For families living in and around Worcestershire, the Cotswold Wildlife Park is a day out that will tick all the boxes.

I visited the park alongside my family and friends earlier in August and, with the good weather we have experienced this month, it was the perfect way to spend a day in the sunshine.

Cotswold Wildlife Park isn't just people friendly, it's dog friendly too, meaning nobody has to miss out on the day.

On reflection, there was only one element I could complain about - and that was getting into the park in the first place.

The park opens at 10am each day and, to our cost, we had opted to arrive for 11am. Cotswold Wildlife Park is a popular attraction and the queue to get in was frustrating, so I would highly recommend aiming to get there for when the gates open to maximise your day.

From the food and drink vendors dotted around and its breadth of open spaces for a summer picnic, to the eclectic range of animals, reptiles, and birdlife hosted here, there is plenty to love about the park.

The short-clawed otter and other small mammals are housed in the Walled Garden exhibit. (Image: Contributed)

Families will appreciate the adventure playground and Skymaze, which is formed of treehouses connected by bridges and slides. When your legs get weary from trekking round the park, this is a perfect way to let the kids burn that last bit of energy.

The park's train, which takes a route around all the attraction's key areas, is a good way to get your bearings when you arrive too.

But the animals are understandably the highlight and there are so many fascinating and exotic varieties to see.

The Walled Garden is home to a bird aviary and many of the park's smallest animals, such as the short-clawed otter and the ever-curious meerkat. Don't forget to visit the Madagascar Walkthrough exhibit - where ring-tailed lemurs roam around you.

The larger mammals are an impressive sight too and include big cats, timber wolves, a group of white rhinos, and giraffes - with a walkway installed so that you can experience them at their eye-level.

All in all, Cotswold Wildlife Park is well worth the trip.