FAQs (FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS)
Wild Animal Safari – Strafford™
Are you ready to meet new animal friends? Our team of Zookeepers and Staff is happy to welcome you and your party to the park. Below is a list of FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS (FAQs) that may be valuable to ensuring a great experience. Enjoy the Wild Animal Safari – Strafford™!
Park Information Details
• 20 Minutes NE of Springfield, MO
• 50 Minutes NE of Branson, MO
• 2 Hours S of Jefferson City, MO
• 2 ¾ Hours S of Kansas City, MO
• 3 Hours SW of St. Louis, MO
• 3 ½ Hours SE of Topeka, KS
• 3 ¾ Hours NW of Jonesboro, AR
Wild Animal Safari – Strafford™ is open daily 7 days a week at 10:00 AM. We have extended hours several weekends such as Spring Break, various holidays, and Summer months. Please check the park operating hours calendar when planning your visit. All Drive-Thru Safari guests must enter the park at least 1 hour prior to closing. The park is open every day of the year except for Christmas Day and Thanksgiving Day.
See the park operating calendar for daily park hours.
Zero. Parking is FREE.
- The last car is admitted into the Drive-Thru Safari one hour prior to closing. It is strongly recommended that you arrive at the park earlier in the day, so you have enough time to see everything your party wants to see. All guests must leave the park at closing. We recommend 2-3 hours to enjoy the whole park.
- Refunds will not be provided under any circumstance for failure to allow enough time to complete both sections of the park before closing time.
You may bring your wheelchair. See the ADA Park Information.
Some areas of the Walkabout Adventure Zoo™ are represented by gravel and natural dirt pathways like you would experience in the wild.
Yes. Wild Animal Safari – Strafford™ has a full indoor air-conditioned restaurant serving the highest quality foods including 100% Sirloin Hamburgers, Chicken Tenderloins, 100% Beef Nathan’s Hot Dogs, Nacho Platters, Grilled Chicken Sandwiches, and Fresh-made Pizza with par-baked crust. We serve Coca Cola products, giant New York Style Pretzels, Churros, and hand-dipped ice cream.
Permitted Items
No. Only feed sold on-site may be used for feeding experiences. Failure to adhere to this rule will result in immediate eviction from the park with no refund. Please understand that we have a strict feeding policy to protect the health and safety of our animal residents. We thank you for following our feeding policy.
Smoking and vaping are NOT permitted on the park grounds or inside any building. We do have designated smoking areas in and/or near the parking lot.
You may bring your own food and drinks to consume in the parking lot or designated picnic areas at the park outside the main building. Outside food cannot be brought into the Walkabout Adventure Zoo™ areas. Private parties and groups may arrange to bring their own food on a situational basis. If you, or a member of your group, have specific allergy concerns please call and speak to a customer service representative before your visit.
Yes. Wagons and/or strollers may also be available to rent at our ticket counter, subject to availability.
Yes, however, certain policies have been implemented to ensure the safety of our animals and your service animal. Please see the Service Animal policy.
Weather Protocols
The park will remain open, rain or shine, in most circumstances. In cases of severe weather, the park may elect to close all or portions of the park for the safety of our guests and animals. If the park closes early due to severe weather, snow, or ice, you will receive a raincheck to return another day.
Updates regarding a rare park closure are announced on our Facebook page and our website.
No, ticket sales are final. If the park closes early due to severe weather, snow or ice, you will receive a raincheck to return another day.
Tickets, Annual Passes, & Memberships
Tickets are valid for one year from the purchase date. If you purchased your ticket(s) for a select day and are unable to attend, your ticket(s) will still be valid for use for one year.
Tickets may be presented at the gate either on printed paper or on a smartphone.
No. Our staff can look up your purchase on-site via the last name of the purchaser or by the confirmation number.
No, all ticket sales are final.
Annual Passes / Memberships are now sold both online and at the park.
Annual Passes / Memberships are for individual use only. Each member of the family who wishes to visit the park multiple times should purchase an Annual Pass / Membership.
No, each person must have their own Annual Pass / Membership.
Drive-Thru Safari
Our animals are free-range throughout the 250+ acres of pasture and woods. In most cases, animals will come near the cars for feed. However, these animals ARE NOT PETS, and their behavior is unpredictable. In other words, they will follow their instincts. We cannot guarantee that all animals will come to the road during every visit. The joy of our Drive-Thru Wild Animal Safari™ is that your experience will be different each time you visit the park.
• Yes, guests can enjoy the Drive-Thru Safari in their own vehicles.
• Tour Buses - Guests may opt to ride in one of the provided Tour Buses, which are operating at full capacity. Tour Buses are first come, first served and depart once an hour, or once every 30 minutes depending on the park attendance levels. There is no charge to ride the Tour Buses, however they run seasonally, so please check our park operating calendar when planning your visit.
Only fully enclosed vehicles are permitted. Large RVs and buses are not permitted without prior authorization by the management team. The following vehicles are not allowed under any circumstance:
Motorcycles
Convertibles
Open Top Jeeps
Vehicles without Doors
Tow behind trailers
No, riding in the bed of a pick-up truck or in the trunk of a car is not permitted. Hanging out of windows or sunroofs is also not allowed.
The last car is admitted into the Drive-Thru Safari is one hour prior to park closing. It is strongly recommended that all guests arrive earlier to allow enough time to complete the Drive-Thru and Walkabout Adventure Zoo™. All guests must leave the park at the posted closing times. We recommend 3-4 hours to enjoy the whole park.
Refunds will not be provided under any circumstance for failure to allow enough time to complete both sections of the park before closing time.
It can take anywhere from 1 hour to 2 hours, depending on the number of guests in the Drive-Thru, your speed and animal feeding preferences.
Yes. You may experience the Drive-Thru Safari as many times as you would like during your visit! Many guests enjoy the Drive-Thru first, then visit the Walkabout Adventure Zoo™, eat lunch while enjoying the nature and amenities of the park, and then return to the Drive-Thru Safari again before leaving for the day.
Animals are typically most active in the morning hours of 10:00 AM to 12:00 Noon, then again in the late afternoon from 3:00 PM to 6:00 PM. Animals are typically less hungry in the afternoon. Every visit is a different experience.
• Yes, the Drive-Thru Wild Animal Safari™ feed is available for purchase at the Ticket Booth and Gift Shop upon arrival. ONLY THE PROVIDED FOOD MAY BE FED TO THE ANIMALS. PLEASE DO NOT BRING YOUR OWN FEED.
• All animals in the pastures that the roads travel through can be fed. There are other pastures and paddocks visible from the roads that do not allow public access. Guests ARE NOT permitted to exit their vehicles to feed these animals.
• We recommend throwing the park-provided animal feed to the ground in front of the animal in the Drive-Thru Safari. This will entice the animals to come close to your vehicle. DO NOT hand feed the zebras, EMUs, or the ostrich. These species may accidentally bite thinking your fingers are food.
• Feeding animals is optional and at your own risk.
No, these animals are not pets. For the safety of our guests, direct contact is prohibited.
No. As stated above, we cannot guarantee that all the animals will be on the road at all times of the day. You can return to the Drive-Thru Safari as many times as you would like (before one hour prior to park closing) to finish your feed!
Walkabout Adventure ZooTM
Our park has a large and diverse variety of animals on exhibit for you to enjoy. We also have various off-exhibit animals that may make brief appearances when appropriate. To promote exceptional animal husbandry and welfare, there may be times when certain animals are not on display.
The Walkabout Adventure Zoo™ takes a minimum of one hour to complete. However, it often takes longer depending on your interests, feeding experience participation, and time spent reading the provided information about the individual animals. It all depends on the preferences of your party and where they would like to go.
Guests may enter the Walkabout Adventure Zoo™ any time from park opening to park closing. However, all guests must exit the park by park closing. Refunds will not be provided for failure to allocate enough time to complete both sections of the park.
• Participating in Animal Feeding Experiences is elective and at your own risk.
• You may feed park-provided lettuce to the giraffes and Sulcata tortoises. Lettuce fed to the tortoises should be placed on the ground in front of them in lieu of feeding them by hand. Tortoises may accidentally snap little fingers if you get too close. Lettuce is available for purchase in the Gift Shop or at the ticket counter.
• You may feed the barnyard/farmyard animals small feed pellets from your hand provided that your hand is flat. Feed is available for purchase in the Gift Shop, at the ticket counter, or at coin-operated feeders in the Walkabout Adventure Zoo™.
• Feeding animals is at your own risk.
• No other animals in the park may be fed under any circumstances. The Walkabout Adventure Zoo™ animals are not to be fed any feed from the Drive-Thru Safari.
Groups, Company Outings, and Schools Field Trips
Galleries
We have more safari park information posted throughout the site. As always, if you have more questions we are here to help. Contact us to learn more about our animal park.