What to do and how to get to Parque Safari in Chile on your own

Before we went to Santiago de Chile, I learned that in the city of Rancagua – about 1:30 hour from Santiago – there was a safari park; at first I was a little apprehensive to think of the fact that in these types of attractions the animals are often doped up for entertainment by the public, however the Safari Park is a zoo built to rescue rescued animals (most circuses), which made me change my mind and feel more desire to go and after researching values with various tourism companies I was disappointed because the value of transportation per person was expensive and totally out of our budget as we were in 2. After spending a few days researching, we discovered that it was possible to arrive at the safari park on our own, saving a lot without tour agencies and so we did.

There are three types of Safaris inside the zoo: the Safari with the herbivores, the Safari with the felines and the Jurassic Safari.

Safari with the felines

A certain amount of people (determined by the guide that will follow) enters a grating jeep; after that, guide you through all the necessary safety instructions. The gate opens and the jeep enters the feline area, where the African lions and white tigers are lying loose in a large area; the guide takes with him some fresh pieces of meat to catch the animals’ attention and bring them closer (or up) to the jeep. On our tour, one of the lions climbed up on the grid of our jeep and we were able to see up close the beauty and sovereignty of the “king of the jungle”, I confess that is a bit scared, but the beauty of the animal is mesmerizing. Remembering that it is FORBIDDEN to touch the railing or put your fingers out and touch the animals. The safari with the felines lasts on average 25 minutes and is well worth this experience. It’s incredible!

Safari with the herbivores

After the safari with the felines we went to the queue to make the Safari with the herbivores. This Safari is done in a kind of train and the difference is that it does not have grids and they put fodder with grass so that the animals are attracted to close. Among the animals, you will find llamas, calves, goats, sheep, zebras, donkeys and even a timid giraffe who had recently arrived in the park and the guide asked us to avoid any kind of extravagance near her so as not to risk scaring her. In this type of Safari, you can feed, pet and take pictures with animals because they are very docile. It was another incredible experience that I will always remember very fondly.

Jurassic Safari

This we did not do, but it’s a tour inside a military truck through a forest full of life-size robotic dinosaurs with movements and sounds. Kids generally love this.

In addition to the safaris, you can stroll through the zoo and see various species of animals; there is also a place reserved for reptiles with several species of snakes (including the largest Python in Chile measuring 7.20m) and you can take a photo with one of them paying CH $ 2.000 (Chilean Pesos) and another only for newborn sheep and a beautiful toucan you can take picture with him on your arm paying a fee of only CH $ 1.000 (Chilean Pesos). There are several species of birds and mammals, chickens and ducks are loose by the zoo (a duck chased me wanting to eat my lunch, it was funny) and it also has several activities such as Kayak, Tyrolean, arcade games room, and several other activities which are paid separately and prices range from CH $ 500 to CH $ 2.000 per person.

Values in 2018 per person:

Admission: CH $ 4.500

Safari with herbivores: CH $ 4.500

Cat safari: CH $ 5.000

Jurassic Safari: CH $ 4.500

If you wish to make the 3 Safaris, the package price is for CH $ 12.000

Note: The purchase for the Safaris must be made at the time of purchase for the entrance to the zoo, you can choose the time you want to perform the Safaris.

Children under 90cm in height and people with disabilities are admitted to the park and free Safaris provided they are accompanied by paying adults, seniors from the age of 70 pay only entrance to the Safaris.

The opening hours of the Safari Park are Tuesday to Friday from 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. and from 11:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. on weekends. Monday and holidays day the park is closed. Park parking is free, but with limited capacity.

Note: They do not book tickets, however the entrances to the park and the Safaris are limited. So it’s always good to get there early in the park to ensure the experience.

At the zoo, there are some souvenir stalls and snacks (but we prefer to bring our own snack and save some more). There are picnic areas and NO USE of alcohol is PROHIBITED.

How to get to the Safari Park on your own?

Rancagua is about 1:30 hour from Santiago, and to get there using public transportation you take the red line of the subway to the station “Universidad de Santiago”, get off at the station and look for the window of Turbus – There is an exit inside the subway station and everything is very well signposted and easy to find -, ask the seller for a ticket to Rancagua and choose the departure time according to the options that the attendant passes to you. The trip is very quiet and it ends at the very terminal of TurBus which is two blocks from the bus station of Rancagua (the entrance of the bus station is a little difficult to identify because it is very similar to the entrance of a large free fair). Once at the bus station, you will find Terminal 8 for Donihue – Coltauco, where you will pick up a microbus that stops right in front of the zoo entrance (the driver will let you know when you arrive). This trip takes about 15 minutes and is extremely easy.