If you want to roam through the wilderness with a load of cute monkeys, but can’t be arsed flying anywhere exotic, then this is the attraction for you. Trentham Monkey Forest is set to reopen this weekend, and you can wander around the ¾ mile-long woodland trail surrounded by Barbary macaques. The monkeys originally hail from the mountainous regions of Morocco and Algeria, and are free to wander with no cages or bars, living almost exactly as they would in their natural habitat – minus the weather.
Don’t panic, though, you won’t be left to fend for yourselves in the wilderness, as there’ll also be experts on hand on the paths to answer any questions you might have. 140 Barbary macaques call Trentham home, with over 60 acres of ancient woodland to explore, and it’s the only place in the UK where you can walk freely with them. Unfortunately, the species aren’t doing too well, with wild Barbary macaque numbers dropping by more than 50% over the last 30 years – they’re currently listed as endangered due to loss of habitat and the illegal pet trade.
While there are only around 8,000 left, Trentham Monkey Forest has seen about 100 births since it opened in 2005. It’s set to reopen again this Saturday, February 15th, and in even better news they’re doing a 15% discount on online tickets for the opening weekend – using the code 15YEARS – to celebrate the forest’s fifteenth anniversary. For more info and to grab some tickets head over to their website here.