Port Lympne: Sleep under the stars next to lions - a review

Port Lympne and sister park Howletts in Kent are some of the most successful breeders of endangered animals in the world, both working in partnership with The Aspinall Foundation to return as many of their animals back to protected areas in the wild.

But not only do they excel in their work with this, they offer safari experiences, animal encounters and have some of the most beautiful accommodation that you can stay in on site.

The accommodation collection at Port Lympne has something for everyone and all budgets from Pinewood Glamping Pods, Treehouses, Wigwams, stargazing Bubbles, ranging up to the premium Lion, Tiger, Wolf and Rhino lodges – with prices starting at £99 per night up to £2,250.

Port Lympne is around one-two hours from London across the Dartford Crossing depending on where you’re coming from, and I set off on a Saturday morning to spend my weekend there.

With all overnight bookings you get free seats on the Port Lympne truck safari, full access to the park and free entry to sister park Howletts Wild Animal Park in Canterbury just 30 minutes away.

We arrived at Port Lympne around 10.30am and the first thing on our itinerary for the day was the truck safari.

It genuinely felt like you were in a different country, like Kenya not Kent, and you got taken in a truck through all the different experiences in the huge grounds with stunning views of the Kent coast – including African, South American and Asian areas.

We saw bears, giraffes, zebras, camels, deer, rhinos and more, it lasted around an hour and it was absolutely epic, especially because I’d never seen most of these animals in the flesh before.

After that we had afternoon tea which is served in the historic Mansion Hotel in a room with absolutely stunning interior.

The portions were generous, the food delicious and it’s £29 per person, with an extra £7 for the bubbles option.

After a wander round the grounds to see more animals – including loads of types of monkey, cat, more bears, a leopard, tiger and some lions – yes, that’s right, all of those, it was time to check in to our room.

We were staying in the brand new lookout bubble, and all I can say is WOW - it’s located next to Europe’s largest lion enclosure.

@immyshare Come on a Sykes Cottage staycation to an adorable lodge with me and my boyfriend 💙 easy to book, one hour from London, has its own beach and a hot tub 😍 #staycation #londonstaycation #kent #fyp #prinvite @St Andrews Lakes @Sykes Cottages ♬ Memories (Remix) - DJ Zaan

Only pictures and videos can show how absolutely insane it was – a transparent dome to sleep in.

It’s beautifully done out, it’s literally like being outside with a bubble layer of protection, and it’s completely hidden so you can see out into the greenery but absolutely no one can see in.

The interior is gorgeous and some of my favourite details were the attention to detail - with a free standing bath, dressing gowns, toiletries, binoculars and an outdoor-feel shower.

There’s an outdoor area, too, and it felt like an absolute dream, with prices ranging from £439 and £849 depending on the time of year, including breakfast.

Each accommodation comes with its own golf buggy which you can use to get round the park on the buggy route and see some more of the animals.

We used the buggy to go see more animals round the park, and before we knew it was time to get some dinner in one of the on-site restaurants.

We went to the stunning Garden Room restaurant, which was originally the mansion’s stable yard, which is a contemporary dining space serving breakfast, lunch, dinner and a Sunday roast.

There’s also Babydolls Wood Fired Pizza as an option too.

For starters I had the burrata, my boyfriend the cured ham, and for mains I had the salmon ramen dish and my boyfriend had the lamb.

The food was delicious, so were the drinks, and the way the restaurant has been done out is beautiful with floral, leafy décor and mirrors on the walls.

Sleeping under the stars was an experience I’ll never get over, nor forget, with a nice early morning waking to the sun rising.

We had breakfast back at the Garden Room before our lion encounter and access all areas safari to feed lions and giraffes.

Need I say more? This day was absolutely epic.

We fed lions, and then went on a more intimate 2.5 hour safari where we saw all the animals again that we had seen on the trucks, but with a smaller group, with much more detail from the rangers.

We fed rhinos before we set out, and in the height of the safari we were within millimetres of giraffes, getting to feed them.

They were absolutely beautiful, the safari was stunning, and I felt like I was on holiday, in a dream, or something similar – not up the road from home in London.

The whole weekend was made incredibly special by the helpful and kind staff at Port Lympne, the phenomenally knowledgeable rangers, the beautiful settings and the animals.

I can’t recommend it enough, it really was the best weekend I’ve ever had.