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3 Wild Ways to Experience Natural Bridge Wildlife Ranch
Why take a walk on the wild side when you can drive? Natural Bridge Wildlife Ranch makes that easier than ever with a drive-thru safari experience located in the state’s most beautiful region, the Texas Hill Country!
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Across the Ranch’s 500 acres, you’ll find just as many animals from over 50 exotic species. Not only are you able to see the animals in the comfort of a vehicle—often up close—but you get to see them basking in the freedom of wide-open spaces, rather than the restrictive enclosures of a zoo. Private encounters with certain animals even let you get close enough to feed them!
With so many animals across so much space, you’re probably wondering the best way to see it all. Great news! The Natural Bridge Wildlife Ranch offers several different safaris, each of which provides a wholly unique experience. To find out which is right for you, check out this list of the 3 wildest things to do at the Natural Bridge Wildlife Ranch!
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Guided Safari Tours
For those who don’t want to miss a thing, we recommend a private guided tour. Only through the knowledge of our fantastic tour guides can you get all the information and context not just on the animals you see, but the ranch’s conservation efforts as a whole. And since the tour is private, you’ll have the guide’s full attention for any questions or comments you may have.
If a private tour isn’t your style, you can book a shared guided tour that’ll have you hopping onto a custom-built rover with several others for a 75-minute excursion. Keep on the lookout for bounding bongos or the quirky emus going for a stroll. You may even get close to an endangered addax, as they’re known to mosey over to the road from time to time!
Private Encounters
As exciting as seeing exotic animals in person is, we’re all struck by the same irresistible impulse—to get even closer! Ok, maybe not with cheetahs, but the slower animals with less pointy teeth. That’s exactly what you get with the ranch’s private encounters, which allow you to get face-to-face with giraffes and rhinos!
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With the Giraffe Private VIP Experience, enjoy a private guided tour with a personal, up-close experience with the ranch’s giraffes. To make sure you’re immediately the giraffes’ new favorite person, you’ll be provided their favorite snack: lettuce. With their long tongues, they’ll slurp the lettuce right out of your hands!
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Just as with the Giraffe Private VIP Experience, you can also include the Rhino Private VIP Experience in your private guided tour. You’ll be taken right up to the rhino pen to meet some of the ranch’s most lovable giants. While they’re not as taken by lettuce as the giraffes, they are quite fond of hay. But if you really want to get on their good side, they love to have their bellies scratched, so you’ll be provided a big brush for just that purpose!
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These private encounters are surefire ways to give bored kids a new experience they won’t soon forget.
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Aviary Experience
For only an additional five dollars, you’ll step into a living rainbow of almost 450 birds in the Aviary Experience, which can be added on to any of the safari packages. Among them are cockatiels, budgies, starlings, freckled ducks, and wandering whistling ducks—not exactly birds you see every day!
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As you walk through the 1,200-square-foot aviary, you’ll be given a seed stick that’ll make you quite popular. Birds are known to perch on visitors’ arms, shoulders, and even feet, so look forward to making a lot of new friends!
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What's Next?!
Whether you’re celebrating a birthday, an accomplishment, or just looking for a weekend outside the norm, the Natural Bridge Wildlife Ranch is an African safari in your own backyard. Just a short drive from San Antonio, you can look out your window to see bison, ostriches, kudus, impalas, oryxes, wildebeests, and so much more – even giraffes and rhinos!
To customize your experience, the ranch provides everything from self-guided tours, guided tours, and private guided tours. As additional encounters, the intimate facetime with our beautiful giraffes, rhinos, and feathered friends will truly take the experience to a new level.
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Start planning your visit today by choosing your safari! You’ll discover why Newsweek named us one of the best animal encounter experiences in the entire United States!
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