?
Yes! We do ask that teachers supervise pupils in our gift shop at all times. Numbers may need to be limited if you are attending in a large group. Our staff will be happy to assist in accommodating your school group.
Is there anywhere we can eat our lunch?
There are many picnic areas in the park which are available on a first come first served basis. If you have any special requirements for lunch, or require a packed lunch please let us know and we’ll be delighted to arrange.
Is there an option to book overnight stays for school groups?
Yes, our Pinewood Camping Pods and Bear Lodge are able to facilitate residential school groups. For more information give our bookings team a call on 01303 234112 or email us at shortbreaks@portlympne.com.