After a briefing at the Welcome Pavilion, we stopped to smell the thousands of orchids at Michel's Garden and the flowery serpent-dinosaur-peacock near Michel's Pavilion.
From Michel's Pavilion we chose a counter-clockwise direction around the Safari. On our way to the Tiger Turf, we saw peacocks and peahens, and a number of deer and black bucks. The peacocks weren't in a flirtatious mood thus no display of their beautiful tail feathers. I didn't see the Visayan warty pig though it was supposed to be around the area. Maybe I should have just looked in the mirror!
In the Tiger Turf, one tiger was playing with a coconut in the pond, and another was licking its lips observing the people observing him. Just kidding. He wasn't hungry, but he sure was staring at us. What I really wanted to see was the white tiger, but he probably knew I was coming and had decided to hide. (The Safari has, if I remember right, a dozen Bengal tigers and one white tiger. Not all of the tigers are let out all at once. If you want to see the white tiger, just ask the Tiger Turf staff for the schedule.)
We then went to say hello to our cousins: a lonely gibbon that was trying to figure out how to cross the moat and shake our hands or grab our bags, a momma orangutan playing with her little one, and a barangay of energetic funky-haired black apes or Celebes macaque.
Then, aboard a truck, we went around the African Savanna where we saw zebras, blue wildebeests (which were grey-brown, not blue haha!), blesboks, and waterbucks. At the end of the Savanna tour, the guide asked us what we thought of the tour. I couldn't help but cry out: TOO QUICK!!!
After the disappointingly short Savanna tour, we went to see the Congress of the Philippines: crocodiles. There was one huge croc, just lazing in the shade with its mouth wide open. The rest of the crocs were in the water waiting for a chicken to be dropped (Php 50 per chicken).
Nearby were two cheetahs, one was sleeping, the other was running around though not in full speed. On our way to lunch at the Safari Outpost, we saw a lonely sulcata tortoise; and two striped hyenas, one was just lying on the grass while the other was acting crazy, going around in small circles as it went in a circle around the area. We also stopped to feed (Php 50 per skewer of fruit) two giraffes called Fred and Lola.
While waiting for lunch at the Safari Outpost, we observed the meerkats by the entrance and the white and black swans, pelicans, ducks, geese, and crowned cranes on the south side of the Outpost.
After lunch, there were only four areas left to see: Canopy Trail, Macaw Aviary, Animal Trail, and Aviary Dome. Along the Canopy Trail we observed cassowaries. My sister's description of a cassowary? A big bird with the body of an ostrich and the legs of a dinosaur.
In the Macaw Aviary, we saw scarlet macaws, and blue and gold macaws. There were pink ones too, but they were in the back of the aviary, staying away from the crowd. Kids were enjoying feeding (Php 40) the scarlet, and blue and gold macaws.
Emus, llamas, alpacas, and capybaras (the cutest of all) were roaming around the Animal Trail. And in our last stop, Aviary Dome, we saw parrots, red and blue lories, and huge crowned pigeons (the birds in the Aviary Dome can be fed for Php40).
It took us about five hours to see the area. Cebu Safari and Adventure Park is not yet 100% complete, the Safari Stadium is still under construction, so are the hotel and adventure activities like a zipline. There are some animals that have not been shown to the public yet, like wallabies, kangaroos, camels, and lions. There are air-conditioned and open-air shuttle vans to take guests from from point to point and the walking paths are paved. And kudos to the enthusiastic and well trained staff of Cebu Safari and Adventure Park, we had a pleasant day at the Safari!
Cebu Safari and Adventure Park
Carmen, Cebu
Wednesday to Sunday
8AM to 5PM (last entry at 2PM)
Admission fee Php 800* (includes lunch)
* 50% off for kids 2~3 ft; free for kids below 2 ft.
facebook: @cebusafariph
Directions to Cebu Safari and Adventure Park: From North Bus Terminal, take a bus to Carmen and get off at the junction before Carmen National High School. From there take a habalhabal (motorcycle) to the Safari. (Just recently I saw somewhere along the highway in Carmen a sign advertising vans going to the Safari.)