BOOK NOW BOOK NOW

What's On

Children's Birthday Parties

Kids just love Staglands - and what better way to share it with their friends and family than to celebrate their birthday at the wildest little venue in Wellington?

Our wildlife park provides the best opportunities for memorable photos! Invite the cousins and the grandparents and turn it in to a fun family activity.

 

Read More

April School Holidays

Join STAGLANDS TREASURE HUNT these school holidays and WIN!

Every correct entry wins a PRIZE, there are HEAPS up for grabs!

To enter print THIS TREASURE HUNT SHEET or ask for one at the Ticket Office when you visit us.

For full promotion details and T's & C's click  HERE.

Junior Ranger Experience

Give your young animal lover the unforgettable gift of working with animals!

The Junior Ranger experience offers a hands-on, behind the scenes view of what’s involved in looking after the animals at Staglands. 

 

Buy Now

An orchestra of natural sound

Staglands Wildlife Reserve & Cafe offers visitors the unique and exciting opportunity to connect with nature in a beautiful, natural environment. Feed and freely interact with wildlife in this very special place — the product of one man’s passion and vision to experience nature at its best. Located in the scenic Akatarawa Valley near Upper Hutt, Wellington, Staglands is a ‘must see’ attraction for local families and tourists visiting the Wellington region. Looking for things to do in Wellington, look no further.

Staglands Wildlife Reserve is, hands down, the best place to visit as family in the Wellington region. It is also a great destination for school and group visits, picnics and BBQ’s or if you are looking for activities and things to do in Wellington with your family and friends that’s different from animal farm parks or Zoo’s. Visit our Online Shop — gift vouchers are available.

What’s on at Staglands

There’s always lots on at Staglands! Read on to find out more about our latest news and offers activities for children, photo competition and more.

Activities for Children

Let their imagination run wild at Staglands Wildlife Reserve.

Clamber aboard John's old landrover Larry, Fergie the tractor and our static steam engine, The Flying Stag for some make believe fun.

Have fun exploring all the exciting nooks and crannies of The Old Bush Settlement and have a ride on The Bush Railway.

Burn off some energy on the Kids Corner rope swing. The deep, slow-moving river is also perfect for a cooling summer dip. And in the cooler months we sell marshmallows for toasting on the cosy campfire down by The Barn - always popular with children - make sure they don't miss out on this fun activity!

 

Free Lunchtime Feed Tour

If you want to hear more about some of the birds & animals at Staglands and have a go at feeding them, join our free Lunchtime Feed Tour.

Tour runs daily and runs for approximately 25 minutes.

Help our knowledgeable Ranger feed our mischievous kea, gigantic native eel and comical slider turtles.

At certain times of year you may also have the opportunity to bottle feed a calf or lamb.

Ask at The Ticket Office for more information. Meet at The Cafe at 12.30pm.

Free Tractor-Trailer Rides

Get off the beaten track at Staglands with FREE off-road tractor-trailer rides, with ‘Orange’ the tractor.

The ride includes two river crossings and is thrilling for both children and adults alike.

The covered wooden trailer, with a seating capacity of up to 20, was designed and handcrafted by the Staglands team.

Free rides are available for all visitors and run from 11.30am to 3.30pm on weekends, school holidays and public holidays (circumstances allowing).

Contact us for more information.

Click here to Watch Staglands Tractor-Trailer Rides Video in our Video Gallery

Junior Ranger Experience

Give your young animal lover the unforgettable gift of working with animals!

The Junior Ranger experience offers a hands-on, behind the scenes view of what’s involved in looking after the animals at Staglands Wildlife Reserve. Junior Rangers will get free entry into Staglands for themselves plus one accompanying adult, before exploring The Reserve in a one-to-one 2 hour session with a Park Ranger More Information:

Suitable for children aged 7 – 13 years. Must be accompanied by one adult who can enter for free.

Available daily from 2.30pm – 4.30pm.

Maximum 4 children per experience

Make their dream come true from just $149 for up to 2 children!

 

Buy Now

Photo Competition

Congratulations to our latest winner Tayler Nesbitt!

Winning photo featuring 'The three little pigs' on the decking at Staglands!

A visit to Staglands brings out the budding photographer in all our visitors!

If you have taken some awesome photos, why not enter them in our photo competition?

Photos are judged by the Staglands team every 3 months and winners receive a Staglander family pass valued at $220 to enjoy Staglands Wildlife Reserve throughout the year!

Our winner plus a selection of entries will be displayed in our photo gallery.  

Please click here to email your photo to us together with the following information:

Name and contact phone number of photographer

Name(s) of anyone featured in the photograph

Important note:

All photos entered into the competition will be kept on file and may be used for marketing purposes. If you do not want us to use your photo(s), please let us know when entering the competition. Please let us know if your photo(s) include other people that have not given permission for the photo to be used.

Explore Staglands

Staglands Wildlife Reserve offers an exciting day out for anyone visiting the Wellington region. Connect with the friendly animals, native birds and its natural beauty as you journey around this unique reserve!

Explore More

Plan Your Visit

Our Reserve is open every day from 9.30am until 5pm and our Café from 10.00am until 4.30pm. For prices, directions and everything else you need to plan your visit read on.

More Info

Cafe

Enjoy tempting home-made treats complimented with fresh coffee, or order a light café lunch from the menu. The Café is fully licensed so you can purchase a beer or wine or choose from a selection of cold non-alcoholic beverages. There’s something for the whole family.

Cafe Menu   Wine List   Cafe Venue Hire

One of the best places to go around Wellington, especially with kids! Lovely, very friendly and funny animals, beautiful surroundings. For the 3+ hours we spent there, we smiled and laughed as much as for the previous week? month? :-) Little historical area within the reserve is another remarkable spot.

Alexey Volkov

The staff are very welcoming. The animals were super interactive, sometimes to an amusing extent (being followed by a guinea fowl horde was hilarious). The place is huge, and I think we saw about 98% of it. A beautiful array of feathered friends, fish and furry creatures. Was definitely worth the drive. I'll pop by next time I visit NZ.

Nowhere Town

Enjoyed wandering through and petting the animals. Great for a family visit, lots of good picnic spots if you don't want to go to the cafe.

Thomas Beagle

100% recommend !!!! You get to pet a lot of animals ! I was hoping the pigs to be roaming around the grass area, but I was still able to pet them over the fence. It’s a huge reserve and got space to do picnics ! I would recommend giving yourself at least 3 hours to see everything ! They got other attractions like a train tour and apparently weddings too. You can walk along the river and feed trouts at the pond. A lot of birds just walking about so won’t recommend if you’re afraid of birds. 

Dana Young

"Easy way to fill in a fun filled day with the children. Awesome set up, reasonable price, and can take your own lunch or eat in the Cafe. Perfect!"

Emma McGregor

Review on Google Review on TripAdvisor