Hex Wildlife Hotel at Yorkshire Wildlife Park

Location & Views: Many rooms offer scenic views of wildlife enclosures and are conveniently located near the park entrance, making it easy to access attractions.

We had a great experience. We booked a 2 night stay with a room overlooking the park and we weren't disappointed. Our family room had 2 bunk beds and a king bed all of which were comfortable enough. Lovely waterfall shower and bath in bathroom. Nice complimentary toiletries and biscuits tea and coffee in room good quality too. Great view from our room of the Tapirs, Maned Wolves and we could even see the Sea Lions. The late night swims from the Tapir a real highlight for our 7 year old but did not lead to early nights! We booked the 'summer saver' deal which covered entry into the park each day for which you were given a voucher at check-in and breakfast which was served in Wilds Cafe Bistro next door and was standard hotel buffet fayre. All staff were helpful and polite and we checked in early without a problem. Some minor grumbles - you can't open the windows - the air con works and is great but means you can't let any fresh air in. Also the only full length mirror is right by one side of the bed which is far from ideal. The resort advertises a 'mini disco' in one of the restaurants which is fine but literally just music no games or interaction so dont expect a mini disco like you may get at a holiday resort or caravan park. The show at the Hive Amphitheatre on site was great fun though. The whole resort shuts down quite early which is fine for the families which is obviously thier core market but I imagine might be a bit frustrating for couples or solo travellers. I will review the park and 2 on site restaurants seperately.

We stayed at the Hex hotel for 1 night. We booked as a deal where we got 2 days park tickets included, which was reasonable value, when considering the price of day tickets. This was a special occasion- son's birthday - so we were happy to pay a bit more than we would for a night away with the kids. We paid a bit extra for a Parkside room with balcony, which I think was worthwhile. The parkside rooms without balconies have windows looking out to the park but I dont think this would have been nearly as good. If you do not have a Parkside room you will be looking out towards the shop courtyard/car park area. That said, there is a limited amount of animals you will see from the hotel no matter what room you have - the maned wolfs, tapirs and bush dogs (possibly the sea lions if you are lucky - although there was a big tree in front of our room that prevented viewing that far). The maned wolves were quite active evening and morning. We only seen the tapirs in the evening - no sign of them at all in the morning. On the other hand, we didn't see the bush dogs at all on day 1 but they were active in the morning of day 2 - once the keeper had done her round at breakfast time. There are many positives. The rooms are done to a pretty high standard. I think decor could be a bit funkier/more modern but they have " played it safe". Shower was very good. Bed was comfy. Slept well. Kids liked their bunk beds. Balcony was a good size. Good to have an iron and ironing board. Tea/coffee tray was great. Small fridge in room - great for drinks after dinner due to lack of places open beyond 9pm (see below!). I also liked the room next to the lift where you could get water /ice and there was vending machines. Some negatives. The balcony furniture isn't great. 2 chairs and a very small 'side table' - not great for 4 people. Inside the room - no real seating there other than a small stool at the dressing table area and a beanbag (which was quite flat - not many beans!). Hardly any mirrors. 1 "hidden" mirror ( lift up lid on dressing table area to find this!). Otherwise the mirror next to the bed was very narrow and not much use. To me the hotel has a lot of potential but lacks atmosphere. I think it would benefit from having the reception in same building as hotel - not across the courtyard (seems a strange set up!). Also, having the restaurant - where you eat breakfast in a separate building is a bit odd. When raining you need to go out of front of hotel in rain to get into building next door to have brekkie! I think there would be more atmosphere if the bistro/bar and reception were all in the hotel. Breakfast was of a pretty good standard for a buffet - again a few things missing to prevent 5 stars! Some more fresh fruit, pancakes/waffles and hash browns would be good additions. I think this place has a lot of potential. It's July - the weather was lovely on the night of our stay but everything seems to close early. Shops and coffee shop in courtyard